Never Surrender - Embee's Journey

[Embee]

Before I shift this thing into gear, here's some background info first:
The name's Maurice, currently 27 years old and I live in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. I'm no stranger to the gym as I did some GPP training for my other sports, tennis and cricket, when I was younger and later on for motorcycle racing as well. Things only got serious when about 2.5 years ago I had a big crash during a race. I'm not here to sound all melodramatic, but it did actually nearly kill me.
It meant the end of racing and the start of quite a long road to recovery. My left shoulder is permanently damaged, so its movement is impaired to the extent I currently can't do overhead exercises like military presses, but incline and flat stuff is no problem. Even though progress on the shoulder has pretty much come to a halt, I'll keep trying to improve its mobility. Aside from that, one of my upper bicep tendons is no longer attached and because they discovered that too late they were unable to reattach it. Sometimes the remaining tendon is a bit sore, but apart from that it's ok. Ow, and there's a plate in my wrist, holding some stuff together. Gave me a cool scar!
As part of my rehabilitation my physical therapist had me do plenty of exercises, most of which I had to do in a gym. I kept adding more and more exercises and despite the pain I started to enjoy pushing myself. I am also lucky to have an extremely supportive physical therapist and she still continues to support me.
Sports have always been an outlet for me, so I tried to improve as quickly as I could and started reading about strength training. I already knew about powerlifting and of all the types of strenght training, this was the one that appealed to me the most. To say it's become a hobby would be an understatement.

As most beginners I started out with Starting Strength about 1.5 years ago (May 2013), but had to undergo surgery on my shoulder about 5 months in. I've been able to get back at it since January 2014, continuing Starting Strenght but starting from an empty bar again. Even though my shoulder has kept me from progressing as fast as I wanted to, things are going pretty wel now.
I've noticed that things are starting to feel properly heavy now and progress is slowly grinding to a halt. I've been looking into different types of training programmes and I have decided to give Madcow's 5x5 to see if I can continue to progress at a steady pace. Unfortunately I will have to substitute the press with either incline bench or perhaps incline dumbell press due to those shoulder mobility issues.
After the accident I wasn't able to do much for quite a while, but that didn't stop me from trying to gain some weight. I had lost quite a bit of weight, even though I was already a pretty skinny dude and wasn't too happy about that. That ended up biting me in the ass though, as I now feel I could lose some of that bodyfat first before bulking up again. So yeah, I might give cutting a go as well.

Obviously I also have a life outside of the gym. Before the accident, I worked as a freelance graphic designer. After the accident though, I decided I didn't want to spend my days behind a desk so I'm pursuing another passion I've always wanted to explore, which is photography, mainly motorsports. It's a tough world to get into and it would be silly of me to expect to go from nothing to being able to pay all the bills so I needed another job. With my passion for sports, it made sense to get into this more and since March this year I also work part-time as a gym instructor in the gym I also train at. It's a fairly big commercial gym especially for Dutch standards, but we have a squatrack, so I'm good.
I also have an incredibly supportive girlfriend and we've been together for almost 3 years now. At the start of this year she started working out as well and even though she's really not into sports much, she's doing very well. She's squatting, benching and deadlifting and she really cleaned up her diet, so I'm very proud of her!


As far as the training log goes:
I'll try and update after every workout. It will not only include the weights, reps and sets, but also notes on how I felt the training went and perhaps even a silly story of my adventures in the gym or whatever is on my mind at the time.
Since I also have a more than decent camera, I had a brief chat with my manager and he's ok with me filming my training as long as I train when it's not that busy. That means I'll have to be there at 7am, but I'm ok with that so expect some videos at some point as well.


Current stats:
Bodyweight - 82kg/180lbs
Fat percentage - 17% (estimate)
Squat - 130kg/286lbs (5RM)
Bench - 90kg/198lbs (5RM)
Deadlift - 155/342lbs (5RM), 190kg/419lbs (1RM)


Current goals:
Squat 200kg
Deadlift 230kg
Bench 130kg


Additional notes:
If you have any questions or advice, please do not hesitate to post. Even though this is a training log, for me it's about the engagement.

[Lethall105]

Good luck mate, will be checking in!

All the best
Lethall

[Embee]

So, had my first training of Madcow's 5x5 today!

The programme advises you to hit your current 5RM's in week 4, so that's what I've planned for. Anything beyond that will be PR's.
I really don't know how many weeks I'll be able to keep setting PR's, but I'm shooting for four.

All weights are in kilograms. I'm used to the following notation, so I'll continue to use that here: sets x reps x weight


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x60.5
1x5x75.5
1x5x90.5
1x5x105.5
1x5x120.5

Bench:
1x5x42
1x5x52
1x5x62.5
1x5x73
1x5x83.5

Pendlay Row:
1x5x44
1x5x55
1x5x66
1x5x77
1x5x88


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press (on the leg press):
3x8x151kg

Pull-up:
3x6xBW+10kg

Dip:
3x6xBW+10kg

Face Pull:
2x8x27kg
1x8x32kg

HIIT (on spinning bike)
30 seconds high intensity followed by 60 seconds low intensity. Repeated ten times.


Notes:
Overall the training went ok. Perhaps due to lack of sleep last night the last set of squats felt really heavy, but my form still felt decent throughout the set.
With benching, I did a two count pause on the first 3 sets. The final two were touch-and-go. I've always benched tough-and-go so far, so I'm still practicing proper technique for the paused reps.
I kept the assistance fairly light. Did some calves because they're way too skinny. Dips and chins to hit the arms a bit and added some face pulls as well.
My left shoulder wasn't too happy with those weighted dips, but the pain quickly subsided, so I will slowly be adding more weight to those and see how the shoulder holds up.
I've also started doing some HIIT to help me improve my physical fitness and to help lose some bodyfat.

In addition to the new training programme, I also took a good look at my diet and although it's pretty decent, it still has plenty of room for improvement.
Over the weekend I've done some math and will do the shopping for the new diet tomorrow. Very keen to see if I will notice the difference.
My goals is to slowly cut to a bodyfat percentage I feel good at before bulking up again. Not that I'm fat or worried about it, but it does help me learn more about cutting and bulking.

[rainman]

Hi. Decent looking Journey so far. I am quite interested to see how Madcow will go for you. Especially in KGs!

A different level of badness, I know, but I tore my AC a few years back which meant no over head pressing, benching, or even being able to raise my arm past 90 degrees too. It's fixed now, (after a full reset too), but I still get the odd ache in my shoulder. I have found paused benching has certainly helped with any aches I have had which was common for touch & go, plus I have ditched dips altogether.

[Embee]

Hi. Decent looking Journey so far. I am quite interested to see how Madcow will go for you. Especially in KGs!

A different level of badness, I know, but I tore my AC a few years back which meant no over head pressing, benching, or even being able to raise my arm past 90 degrees too. It's fixed now, (after a full reset too), but I still get the odd ache in my shoulder. I have found paused benching has certainly helped with any aches I have had which was common for touch & go, plus I have ditched dips altogether.

Thanks man! So am I. It's my first programme after Starting Strength, but I feel this is a solid choice to try and keep the progress steady.
I'm currently already researching what programme to do after this though, just because I like learning more about it. But first, we have to milk that Madcow!

Glad to hear your shoulder is ok now! Mine is basically f*cked up beyond repair. Supposedly there's a dent in the humeral head and a piece was chipped off the glenoid. The piece sort of got back in the right place again, with the emphasis on 'sort of'.
I might go back to the orthopedic surgeon again at some point just to have him check if there are any options left to fix it, but I've already lost so much time having to recover from the accident and the first surgery, I'm not that keen on losing even more time.

So far benching hasn't given me any real problems when it comes to the shoulder. Only when going relatively heavy is when I felt a very light pain, which was gone by the end of the day. After having your shoulder so violently dislocated, most pain now classifies as light though...
I will definitely keep pausing on the lighter sets and if at some point I do start feeling a lot of pain I'll certainly give switching to paused for all the sets a go! So far the dips aren't the most pleasant, but they do also help with mobility and flexibility. Will ditch them as soon as they end up hurting a lot.

[Embee]

Second Madcow training!


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x60.5
1x5x75.5
2x5x90.5

Incline Bench Press:
1x5x43.5
1x5x52
1x5x61
1x4x69.5

Deadlift:
1x5x90
1x5x108
1x5x126
1x5x144


Assistance exercises:

Lying Leg Curl:
3x8x41kg

Calf Press:
3x8x154kg

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
2x8x23kg

Lateral Raise:
2x8x6kg

Paused Box Jumps
4x15x76cm/30inch


Notes:
Felt pretty weird to not really go heavy with the squats. I almost felt quilty.
Next comes the incline bench. The programme calls for presses, but I can't press straight up and they hurt my shoulder too much, so I substituted them with the incline bench press.
Apparently I screwed something up in the spreadsheet, because I could only do the final set for four reps. That's not supposed to happen this early in the programme...
So I just had a look at the spreadsheet and realised I put in the wrong number as my 5RM for incline. Doh! It's fixed now and next time the weight should go up easier and five times instead of four.
N no problems when it comes to the deadlift. Did go to mixed grip on the final set.
When it comes to assistance, it made sense for me to do some leg curls today. Nothing too heavy, apart from calves. Need to hit those tiny bastards hard!
The shoulder exercises were more of a mobility exercise for me, as the momentum can help me get the left shoulder to move a but further than usual. which for some reason feels sort of good despite the slight pain that goes with it.
The paused box jumps got my hartrate up quite a bit! I started doing them last week and want to see if I can increase my explosive strength. The way I do them is I get into the bottom position of the squat, pause for two counts and then jump on the box, which in this case is 76 centimeters (30 inches) high.

[Lethall105]

Strong pulling, and loving the volume.

All the best
Lethall

[Embee]

Strong pulling, and loving the volume.



Thanks! I've only had 2 days of Madcow, but the volume feels pretty good. It's only one heavy set really, so it's very manageable.
I'm sure it'll get more taxing when I move into PR territory.

[Embee]

Yesterday's training concluded the first week of Madcow!


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x60.5
1x5x75.5
1x5x90.5
1x5x105.5
1x3x123.5
1x8x90.5

Bench Press:
1x5x42
1x5x52
1x5x62.5
1x5x73
1x3x85.5
1x8x62.5

Pendlay Row:
1x5x44
1x5x55
1x5x66
1x5x77
1x3x90
1x8x66


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
3x8x159kg

Cable Curl (one arm):
3x8x23kg

Cable Pushdown (one arm)
3x8x27kg

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
2x10x27kg

Lateral Raise (dumbell):
2x10x6kg


Notes:
My girl had the day off and I had the evening shift in the gym, so we went to the gym together. She had to do squat, bench and deadlift so we squated and benched together. It took the pace out the of the training a bit, but that didn't bother me.
The last set of eights reps on the main exercises felt good. The weight for those sets suddently felt pretty light after the heavy set of tree.
I managed to do paused reps on all the sets of the bench press, except for the heavy set of three. It felt like I managed to stay tighter during the pauses compared to Monday, which was pretty much the first time I did paused reps. More practice needed, but so far so good.
Added some bi's and tri's as assistance to satisfy my inner beachboy and some shoulder work mostly as a mobility exercise.

This also was the last workout of the first week of Madcow and my overall impression is a positive one. I'm curious to see what happens after week four, when I'm supposed to start setting PR's on the main lifts.

Have a nice weekend!

[Lethall105]

Moving some strong weight, liking it man! How do the rear delt fly's on the machine feel for you? I can't stand using the machine in my gym, much prefer doing flys lying face down on a bench or doing them on cables.

All the best
Lethall

[Embee]

Thanks, we're getting there!

For me the rear delt fly's on the machine are nicer than dumbells or cables, since the movement is being controlled a lot more. This allows me to focus more on moving my shoulder as far back as possible using a bit of momentum and get a nice stretch.
When I use dumbells or cables it just become a struggle to move both shoulders equally as much, while with the machine I can let the left shoulder (the shitty one) lead the movement and I will move the right just as much.
It might not be the best choice for muscle development, but I mainly do this exercise for that stretch and to see if it'll help improve my shoulder mobility.

[Embee]

Another day, another workout.


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x62kg
1x5x77kg
(1x5x82.5kg)
1x5x92.5kg
1x5x108kg
1x5x123.5kg

Bench Press:
1x5x43kg
1x5x53.5kg
1x5x64kg
1x5x75kg
1x5x85.5kg

Pendlay Row:
1x5x45kg
1x5x56.5kg
1x5x67.5kg
1x5x79kg
1x5x90kg


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
3x8x159kg

Pull-up:
2x8xBW+10kg (rep PR)
1x6xBW+10kg

Dip:
2x8xBW+10kg (rep PR
1x6xBW+10kg

Rear Delt Fly (machine)
2x10x29kg

Lateral Raise (dumbell)
2x10x8kg


Notes:
Accidentally did an extra set of squats, doh! Last set felt quite heavy and the last rep definitely wasn't a fast one, but I'll just blame that extra set. Bench press went well, as did the rows.
Assistance work was nothing special either, but especially the pull-ups went well. I really tried to keep a slightly higher pace than usual, while still fully extending my arms in the bottom position.

I realise Madcow 5x5 might not be the most inspiring or crazy programme to follow, so I promise I'll pick something a bit more 'exciting' next time.
Have to grind this programme out first though and see how far I can go with this.

I've also decided that when I achieve my first set of goals (see opening post) or in two years time (whichever comes first), I'll do a meet.
If the meet goes well, I might even set the Dutch Championship as a long term goal.


Random stuff:
One of our members, an incredibly yummy mummy (doesn't that sound way better than MILF?), complemented me on my progress so far. She could really tell the difference compared to when had just started working there.
Now to me lifting a tonne of weight matters more than how I look, but I was still flattered, obviously. Why am I telling you this? No idea! Maybe to caress my ego again, haha!
Ow, I also had to spot a guy doing half squats. He's a genuinely nice guy and he know he does half squats when the weight gets a bit too heavy for him, so I let it slide.

[Lethall105]

Good to see you have added weight on the pullups and dips, how is the shoulder feeling with that?

All the best
Lethall

[Embee]

Good to see you have added weight on the pullups and dips, how is the shoulder feeling with that?


Ha, sometimes you need a little kick in the butt and seeing you do those weighted dips and pull-ups in your journey was that little kick.

I'm still carefull going into the hanging position when doing the pull-ups, but that does make sure I start every rep from a dead hang. No pain at all.
The weighted dips are a bit less pleasant for the shoulder, but I'm not worried. The pain is minimal and quickly subsides anyway. It also seems to give a nice stretch so unless the pain gets a lot worse, I'll to keep doing them.

Thanks for asking man!

[John Grey]

Good stuff so far!! I will be following along for sure!

[Embee]

Today was a good day, but I did do something naughty though...


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x62kg
1x5x77kg
2x5x92.5kg

Incline Bench Press:
1x5x39kg
1x5x46.5kg
1x5x54.5kg
1x5x62kg

Deadlift:
1x5x92kg
1x5x110.5kg
1x5x129kg
1x5x147.5kg


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
3x8x159kg

Lying Leg Curl:
3x8x41kg

Face Pull:
3x10x20kg


Notes:
After last week's small screw up on the incline bench I recalculated the weights and it went a lot better today. I can feel there's plenty of room to get some steady progress, instead of prematurely stalling.
Deadlifts wents well. Did have some trouble with my grip on the third set, as I could feel it slipping a bit, while normall I don't struggle to hold that weight with double overhand grip.
When the weight goes above 140kg I have to swap to mixed grip, so that's what I did for the last set. I haven't exactly neglected to train my grip, but I guess it needs more attention.

Now onto the naughty bit... I've been cutting slowly for the past 2 weeks now and have been sticking to the diet. Today though, I could not control myself and ate almost half a chocolate bar. It was absolutely delicious, so even though I feel guilty, there are no regrets!

While my cut isn't a rigorous one, I'm sure it'll slow my progress somewhat, especially if I lower my caloric intake even further. I'm fine with that, but I can't wait to start bulking again! I've always been a really skinny guy, so the fact that I'm cutting now feels pretty absurd.

[Embee]

Yesterday was quite a busy day, so had to go train in the evening instead of in the morning. But it got done, which is the important thing.


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x62kg
1x5x77kg
1x5x92.5kg
1x5x108kg
1x3x126.5kg
1x8x92.5kg

Bench Press:
1x5x43kg
1x5x53.5kg
1x5x64kg
1x5x75kg
1x3x87.5kg
1x8x64kg

Pendlay Row:
1x5x45kg
1x5x56.5kg
1x5x67.5kg
1x5x79kg
1x3x92.5kg
1x8x67.5


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
3x10x159kg

Pull-up:
3x8xBW+10kg

Dip:
3x8xBW+10kg


Notes:
Had to work out in the evening. Didn't feel that great while working out, after a long day at a sales and communication training. The fact that I got a sales and communication training should tell you enough about the type of gym I work at...
I'm also wondering if the 2.5% per week jumps aren't too big, especially during a cut, but we'll see when we get to that. I can always adjust the steps per week to 2.5kg on squat and deadlift and perhaps 1.5kg on the bench press.

[rainman]

I'm also wondering if the 2.5% per week jumps aren't too big, especially during a cut, but we'll see when we get to that. I can always adjust the steps per week to 2.5kg on squat and deadlift and perhaps 1.5kg on the bench press.
I have been running a 4 week block deadlift program that I am adding 2.5KGs to each cycle. So far, so good, even if there is a lot of repetition between weeks, (week 2 of a new cycle is the same as week 3 of the previous one, if that makes sense?) However, 2.5KGs x12 is a 30KG gain in a year, or 32.5KGs I suppose over 52 weeks. If you feel you are going to stall or your form is going to suffer, then keep the increases lower, if at all.


Deadlifts wents well. Did have some trouble with my grip on the third set, as I could feel it slipping a bit, while normall I don't struggle to hold that weight with double overhand grip.
When the weight goes above 140kg I have to swap to mixed grip, so that's what I did for the last set. I haven't exactly neglected to train my grip, but I guess it needs more attention.
Have you tried hook gripping? I'll start with this disclaimer: it is not for everyone and your thumbs will feel smashed to bits. However, I have been using this grip solely on my deads for over 6 months now and I have felt my set up has benefitted from it. I have also set a 1RM using it and recently had my hams give up before my grip on a 200KG triple. I mainly chose it as I felt I was getting a muscle imbalance using a mixed grip, plus the callouses around my wedding ring were becoming a real issue. I do feel mixed on sumos feel more natural with the arms straight down, but as I have been using conventional since starting hook gripping I have had no problems.

[Embee]

If the weekly increase of 2.5% is a bit too much, I'll definitely lower it to a set amount of kilograms instead. I feel like I can still make weekly progress, as I see it as a natural progression from the increase every training with Starting Strength. Want to give this Mad Cow a good shot beforeit's sent to slaughter.
I guess it's just figuring out how fast I can still progress and I'd rather try some relatively big jumps first, fail and adjust than starting with relatively small jumps and perhaps not progress as fast as I could have. This might not be the best way, but this does give me the peace of mind that I'm maximising my progress.

Will definitely give that hook grip a try Wednesday! Usually that weight isn't a problem, but that day it just felt a bit off. I'll work on the hook grip though, as I've never really tried it before so perhaps I'll like it more than the mixed grip. Any tips or things I should keep in mind?

[Embee]

Week 3 of this crazy cow business...

Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x63.5kg
1x5x79kg
1x5x95kg
1x5x110.5kg
1x5x126.5kg

Bench Press:
1x5x44kg (P)
1x5x54.5kg (P)
1x5x65.5kg (P)
1x5x76.5kg (P)
1x5x87.5kg (TnG)

Pendlay Row:
1x5x46.5kg
1x5x58kg
1x5x69.5kg
1x5x81kg
1x5x92.5kg


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
1x15x141kg
1x15x136kg
1x15x127kg

Pull-up:
2x8xBW+10kg

Dip:
2x8xBW+10kg


Notes:
Jezus, that last set of squats felt heavy! The last rep was a bit of a grinder, but I got it done. I've never done a set that felt heavier than this one, even though this is still 3.5 kilograms below my 5RM, which I set just 4 weeks ago.
The first four sets on the bench were paused reps and I'd say that's going quite well. Getting better at staying tight during the pause. Last set was touch and go, but I completed the set without too much of a struggle. My spotter even said I could've easily done another rep.
Had to hurry a bit during assistance work, since I had to go to my physical therapist right after training. It's 'just' assistance anyway, so not too worried about that. Did decide to try a higher rep range on the calf press though. Calfs were on FIRE afterwards!

Next week I'm supposed to equal my 5RM's, but that's going to be quite the challenge when it comes to the squat. Pretty weird, considering that four weeks ago my 5 rep max on the squat felt less hard than the 5 rep max on the bench. Ah well...

[rainman]

Will definitely give that hook grip a try Wednesday! Usually that weight isn't a problem, but that day it just felt a bit off. I'll work on the hook grip though, as I've never really tried it before so perhaps I'll like it more than the mixed grip. Any tips or things I should keep in mind?

Well first of all, remember I said it isn't for everyone. Initially the pain was so great that it took about 50KG off my deadlift and that was for a single rep. It is making progress, but it is still painful and is probably something that will never truly go. I've got a black bruise under my left thumbnail from Friday's efforts. I used mixed grip for years, as have thousands of other lifters, and have had no problems with bicep tears etc., but went with this because I am stubborn! Tip wise...
1) I would say initially wrap your thumbs. The IPF rules state you can use surgical tape round your thumbs. I used kinesiology tape and only removed this in the last month or so. Chalk without the tape for sure, but I never used it when using the tape. I think kinesiology tape aided my grip to be honest.
2) Bit of a weird tip here, but jump in the air 5 times. Where your feet come to rest on the fifth is your most stable stance apparently, (got this tip from a very smart chap). This is where I set my feet for deadlifting.
3) I grip the bar as close to my legs as possible, but always slightly angled. 90 degrees down I find busts up my thumbs more, but slightly out is better. Too wide and the lift is compromised I feel.
4) If you can get a deadlift bar, or one with decent knurling, then this is always preferable. Those really wide piece of shit bars you get in commercial gyms with knurling softer than my stubble? Forget it.
5) Grip the bar both arms at the same time, open your palms and wrap your thumbs round first - I find rolling the bar in my hands works so you can see where they are placed - before placing your middle/index fingers over the thumb.
6) Take the tension out the bar. You should feel slight pressure on your thumbs. This will get worse! Fire off with your legs and off you go. You should find that with the discomfort you tend to get more leg drive, if only to get it over with.
7) No shame in using straps. Well, there is, but as the deadlift is a single lift exercise, you can use these in your training, so long as you hook grip where it counts, (one rep maxes, competitions etc).
8) Look up videos of Brad Gillingham, Vince Urbank or Layne Norton for good examples of hook grippers.
Good luck. I've had a few people come up to me in the gym and ask me what I am doing and have gained a bit of a reputation for my hook gripping. Plus it looks alpha, even with lighter weights.

[Embee]

...but went with this because I am stubborn!

Ha, you're not the only one! Thanks for all the tips man, I appreciate it.

[Embee]

Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x63.5kg
1x5x79kg
2x5x95kg

Incline Bench Press:
1x5x40kg
1x5x47.5kg
1x5x55.5kg
1x5x63.5kg

Deadlift:
1x5x94.5kg
1x5x113.5kg
1x5x132.5kg
1x5x151.5kg
1x1x151.kg


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
3x15x127kg

Lying Leg Curl:
3x8x41kg

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
3x8x27kg

Lateral raise:
3x8x6kg


Notes:
So everything went pretty well and I felt pretty good throughout the training. First three sets of deadlifts were done with double overhand grip, fourth set with mixed grip. I also tried a hook grip for one last rep, as suggested by Rainman. It hurt like hell, but will definitely try it more often to see if I prefer it over mixed grip.
I also ordered two pairs of Captains of Crush, the Trainer and the #1. Not because my grip is an issue, but more because having a strong grip is badass.

I've also adjusted my diet again, nothing major though, but I feel there's a better balance now. Since beginning my cut three weeks ago, I went from just over 17% bodyfat to 14.5%. The goal is to go just under 10% and then start bulking again.
Not really expecting to set any new 5RM's until then, but I'm ok with that. Cutting has forced me to learn a lot more about how to construct a proper diet and with this knowledge I feel like the upcoming bulk should provide me with some nice gains, both in strenght and mass.

[J U S T I N]

Great work man. I actually just started a Madcow cycle this week, I am going to start a thread here soon to log my progress.

Where did you find the info for all of the accessory exercises to do? pull ups, dips, calves, face pulls... etc. Are you looking at changing them as your cycle goes on? Have you noticed these helping significantly with the major lifts?

[Embee]

Great work man. I actually just started a Madcow cycle this week, I am going to start a thread here soon to log my progress.

Where did you find the info for all of the accessory exercises to do? pull ups, dips, calves, face pulls... etc. Are you looking at changing them as your cycle goes on? Have you noticed these helping significantly with the major lifts?

Thanks man! Good call on the log, it's a lot more engaging than just writing everything down in a book.

I pretty much got all of my information on Madcow 5x5 right here:
http://madcow.wackyhq.com/geocities/5x5_Program/Linear_5x5.htm

And the spreadsheet I use is found here:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=4712653&d=1343498236

As you can see, I don't really stick to the suggested assistance exercises.
The reasoning behind doing the shoulder exercises is that my left shoulder is permanently damaged from a a motorcycle crash. These exercises help my mobility and flexibility.
I do think the dips and pull-ups help the other lifts. They're solid compound movements that hit your arms, but also your back and chest, so I think they're great to build strength and mass.
If you're unsure on what assistance exercises to do, stick to what is suggested in the article from the top link for a while and you can always adjust later.

I think even when it comes to assistance exercises you should try and progress, so I tend to keep the exercises roughly the same to be able to actually progress instead of just randomly switching. If you pick an assistance exercise, I would personally stick to it atleast for four weeks.
Assistance exercises should at no point interfere with your training though, so I tend to not go too crazy with it.

Good luck with the programme man, once you get your log going I'll definitely check it!

[Embee]

Last session of this week and went to the gym together with the girlfriend again. Now it's time to enjoy the weekend!


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x63.5kg
1x5x79kg
1x5x95kg
1x5x110.5kg
1x3x130kg
1x8x95kg

Bench Press:
1x5x44kg (P)
1x5x54.5kg (P)
1x5x65.5kg (P)
1x5x76.5kg (P)
1x3x90kg (TnG)
1x8x65.5kg (P)

Pendlay Row:
1x5x46.5kg
1x5x58kg
1x5x69.5kg
1x5x81kg
1x3x95kg
1x8x69.5kg


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
2x15x127kg

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
3x10x27kg

Lateral Raise (dumbell):
3x10x4kg

Barbell Curl:
2x10x31.5kg
1x8x31.5kg

Skull Crusher:
2x10x30.5kg
1x8x30.5kg


Extra Assistance Exercises:
1 full hour of super heavy amazingly intense bowling with the girlfriend!


Notes:
Today I had to do triples with the weights of my current 5RM's, so I knew it was going to be heavy. But hey, the weights moved in the direction they were supposed to. Monday is going to be a tough one, as I have to equal my current 5RM's but at a lower bodyweight.

Girlfriend did some cardio while I moved on to assistance exercises, so was able to throw in some curls and crushers to hit the arms. Other than that, some light shoulder stuff to just loosen them up a bit.

My girl and I both had the rest of the day off, so we decided to go bowling. Geeky, I know, but we had a coupon for 1 hour of free bowling. Definitely had some fun and I won, but it was too close for comfort...

[Embee]

Damn, today felt good! Let's get right to it...


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x65kg
1x5x81.5kg
1x5x97.5kg
1x5x114kg
1x5x130kg (old 5RM)

Bench Press:
1x5x45kg (P)
1x5x56.5kg (P)
1x5x67.5kg (P)
1x5x79kg (TnG)
1x5x90kg (TnG) (old 5RM)

Pendlay Row:
1x5x47.5kg
1x5x59.5kg
1x5x71.5kg
1x5x83kg
1x5x95kg (old 5RM)


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
1x15x127kg

Pull-up:
3x8xBW+10kg

Dip:
3x8xBW+10kg

Lateral Raise (dumbell):
3x10x4kg

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
3x10x27kg


Notes:
Man, today felt good! Had a shitty night, but hyped myself up this morning by watching some powerlifting videos and couldn't wait to hit the weights. If there's one word I could describe today's workout, it would be 'FOCUSSED'.
Today I equalled most of my old 5RM's I set just over 4 weeks ago, but now at a lower bodyweight (3kg lighter).

Last week I ordered a pair of SBD knee sleeves and got them last friday, so today was the first day I could use them.
So far, I can't say a bad thing about them. The heating in the gym is broken at the moment, so first of all they kept my knees warm between sets. My knees also felt a lot more stable, so yeah, I'm a happy chappy.

Instead of progressing 2.5% every week, I might decrease this to the set amounts of 1.5kg on the squat and deadlift and 1kg on the bench and row, which is about 1%.
Especially since I'm cutting, I feel this is progress I can still manage and will be satisfied with. I do hope that when I start bulking again, I'll be able to progress at a slightly faster rate again.

A slight change I made in my diet has had a positive effect. Overall energy level seems better and the bodyweight is still dropping slowly.

[J U S T I N]

Thanks man! Good call on the log, it's a lot more engaging than just writing everything down in a book.

I pretty much got all of my information on Madcow 5x5 right here:
http://madcow.wackyhq.com/geocities/5x5_Program/Linear_5x5.htm

And the spreadsheet I use is found here:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=4712653&d=1343498236

As you can see, I don't really stick to the suggested assistance exercises.
The reasoning behind doing the shoulder exercises is that my left shoulder is permanently damaged from a a motorcycle crash. These exercises help my mobility and flexibility.
I do think the dips and pull-ups help the other lifts. They're solid compound movements that hit your arms, but also your back and chest, so I think they're great to build strength and mass.
If you're unsure on what assistance exercises to do, stick to what is suggested in the article from the top link for a while and you can always adjust later.

I think even when it comes to assistance exercises you should try and progress, so I tend to keep the exercises roughly the same to be able to actually progress instead of just randomly switching. If you pick an assistance exercise, I would personally stick to it atleast for four weeks.
Assistance exercises should at no point interfere with your training though, so I tend to not go too crazy with it.

Good luck with the programme man, once you get your log going I'll definitely check it!

Just got my log started last night.

Thanks a lot for the info bud, I appreciate it. That first link is a great read. I like your reasoning behind the dips and pull ups... I'm going to start with those for the first month of the program and see where I'm at.

[Nix0r]

Looking good in here!

I also started a similar type of full-body split, so I'm excited to see where it goes.

[Embee]

Just got my log started last night.

Thanks a lot for the info bud, I appreciate it. That first link is a great read. I like your reasoning behind the dips and pull ups... I'm going to start with those for the first month of the program and see where I'm at.

No problem at all man, glad I could help! I'll definitely drop by in your journey thread.


Looking good in here!

I also started a similar type of full-body split, so I'm excited to see where it goes.

Thanks!

As long as you don't hit yourself in the junk again, I bet you'll do well.

[Embee]

Felt like setting a PR today, not because I was feeling particularly good or anything, but just because I wanted to.


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x65kg
1x5x81.5kg
2x5x97.5kg

Incline Bench Press:
1x5x40.5kg
1x5x49kg
1x5x57kg
1x5x65kg (old 5RM)

Deadlift:
1x5x97kg
1x5x116.5kg
1x5x135.5kg
1x1x155kg
1x1x180kg
1x1x200kg (PR)
1x5x155kg (old 5RM)


Assistance exercises:

Lying Leg Curl:
3x10x41kg

Calf Press:
3x15x127kg

Lateral Raise (dumbell):
3x10x4kg

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
3x10x27kg

Cable Curl (one arm):
2x10x20kg

superset with

Cable Pushdown (one arm):
2x10x23kg


Notes:
Well, eh... FUCK YEAH! Deadlifted 200kg at a bodyweight of 79kg! It's a 10kg PR and I've dropped some weight since I set the previous PR. Got this silly grin on my face now, haha. Feeling really confident about setting new 3RM PR's this Friday and new 5RM PR's on Monday.

As usual I kept the assistance pretty light. I even did some bi's and tri's because I was still on a high from deadlifting.

Pics or it didn't happen?

http://i61.tinypic.com/t0m8ic.jpg

[Jeppeehh]

Congrats to the PB! Not bad when doing deads last of the three main lifts (if you did it in the written order...) Now it's my time getting that 200kg lol, wouldnt mind a 180 squat before 200 deadlift though, 20kg left.

[rainman]

Congratulations on the deadlift PR. 200KG was always a sticking point for me.

[John Grey]

Awesome PR!! Good stuff!!!

[J U S T I N]

Nice brother! Keep bending those bars!

[Embee]

Congrats to the PB! Not bad when doing deads last of the three main lifts (if you did it in the written order...) Now it's my time getting that 200kg lol, wouldnt mind a 180 squat before 200 deadlift though, 20kg left.

Thanks! Yeah, the order I in which I write everything down here is the same order as I did the exercises in the gym. On Wednesday the squats are pretty light though, so I don't get beat up too much before the deadlifts. I've never really tested my 1RM for bench and squat, so might have to give that a go soon to see where I'm at.

You'll crush that 200kg soon enough man! Will keep an eye on your log for sure.


Congratulations on the deadlift PR. 200KG was always a sticking point for me.


Awesome PR!! Good stuff!!!


Nice brother! Keep bending those bars!

Thanks for the kind words brothers!!

[Embee]

There we go, into PR territory from here on out...


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x65kg
1x5x81.5kg
1x5x97.5kg
1x5x114kg
1x3x131.5 (3RM PR)
1x8x97.5kg

Bench Press:
1x5x45kg (P)
1x5x56.5kg (P)
1x5x67.5kg (P)
1x5x79kg (TnG)
1x3x91kg (TnG) (3RM PR)
1x8x67.5 (TnG)

Pendlay Row:
1x5x47.5kg
1x5x59.5kg
1x5x71.5kg
1x5x83kg
1x3x96kg (3RM PR)
1x8x71.5kg


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
3x15x127kg

Cable Curl (one arm):
2x10x20kg

Cable Pushdown (one arm):
2x10x23kg

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
1x12x27kg


Notes:

Setting new PR's always feels good, even though they're just a small improvement over the previous ones. The new 3RM on the squat felt good, so should be able to hit that weight for a set of five on monday. Same goes for the row.

Bench is still where it's difficult for me, as that's where my shoulder comes in and tries to fuck things up. Will keep pushing for a bit longer though, as I now have enough experience to know when I can keep pushing and when to just hold back or take a break.

Shoulder felt pretty beat up after the main exercises, so instead of dips and pull-ups I decided to just take it easy this time and allow it to recover in preparation for Monday's session in the gym and at the physical therapist.

[Embee]

Set some new 5RM's today


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x66kg
1x5x82kg
1x5x98.5
1x5x115
1x5x131.5kg (5RM PR)

Bench Press:
1x5x45.5kg (P)
1x5x57 (P)
1x5x68.5kg (TnG)
1x5x79.5kg (TnG)
1x5x91kg (TnG) (5RM PR)

Bent-over Row:
1x5x48kg
1x5x60kg
1x5x72kg
1x5x84kg
1x5x96kg (5RM PR)


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
1x12x132kg

Pull-up:
3x8xBW+10kg

Dip:
3x8xBW+10kg


Notes:

Last rep on the bench was an absolute grinder, the slowest one I've ever had, but luckily I had a good spotter that knew not to touch the bar as long as it was moving.

Tried 'conventional' rows this time instead of Pendlay rows, just to see how they would feel. Don't know which one I prefer yet, but today the normal rows felt good.

No work on the shoulder today, as I had to go to physical therapy pretty much right after training. The therapy hurts like hell, so didn't want to put too much stress on the shoulder before going there.

I also want to test my 1RM for both squat and bench before the end of the year, so I know where I'm at. Might do that on the 2nd day of Christmas, while the gym is closed. Good thing I have the key though! Will have to figure out what the best way to do this is and maybe borrow a belt for the squat.

[Embee]

Drank some Juiced Amino's (Orange Juiced) during my training today... That stuff is delicious! Also helped me to feel less fatigued during my deadlifts!


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x66kg
1x5x82kg
2x5x98.5kg

Incline Bench Press:
1x5x41.5kg
1x5x49.5kg
1x5x58kg
1x5x66kg (5RM PR)

Deadlift:
1x5x100kg
1x5x120kg
1x5x140kg
1x5x156.5kg (5RM PR)


Assistance exercises:

Lying Leg Curl:
3x10x43kg

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
3x10x29kg

Shrug (dumbbell):
3x10x30kg


Notes:

Had to keep the pace high, as I had to work right after my training.

Used straps on the third set of deadlifts, as I wanted to see how it compared to a mixed grip. So far, I'm not really a fan as I felt somewhat 'disconnected' from the bar. Will stick to the mixed grip for the heavier sets for now.

Did some shrugs at the end, because I've decided I want bigger traps, haha! Next time I need to grab heavier dumbbells, but as I was in a bit of a rush near the end I just stuck to the 30kg dumbbells.

[Lethall105]

Grats on the PRs! I need to get myself some of the JA's, but atm I take BCAAs separately. Saw your link in the deals threads, might get some later tonight.

All the best
Lethall

[Embee]

Thanks man! Feels like there's not that much progress left to be made, as cutting definitely isn't the best for progress, but I'm still happy.

Yeah, those JA's are very nice. I ordered some Rage XL along with it, as I train very early in the morning and some days I feel I could use a little kick in the butt.
Might even put in another order, as I'm getting low on whey, creatine and pak. Then I might as well get some more of those JA's while I can still get one free, haha!

[Embee]

Man, today was a Rage XL fueled PR fest! Had some Juiced Amino's during my training as well, as I knew it was going to be a bit long.
The main effect I noticed from the Rage XL definitely was the intense focus I had throughout my training. I won't use it every workout, but this stuff sure is good!


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x66kg
1x5x82kg
1x5x98.5kg
1x5x115kg
1x3x133kg (3RM PR, but not for long)
1x3x140kg (3RM PR)
1x8x98.5kg

Bench Press:
1x5x45.5kg (P)
1x5x57kg (P)
1x5x68.5kg (TnG)
1x5x79.5kg (TnG)
1x3x92kg (TnG) (3RM PR)
1x8x68.5kg (P between 1 and 3 seconds, with start and press command given by spotter)

Pendlay Row:
1x5x48kg
1x5x60kg
1x5x72kg
1x5x84kg
1x3x97kg (3RM PR)
1x8x72kg


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
1x12x132kg

Standing Incline Fly (cable):
3x12x14kg

Chin-up:
1x10xBW, 2x8xBW

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
3x10x29kg

superset with

Lateral Raise (dumbbell):
3x10x4kg


Notes:

Well, what can I say? Deciding to do a single of 140kg but ending up doing a triple feels pretty damn good!
Last set on the bench was quite fun as well, as I got my friend/colleague to give me the start and press command, with the pause on the chest varying between 1 and 3 seconds. Definitely good practice!
Did the assistance I felt like doing, plus some shoulder work to loosen it up a bit.
Overall a workout I'm very pleased with!

And just for shits and giggles, here's a video of the 140kg triple:


https//www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcu0tBDqv8c

[Grizzly2000]

Man, today was a Rage XL fueled PR fest! Had some Juiced Amino's during my training as well, as I knew it was going to be a bit long.
The main effect I noticed from the Rage XL definitely was the intense focus I had throughout my training. I won't use it every workout, but this stuff sure is good!


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x66kg
1x5x82kg
1x5x98.5kg
1x5x115kg
1x3x133kg (3RM PR, but not for long)
1x3x140kg (3RM PR)
1x8x98.5kg

Bench Press:
1x5x45.5kg (P)
1x5x57kg (P)
1x5x68.5kg (TnG)
1x5x79.5kg (TnG)
1x3x92kg (TnG) (3RM PR)
1x8x68.5kg (P between 1 and 3 seconds, with start and press command given by spotter)

Pendlay Row:
1x5x48kg
1x5x60kg
1x5x72kg
1x5x84kg
1x3x97kg (3RM PR)
1x8x72kg


Assistance exercises:

Calf Press:
1x12x132kg

Standing Incline Fly (cable):
3x12x14kg

Chin-up:
1x10xBW, 2x8xBW

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
3x10x29kg

superset with

Lateral Raise (dumbbell):
3x10x4kg


Notes:

Well, what can I say? Deciding to do a single of 140kg but ending up doing a triple feels pretty damn good!
Last set on the bench was quite fun as well, as I got my friend/colleague to give me the start and press command, with the pause on the chest varying between 1 and 3 seconds. Definitely good practice!
Did the assistance I felt like doing, plus some shoulder work to loosen it up a bit.
Overall a workout I'm very pleased with!

And just for shits and giggles, here's a video of the 140kg triple:


https//www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcu0tBDqv8c

subbed.

[Embee]

As solid as Friday's workout felt, today's workout I felt like a turd in a washing machine - a shitty mess.


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x66.5kg
1x5x83kg
1x5x100kg
1x5x116.5kg
1x5x133kg (5RM PR)

*long break, see notes*

Bench Press:
1x5x46kg (P)
1x5x57.5kg (P)
1x5x69kg (TnG)
1x5x80.5kg (TnG)
1x4x92kg (TnG) (4RM PR) (failure on 5th rep)
1x10x60kg (P)

Bent-over Row:
1x5x48.5kg
1x5x60.5kg
1x5x73kg
1x5x85kg
1x5x97kg (5RM PR)


Assistance exercises:

Leg extension (machine):
2x12x41kg, 1x12x50kg

Calf Press:
1x12x132kg

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
3x12x29kg

Lateral Raise (dumbbell):
3x12x4kg

Standing Incline Fly (cable):
3x12x14kg



Notes:

Well, today was just shit. I'll get over it.
Squats felt heavy as hell, but dug deep and managed to complete my planned sets at the planned weights. I may or may not have let out a grunt or 2, haha!
Right after the squats I had a conversation with one of our long-time members. He's an older man and he is suffering from mental health issues. A bit over 3 years ago my aunt decided to choose her own moment to end her life, so when someone tells me they're not feeling well mentally, I take my time to talk to them.
Ater this, it was onto the bench press. On the final set I completed 4 reps and failed on the 5th rep. Will do the same weight for a triple on Friday and will try to hit it for 5 reps again on Monday. If I fail again, I'll drop the weight a bit and work my way up again. After the failed set I banged out a set of paused reps with a light weight just because I felt like it.
Rows actually went ok, so will increase the weight as planned this Friday.

Assistance, as usual, was just what I felt like doing.

In other news, I already have my next programme lined up. It'll be the linear strenght/hypertrophy programme by Jonnie Candito, a member of the US Powerlifting Team, competing in the IPF. I'll be starting this programme as soon as I'm done cutting down to just under 10% and can start bulking again.

[Nix0r]

Hitting 3 PRs on a shitty day... I'd take that any day of the week.

[Embee]

Hitting 3 PRs on a shitty day... I'd take that any day of the week.

True, true. In hindsight, it was still a decent workout, but I simply wasn't feeling it that day. But what's a single day in a lifetime?

[John Grey]

For having a shitty day it sure was a good workout!! Nice job of pushing through it!

[Embee]

For having a shitty day it sure was a good workout!! Nice job of pushing through it!

Ha, thanks man! I'm glad I did.

[Embee]

And here's today's workout!


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x66.5kg
1x5x83kg
2x5x100kg

Incline Bench Press:
1x5x42kg
1x5x50.5kg
1x5x58.5kg
1x5x67kg (5RM PR)

Deadlift:
1x5x100kg
1x5x118.5kg
1x5x138.5kg
1x5x158kg (5RM PR)


Assistance exercises:

Lying Leg Curl (machine):
3x12x43kg

Bent-over Row (dumbell):
3x12x30kg

Incline Bench Press (dumbbell):
3x12x20kg

Shrug (dumbbell):
3x12x32kg

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
3x12x27kg


Notes:

Decided to do some dumbbell rows and incline dumbell presses as assistance today, as they will be a part of my new programme. Kept the weight reasonably light, focused on the correct execution and the mind-muscle connection. Other than that, everything went well.

Ever since I stopped stretching my shoulder before the workout, it's a lot less painfull while training. Will have to see how this affects the mobility and flexibilty. The range of motion of my shoulder joint is still pretty limited when looking at abduction, lateral rotation and to a lesser degree flexion. Even though I'm afraid it won't improve any further, I'd hate for it to regress. Might have to give stretching post workout a go and see how that feels.

[Embee]

Didn't have time to update this yesterday, but I did have time to hit the gym though! Here's yesterday's session...


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x5x66.5kg
1x5x83kg
1x5x100kg
1x5x116.5kg
1x3x134.5kg
1x8x100kg

Bench Press:
1x5x46kg (TnG)
1x5x57.5kg (TnG)
1x5x69kg (TnG)
1x5x80.5kg (TnG)
1x4x92kg (TnG) (was supposed to do 3 reps, tried to do 5 but failed on the 5th)
1x12x69kg (P)

Pendlay Row:
1x5x48.5kg
1x5x60.5kg
1x5x73kg
1x5x85kg
1x3x98kg (3RM PR)
1x12x73kg


Assistance exercises:

Incline Bench Press (dumbbell):
3x12x22kg

Pull-up:
3x10xBW


Notes:

The heaviest set on the bench press was supposed to be a triple, but after I failed doing 5 reps I figured I'd just try it again. Failed on the 5th rep again though. Got a nice pump from the paused reps on the final set though!

Was a bit limited on time this day, so just went for 2 quick assistance exercises.

The gym I work and train at will be closed on the second day of Christmas, but my manager is ok with my colleagues and me training there that day! Might just take Monday and Wednesday off from training and try and hit 1 rep maxes on Friday.
The only lift I've ever tested is my deadlift, which is the 200kg I hit just 2 weeks ago. The goal is too improve this by 5kg or perhaps even 10kg.
For the squat my current 3RM is 140kg and for the bench my 4RM is 92kg. I'll use a 1RM calculator to give me an estimate and work from there. Might even turn it in sort of a mini-meet just for me, haha!

The numbers I'd love to hit before this year ends are as follows:
Squat: 156kg
Bench: 100kg
Deadlift: 210kg

The squat would be just over twice my bodyweight. Ambitious, but might as well just go for it.
The bench would not only be a huge personal victory after all the shit I've been through with my fubar shoulder, but together with a big deadlift it would be the biggest middle finger I could ever give to the surgeon that right after I got out of the ICU told me all the things I wouldn't be able to do anymore. This long list included lifting heavy.

[rainman]

Nice write ups and good to see PRs flying up all over the place. Good luck with your 1RM attempts.


The gym I work and train at will be closed on the second day of Christmas, but my manager is ok with my colleagues and me training there that day! Might just take Monday and Wednesday off from training and try and hit 1 rep maxes on Friday.
Mine is closed Christmas Day and New Years Day, but I'm trying to get it opened on New Years Day as an 'invite only' type of affair for an hour or two. Maybe go out for a Burrito afterwards or something. Doubt they'd go for it due to all the UK health and safety bullshit, but worth a shot.
I'd try for Christmas Day too to be frank, but my wife would kick me in the spuds.

[Embee]

Nice write ups and good to see PRs flying up all over the place. Good luck with your 1RM attempts.


Mine is closed Christmas Day and New Years Day, but I'm trying to get it opened on New Years Day as an 'invite only' type of affair for an hour or two. Maybe go out for a Burrito afterwards or something. Doubt they'd go for it due to all the UK health and safety bullshit, but worth a shot.
I'd try for Christmas Day too to be frank, but my wife would kick me in the spuds.


Thank you for the kind words rainman!

Sounds like a really good idea to get together with a nice group of people and start the year with some heavy lifting! Definitely worth a shot.
I have a very small family (just my mum, her parents and my stepdad), so we can visit both my girlfriend's side of the family and mine on Christmas Eve and the first day of Christmas, which leaves us free to do whatever we want on the second day of Christmas (boxing day).
My lady will come along with me to the gym, so I don't have to worry about the family jewels either, haha.

[Embee]

Well, today I did a mock meet. This was basically just a practice run, nothing too serious. I actually checked the weight of the bars I would use, and found out that the recent triple I did which I thought was 140kg, was actually 139.5kg... Not much of a difference, but still.
It was also the first time ever I would attempt to hit 1RM's on squat and bench. Attempt selection was purely based on what I've lifted so far and what I think would make sense.

I weighed in at 78kg/172lbs the morning of the 'meet'.


Here are the results, including the notes on each attempt:


Squat:

140kg/308.5lbs - Good lift. PR Pretty easy opener.
150kg/330.5lbs - No lift. Nope, went down into the hole a bit too quick perhaps.
150kg/330.5lbs - No lift. Tried going slower into the hole, but just wouldn't happen.


Bench:

85kg/187.5lbs - Good lift. Again an opener I knew I could hit without struggling too much.
95kg/209.5lbs - Good lift. PR Felt pretty confident after this one that I would also hit my third attempt.
100kg/220lbs - Good lift. PR First time ever benching a triple digit weight (in kg's)! Yes!


Deadlift:

195kg/430lbs - Good lift. After the failed squat attempts, this already felt quite heavy.
202.5kg/446.5 - No lift. It went off the floor a good 10cm, but I just couldn't push through.
No third attempt.


Total:
430kg/948lbs at 78kg/172lbs bodyweight.


Notes:

I learned a lot today! I learned how it feels when the weight is just too heavy on the squat, something I had never experienced before. I found out that I need to learn more about attempt selection and the correct warm-up towards that first attempt. I learned that I can now finally bench a 100kg, which is an immense personal victory after all the shit I've been through with my shoulder. I also came to the conclusion that a heavy deadlift after two failed attempts on the squat is a tough cookie. This certainly wasn't by best day of lifting, but that's a good thing in my opinion.

Perhaps I didn't hit all the numbers I wanted to hit, but I'm still very pleased with the results. It's been about one year now since the last time I had surgery on my shoulder and just 1.5 years ago since I started lifting, so I'm proud of the progress I've made so far. I'm absolutely knackered now, but very keen to continue this journey and improve my lifts further. The first goal I'm going to crush is that 2x bodyweight squat!

I've also recorded all my attempts, so I'll edit that this weekend and post the video later!

[rainman]

Great work on the PRs and mock meet. Deads after squats are always going to be tough, so I wouldn't beat yourself up about it. I've always found my back being the bit that lets me down though fatigue.

[Embee]

Great work on the PRs and mock meet. Deads after squats are always going to be tough, so I wouldn't beat yourself up about it. I've always found my back being the bit that lets me down though fatigue.

Thanks! They were indeed, especially after the two failed squat attempts. My erectors are still sore... It was good practice though! The plan is to do a proper meet near the end of 2015 or the beginning of 2016.
The goal now is to start building more mass and continue to improve my strength as well. This week I'll be testing some things for my new programme, which will start next week. It's Candito's Linear Strength/Hypertrophy programme, but I'll make another post later that shows the entire programme.
After pretty much a full year of three times per week full body, I'm more than ready for a change!

P.S. Noticed I made a slight mistake in my previous post. The deadlift was 190kg, not 195kg. The total is correct though.

[Pale Rider]

Happy new year

[Embee]

Happy new year

Thanks a lot Kade, you too!

[Embee]

So, after my mock meet I spent this last week testing some stuff for my new programme. It was mainly to check the weights for most of the exercises and get a feel for them.
I've decided to do Jonnie Candito's Strength/Hypertrophy programme. I've chosen this programme so I can keep working on my strength, as well as build some much needed muscle mass. It's also nice to change things up a bit after a year of three times per week full body.

There are a few things in the programme which you can change according to what you want/need, but here's what I've settled on for now:

Exercise: Sets x Reps


Monday, Lowerbody Strength
Squat: 3 x 5
Deadlift: 2 x 5
LB Optional 1: 3 x 8-12
LB Optional 2: 3 x 8-12


Tuesday, Upperbody Strength
Bench Press: 3 x 5
Dumbbell Row: 3 x 5
Seated Dumbbell Press: 1 x 5
Pull-up: 1 x 5
UB Optional 1: 3 x 8-12
UB Optional 2: 3 x 8-12


Thursday, Lowerbody Hypertrophy
Front Squat: 5 x 8
Stiff Legged Deadlift: 3 x 8
Leg Curl: 3 x 12
Calf Press: 5 x 15
LB Optional 1: 3 x 8-12
LB Optional 2: 3 x 8-12


Friday, Upperbody Hypertrophy:
Flat Dumbbell Press: 4 x 8
Incline Dumbbell Press: 4 x 8
Dumbbell Row: 4 x 8
Cable Pull-down: 4 x 8
Seated Dumbbell Press: 3 x 10
Dumbell Curl: 3 x 10
UB Optional 1: 3 x 8-12
UB Optional 2: 3x 8-12


Lowerbody Optional:
Leg Curl
Calf Raise
Leg Press
Leg Extension


Upperbody Optional:
Rear Delt Fly
Lateral Raise
(Incline) Cable Fly
Dumbbell Shrug
Biceps
Triceps


As you can see, it's an upperbody/lowerbody split with the first two days focusing on strength and the other two days focusing on hypertrophy.
Each workout has two optional slots and I've made a shortlist of exercises I want to place in those slots. I'm just going to pick on of those, depending on what I feel like doing that day.
I'll be starting relatively light and work my way up again, adding weight every week until I stall. The goal is to get back to my old 5RM's in about 6 weeks, after which I might lower the weight that's added weekly to be able to keep a steady rate of progression for as long as possible.
It's mainly on the strength days where I want to keep pushing my limits. Obviously I won't take it easy on the hypertrophy days either, but especially these first few weeks I want to let my body adapt to the increased volume and focus on completing the reps with proper form.

As far as diet goes, I'm trying to find my maintenance calories at the moment, but will try to lean out a bit further. Once I feel comfortable with my bodyfat percentage, I'll gradually start increasing my intake instead of just bulking into oblivion.

Should you have any questions, advice or criticism, please let me know!

[Nix0r]

With that mock meet, how much time did you give yourself between each attempt, and then between each lift? With the meets I've done, it wasn't uncommon to wait 15-20 minutes between attempts, with a good hour or so of rest before starting warmups for the next lift.

[Kowboy]

Tuned in for this, impressive journey so keep it up!

[Embee]

With that mock meet, how much time did you give yourself between each attempt, and then between each lift? With the meets I've done, it wasn't uncommon to wait 15-20 minutes between attempts, with a good hour or so of rest before starting warmups for the next lift.

Probably not enough. Between each attempt roughly 10 minutes and then I would take another 10-15 minutes rest before starting the warm-up for the next lift.
I was a little too eager perhaps. No idea yet when I'll do a mock meet again, but will definitely take more time and try and set it up like a real meet.
My goal is to do a real meet near the end of 2015 or the start of 2016, so I've got enough time for a few more practice runs.

Thanks for the advice!


Tuned in for this, impressive journey so keep it up!

Thanks a lot! Will do!

[Embee]

Just a short video of my mock meet. I've only included the best lifts. For the attempts and notes, please check this post: Click here. (http://forum.animalpak.com/showthread.php?43292-Never-Surrender-Embee-s-Journey&p=1396978&viewfull=1#post1396978)

As I've noted in the video description, I know the bench isn't a proper paused rep, but due to my shoulder issue 100kg has been a goal for me since I started lifting, so I was ok with the touch-and-go.
I hope my squat depth makes up for the touch-and-go on the bench. The deadlift was still 10kg under my current PR, but after 2 failed squat attempts after my opener my erectors were absolutely fried.


http://youtu.be/sObTdfglOj0

[Embee]

Alright, the first session of the new programme! If you want to see how the programme is set up, click here. (http://forum.animalpak.com/showthread.php?43292-Never-Surrender-Embee-s-Journey&p=1397540&viewfull=1#post1397540)

I'm only going to list the work sets, as warm-up sets aren't that interesting in my opinion.
As usual, my notation is sets x reps x weight.


Main exercises:

Squat:
3x5x120kg

Deadlift:
2x5x150kg


Optional exercises:

Leg Press:
3x10x120kg

Calf Press:
3x12x118kg


Notes:
Well, I understand right away why today has only 4 exercises. Squats followed by deadlifts aren't easy. Both felt pretty heavy, especially after 2 weeks of taking it easy, with a mock meet somewhere in the middle. Regardless, the weight kept moving, so no complaints there. The increased volume is taxing but really makes me feel like I'm putting in some good work. I might keep the weights the same next week, but after that second week it'll be time to increase the weights again. For the first couple of weeks I want to increase the weight by 2.5kg until I reach my old 5RM's after which I will probably lower the weekly increase.

One of my other goals today was recording my squat while doing the first two sets on my Chucks and the last set on my usual squat shoes, Adidas Powerlifts. I wanted to see if there was any noticable difference in bar path and how the lift felt. I'll be honest, further testing is needed. I'll upload the video later, perhaps in the Powerlift section, to get some feedback. On both types of shoes I felt comfortable and could get well below parallel in either of them. I did feel my glutes more on my Chucks. At first I was looking to buy Adidas Adipowers, just because I think they are sexy as hell and are great shoes, but I think I want to try squating in Chucks a few more times before I decide.

As my second optional exercises I wanted to do some leg curls, but the machine was taken and I didn't have time to wait, so did some calf presses instead. Good thing I want bigger calves anyway, haha!

[Jeppeehh]

Good luck with the program man!

[Embee]

Good luck with the program man!

Thanks! I'm quite excited about it actually, as it'll be a nice change of pace.

[Embee]

Yesterday was lowerbody strength day, today was upperbody strength day. So again low reps for the main exercises.


Main exercises:

Bench Press:
3x5x80kg

Dumbbell Row:
3x5x40kg (PR)

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x5x22kg (PR)

Pull-up:
1x5xBW+20kg (PR)


Optional exercises:

Incline Cable Fly:
3x12x14kg

Chest Supported Incline Shrug:
3x10x34kg


Notes:

Bench felt solid today! I really focused on staying in control during the eccentric phase of the lift, especially when the bar got close to my chest.

After the bench press, I was able to move through the rest of the training quite quickly.

Now as I have just started this new programme, you'll see some PR's here and there, but that is mainly because I have never done that exercise before or it simply hasn't been an important part of my training. The pull-ups were a proper PR though!

Wanted to do some shrugs as one of my optional exercises, so tried something new and went with the chest supported version of a shrug. You can't really cheat, which is good and it hits the traps at a slightly different angle. Might do these more often as an alternative to the conventional shrug.

Overall I'm pretty satisfied with how today went and I'm looking forward to Thursday, when I get to do front squats. I've never done those before, so curious to see how they'll go.

[Embee]

First lowerbody hypertrophy workout, first time front squatting!


Main exercises:

Front Squat:
1x8x60kg
4x8x70kg (PR)

Stiff Leg Deadlift:
3x8x100kg (PR)

Leg Curl:
3x12x36kg

Calf Press:
5x15x108kg


Optional Exercises:

Leg Press:
3x10x120kg

Leg Extension:
2x12x47kg
1x12x50kg
1x12x54kg (PR)


Notes:

Well, this sure was interesting! I had never done front squats before, so even though I felt like my legs could've handled a more weight, I focused on execution. Had to find the best position for the bar to sit and how to actually keep it there.

After blasting my hamstrings with the SDL's, I couldn't do the weight I wanted to for the leg curl. Might swap the curl with the calf press next time, so I can hit the hammies even harder.

Five sets of calf presses... It was like they were on fire after that fourth set and I still had a set to go! I bet I was making all sorts of weird faces during that final set, haha.

During my first set of leg presses I felt my left quad starting to cramp, but managed to still finish my set by not fully extending my knee. Drank some more water and banged out the other two sets.

I was supposed to do just 3 sets of leg extension, but that third set didn't satisfy me enough so did an extra set.

Apart from that silly almost-cramp during the leg press, the training went well. The front squats are definitely a cool new weapon in my arsenal as they are quite different from back squats. Tough though!
Again, the PR's are there simply because I've never done those exercises before, but they are PR's nonetheless. Now we can start improving on them!


Other random news:

I have been looking at my options to attend a meet later this year and simply emailed a Dutch powerlifter who is well known in the Dutch powerlifting community (Wim Wamsteeker) to ask him for some advice.
At the moment I have two options. One is a beginner meet for RAW powerlifters on the 7th of June. The other option is the Open Powerlifting Cup RAW, which is a week later on the 14th of June. (3 days before my 28th birthday, omg!)

He advised me to do both meets, just so I can learn. While I agree with him there and wouldn't mind attending both, I'm also tempted to just focus on one and actually try out a proper meet prep. I'll think about this some more and decide later, as there is still plenty of time.

Either way, the goal is to attend at least one of those meets! I'm already pretty excited for it, so let's hope my other job as a motorsports photographer won't throw a spanner in the works, as it's quite possible I have to work those weekends.

[Embee]

Last session of this first week of Jonnie Candito's Strengh/Hypertrophy programme.


Main exercises:

Dumbbell Bench Press:
4x8x28kg (PR)

Incline Dumbbell Bench Press:
4x8x22kg (PR)

Dumbell Row:
4x8x36kg

Cable Pulldown:
4x8x54kg (PR)

Seated Dumbell Press:
1x10x16kg
2x10x18kg

Dumbbell Curl:
3x10x12kg (PR)


Optional exercises:

Skull Crusher:
3x12x27.5kg

Incline Cable Fly:
2x10x16kg (PR), 1x10x14kg

Ab Wheel Rollout:
Just testing my core after I saw Chris Duffin do these. Managed to do quite a few reps with my nose touching the floor. Might do these more often as a breathing and core exercise.


Notes:

Pretty fun day to be honest. Today was the upperbody hypertrophy day, so loads of new exercises in a rep range I'm totally not used to. Looking forward to the DOMS tomorrow, haha!

Shoulder is holding up really well so far, which I'm happy with. Might change though, so I'm not baking a cake to celebrate just yet.

Estimated most of the weights I had to use and it seems like I was pretty close with all of them. Some got me very close to failure, others can definitely be increased next week.

Again some PR's simply because it's the first time doing a lot of these exercises.

Already looking forward to next week!

[Nix0r]

Nice!

There's a lot of things to learn from Chris Duffin, primarily whiskey and deadlifts.

[Embee]

Nice!

There's a lot of things to learn from Chris Duffin, primarily whiskey and deadlifts.

Ow absolutely. And it's about time I give that a try.
While we're on that subject, have you seen the shirt he's going to release? (https://www.facebook.com/chrisduffinstrong/photos/a.359650680874802.1073741830.358131024360101/400670960106107/?type=1&theater)

[Embee]

I moved some weights again today. I liked it.


Main exercises:

Squat:
3x5x122.5kg

Deadlift:
2x5x152.5kg


Optional exercises:

Leg Press:
3x12x100kg

Leg Curl:
3x10x32kg

Ab Wheel Rollout:
3x10 (2 count pause at bottom, nose touching floor)


Notes:

Today I really focused on staying calm and coming up with a decent ritual before my lift. Still have a few months to get it dialed in.

Squats felt good. Bumped the weight up by 2.5kg but it felt easier than last week. Looking to keep this rate of progression at least until I get to my old 5RM.

Did something weird with my shoulder while getting under the bar during my warm-up sets though, hurt like a motherfucker and the pain didn't go away, so took an Advil. It kicked in just in time for the working sets of deadlifts.

Bumped up the weight for the deadlift as well and they felt pretty good as well. Definitely better than last week.

Kept the optional exercises light and did those rollouts again just because I had a bit of time left.

[Embee]

Yesterday sucked. I came in with confidence, but left somewhat broken.


Main exercises:

Bench Press:
0x0x82.5kg (failure on first rep)


Notes:

Well, fuck. I don't know what exactly caused it, but my right shoulder started hurting again, a lot.
At first I thought it was of something I did during Monday's squats, but I think it might be because I had to help someone carry some heavy shit up some stairs during the weekend.
During my warm-ups for the bench press the pain started again and kept getting worse, but I was hoping I could just fight through the pain.
I failed on the very first rep of my work sets and I was in so much pain I just sat there on the bench for a good 20-30 minutes.
The pain didn't go away so I decided to just leave, something that's extremely hard for me to do as working out isn't just something physical for me.
It's one of the few things where I can just fully focus on the task at hand and forget about everything around me. Just me and the weights.
After all the shit I've been through with my left shoulder, which after the accident is pretty much fucked up beyond all repair, I really hope this isn't anything serious.
I'm going to be honest and say that I'm pretty fucking done with all those setbacks, not just when it comes to lifting.
While I do realise this isn't a sprint but a marathon, it feels like I just keep getting tackled.

Usually I keep all my struggles to myself, but I really needed to vent a bit, sorry.

Let's hope I'm getting ahead of myself and this is just something minor and I'll be back on track next week. To my shoulders I'd like to say: Fuck you, stop being mean to me, I want to bench big weights!

Tomorrow is lowerbody hypertrophy day, so I'm hoping my shoulder will just play along and let me work on building a pair of solid legs.

[Jeppeehh]

Aahhh :/ Well, keep your head up and hopefully you're back at it in no-time... I know exactly how it feels with those ugly ass shoulders. I give my shoulder a last try now following a rehab program alongside my training (haven't been taking my shoulder injury seriously the past 2+ years which have placed me in this situation) and hopefully a massage session soon before I go check that shit up, it's depressing being left with flat shoulders but I got myself to blame, of course.

Again, hopefully you're back on track soon. And that your leg training can be continued in some form at the moment! It's fun following your training progress with all those PR's...

[Embee]

Aahhh :/ Well, keep your head up and hopefully you're back at it in no-time... I know exactly how it feels with those ugly ass shoulders. I give my shoulder a last try now following a rehab program alongside my training (haven't been taking my shoulder injury seriously the past 2+ years which have placed me in this situation) and hopefully a massage session soon before I go check that shit up, it's depressing being left with flat shoulders but I got myself to blame, of course.

Again, hopefully you're back on track soon. And that your leg training can be continued in some form at the moment! It's fun following your training progress with all those PR's...

Thanks for the support my man! Shoulder injuries are just crap, as the shoulder is a somewhat fragile joint and is involved in pretty much all upperbody exercises. But there's nothing else to do than just suck it up and deal with it.
Good luck with your shoulder as well, hope it improves!

[Embee]

Wasn't let my shoulder going to stop me from working on my skinny legs! Those matchsticks need to get big!


Main exercises:

Front Squat:
5x8x75kg (PR)

Stiff Leg Deadlift:
3x8x90kg

Leg Curl:
3x12x36kg

Calf Press:
5x15x100kg


Optional Exercises:

Leg Press:
2x10x120kg
1x12x120kg

Leg Extension:
2x10x54kg
1x12x54kg


Notes:

Felt my right shoulder (the new injury, the old one is the left shoulder...) a tiny bit during the front squats and the stiff leg deadlifts, but I was happy it didn't bother me during my workout! Don't really know yet what I'm going to do tomorrow, as it's supposed to be my upperbody hypertrophy day. Might just do some really light stuff to get a bit of blood flowing, but nothing more than that.

Front squats are pretty killer, but I like them. Each time I go into the hole the bar wants to choke me a bit, so my face turns as red as my red Animal shirt, haha. The weight wasn't the biggest challenge, so another 5kg will be added to the bar next week.

I felt like I was resting a bit too long between some of my sets last time, so lowered the weight on some of the exercises to keep the pace high. Still felt challenging enough, so I'm pretty sure I'll feel a bit sore tomorrow.

[Embee]

Against all expectations, I was able to comlete yesterday's upperbody hypertrophy day without any significant shoulder issues. There was a slight amount of pain, but it wasn't getting any worse during the training, so I decided to just keep going.


Main exercises:

Dumbbell Bench Press:
4x8x28kg

Incline Dumbbell Bench Press:
4x8x22kg

Dumbell Row:
4x8x36kg

Cable Pulldown:
4x8x54kg

Seated Dumbell Press:
3x10x18kg

Dumbbell Curl:
3x10x12kg


Optional exercises:

Skull Crusher:
1x10x30kg
1x8x30kg
1x10x27.5kg

Dumbbell Shrug:
3x10x32


Notes:

First of all, I think I've figured out what the problem seems to be in my right shoulder. Last weekend I had to carry some heavy shit up some stairs, putting some serious strain on my bicep. My guess is that the pain is caused by a perhaps a slightly injured bicep tendon, as yesterday I could clearly feel the pain starting in my shoulder, moving into my bicep.
Don't know if I'm actually right, but this seems to be the most logical explanation of what I felt. As I said, there was a bit of pain, but it was far from enough to not finish the workout.
Might keep the next upperbody strength day (Tuesday) quite light, as some active recovery. But then again, I might not and just do what I was supposed to do last Tuesday. We'll how it feels on the day and decide then.

Apart from that, it was a pretty decent day. I'm really enjoying these hypertrophy days, as I get to live out my secret bodybuilder fantasies, haha!

I have to say that I was very happy about the fact that my right shoulder didn't start hurting like it did on Tuesday and I think that means it's not a serious injury.


Have a good weekend brothers!

[Embee]

And with this workout begins the third week of Candito's Strengh/Hypertrophy programme!


Main exercsies:

Squats:
3x5x125kg

Deadlift:
2x5x155kg


Optional exercises:

Leg Press:
3x12x100kg

Calf Press:
3x15x100kg


Notes:

Another 2.5kg added to the bar on both squat and deadlift. Just a few more weeks before I reach my old 5RM's. Very curious to see how far I can go beyond them using this programme.

Did feel my right shoulder a bit today, nothing serious though. Let's hope it won't bother me tomorrow, I really want to improve my bench!

I also think it's time to up the calories again. For the last couple of weeks my weight has been stable and even though I'd like to be at a lower bodyfat percentage (it's at about 14% now), I really want to pack on some muscle.

[Embee]

Today it was my goal to do the workout I wasn't able to do last week because of that shoulder issue...


Main exercises:

Bench Press:
3x5x82.5kg

Dumbbell Row:
3x5x42kg (PR)

Seated Dumbell Press:
1x5x24kg (PR)

Pull-up:
1x5xBW+20kg


Optional exercises:

Dumbbell Shrug:
3x10x40kg (PR)

Dumbbell Curl:
2x10x12kg
1x8x12kg


Notes:

Very happy with the fact my shoulder decided to not hurt as much as last time. Still felt some discomfort, especially during the bench press, but not so much it caused any problems during the training.

Despite the discomfort I still felt confident, so was able to up the weights on both the rows and the seated presses.

Now let's hope next session will be close to pain free!

[Embee]

Despite the fact that I didn't manage to get enough sleep last night, it still was a good session! That scoop of Rage XL didn't hurt either.


Main exercises:

Front Squat:
5x8x80kg (PR)

Stiff Leg Deadlift:
3x8x90kg

Leg Curl:
3x12x36kg

Calf Press:
5x15x100kg


Optional Exercises:

Leg Press:
2x10x130kg
1x12x130kg (PR)

Leg Extension:
2x10x54kg (PR)
1x12x54kg


Notes:

The front squats are going better and better. Still some slight inconsistencies from rep to rep, but overal I'm feeling pretty confident. Another 5kg more than last time! Should be able to add some more kg's to the bar next week.

Today I really had to keep the pace high, as I was limited on time since I had the early shift in the gym today. At no point did I rest more that 2 minutes between sets, so I'm pretty pleased with that.

Ow, and I have some new squat shoes! They were pretty expensive, but I decided to just go for it. I'm spending so many hours under the bar, I might as well get the best shoes I can get. So now I'm the proud owner of a pair of super sexy Adidas Adipower weightlifting shoes and I'm really happy with them!
Call me crazy, but even since I was a little kid, if I got something new I would always sleep next to it as I was so happy with it. Usually it would take a few days before I'd be ok with not having it near me. For some weird reason I still do this, especially if it's an item I worked long and hard for. Well, you can guess that when I woke up this morning, I was looking right at my new shoes, displayed on top of their box right next to my bed, haha! Will be ordering some more lifting gear soon, like a singlet, in preparation for my first meet in June.

[Embee]

Wanted to up some of the weights today, so I did!


Main exercises:

Dumbbell Bench Press:
4x8x30kg (PR)

Incline Dumbbell Bench Press:
4x8x24kg (PR)

Dumbell Row:
4x8x38kg (PR)

Cable Pulldown:
4x8x54kg

Seated Dumbell Press:
3x10x20kg (PR)

Dumbbell Curl:
3x10x12kg


Optional exercises:

Skull Crusher:
1x12x27.5kg
2x10x27.5kg

Dumbbell Shrug:
3x10x42 (PR)


Notes:

Today was a good day. Went in, did my shit and got out. All business baby!

I could tell during the skull crushers that my triceps were already pretty beat up from the presses, but I'm cool with that.

Got quite close to failure a few times today, especially on the seated dumbell presses, but didn't fail a single rep.

Although the mobility of my left shoulder isn't improving anymore, it's been like this for probably a year, strength is definitely improving. Really happy with the fact that I can actually train shoulders and not be in pain for hours, sometimes a full day, after the training. Let's hope it stays this way.


Have a good weekend everyone!

[Nix0r]

Look at all those pretty PRs. Nice!

[Embee]

Look at all those pretty PRs. Nice!

Thanks bro! Feelin' pretty sore today, haha.

[Embee]

Might have found a new gym just 15 minutes (by car) from my home They're opening next month and are focused more on powerlifting and bodybuilding.
It's owned by a husband and wife who both are IFBB competitors.

Right now I train at the gym I also work at, which is one of those big commercial gyms.
I could train at both, since I don't have to pay for my current gym I'm absolutely fine with paying for an additional one.

Just to compare, the gym I train at now has only one squat rack, a shitty bench and obviously an endless amount of silly machines.

The new gym already has all of this:

- Power Racks with Resistance Band Options
- MAG bars
- Deadlift Platforms
- Up to 75kg Dumbbells
- Iron and Bumper Plates
- Texas Barbells
- Competition Benches
- Pull Up Bars
- Reverse Hyper and Glute Ham Raise
- Chains, Bands, Specialized Bars and more…

I might ask them if I can just live there, sounds like heaven!

[Jeppeehh]

That new gym sounds great man, getting very jealous over here. My local gym suck, and I mean suck. Once I choose to get that driving license commercial gyms is an option, which are good ones but still, they're not powerlifting gyms ;)

Again, sounds awesome!!

[Embee]

That new gym sounds great man, getting very jealous over here. My local gym suck, and I mean suck. Once I choose to get that driving license commercial gyms is an option, which are good ones but still, they're not powerlifting gyms ;)

Again, sounds awesome!!

Haha, I know how you feel man. I used to be so jealous of all the amazing gyms in the States. Still can't believe a proper gym is opening so close to my house. It's about 12 minutes by car and about 30 minutes by bike.

Go and get that driver's license, it'll open a world of possibilities! So far though, you're doing a great job at working with what you've got.

Had a nice chat with one of the owners of the gym and she invited me to come by this Friday and check out the gym before it officialy opens.

It'll be great to be surrounded by people that are also working hard towards their goals and that motivate each other.

[Embee]

Stuck to the main exercises today, as I didn't have time for the optional ones...


Main exercises:

Squats:
3x5x127.5kg

Deadlift:
2x5x157.5kg


Notes:

Added another 2.5kg to the bar compared to last week on both squat and deadlift. Going to add more weight next week.

I also dropped a dumbbell on my foot, a heavy one. I was putting back a dumbbell, a dumbbell that wasn't put back in the rack by one of our members. It's actually rare in our gym for people to clean up their shit after them...
Anyway, my foot still hurts like hell and really can't walk on it, so I've been limping the entire day. Shit better not be broken or anything.

[Embee]

Went to see the doctor, as my foot was pretty swolen and hurting like hell. He says it's not broken. So got my ass to the gym and got to work!


Main exercises:

Bench Press:
3x5x85kg

Felt like doing some extra bench work, so...
Paused Bench Press:
3x3x75kg

Dumbbell Row:
3x5x42kg

Seated Dumbell Press:
1x6x24kg (Rep PR)

Pull-up:
1x6xBW+20kg (Rep PR)


Optional exercises:

Dumbbell Curl:
3x10x12kg

One Arm Cable Pushdown:
1x10x23kg
2x10x27kg


Notes:

After benching my 3 sets, I felt like I wasn't done, so decided to do some extra paused reps.
If I get a good spotter (or safety bars, which the bench in the new gym has) I'm hoping to try some heavier paused reps.
Perhaps just a few singles with the same weight I do my sets with, just for practice.
The paused sets weren't particularly heavy, but they felt alright.

Managed to squeeze out an extra rep on both the seated dumbbell press and the pull-up.

Thursday's lowerbody hypertrophy day might be a bitch with how my foot is feeling now, so my foot better get his shit together and heal up in a single day, haha!

[Embee]

I almost died!


Main exercises:

Front Squat:
3x8x85kg (PR)
2(or 3)x8x80kg

Stiff Leg Deadlift:
3x8x92.5kg

Leg Curl:
3x12x36kg

Calf Press:
5x15x100kg


Optional Exercises:

Leg Press:
2x10x130kg
1x12x130kg

Leg Extension:
2x10x61kg
1x12x61kg (PR)


Notes:

Front squats almost killed me. I sort of lost count of the sets and I refused to not do enough sets, so it's possible that I did one set more than I was supposed to do.

Rest of the training went alright. The bruised toe/foot wasn't too distracting, still hurt though.


Also, I'm going on a date tomorrow! Well, not a date, but going to check out the new gym I'm going to start training at soon.

[Embee]

That upperbody pump, yo.


Main exercises:

Dumbbell Bench Press:
4x8x30kg

Incline Dumbbell Bench Press:
4x8x24kg

Dumbell Row:
4x8x38kg

Cable Pulldown:
4x8x54kg

Seated Dumbell Press:
3x10x20kg

Dumbbell Curl:
4x10x12kg


Optional exercises:

Skull Crusher:
4x10x27.5kg

Dumbbell Shrug:
3x10x50kg (w/ straps) (PR)


Notes:

Everything felt good today. Added an extra set to both the curls and the crushers, as 3 sets just didn't feel like enough.

I also visited that new gym today! The owners are really nice people and they also have a resident strength coach who is a really cool guy.
They'll open Wednesday, so Thursday will most likely be my first session there. I can not wait!

[Embee]

Today the body was willing, but the mind was weak.


Main exercises:

Squats:
3x5x130kg

Deadlift:
2x5x160kg


Optional exercises:

Leg Press:
3x12x130kg

Calf Press:
1x12x109kg
2x12x118kg


Note:

Some things going on in my personal life kept me from being completely focused. Still did what I wanted to do though.

[Embee]

Well, fuck...


Main exercises:

Bench Press:
2x4x87.5kg (failure on 5th rep of 1st set, 2nd set I just did 4)
1x3x87.5kg (failure on 4th rep)

Displeased with failing while still below my old 5RM, I did some paused reps again.
Paused Bench Press:
3x3x77.5kg

Dumbbell Row:
3x5x44kg (PR)

Seated Dumbell Press:
1x6x26kg (PR)

Pull-up:
1x6xBW+20kg


Optional exercises:

Chest Fly (machine):
3x10x54kg (PR)

Rear Delt Fly (machine):
1x10x32kg
2x10x34kg (PR)


Notes:

Well, fuck. My old 5RM on the bench press is 92kg, so I'm pretty pissed I failed to complete 5 reps with 87.5kg. I might try again next week or just lower the weight a bit and take smaller steps.

I do like the program a lot, but I might have to re-evaluate my bench press and the programming for that particular exercise, while still fitting in my current program. Perhaps I just need to just stop touch-and-go, and just stick to paused? Maybe increase the volume? Will figure it out as I go along.

The rest of the session was alright, but that bench is really fucking bothering me.


Thursday will be my first time training at the new gym, and I'm pretty excited about that! I'll still work at the 'old' gym, but will only train there if I really have to.

[Embee]

First workout in the new gym!


Main exercises:

Squat:
5x8x100kg

Stiff Leg Deadlift:
3x8x90kg

Leg Curl:
1x12x35kg
2x12x40kg

Calf Press:
5x15x80kg


Optional Exercises:

Leg Press:
1x12x110kg
1x12x120kg
1x12x130kg

Leg Extension:
3x12x30kg


Notes:

Fucking love the new gym! It felt so good to be surrounded with likeminded people who are there to walk the walk, not to just talk the talk.

The joy of squatting with a proper bar in a proper squatrack. So nice!

Since these machines are different from the ones I've been using, I had to guesstimate the weights, so had to do a few extra sets here and there, but just counted those as a warm up.

The only machine I wasn't a big fan of, was the leg press. The angles are a bit awkward for me, so I can't go as deep and get the range of motion I'd like. One of the guys there suggested to try it unilaterally the next time, as he finds he can get a bigger ROM that way. The rest is all topnotch!

After the workout I actually spent a couple of hours just chatting with some of the other members, one of the owners and the resident strength coach. I fucking love it there.

Ow and both of the owners are big fans of Animal and that's always a good thing!

[rainman]

First workout in the new gym...

Fucking love the new gym! It felt so good to be surrounded with likeminded people who are there to walk the walk, not to just talk the talk.

I'm at one of those type of gyms. I was chatting to a regular there last year and he said: "You'll see someone hitting a 280KG deadlift. You may hear 'good lift' or something from a couple of the guys, then we all just go about our business. No fanfare. Everyone's just here to lift heavy shit." You will find you'll push yourself harder and further with a group of people like this. You may not keep up with them all - I certainly can't get near some of the numbers I've seen thrown around in my gym - but nobody will give you shit if you're putting the work in.

[Jeppeehh]

I will say it again, jealous!! Hopefully your lifts will skyrocket in the near future! ;)

[Embee]

I'm at one of those type of gyms. I was chatting to a regular there last year and he said: "You'll see someone hitting a 280KG deadlift. You may hear 'good lift' or something from a couple of the guys, then we all just go about our business. No fanfare. Everyone's just here to lift heavy shit." You will find you'll push yourself harder and further with a group of people like this. You may not keep up with them all - I certainly can't get near some of the numbers I've seen thrown around in my gym - but nobody will give you shit if you're putting the work in.

Yeah, it's all about being a product of your environment. There's no doubt that moving to this gym was a smart move.


I will say it again, jealous!! Hopefully your lifts will skyrocket in the near future! ;)

Can't blame you to be honest, hahaha. There's a few things in my personal life at the moment not going too well, so I'm so happy they've opened this awesome gym which already feels like home. For me, lifting is like therapy and meditation.
I hope so too man! Getting close to my 5RM's, so should improve on them in a few weeks. I've set a few pretty ambitious goals for 2015 and going to give it my all to try and reach them.

Thanks for checking in guys.

[Embee]

Curls for the girls and other sexy stuff.


Main exercises:

Bench Press:
2x8x70kg
1x8x72.5kg
1x8x75kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
4x8x25 (PR)

Dumbbell Row:
4x8x40kg

Cable Pulldown:
1x8x56kg
3x8x63kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
3x10x22.5kg

Dumbell Curl:
4x10x12.5kg


Optional Exercises:

Cable Tricep Extension:
4x10x25kg

Dumbbell Shrug:
3x10x50kg


Notes:

For the past few weeks I've started this upperbody hypertrophy day with flat bench dumbell presses, but I've swapped them for normal bench presses. My bench needs work, so I need to bench more.

Other than that, nothing special really. Still no veins on my biceps, haha.

One of my friends wants to also check out this new gym and wants some more coaching on his lifts and he's not able to make it on Monday. Going to move my lowerbody strength day from Monday to Sunday this time, so I can lift with him and help him out.

[Embee]

Had originally planned on doing my Monday workout on Sunday, but we ended up doing all three of the main lifts, haha!


Squat:
1x5x127.5kg
1x5x130kg
1x5x132.5kg
1x5x135kg (5RM PR)
1x3x140kg (equal to old 3RM)

Bench (paused):
3x5x75kg (5RM PR)
1x1x80kg (PR)
1x1x85kg (new PR)
1x1x87.5kg (new PR again)

Deadlift:
warmed up for some singles
1x1x160kg
1x1x180kg
1x1x205kg (PR)

Dumbbell Row:
1x5x45kg (PR)
1x5x47.5kg (new PR)
2x5x50kg (even newer PR)


Notes:

If this isn't what constitutes a good workout, I really don't know what does. During my PR's I was cheered on by the owner, the strength coach, my friend, and even other random people there. I felt like I could take on the world!

The squats were with a belt and I had never really squatted with one. Felt so much better! Can't wait for my own Inzer belt to come in.

I've only done the occasional paused sets for bench, but wanted to go for some heavier singles. I had the gym owner spotting me and also giving me commands used during a meet. Good practice!

Still did the deadlifts beltless, as I tried it during warm up but didn't like the feel of it. Will have to work on that and get used to it.

To end the workout we smashed some dumbbell rows and continued the PR's.

This already shows that being in a different (better) environment really helps. People cheering you on, shouting at you when you're pushing hard for that final rep, being so supportive. I'm so happy to have found this new family!

My friend who went along with me also set a massive 30kg deadlift PR and we continued to work on his squat. Before he had trouble even getting close to parallel and now he's pretty much there.

And last but certainly not least, my girlfriend set a big 10kg deadlift PR!

[Jeppeehh]

Crazy, great job man!

[Embee]

Crazy, great job man!

Thanks bro! It was just one of those days, so I decided to roll with it, haha.

The objective is now slow but steady progress towards that first meet in June.

[Embee]

So before I get into my training of today, there is some news:

One of the other powerlifters who was at the gym today invited me to an unofficial meet on the 29th of March.
It will be held at another gym though as the host of the meet is a trainer there. It's still pretty close to my house, which is nice.
Both the owner and the resident strength coach of the gym I train at will compete as well, so I won't be flying solo.

It's pretty unexpected and even though I would've loved to keep running the strength/hypertrophy program for a bit longer, I don't think that is a good reason to skip the meet.
It also allows me to do my first run of Candito's 6 week strength program and see how that goes.
I'll also gain some valuable experience in warm up timing and attempt selection.

To get me some numbers to start from, this Friday I'll either go for some heavy triples or doubles or just go for singles. Any advice?
Then I'll start the program on Monday, so I can do a very light deload week which will lead right into the meet.

Anyway, on with today's session...


Main exercises:

Bench Press (paused):
3x5x77.5kg (5RM PR)

Dumbbell Row:
3x5x50kg

Dumbell Shoulder Press:
1x6x25kg

Pull-up:
1x6xBW+20kg


Optional exercises:

Dumbbell Curl:
3x8x12.5kg

Cable Tricep Extension:
3x8x25kg


Notes:

I was still feeling pretty beat up from Sunday and could feel this especially in my shoulders. Still got shit done, but took it a bit easier with the optional exercises.

[Embee]

So tomorrow I'll start Candito's 6 Week Strength Program in preparation for the meet on the 29th of March and needed to know my 1RM's, so last Friday I decided to test them.

Here's a video of my best lifts of that day:


http://youtu.be/D3hBHBszBnI


Notes:

First of all, please excuse the girly scream after my squat. Excitement got the better of me as I improved my previous 1RM by 20kg/44lbs, which I set just 6 weeks ago.
I'll work on my post-PR celebration with a qualified coach.

Jumped the rack command a bit on the bench press. Previous attempts were fine, but it is something I'll need to keep in mind during the meet.

I noticed the grip of my right hand struggling on the deadlift, while a week ago I lifted the same weight with zero grip problems.
To make sure this won't happen on the meet, I'm going to do some grip training as well, even though I've never experienced problems with my grip before.
The belt is no longer an issue on the deadlift now, as all I had to do was loosen it one notch compared to how it's set during the squat. Still getting plenty of added pressure, without it feeling restrictive.

Results:
Squat - 160kg / 352lbs
Bench Press - 95kg / 210lbs
Deadlift - 205kg / 452lbs

Total - 460kg / 1014lbs

So yeah, I've unexpectedly managed to break the 1000lbs barrier! The next goal for my total will be to get it over 500kg, as we use the metric system over here like civilised human beings, haha!
Extremely pleased with the results though and can't wait for the meet. Even though it's not an official meet, it's a good opportunity to get some experience and do a run of the program I'll use to prepare for my official meet in June.

[Embee]

Alright, first workout of Candito's 6 week strength program is done!


Main exercises:

Squat:
4x6x127.5kg

Deadlift:
2x6x165kg


Optional exercises:

Leg Curl:
3x12x37.5kg

Leg Extension:
3x12x30kg


Notes:

Didn't get enough sleep last night and really noticed it during my training. It was tough! Especially the deadlifts were a bitch. I've never lifted more weight for reps though, so we're off to a good start!

[Embee]

I saw a vein on my biceps today, so I guess you could say things are getting pretty serious.


Main exercises:

Paused Bench Press:
1x10x47.5kg
1x10x65kg
1x8x72.5kg
1x6x72.5kg

Dumbbell Row:
2x10x40kg
1x8x42.5kg
1x6x45kg

Dumbbell Shoulder Press:
2x12x20kg
1x10x20kg
1x8x20kg

Cable Pulldown:
1x12x56kg
1x12x63kg
1x10x63kg
1x8x63kg


Optional Exercises:

Cable Tricep Extension:
3x12x20kg

Dumbbell Curl:
2x12x12.5kg
1x10x12.5kg


Notes:

Pretty heavy, but definitely not as tough as yesterday's session.

And I was not kidding when I said that I saw a vein on my bicep today. Bodybuilder dreams coming true right there, haha!

[Nix0r]

I saw a vein on my biceps today, so I guess you could say things are getting pretty serious.


You need to get that taken care of. Go eat an entire pizza. Now.

[Jeppeehh]

You need to get that taken care of. Go eat an entire pizza. Now.

Haha! That feel though.. It's awesome seeing some delt veins aswell. These veins are a sign that you ain't in too bad of a shape, atleast in my case ;)

[Embee]

You need to get that taken care of. Go eat an entire pizza. Now.

I like the way you think.


Haha! That feel though.. It's awesome seeing some delt veins aswell. These veins are a sign that you ain't in too bad of a shape, atleast in my case ;)

Haha yea, my shape isn't too bad I guess. Still need to put on a lot of size, because I'm still a skinny fucker. Slow and steady though...

[Deathride]

Subbed for the journey to the meet and beyond.

I was sold by the amusing 'girly scream' comment and the genuine heartfelt amazement at the bicep vein. Hilarious :-D

What is your bodyweight currently?

[Embee]

Thanks for subbing man! Happy to hear my girly screams and my struggle towards big veiny arms are amusing to you, haha!

This morning I weighed in at 78.6kg. Currently bulking slowly up to 83kg before my official meet in June. After that meet the goal is to move up a weight class (-93kg), as I feel I'm a bit too tall for the -83kg class.

[Deathride]

Haha self-mockery is the key to being awesome. If you can laugh at yourself, you can't expect people to laugh with you.

I hear you about the height thing. Most high level 83 and 93kg lifters are man-lets (Candito / Gibbs etc) and can carry the muscle on a compact set of levers. I'm 6 foot 2 and if I dropped to 93kg I'd be weak as shit. Instead I walk around at about 100kg (after a slow but steady climb for the past 4 years) and am still weak as shit. But oh well! :-D

[Embee]

Couldn't agree more. Life is simply a lot more enjoyable when you don't take yourself too seriously!

I'd lie if I said I'm not jealous of how fast those guys can look pretty big. I'd love to get to 100kg at some point, but I don't know if that's even possible for me while still being somewhat lean. Ah well, we'll see.

[Embee]

This workout is almost the same as the last one. Deal with it.


Main exercises:

Paused Bench Press:
1x10x47.5kg
1x10x65kg
1x8x72.5kg
1x6x72.5kg

Dumbbell Row:
2x10x42.5kg
1x8x45kg
1x6x47.5kg

Dumbbell Shoulder Press:
2x12x17.5kg
1x10x17.5kg
1x8x17.5kg

Cable Pulldown:
1x12x63kg
1x12x63kg
1x10x63kg
1x8x63kg


Optional Exercises:

Cable Tricep Extension:
3x12x25kg

superset with

Dumbbell Curl:
2x12x12.5kg
1x10x12.5kg


Notes:

Nice workout. Was able to keep the pace slightly higher than last time.

Lowered the weight a bit for the shoulder press, as last time the last few reps weren't clean enough and I ended up with too much discomfort in my shitty shoulder. Feels fine now though.

I'm also noticing more and more guys and girls who are serious about their training, moving away from the gym I work at and moving to the gym I train at. I may or may not have a part in that, haha!

[Embee]

Time for some cardio!


Main exercises:

Squat:
4x8x110kg

Deadlift:
2x8x145kg


Optional exercises:

Leg Press:
1x10x90kg
1x12x90kg
1x12x110kg

Leg Curl:
1x12x37.5kg
1x12x40kg
1x12x42.5kg


Notes:

Nice session together with one of the guys I met at the new gym. He's running the same program to prepare for the meet.

Also decided to squat beltless today, as they weight wasn't too high.

[Embee]

Last session of the first week!


Main exercises:

Paused Bench Press:
1x10x75kg

Dumbbell Row:
2x10x42.5kg
1x8x45kg
1x6x50kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
2x12x17.5kg
1x10x17.5kg
1x8x17.5kg

Cable Pulldown:
2x12x63kg
1x10x63kg
1x8x63kg


Optional exercises:

Cable Tricep Extension:
3x12x25kg

Dumbbell Bicep Curl:
3x12x12.5kg


Notes:

It was a Max Rep set on the bench and managed to complete 10 reps. This puts my projected 1RM at exactly 100kg and we still have several more weeks to go. I'm going to smash that 100kg at the meet!

Next week the difficulty goes up!

[Embee]

Killed it.


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x10x127.5kg
5x3x130kg (with 60 seconds between sets)

Stiff Leg Deadlift:
2x8x90kg
1x8x100kg


Optional exercises:

Leg Curl:
3x12x40kg

Leg Press:
1x12x90kg
2x10x90kg


Notes:

So the sets of squats was a 'Max Rep 10' set, which means you have to complete as many reps as possible, but no more than 10.
If you're not able to complete a minumum of 8 reps, you have to reduce your max by 2.5%. Obviously I didn't want that.

Went at it hard and managed to bang out 10 reps. Needless to say, I was quite pleased.
Afterwards, I had to do some triples with 60 seconds of rest between the sets. Definitely not the most fun thing to do, haha!

After the squats I had to do a deadlift variation and opted to go with stiff leg deadlifts, as we're still in the hypertrophy phase of the program.
Will probably go with deficit deadlifts when I hit the strength focused part of the program.

[Embee]

Legs are sore as hell and I'm feeling fatigued from yesterday's session.
I really hope I'll recover enough to perform well on Thursday, as another Max Rep 10 set is planned for squats, followed by a bunch of timed triples.


Main exercises:

Paused Bench Press:
1x10x70kg
1x8x72.5kg
1x8x77.5kg

Dumbbell Row:
1x10x45kg
2x8x47.5kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x10x17.5kg
1x8x17.5kg
1x6x20kg

Cable Pulldown:
1x10x63kg
1x8x70kg
1x6x70kg


Optional Exercises:

Dumbbell Curl:
2x12x12.5kg
1x10x12.5kg

Cable Tricep Extension:
3x12x25kg


Note:

Pretty solid session even though I felt quite tired.

Going to order my singlet as well this week! Not required for this meet, but it will be for the next one.

[Embee]

Today's workout is brought to you by Rage XL.


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x10x130kg
10x3x125kg (with 60 seconds between sets)

Stiff Leg Deadlift:
3x8x90kg


Optional exercises:

Leg Extension:
3x12x35kg

Leg Curl:
3x12x40kg


Notes:

On Monday, I started to feel a bit sick. Nothing major, just a pretty nasty cold. It was about time, as it's been well over 3 years since I've been ill. I seriously can't recall, but
Tuesday I felt tired and crappy, yesterday was even worse. I was coughing my lungs out. Today I wasn't feeling that much better, but I wasn't going to back down.

A few weeks back 130kg was my still 5RM and today I did it for 10 reps. Feeling like absolute shit and still killing those squats, I'll admit I'm pretty pleased with that.

The 10 timed sets of triples afterwards weren't that much fun either, but they got done as well.

If I was doing an RPE based program, I would've definitely lowered the weight today. Instead, I had to stick to the program.
I can definitely see the value of some auto-regulation, but in this case just shutting the fuck up and not pussing out was the best choice I could've made. Today was a huge confidence booster.

Decided to keep the assistance pretty light today, I deserved it, haha!


Today I also received my Titan singlet and tried it on. Yes it fit, but my god, why the fuck does it make a skinny dude look even smaller?!
New goal: Look big in a singlet.

[Jeppeehh]

Making your 5RM into a 10RM in a matter of few weeks is awesome, sounds like great progress right there.

[Embee]

Making your 5RM into a 10RM in a matter of few weeks is awesome, sounds like great progress right there.

Certainly feels that way yeah, haha.

[Embee]

Haven't had time to update, so even though I'm about to head to the gym again, here's Friday's session...


Main exercises:

Bench Press:
1x10x70kg
1x8x72.5kg
1x8x77.5kg

Dumbbell Row:
1x10x47.5kg
1x8x47.5kg
1x8x50kg (rep PR)

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x10x17.5kg
1x8x17.5kg
1x6x20kg

Cable Pulldown:
1x10x70kg
1x8x70kg
1x6x70kg


Optional exercises:

Cable Tricep Extension:
1x12x25kg
2x10x30kg

Dumbbell Curl:
2x10x15kg
1x8x15kg


Notes:

Pretty solid workout. Final rep on the last set of bench press was a definite grinder, but my spotter was kind enough to just let me grind it out.

Also, decided to stop being a little bitch and grabbed heavier dumbbells for the curls. Gotta pump up those flimsy arms yo!

[Embee]

More upper body shenanigans...


Main exercises:

Paused Bench Press:
1x12x72.5kg (had to do just one max rep set)

Dumbbell Row:
1x10x50kg
2x8x50kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x10x20kg
1x8x20kg
1x6x22.5kg

Cable Pulldown:
1x10x70kg
1x8x70kg
1x6x77kg


Optional exercises:

Cable Tricep Extension:
1x12x30kg
2x10x30kg

Dumbbell Curl:
1x12x15kg
2x10x15kg


Notes:

Last workout of the Muscular Conditioning/Hypertrophy phase of the program. I've seen some good progress already, as I've been able to do more reps with more weight than before on pretty much every single exercise.

Tomorrow starts the Linear Max OT phase (1 week), so the reps go down but the weights go up!

[Embee]

The day my head nearly exploded.


Squat:
3x6x137.5kg (new 6RM)

Deadlift:
1x6x180kg (new 6RM)
1x3x180kg


Notes:

First of all, no assistance or optional exercises today. Didn't mind that at all after those deadlifts.
I'm still not feeling that well, so going in I wasn't to sure how it would go.

Squats had a prescribed rep range of 4-6, and managed to get 6 reps on all 3 sets.

The rep range for the deadlift was 3-6. I did manage to get 6 reps on the first set with the last rep being a grinder, but the second set I called it after 3 reps.
Could've probably grinded out a 4th rep, but on that last rep of the first set I could feel my form break down and didn't want to do that again.

[Embee]

Was supposed to do this workout tomorrow, but I have to work pretty much the entire day, so decided to do it today instead.


Paused Bench Press:
3x6x80kg (new 6RM)

Dumbbell Row:
3x6x50kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
3x6x22.5kg

Cable Pulldown:
3x6x77kg


Notes:

Bench felt good today. Used a pair of bands looped around the bench lengthwise to help me stay tight throughout the set and it worked like a charm.

[Deathride]

Nice work, especially on the squats!

My squat has been awful for my bodyweight (and compared to my deadlift!) since I started several years ago and a recent ankle issue has meant I've had to rejig my form and start again to keep my ankle happy.

Keep at it!

[Embee]

Nice work, especially on the squats!

My squat has been awful for my bodyweight (and compared to my deadlift!) since I started several years ago and a recent ankle issue has meant I've had to rejig my form and start again to keep my ankle happy.

Keep at it!

Thanks man!

Issues like that can really do your head in, I know exactly how you feel, as for me it's my shoulder that continues to give me shit.
We both know though that if we stay on the grind, we'll get there eventually!

[Embee]

Just a quick update of today's training! Now off to bed to hit the weights again tomorrow morning.


Squat:
1x6x140kg (new 6RM)

Deadlift (slight deficit of 4.5cm/1.8in):
1x8x140kg


Notes:
Pretty quick workout today, as there wasn't much planned. Still a new 6RM on the squat though, so pleased with that, especially as it felt I had more left in the tank.
First time I did deficit deadlifts and the only real option I had was to do them off of a 25kg plate, which measured 4.5cm high.

[Embee]

Last day of the Linear Max OT phase.


Paused Bench Press:
3x6x82.5kg (new 6RM)

Dumbbell Row:
3x6x50kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x6x22.5kg
1x6x25kg

Cable Pulldown:
3x6x77kg


Notes:
Another pretty decent day! Had to get between 4 to 6 reps on bench press and managed 6 reps on all 3 sets, so I'm pleased with that.
Still experiencing some discomfort in my shoulder after the bench press and seated dumbell press, but it's not too bad and usually is gone within an hour. Let's hope it stays like that.

Overall this week went well and managed to hit all the numbers I was supposed to, apart from that single set of deadlifts. Very happy about that and I really hope I'll be able to do the same in these last 2 proper weeks of training before my deload and the meet.
Next week it's time for the Heavy Weight Acclimation phase!

[Deathride]

Just a quick update of today's training! Now off to bed to hit the weights again tomorrow morning.


Squat:
1x6x140kg (new 6RM)

Deadlift (slight deficit of 4.5cm/1.8in):
1x8x140kg


Notes:
Pretty quick workout today, as there wasn't much planned. Still a new 6RM on the squat though, so pleased with that, especially as it felt I had more left in the tank.
First time I did deficit deadlifts and the only real option I had was to do them off of a 25kg plate, which measured 4.5cm high.

Squat PR for the win!! Nothing better than a quick workout that ends with a PR!!

[Embee]

Squat PR for the win!! Nothing better than a quick workout that ends with a PR!!

True that man! I'm now entering the last 2 weeks of heavy lifting before I deload and step on the platform, so should be a few more PR's incoming!

[Embee]

As promised, more PR's.


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x3x142.5kg (new 3RM)
1x3x145kg (newer 3RM)
1x3x147.5 (newest 3RM)

Deficit Deadlift (7cm/2.7in deficit):
2x6x150kg


Optional exercises:

Leg Extension:
1x12x35kg
2x12x37.5kg

Leg Curl:
1x12x40kg
1x12x42.5kg
1x12x45kg


Notes:
So far, so good. Should be hitting a bunch of PR's these next 2 weeks and today was a nice start!
Increased the deficit on the deadlift, as I didn't think it was enough last time. Decided to do them beltless, as I felt a belt would just get in the way.

[Embee]

Benches for the wenches and curls for the girls.


Main exercises:

Paused Bench Press:
1x3x77.5kg
1x3x80kg
1x3x85kg (new 3RM)

Dumbbell Row:
2x10x47.5kg
1x8x47.5kg
1x6x47.5kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
2x12x20kg
2x10x20kg

superset with

Cable Pulldown:
2x12x70kg
2x10x70kg


Optional exercises:

Dumbbell Curl:
4x10x15kg

superset with

Skull Crusher:
2x10x28.5kg
2x10x31kg


Notes:
Another day, another PR. The bench press is definitely the lift where I'm the least confident and there's still things to improve on, but still I'd say it's going well.

[Jeppeehh]

Now I just saw your squatting from yesterday and setting a 3RM not one but three times is pretty crazy aswell. Great job!!

[Embee]

Now I just saw your squatting from yesterday and setting a 3RM not one but three times is pretty crazy aswell. Great job!!

Thanks man. I'm still just doing what the program tells me to, but setting PR's is always fun!

[Embee]

Disregard lack of sleep, set PR's.


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x3x147.5kg
1x3x152.5kg (new 3RM) (was supposed to do 1-2 reps, but felt too good to not go for a third rep)

Deadlift:
1x3x187.5kg (new 3RM)
1x2x195kg (new 2RM)


Assistance exercises:

Leg Curl:
3x12x45kg

superset with

Leg Extension
3x12x35kg


Notes:
Well, what can I say, PR's all over the place again. Not just me, but one of the other guys preparing for the same meet also set some solid PR's today. One of the other members of the gym set a huge deadlift PR which was 20kg/44lbs over his previous one!
I don't think I've ever high fived people as much as today, haha! Good times.

[Embee]

Benching and buffoonery!


Main exercises:

Paused Bench Press:
1x3x82.5kg
1x4x85kg (new 4RM)
1x2x90kg (new 2RM)

Dumbbell Row:
2x10x47.5kg
1x8x50kg
1x6x55kg (new 6RM)

Seated Dumbbell Press:
2x12x20kg
1x10x22.5kg
1x8x25kg

superset with

Cable Pulldown:
2x12x70kg
1x10x70kg
1x8x70kg


Optional exercises:

Skullcrusher:
3x10x31kg

superset with

Dumbbell Curl:
3x10x15kg

Notes:
Was still feeling my left shoulder from squats yesterday, so didn't feel that solid while bench pressing. This caused some trouble during the descent of the weight, as the bar would move a bit faster than I would've liked as I got close to my chest.
The pain got worse after the superset of seated presses and cable pulldowns, so I took a small break before finishing the workout. Feels ok now though.

Also, we sometimes do silly things: https://instagram.com/p/0KuAluvLYL/

[Embee]

The last week of heavy training before I enter a week of deload!


Main exercises:

Squat:
1x4x155kg (new 4RM)

Deadlift (beltless):
1x4x137.5kg
1x4x142.5kg
1x4x147.5kg


Optional exercises:

Leg Curl:
3x12x47.5kg

Leg Extension:
3x12x37.5


Notes:
So today called for 1 to 4 reps with 155kg/342lbs and I managed to get 4 reps. There was a brief moment where I contemplated a 5th rep, but decided against it as I didn't want to risk failing a rep.
Afterwards some 'easy' deadlifts and some assistance. Very pleased with those 4 reps, as it sets me up for a theoretical 169kg 1RM. If I feel well on the day of the meet, I'm tempted to go for 170kg as my 3rd attempt.

Also, I'm still unsure what to do during the deload week. I do know that taking the whole week off is not an option for me. Last time I did that was before my first mock meet at the end of last year and that just didn't feel right at all.
Candito suggests in his book to repeat the first week of training, but you skip the last upper body workout. The volume in that week is reasonably high, so I'm not sure if that is the right way to go right before a meet. Any suggestions or ideas are very welcome!


Today's squats:

https://youtu.be/ysEInl9VYCM

[Embee]

That moment when you set a PR, but aren't satisfied...


Main exercises:

Paused Bench Press:
1x3x92.5kg (new 3RM)
1x12x60kg

Dumbbell Row:
1x8x50kg
2x6x55kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x8x25kg
2x6x25kg

Cable Pulldown:
1x8x77kg
1x6x77kg
1x6x84kg


Optional exercises:

Dumbbell Curl:
3x12x15kg

Skull Crusher:
3x12x33.5kg


Notes:
Today the program called for 1-4 reps on that first set of bench press and I managed to get 3. Even though I don't work with RPE, I'd rate it @9.5 (video below).
The guy spotting me is not a bad guy whatsoever, he's just not my type of guy. He talks too much and is a bit of a negative Nancy and it affected my focus.
After the first set, I did another set to get some extra volume in, simply because I felt like it.
I've also decided to do an extra bench press (and upper body) workout this Sunday, but with one of my regular spotters.

Aside from that, I think I have my deload week figured out. It'll consist of just 2 workouts.
On Tuesday I'll work up to a set of singles at 90% for all 3 lifts, these will be my openers. On Thursday it'll be singles at 80% on squat and bench. Sunday is the day of the meet.
Makes sense to me and will have to wait and see if this works, as this is my first meet. Can't wait though and I'm really excited to smash some PR's on the platform!

Here's the video:

https://youtu.be/ajN3sMyYn5U

[Embee]

Updates on my rest day:

Got my new Inzer belt, finally! It's a 10mm single prong. Went with a prong instead of a lever as I set my belt at differents lengths on squat and deadlift.

And the other update is actually quite big and exciting, something I've wanted to share with you before, but wanted to wait until it was certain.
Some of you that have been following me on this journey might know I work at a big commercial gym as an instructor, which basically means I tell people to re-rack their weights.
My goal however, is to become a personal coach. That way I can actually make a meaningful difference, help people achieve their goals and I would be able to still pursue my other career in photography

Recently I started training at a new gym and already it feels like home and the people there feel like they're my family.
Last week the owner of that gym approached me and set: "So, if you hit that 195kg for 2 reps, you and I are going to have a chat about you starting your personal training business here."
So as you can read a couple of updates ago, I hit that 195kg for 2 solid reps. Going to have a talk with the owner soon and work out the details. But yeah, I'm really excited about this and I'm honoured they want to give me this great opportunity!

[Embee]

More girly screams, ammonia and a massive PR!


Main exercise:

Deadlift:
1x4x200kg (new 4RM) (video below)


Optional exercises:

Leg Curl:
3x12x50kg

Leg Extension:
2x12x40kg
1x12x42.5kg


Notes:
Well, shit. That went better than expected! Just 5 weeks ago my 1RM on the deadlift was 205kg, so I was a bit surprised to see the program call for 1 to 4 reps with 200kg.
But hey, I'm not here to argue with a program put together by a very experienced powerlifter, so I just went for it.
As you can see, I managed to get 4 reps, which puts my estimated 1RM far beyond my current one.
I also bought some ammonia tabs when I bought the singlet and wanted to try it today, so I know what to expect at the meet.
Can definitely understand why people use it, wow! Will only use it on my 3rd attempts though.

Still need more work on my screams, smh+fml.


Video:

https://youtu.be/WlDw2VbqzzY

[Jeppeehh]

Congratulations!!

[Embee]

Congratulations!!

Thanks bro!

[Embee]

Just 5 days out from my first powerlift meet now!

Going to list my warm-up as well today, as the 'work set' was simply a single with my planned opener.


Squat:
2x10xbar
1x4x60kg
1x3x80kg
1x2x100kg
1x1x120kg
1x1x136kg
1x1x153kg (planned opener)


Bench:
2x10xbar
1x4x40kg
1x3x50kg
1x2x60kg
1x1x70kg
1x1x80kg
1x1x90kg (planned opener)


Deadlift:
1x10x60kg
1x4x90kg
1x3x110kg
1x2x130kg
1x1x150kg
1x1x172kg
1x1x193kg (planned opener)


Notes:
Both squat and bench felt nice and easy. Deadlift didn't feel as easy as I would've liked, but that might be because last Friday was pretty heavy and I still kept the pace fairly high today.
The singles were all practiced with commands as well, to get used to it before the meet.
Planned openers are 90% of my estimated 1RM. The estimated 1RM will be my third attempt, but might adjust it depending on how the second one feel. If I do adjust it, it will be downward. The goal is to get 9/9!

So far the preparation has been going very well and I've hit all the numbers and reps I was supposed to hit. Starting to feel a bit nervous though and I'm sure it'll be worse on the actual day of the meet.
No matter how nervous I am, I'm going to enjoy a fun day of lifting together with the team of Fox Gym and all the other competitors.

Thursday will be the last training before the meet!

[Deathride]

Best of luck with the meet!

Remember to make sure your openers are lifts you can CRUSH on any given day if even you're sick / tired / unhappy etc. :-) Only your heaviest lift counts after all....

[Embee]

Thanks man! Looks like there's going to be quite the crowd (100+), so that should get the adrenaline flowing for sure, haha!

You're absolutely right. I'm very confident I'll be able to smash the openers I have planned right now.
I had a friend, who will also be competing that day, play head-referee last Tuesday while I practiced my openers and he said I made them look easy. His words: "Killed it dude."
However, I might lower the openers a bit further to leave even more in the tank for the second and third attempt.

This is what I've got planned at the moment:

Squat:
1st: 153kg
2nd: 163kg
3rd: 170kg

Bench:
1st: 90kg
2nd: 96kg
3rd: 100kg

Deadlift:
1st: 193.5kg
2nd: 206.5kg
3rd: 215kg

As you might be able to tell from the bench attempts, the first is 90% of e1RM, second is 96% of e1RM and third is 100% of e1RM.
Like I said, I'm open to lowering the first attempt, so I have more left to smash the second and third. Might even lower the third attempt on squat and deadlift as well, depending on how the second one feels.
If I lower the third attempt on squat and deadlift, I'll lower it to 167.5kg on the squat and 212.5kg on the deadlift.

[Embee]

The day after...

Yesterday was quite the day! My first powerlifting meet, after starting my powerlifting journey about 1.5 years ago.

Let me start by saying I really enjoyed the day! Sure I was nervous, but once the Rage XL kicked in and the first squat attempt was a good lift, it all went pretty smooth from there, especially for a first meet.
Compared to most meets in the US this meet was pretty small, with about 35 contestants, but for Dutch standards this is a nice turn out.
Weighing in at 80.3kg, I'd be competing in the -83kg class, the class with the most lifters. For most of them it was their first or second meet, so I definitely wasn't the only 'newbie'.
There were a couple more experienced lifters, but they were all in the higher weightclasses.

My lifts went almost exactly as planned, which I was very pleased with! I also met a bunch of awesome new people and cheered on my friends and other lifters. Overall a great day!
Managed to go 9 out of 9 and get first place in the -83kg class!


Results:

Squat: 170kg / 375 lbs (10kg / 22lbs PR)
Bench: 100kg / 220.5lbs (5kg / 11lbs PR)
Deadlift: 212.5kg / 468.5lbs (7.5kg / 16.5lbs PR)

Total: 482.5kg / 1063lbs (22.5kg / 49lbs PR) at a bodyweight of 80.3kg /177lbs. First place in the -83kg class.


Here's a video of all my lifts that day:

https://youtu.be/sRO90yUfNqo


So this was the my first meet, but definitely not the last!
My relatively short-term goal for the next meet is to total more than 500kg / 1100lbs.

[John Grey]

The day after...

Yesterday was quite the day! My first powerlifting meet, after starting my powerlifting journey about 1.5 years ago.

Let me start by saying I really enjoyed the day! Sure I was nervous, but once the Rage XL kicked in and the first squat attempt was a good lift, it all went pretty smooth from there, especially for a first meet.
Compared to most meets in the US this meet was pretty small, with about 35 contestants, but for Dutch standards this is a nice turn out.
Weighing in at 80.3kg, I'd be competing in the -83kg class, the class with the most lifters. For most of them it was their first or second meet, so I definitely wasn't the only 'newbie'.
There were a couple more experienced lifters, but they were all in the higher weightclasses.

My lifts went almost exactly as planned, which I was very pleased with! I also met a bunch of awesome new people and cheered on my friends and other lifters. Overall a great day!
Managed to go 9 out of 9 and get first place in the -83kg class!


Results:

Squat: 170kg / 375 lbs (10kg / 22lbs PR)
Bench: 100kg / 220.5lbs (5kg / 11lbs PR)
Deadlift: 212.5kg / 468.5lbs (7.5kg / 16.5lbs PR)

Total: 482.5kg / 1063lbs (22.5kg / 49lbs PR) at a bodyweight of 80.3kg /177lbs. First place in the -83kg class.


Here's a video of all my lifts that day:

https://youtu.be/sRO90yUfNqo


So this was the my first meet, but definitely not the last!
My relatively short-term goal for the next meet is to total more than 500kg / 1100lbs.

Saw the IG vids of the lifts, everything looked really smooth! Nice job!!

[Nix0r]

Hell yes! Made a lot of those look easy!

[Jeppeehh]

Nice, looks like it was a great meet for you!

Looking forward following your journey until next meet.

[Embee]

Saw the IG vids of the lifts, everything looked really smooth! Nice job!!

Thanks man, and thanks for keeping an eye on me in the insta's, haha!


Hell yes! Made a lot of those look easy!

Didn't feel that way though, haha! Looking at the video's, there's no doubt that I left some KG's on the platform.
That's just fuel on the fire to do even better next time. This was a great confidence builder!


Nice, looks like it was a great meet for you!

Looking forward following your journey until next meet.

Thanks, have to agree with you there. Had a lot of fun and set some PR's at a meet instead of in the gym!


Appreciate the support guys!

[Deathride]

Excellent work...not only were all the lifts pretty smooth, your victory shouts are becoming more manly! MAN PR!!

[Embee]

Excellent work...not only were all the lifts pretty smooth, your victory shouts are becoming more manly! MAN PR!!

Thanks brother! Yeah, they've improved a bit. They need more work though, haha!

[Embee]

Been a bit busy, so completely forgot to update my journey, sorry!
I'll be running Candito's Strength/Hypertrophy program again, until I have to prepare for a meet.


The week following the meet:

After the meet, I went to the gym on Tuesday, where I did some squats, bench presses and rows.
Still felt fatigued from the meet, so the weights were extremely light and the reps were low.
Pretty shitty workout if I'm honest, but I didn't want to just sit on my ass for a full week.

On Friday I went in and decided to do a complete bro workout. Upperbody pump yo!
Needless to say, my chesticles were very sore the next day!


Last Sunday I wanted to get back to some relatively heavy squats and deadlifts. Still wasn't feeling 100%, but I need to get back on the gaintrain.

Squats:
3x5x140kg

Deadlift:
1x4x170kg
1x2x170kg

Notes:
Damn, that felt heavy! I guess the meet took its toll on my body, more than I had expected. Ah well...


And that brings us to Tuesday's workout:

Paused Bench Press:
3x6x80kg

Dumbbell Row:
3x6x55kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x6x25kg

Cable Pulldown:
1x6x77kg

Close Grip Bench Press:
1x12x50kg
1x12x55kg
1x12x57.5kg

Dumbbell Curl:
2x10x15kg
1x8x15kg

Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly:
3x12x6kg

Notes:
This already felt a lot better than Sunday's workout! Maybe not as easy as I would've liked, but I'll take it.
Instead of using one of the optional slots for a tricep isolation exercise, I'll either do close grip bench or perhaps incline dumbbell presses as those have a better carry-over to my bench press.



The goal now is to work up to my theoretic 6RM's on the main lifts (using the meet 1RM PR's) in about 4 weeks and build from there.
I don't know when exactly my next meet will be, but I really want to smash that 500kg total then.
For the time being I'll stay in the same weight class. I'm not as lean as I'd like to be, so I want to add some more muscle and lean out before I jump up a weight class.
Eventualy I do want to compete in a higher weight class though, but that's a longer term goal.

[Embee]

Yesterday's training, tryin' to grow them legs.


Squat:
5x8x100kg

Stiff Leg Deadlift:
3x8x70kg

Glute Ham Raise:
3x8xBW

Leg Extension:
1x12x30kg
1x12x32.5kg
1x12x35kg

Leg Curl:
1x12x40kg
1x12x42.5kg
1x12x45kg

Leg Press:
1x12x70kg
1x12x80kg
1x10x90kg (start of drop set)
1x6x70kg (drop set)
1x6x50kg (drop set)
1x6x25kg (drop set)

Standing Calf Raise:
5x15x70kg


Notes:
Today was a lower body hypertrophy day, so wasn't focused as much on the weight I was using. Since the last few weeks before the meet have been pretty high intensity but low volume, I have to get used to the increase volume again. Enjoyed it though!


Other news:
I've now been officially 'hired' at the new gym! They're giving me the opportunity to start training clients there and also do photo shoots. In exchange I help them out behind the bar and provide them with some cool shots of the athletes they coach. This means I'll take shots of the athletes during their training and they'll also bring me along to the competitions to take shots of them on stage. Really excited about this! The owners of the gym are really great people and they already feel like family to me.

That'll be it for now!

[Embee]

Another Friday, another upper body hypertrophy day!

Bench Press:
4x8x80kg

Dumbbell Row:
4x8x50kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
4x8x27.5kg

Cable Pulldown:
1x8x70kg
1x8x77kg
2x8x70kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
3x10x20kg

Dumbbell Rear Lateral Raise:
3x10x6kg

superset with

Dumbbell Lateral Raise:
3x10x6kg

Dumbbell Curl:
1x10x15kg
2x8x15kg

superset with

Skull Crusher:
1x10x33.5kg
2x8x33.5kg

Smith Shrug:
4x15x80kg


Notes:
Felt pretty good today and wanted to really hit everything, so I did. Even got a bit of a pump, haha!

[Embee]

Skwaats and the dark side...

Squat:
1x6x138kg
2x6x135kg

Deadlift (sumo):
2x6x165kg

Glute Ham Raise:
3x10xBW

Leg Extension
3x12x35kg

Leg Curl:
3x12x45kg

Standing Calf Raise:
3x12x80kg


Notes:
Well, I could definitely tell my lower body wasn't completely recovered yet from last Thursday's hypertrophy training.
On the first set of squats the speed of the final 2 reps was way too slow for my liking, with the last one being a bit of a grinder, so I decided to lower the weight somewhat.
Hopefully this way I'll be able to gain some momentum while I increase the weight a bit every week. No idea how much I'll try to add every week though.
I also don't know if the step back is big enough, but we'll see how it goes.
It's the first time for me going back to 'normal' training after peaking for a meet, so just going by feel now and what I feel is the right way to do it.

I also experimented with sumo deadlifts. Going to try it for a few weeks to see if I like it and if it works for me.

[Embee]

Didn't have time to update yesterday, so here's yesterday's upperbody training:

Paused Bench Press:
4x6x81.5kg

Dumbbell Row:
4x6x55kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x6x27.5kg

Cable Pulldown:
1x6x84kg

Close Grip Bench Press:
1x12x60kg
2x10x62.5kg

Dumbbell Rear Lateral Raise:
3x10x6kg

superset with

Dumbbell Lateral Raise:
3x10x6kg

Dumbbell Curl:
3x10x15kg

Smith Shrug:
3x15x90kg


Notes:
Felt pretty good overall. Some slight discomfort in my shoulder again though. Nothing major but if the pain increases I might have to lower the weekly volume for upper body a bit.

[Embee]

Just so I don't forget: 15/4/2015 - 80.6kg - 14.4% BF

Anyway, on with today's lowerbody hypertrophy day:

Squat:
5x8x105kg

Stiff Leg Deadlift (deficit):
3x8x80kg

Glute Ham Raise:
3x10xBW+5kg

Leg Extension:
3x12x37.5kg

superset with

Leg Curl:
3x12x47.5kg

Leg Press:
3x10x90kg

Calf Jumps (in Smith):
4x15x100kg
1x15x110kg


Notes:
Still not a fan of higher rep squats, haha. Need to work on my endurance for sure. We just got a sled in the gym now though, so might give that a go!
Getting better at the glute ham raises, form is definitely improving.
Also tried calf jumps instead of normal calf raises, just as an experiment and to see if I can get those calves to grow.


Other random news:
We got 2 new machines yesterday! A Hammer Strength High Row and a Hammer Strength Incline Chest Press.
In addition to that, we've got a Hammer Strength V-squat waiting at the powder coater, so we should have that in about 2 weeks.
And because more is better, we're adding another 2 squat racks, bringing to total to 5!
Once all of that stuff is here, I'm going to take some shots of the gym to put on the website, but I'll post some photos here as well.

[Jeppeehh]

Haha, your new, which maybe isn't so new to you anymore, sounds great!

Also, those calf "jumps", though I'm not leaving the floor, just pretending to jump and stop up on my toes, felt great when I tried them a few months back. Was very sore the next day.

[Embee]

Haha, your new, which maybe isn't so new to you anymore, sounds great!

Also, those calf "jumps", though I'm not leaving the floor, just pretending to jump and stop up on my toes, felt great when I tried them a few months back. Was very sore the next day.

Doesn't just sound great, it is great, haha! Make sure to drop by if you ever find yourself in the Netherlands!

That's exactly how I did them as well. Just creating a bit of momentum by bending the knees a bit and exploding upwards. It allows me to handle more weight (obviously) compared to strict calf raises, so perhaps these will give me more calf gains.

[Embee]

Had a bit of a busy weekend, so here's last Friday's training!

Bench Press:
2x8x81.5kg
1x7x81.5kg (failure on 8th rep)
1x8x80kg

Dumbbell Row:
4x8x50kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
4x8x27.5kg

High Row (Hammer Strength):
1x10x30kg
1x10x35kg
1x10x40kg
1x10x45kg

Seated Dumbell Press:
1x10x20kg
2x10x22.5

Dumbell Bicep Curl:
3x10x15kg

superset with

Skull Crusher:
1x10x36kg
2x10x33.5kg

Cable Rear Lateral Raise:
1x10x5kg
2x10x7kg

superset with

Cable Lateral Raise:
1x10x5kg
2x10x7kg

Smith Shrug:
3x15x100kg


Notes:
Well, it's definitely been a long long time since I've failed a rep. It was a hypertrophy day anyway, so it didn't bother me.
Still experimenting with different exercises for my shoulders and testing how much the left one can take. So far it's holding up ok.
Especially the rear delt is one I'm having trouble with properly activating during exercises. I'll feel it perfectly on the right side, but not the left. The cables were an improvement over dumbbells though.



Team Fox Gym Update:
As I'm now officially part of the team, I thought it would be a fun idea to once in a while show you guys what we're up to.
Yesterday one of the gym's sponsored athletes hit the stage and I was there to photograph her as she showed everyone the best shape she's ever been in. She looked stunning!
In the end she managed to secure a well deserved 2nd place in what many agreed to be the toughest bikini line-up of the day. We're so proud of her!
This means she has now qualified for the Dutch National Championship next week! It's a big step up, but I'm sure she's going to kick some more ass.
Not only is she a great athlete, she's an incredibly caring, giving and humble person. I really enjoyed capturing her smile as she owned the stage!

http://i58.tinypic.com/28b9uyq.jpg

[Embee]

Rest day, so time to update!


Monday:

Squat:
3x6x136.5kg

Deadlift (Sumo):
2x6x166.5kg

Glute Ham Raise:
1x10xBW+5kg
2x10xBW+10kg (PR, new 10RM)

Leg Extension:
3x10x40kg

superset with

Leg Curl:
3x10x50kg

Notes:
'Ugh' pretty much sums it up. Wasn't really feeling it today and shit felt heavy, but still went up 1.5kg from last week. Slowly working my way towards the theoretic 6RM, based on my meet PR's.
My last warm-up on the deadlift felt slow and heavy and was really doubting if I could even pull the weight of my work set. Very pleased with the fact I was able to just focus, get mad and do the sets with the weight I wanted to pull.
Completely forgot to do calves!



Tuesday:

Paused Bench Press:
3x6x83kg (new 6RM)

Dumbell Row:
3x6x60kg (PR, new 6RM)

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x6x30kg (PR, new 6RM)

High Row:
1x6x55kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
3x10x25kg

Cable Rear Lateral Raise:
2x10x7kg

superset with

Cable Lateral Raise:
2x10x7kg

Dumbell Curl:
2x12x15kg
1x10x15kg

Smith Shrug:
2x15x110
1x15x120

Notes:
Very happy with the new 6RM on the bench press! According to my meet PR this should be my 6RM, so time to make some progress now!
I'll admit, the seated press PR wasn't the neatest, but I'll take it anyway. Normally I'm quite strict when it comes to form, but really wanted to just go for that 30kg.
Technically the high rows and shrugs are PR's as well, but I see no need for tracking those.

[Embee]

Another busy couple of days, including a national holiday, so here are the last 3 sessions:


Thursday:

Squat:
5x8x110kg

Stiff Leg Deadlift (deficit):
3x8x90kg

Glute Ham Raise:
1x8xBW+10kg
3x8xBW+10kg

Leg Extension:
4x10x40kg

Leg Curl:
2x10x50kg
2x10x47.5kg

Leg Press:
4x10x90kg

Calf Jumps (in Smith):
5x15x100kg

Notes:
Yup, more than 5 to 6 reps on squat still get me somewhat out of breath. Training went quite well though.
Managed to keep the pace fairly high and purely because I felt like it, I did an extra set on most exercises.


Friday:

Bench Press:
4x8x82.5kg

Dumbbell Row:
4x8x55kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
4x8x30kg

High Row:
4x8x50kg

Seated Dumbell Press:
3x10x22.5kg

Dumbell Bicep Curl:
1x10x17.5kg
1x8x17.5kg
1x10x15kg

Skull Crusher:
1x12x36kg
1x10x36kg
1x8x36kg

Cable Rear Lateral Raise:
2x10x7kg

Cable Lateral Raise:
2x10x7kg

Smith Shrug:
3x15x110kg

Notes:
Nice session. Managed to add weight to most exercises again and still get the prescribed reps. Good stuff!
Especially happy with the way my bench seems to be progressing. It might be slow, but it's still moving forward.


Monday:

Squat:
3x6x138kg

Deadlift (Sumo):
2x6x168kg

Glute Ham Raise:
3x10xBW+10kg

Calf Jumps (in Smith):
5x15x100kg

Leg Curl:
3x12x40kg

superset with

Leg Extension:
3x12x50kg

Notes:
Getting close to the theoretical 6RM (according to meet my PR) of my squat, so it's starting to feel pretty damn heavy.
Deadlifts were far from fun. Aside from the fact my sumo form isn't there yet, I had trouble locking out due to my hand dragging on my leg.
Definitely going to put some talcum powder on my leg next week to see if that helps. Also going to try pointing my feet out a bit more and perhaps widening my stance if my hip flexibility allows it.
If that doesn't help, I might just go back to conventional, haha!
The rest of the training was nice, so no complaints there!


Random thoughts:
Thinking of changing some stuff in my programming. Not sure yet though.
Right now, unless I fail reps, I don't go below 6 reps. What I was thinking was alternating the reps on the heavy strength days on the main lifts (squat, bench and deadlift) between 6 and 3.
So one week I'll do 3 sets of 6 reps on the strength days, the next week I'll do 6 sets of 3 reps and the week after that it's back to 6 reps again and so forth.
The reason behind this is to move heavier weights more often, while basically keeping the same volume.
Really don't know if I'll actually implement this, but it was just a random thought I had.
Perhaps it's a nice idea to do this once weekly progression is no longer possible and I move to bi-weekly progression.

And then there's my inner bodybuilder who wants to get huge and jacked, as we also want to look like we lift. First world lifter problems.

[rainman]

Random thoughts:
Thinking of changing some stuff in my programming. Not sure yet though.
Right now, unless I fail reps, I don't go below 6 reps. What I was thinking was alternating the reps on the heavy strength days on the main lifts (squat, bench and deadlift) between 6 and 3.
So one week I'll do 3 sets of 6 reps on the strength days, the next week I'll do 6 sets of 3 reps and the week after that it's back to 6 reps again and so forth.
The reason behind this is to move heavier weights more often, while basically keeping the same volume.
Really don't know if I'll actually implement this, but it was just a random thought I had.
Perhaps it's a nice idea to do this once weekly progression is no longer possible and I move to bi-weekly progression.

And then there's my inner bodybuilder who wants to get huge and jacked, as we also want to look like we lift. First world lifter problems.

Good looking workouts being laid down. Your lifts are really coming on. I actually downloaded the Candito spreadsheet a while back with the intention of using it, but have been messing about with something myself that seems to fit in with your random thoughts. I have been using 5s, 3s and singles on my compounds, with a base weight and 15KG increments; one week I'll build up to 5x3 reps with (base+15KG), the next 5x5 reps with base, then work up to 3x1 rep at (base+30KG) on the next week. If all goes well it's back to week 1 but adding 2.5KG to the base weight. I'm still working out what fits best as I feel 3 weeks isn't a long enough cycle for a program, but it seems to be running smooth enough for now.

Accessory DB work is mostly 10 reps and 5 sets. I predominantly train alongside bodybuilders, so I like to keep them happy too!

[Embee]

Good looking workouts being laid down. Your lifts are really coming on. I actually downloaded the Candito spreadsheet a while back with the intention of using it, but have been messing about with something myself that seems to fit in with your random thoughts. I have been using 5s, 3s and singles on my compounds, with a base weight and 15KG increments; one week I'll build up to 5x3 reps with (base+15KG), the next 5x5 reps with base, then work up to 3x1 rep at (base+30KG) on the next week. If all goes well it's back to week 1 but adding 2.5KG to the base weight. I'm still working out what fits best as I feel 3 weeks isn't a long enough cycle for a program, but it seems to be running smooth enough for now.

Accessory DB work is mostly 10 reps and 5 sets. I predominantly train alongside bodybuilders, so I like to keep them happy too!

Thanks man! Still far from where I want to be, but we're getting there.

If I'm not mistaken the spreadsheet is for his 6 week strength program. I used that to prepare for my meet and managed to hit more than decent PR's on all lifts, so you can always run it once and see how it goes.
Currently I'm on Candito's lineair program, just to see if I can still manage weekly progress. After that it's on to bi-weekly and after that monthly.
Your own program makes a lot of sense as well though, so if it's working, I see no reason to suddenly do something else. The way you're currently running it, it's still a 2.5kg increase every 3 weeks!

[Embee]

Here's yesterday's upper body day!

Paused Bench Press:
3x6x84 (new 6RM)

Dumbbell Row:
3x6x60kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x7x30kg (new 7RM)

High Row:
1x6x57.5kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
3x10x27.5kg

Dumbbell Curl:
1x10x17.5kg
1x8x17.5kg
1x12x15kg

Cable Rear Lateral Raise:
1x12x7kg
1x12x10kg

Cable Lateral Raise:
1x12x7kg
1x12x10kg

Shrug:
3x15x120kg

Notes:
Managed to increase my 6RM on the bench another 1kg. The last one or two reps of each set were definitely a bit of a struggle, but the form breakdown was close to none.
The progress may be slow, but I'm still happy it's there especially considering how shit my bench is compared to my squat and deadlift.
I'm also happy about the fact that for a while now, my shoulder hasn't really given me any problems, even though I'm doing more shoulder work.

[Buckfever]

Here's yesterday's upper body day!

Paused Bench Press:
3x6x84 (new 6RM)

Dumbbell Row:
3x6x60kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x7x30kg (new 7RM)

High Row:
1x6x57.5kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
3x10x27.5kg

Dumbbell Curl:
1x10x17.5kg
1x8x17.5kg
1x12x15kg

Cable Rear Lateral Raise:
1x12x7kg
1x12x10kg

Cable Lateral Raise:
1x12x7kg
1x12x10kg

Shrug:
3x15x120kg

Notes:
Managed to increase my 6RM on the bench another 1kg. The last one or two reps of each set were definitely a bit of a struggle, but the form breakdown was close to none.
The progress may be slow, but I'm still happy it's there especially considering how shit my bench is compared to my squat and deadlift.
I'm also happy about the fact that for a while now, my shoulder hasn't really given me any problems, even though I'm doing more shoulder work.

You set a PR and stayed within the limits of the shoulder. Good discipline!!!

[rainman]

Your own program makes a lot of sense as well though, so if it's working, I see no reason to suddenly do something else. The way you're currently running it, it's still a 2.5kg increase every 3 weeks!

Thanks. I've been going up on squats that much as I busted my hamstring at the end of January, so it isn't some miracle workout or anything. I'm just trying to hold myself back and get a good framework for higher singles with threes and fives as I build back up, although I am fast approaching my old 1RMs. I am using the theory that I am working on getting a meet opener rather than a PR on the compounds. Something that I know I can go in and nail each time I attempt it, within reason of course. It is improved my benching too, although on the last cycle I opted to stick at the same base weight, even though I had hit all 3 singles I had set myself. Deadlifts, however, have gone to shit. I got 5x5 at 160KG relatively easily today, but my hamstrings have felt smashed to bits all afternoon, so I may need a rethink on them. I'd love to get back on sumo deads, but they are what popped my hamstring in the first place.

[Embee]

You set a PR and stayed within the limits of the shoulder. Good discipline!!!

Thanks brother!


Thanks. I've been going up on squats that much as I busted my hamstring at the end of January, so it isn't some miracle workout or anything. I'm just trying to hold myself back and get a good framework for higher singles with threes and fives as I build back up, although I am fast approaching my old 1RMs. I am using the theory that I am working on getting a meet opener rather than a PR on the compounds. Something that I know I can go in and nail each time I attempt it, within reason of course. It is improved my benching too, although on the last cycle I opted to stick at the same base weight, even though I had hit all 3 singles I had set myself. Deadlifts, however, have gone to shit. I got 5x5 at 160KG relatively easily today, but my hamstrings have felt smashed to bits all afternoon, so I may need a rethink on them. I'd love to get back on sumo deads, but they are what popped my hamstring in the first place.

Ah alright. Even though you're working your way back up, it's still quite rapid progress. Perhaps lowering the volume on deadlifts might help a bit? Maybe 3 sets on the week with 5 reps?
Deadlifts beat me up quite a bit as well, so I can imagine how you feel.

[Embee]

Thursday's and Friday's hypertrophy work:


Thursday:

Squat:
5x8x110kg

Stiff Leg Deadlift (deficit):
3x8x90

Leg Curl:
3x12x50kg

Leg Extension:
3x12x40kg

Glute Ham Raise:
3x12xBW+10kg

V-Squat (Hammer Strength):
3x12x45kg
1x20x45kg

Seated Calf Raise (single leg):
1x20x30kg
1x20x32.5kg

Calf Jumps:
1x15x100kg
2x20x100kg

Notes:
Even though I was feeling a bit tired, the training went well. Especially the squats felt good.
Tried our new V-Squat machine and it's very nice! Definitely a nice quad-killer.


Friday:

Bench Press:
4x8x82.5kg

Dumbbell Row:
4x8x55kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
4x8x27.5kg

High Row:
1x8x50kg
3x8x52.5kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
3x10x25kg

EZ-Bar Curl:
1x12x27.7kg
2x10x27.5kg

Skull Crusher:
1x12x33.5kg
2x10x33.5kg

Cable Rear Lateral Raise:
2x12x10kg

Cable Lateral Raise:
2x12x10kg

Shrug:
3x15x120kg

Notes:
Fun workout together with two lovely ladies. One of them is my girlfriend, the other one is the latest addition to the Fox Gym team and she competes in the Figure/Bodyfitness class.
During the workout the shoulder felt fine, but it starting hurting later in the day and it still is now. Just as I thought things were going well...
Probably going to cut some of the shoulder work or atleast lower the weight until it feels better.

[Embee]

Skwaats and more...


Monday:

Squat:
3x5x140kg
3x8x115kg

Stiff Leg Deadlift (deficit):
3x8x100kg

Glute Ham Raise:
1x12xBW+10kg
2x12xBW+15kg

Leg Extension:
3x12x42.5

Leg Curl:
3x12x52.5

V-Squat:
1x15x45kg
2x12x45kg

Calf Raise:
2x20x100kg
1x15x100kg
1x until failure x50kg

Notes:
I went back to sets of 5 for squats and added some sets of 8 for volume before moving onto the assistance exercises.
Also decided to no longer do heavy squats and deadlifts on the same day, instead I'll be doing deadlift on the other lower body day.


Tuesday:

Paused Bench Press:
3x5x85kg (new 5RM)

Incline Dumbbell Press:
3x12x25kg

Dumbbell Row:
3x5x60kg

High Row:
3x12x50kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x12x20kg
2x10x20kg

Rear Delt Fly:
1x12x25kg
2x12x30kg

EZ-bar Curl:
1x12x27.5kg
2x10x27.5kg

Skull Crusher:
1x12x32.5kg
2x10x32.5kg

Shrug:
3x15x120kg

Notes:
Changing some stuff around on the upper body days as well, but nothing major.
Did a bit less for shoulders today, as my left shoulder was still bothering me a bit after Friday's session.

[Embee]

Finally some time to update again! Here are the last 3 sessions:


Thursday:

Deadlift (sumo):
2x5x170kg (PR, new 5RM)

Safety Bar Squat:
1x8x95kg
3x8x100kg

Glute Ham Raise:
3x12xBW+15kg

Leg Press:
3x10x90kg

Leg Curl:
3x12x50kg

Leg Extension:
3x12x40kg

Calf Raise:
4x15x100kg
1x25x50kg

Notes:
Well, not doing heavy squats and deadlifts on the same day was one of the better decisions I've made. Had a lot more energy going into the work sets.
I also went a bit wider with my stance, which helped. At first I was under the impression I couldn't open my hips far enough to allow wider stance, but I was wrong.


Friday:

Paused Bench Press:
3x3x90kg

Bench Press:
1x10x80kg
2x8x80kg

Seated Row:
2x12x60kg
1x12x65kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
1x12x25kg
2x12x27.5kg

High Row:
3x10x52.5kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
1x12x20kg
1x12x22.5kg
1x8x25kg

Rear Delt Fly:
3x10x30kg

Skull Crusher:
3x10x32.5kg

Dumbbell Curl:
3x10x15kg

Notes:
As I now have 2 days where I start with paused bench press, I'm going to do 5's on the first day and 3's on the second.
Don't really know if this is better for my progress or not, so just going to try it for a couple of weeks and see how it feels.


Saturday:

Unexpected deadlift session with a friend. We warmed up and did soms heavy singles. My two heaviest lifts of the day:

1x1x200kg (sumo PR)
1x1x215kg (conventional PR)

Notes:
2 PR's while not really prepared for it definitely feels pretty good!


Monday:

Squat:
3x5x141.5kg (new 5RM)
3x8x117.5kg

Romanian Deadlift:
3x8x110kg

V-Squat (close stance):
3x10x55kg

Glute Ham Raise:
3x10xBW+15kg

Leg Extension:
3x12x40kg

Leg Curl:
3x12x50kg

Calf Raise:
3x25x50kg
1x20x50kg

Notes:
Got to love getting spotted on squats by my boss/my friend/the owner of the gym. He knows exactly what to say to me and when to say it.
Even though my 4RM is still quite a bit higher than this new 5RM, it's still a new 5RM. Gotta take them as they come, right?

[Embee]

About to hit the gym for some squats and train 2 clients, but first going to update here!
Here are the other 3 training sessions of last week:


Tuesday:

Paused Bench Press:
3x5x86kg (new 5RM)

Incline Dumbbell Press:
1x12x27.5kg
2x10x30kg

Seated Row:
1x12x65kg
2x12x70kg

Cable Pulldown:
3x10x70kg

Rear Delt Fly:
4x12x20kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
3x10x22.5kg

Dumbbell Curl:
3x10x15kg

Rope Pushdown:
1x12x35kg
1x12x40kg
1x10x40kg

Shrug:
2x15x120kg
1x20x120kg

Notes:
Bench is still moving forward! *cheers*


Thursday:

Deadlift (sumo):
2x5x171.5kg (new 5RM)

Safety Bar Squat:
4x8x105kg

Glute Ham Raise:
3x12xBW+15kg

Leg Extension:
3x12x40kg

Leg Curl:
3x12x50kg

Leg Press:
3x12x90kg

Calf Raise:
4x15x100kg

Notes:
Sumo is going well now. First rep is usually the slowest for some reason, so will need to work on getting the first one just as fast as the other reps.


Friday:

Paused Bench Press:
4x3x92kg

Bench Press:
1x10x80kg
2x9x80kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
1x12x30kg
2x10x30kg

Seated Row:
2x12x80kg
2x10x85kg

High Row:
1x10x50kg
2x12x50kg

Rear Delt Fly:
3x12x30kg

Dumbbell Curl:
1x8x17.5kg
2x10x15kg
1x8x15kg

Rope Pushdown (single arm):
1x12x20kg
1x12x25kg
2x12x20kg

Shrug:
1x20x120kg
2x15x140kg

Notes:
Another nice training! Decided not to do the seated dumbbell press this time, as I was feeling my shoulder a bit too much after the bench press.

[Embee]

Last 2 sessions were heavy and it feels like my body is ready for a deload, but my mind isn't...


Monday:

Squat:
3x5x143kg (new 5RM)
3x8x120kg

Romanian Deadlift:
3x8x115

Leg Extension:
3x12x40kg
1x15x40kg

Leg Curl:
3x12x50kg
1x15x50kg

Calf Jumps:
5x15x100kg

Notes:
Pff, heavy! Feeling really beat up, but want to keep pushing.
Perhaps I'll do some heavy triples for 2 weeks while cutting some volume, followed by a deload... Maybe I'll just deload next week. We'll see.


Tuesday:

Paused Bench Press:
3x5x87kg (new 5RM)

Bench Press:
3x8x80kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
3x8x30kg

Cable Pulldown:
1x12x70kg
2x12x75kg
1x10x75kg

Seated Row:
2x12x80kg
2x10x80kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
3x8x22.5kg

Rear Delt Fly:
4x12x30kg

EZ-Bar Curl:
4x10x27.5kg

Skull Crusher:
1x10x32.5kg
1x10x30kg
1x10x27.5kg

Shrug:
3x15x140kg

Notes:
The paused bench was definitely a bit of a struggle near the end. Noticed my pause got a bit sloppy as well.

[Embee]

Updates, an injury, plans and random other stuff.

Let's start with the last 2 training sessions:


Thursday:

Deadlift:
1x5x173kg (sumo, new 5RM)
1x5x173kg (conventional, also new 5RM)

Safety Bar Squat:
5x8x110kg

Leg Extension:
4x12x40kg

Leg Curl:
4x12x50kg

Calf Raise:
4x20x70kg

Notes:
Sumo was really doing my head in. First rep just kept feeling too heavy and in a sport where the goal is to do one solid rep it just stopped making sense.
Switched back to conventional and it just felt better. Will probably do sumo as a variation here and there, but it's back to conventional for the bigger part of my programming.


Friday:

Paused Bench Press:
2x3x93kg (new 3RM)
1x2x93kg (failure on 3rd rep)

Bench Press:
3x8x80kg
1x16x60kg

Incline Dumbbell Press:
3x10x30kg
1x16x22.5kg

High Row:
3x10x50kg
1x16x40kg

Seated Row:
3x10x80kg
1x20x65kg

Seated Dumbbell Press:
3x10x22.5kg

Rear Delt Fly:
3x12x30

Incline Dumbbell Curl superset with Rope Pushdown:
4x10-12 (went by feel, didn't write down weight)

Shrug:
3x20x100kg

Notes:
Well, it's been ages since I last failed a rep, so wasn't too bothered when I failed the third rep of the third set of paused bench.
Decided to go for a bit of a pump today, so did some sets where I dropped the weight and did higher rep sets.


Injury:
I've been walking around with pain in my lower back for about two weeks now and last Thursday I decided I had enough of it.
Went for a sportsmassage on Saturday and afterwards the pain was still there.
I suspect it's either an inflammation of the SI-joint or an issue with one of the discs in my lower back. Either way, I need to rest and see what happens.
Will have to consult with a physical therapist if the pain doesn't go away, but for now I'm just going to wait and see.
So this coming week I might just do a leg curl or extension here and there, or a chest press, but definitely no intense training.


Plans:
Hoping the current lower back injury will heal fast enough, I'm going to compete again on the 4th of September. It's the qualifier for the Dutch Nationals.
No idea yet what Wilks score I need to qualify for the Nationals, but for now the goals is to total over 500kg (1100lbs) in the -83kg (183lbs) class.


Random Other Stuff:
We bought an ER Equipment Rack! IPF approved! So fucking awesome!
Going to invest in an Eleiko powerlifting bar soon as well. The goals is to slowly gather all the things we need to be able to host official IPF meets.
That shit ain't cheap and there's more than just powerlifting going on in our gym, so it might take a while for us to be able to afford all the things we need, but it's just a matter of time!

[Jeppeehh]

Hope you have speedy recovery with your lower back man, that it's nothing major! New rack and upcoming eleiko powerlifting bar, that sounds very nice and once again I am so jealous, haha! Sounds like you are very happy with not only the gym, but the surroundings, peoples you're working with and such. :)

[Embee]

Hope you have speedy recovery with your lower back man, that it's nothing major! New rack and upcoming eleiko powerlifting bar, that sounds very nice and once again I am so jealous, haha! Sounds like you are very happy with not only the gym, but the surroundings, peoples you're working with and such. :)

Thanks brother! I hope so too!

To say that I'm happy with the gym and the people I get to work with, is an understatement.
If you ever find yourself in the Netherlands, you'll have to come and lift with us!

[Jeppeehh]

Yeah, never say never and if I do, I will be sure to stop by. Would be a pleasure!

[Jeppeehh]

How's everything going?

[Embee]

How's everything going?

Well, my back/hip is already feeling a lot better. Not completely gone yet, but it's no longer keeping me from training properly. Thanks for asking man!
I've just started my meet prep for a meet at the beginning of September, where the goal is to qualify for the Dutch Nationals in December!

I'll post some training logs later.

PS. It's my birthday today! :P

[Jeppeehh]

Good to hear. The meet prep sounds exciting, man!

And ofc, Happy birthday!

[Embee]

Good to hear. The meet prep sounds exciting, man!

And ofc, Happy birthday!

Thanks man, it was a good day! Spent most of it at the gym, haha.
And this Saturday my gym family surprised me with delicious hamburgers!

About a week ago my girlfriend told me she had reserved a table at a restaurant, but wouldn't tell me where, just that we would enjoy a romantic dinner together.
While we were on our way to the restaurant (I still had no idea where we were going), everyone gathered there waiting for us to show up.
Once we got to the restaurant I was still completely convinced it would just be the two of us, but as soon as I walked in the door 11 people started singing happy birthday!
Really shows that family isn't just about being related by blood. Had a great evening, the burgers were sublime and I'm very fortunate to call these people my family!

I also hosted my first powerlifting meet this weekend!
With 14 lifters it definitely wasn't the biggest meet, but for a first one it was just right.
Most of it went pretty smooth and and lessons were learned. Everyone really enjoyed it and a lot of PR's were smashed!
On the next one, bigger and better!

Training update in the next post!

[Deathride]

Indeed..........happy birthday!!

Hope the back is healing up - sometimes you have to remember this is a marathon not a sprint!

[Jeppeehh]

Curious about how things have gone for you?

[Deathride]

Dude! Long time, no post :-)

Hope all is well!