View Full Version : Gaining a 4th grader and getting strong
After doing CrossFit for about a year, I decided that I needed to add some strength in order to be competitive. I am 6'4, 205# and very lean. My starting lifts are: Squat 345, Deadlift 385, Bench ~245, Hang Power Clean 240, Press 135. Goals are 550 Deadlift, 500 Squat, 315 Bench, 200+ Press, 315+ Power Clean.
I will be using Rip's Starting Strength including eating as much as I can and GOMAD. As per a question I asked him, I'll be shooting for a bodyweight of about 275. Once I get there, I'll decide how I like it and make plans according to that assessment.
Please feel free to comment on this, as I know there are a lot of more experienced lifters and coaches who can help me and maybe some newbs who I can help.
A Workout
Squat 45x5x2, 135x4, 185x3, 225x5x3
Bench 45x5, 95x4, 135x3, 175x5x3
DL 45x5, 225x3, 275x5
Chins (BW) 8,7,7
I started pretty light to get a feel for the program, need a lot more weight in squats and DL.
Workout B
Squat 45x5x2, 155x4, 195x3, 245x5x3
Press 45x5, 75x3, 95x2, 105x5x3
PC 45x3, 115x2x2, 155x3x5
Workout A
Squat 45x5x2, 155x4, 225x3, 285x5x3
Bench 45x5, 115x4, 155x3, 205x5x3
DL 45x5, 225x3, 265x1, 315x5
Chin (BW) 7,6,4
Smashed my finger unloading the DL which I want to blame for subpar chinning. :mad:
Workout B
Squat 45x5x2, 165x4, 225x3, 295x5x3
Press 45x5, 75x3, 95x2, 115x5x3
PC 45x3, 135x2x2, 175x3x5
Workout A BW 224
Squat 45x5x2, 165x4, 225x3, 285x1, 305x5x3
Bench 45x5, 115x4, 165x2, 210x5x3
DL 45x5, 225x4, 275x2, 335x5
Chin (BW) 7,5,4
Workout B
Squat 45x5x2, 175x4, 245x3, 285x1, 315x5x3
Press 45x5, 75x3, 95x1, 124x5x3
PC 45x3, 135x2, 155x1, 195x3x5
Workout A
Squat 45x5x2, 175x4, 245x3, 285x1, 325x5x3
Bench 45x5, 135x4, 175x2, 215x5x3
DL 45x5, 225x4, 275x2, 355x5
Chin (BW) 8,5,5
Workout B BW ~226
Squat 45x5x2, 185x4, 245x2, 295x1, 335x5x3
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x3, 130x4, 130x5x2
PC 45x3, 155x3, 175x1, 200x3x5
Pull-ups (BW) 5,5,4
I missed my first set on press because I was trying to catch my breath too much at the top of ROM. THAT ISN'T RESTING.
Workout A BW 231
Squat 45x5x2, 185x4, 245x2, 315x1, 345x5x3
Bench 45x5, 135x4, 185x3, 220x5, 220x4x2
DL 45x5, 225x4, 315x2, 355x1, 370x5
Chin (BW) 7,5,4
I felt like I didn't eat enough. Had low energy.
Workout B
Squat 45x5x2, 225x4, 285x2, 315x1, 355x5x3
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x2, 125x1, 135x5x3
PC 45x3, 160x3, 180x2, 210x3x5
Pull-up (BW) 5,4,3
Workout A BW 238
Squat 45x5x2, 225x4, 285x2, 315x2, 365x5x3
Bench 45x5, 135x4, 185x3, 220x5x3
DL 45x5, 225x4, 315x2, 365x2, 385x5
Chin (BW) 6,5,3
Workout B
Squat 45x5x2, 225x4, 315x2, 375x5, 375x4, 375x1 :mad:
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x3, 140x5x3
PC 45x3, 135x3, 175x2, 205x1, 215x3x5
First time I've missed on squats. It pretty much ruined my whole day.
Workout A
Squat 45x5x2, 225x4, 315x3, 375x4, 375x3 (Surprise spot got the last 2) 375x4
Bench 45x5, 135x4, 185x2, 205x2, 225x5x3
DL 45x5, 225x4, 315x2, 345x2, 395x5
Chin (BW) 7,5,4
I was assaulted in the squat rack by a student! I wish I could just put up a fence while I'm working out.
Workout B
Squat 45x5x2, 225x4, 315x2, 345x1, 375x5x3 FINALLY GOT IT!
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x3, 145x5x2, 145x4
PC 45x3, 135x3, 185x2, 220x3x5
Pull-ups (BW) 7,6,4
misspelledgeoff
09-02-2009, 10:06 AM
BCS, you are well on your way to becoming a monster.
Btw, what about the fourth grader reference in the thread title?
misspelt
I figure most 4th graders are near 70 pounds. That's what I am going for gaining, at least to start with.
Workout A
Squat 45x5x2, 225x4, 315x2, 380x5x3
Bench 45x5, 135x4, 185x2, 205x2, 230x5x2, 230x4
DL 45x5, 225x3, 315x2, 345x1, 405x3:mad:
I lost my balance on rep 4 of the DL and dropped it. After that, it felt like I had brakes on. I could push as hard as I wanted and at a certain point, my legs just wouldn't push harder. I've had the sensation before, usually when I can't quite hold onto the bar. Sucks.
K.Diesel
09-03-2009, 04:20 PM
3 shots at 375, then right back in the groove with 5x3 at 380. Hell of a way to rebound. Good job man!
Workout B - I AM DEAD
Squat 45x5x2, 225x4, 315x2, 385x3
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x3, 145x5
PC 45x3, 225x3
I have been feeling kind of irritable and short on energy lately. Before I went to the gym, I felt pretty fatigued. Had a very late night at work last night and was short on sleep. Woke up with a noticeable deficit in grip strength this morning. I believe I'm a little overtrained. The combo of heavy squats and heavy deads on Wed may have been what pushed me over the edge. I'm hoping that the significant volume decrease today, coupled with a weekend off will get me back in the groove on Monday. Of course I'm going to be attempting 405x5 on the DL again which might just shoot my week to pieces. I think I'm approaching a need for slightly more complex programming to scrape out a little bit more time to recover.
I'm considering the CFWF schedule to add some metcon back in while still making linear strength gains. I'm missing my CF WODS and starting to taper off in what I feel like I can recover from, so a little less frequency on the heavier lifts might be what I need. Please comment as I've never really bonked like I did today on a weightlifting program and would like to get some advice from like minded lifters.
BW 243
Squat 45x5x2, 225x3, 315x2, 355x1, 385x5x2, 385x3 - I got distracted by people moving around the gym in the wall-o-mirrors in front of the squat racks at our fun house... err, I mean gym. I had the last 2 reps in the tank for sure.
Bench 45x5, 135x4, 185x2, 230x5x3 Felt good today, fairly easy.
Chin BW 6,5,4
I'm toying with a different spin on SS. I don't think I can PR squat and DL in the same workout without blowing up the rest of the week. I'm trying to figure out a decent way to get around that without messing anything up.
WatsupHannity
09-07-2009, 10:06 PM
Good luck dude, I can't help thinking 275 is monstrous, won't that affect your metcon abilities? I also think you might be ready for like an intermediate lifting program, SS or otherwise, since it seems like your body has already hit some fairly big numbers on lifts. Your CNS has adapted to the movements and is more taxed by the 3 heavy workouts a week than a less experienced lifter. A lot of programs will go heavy-light-heavy which would probably help out a lot.
b33k4y
09-07-2009, 10:15 PM
Definitely try the advanced novice progression. You are hitting serious numbers and I'm willing to bet deadlifting that frequently is going to hurt your progress.
If you aren't familiar with that, it's from PP.
Week 1
M: Squat / Bench / Chin-ups
W: Front Squat / Press / Dead
F: Squat / Bench / Pull-ups
Week 2
M: Squat / Press / Chin-ups
W: Front Squat / Bench / Power Clean
F: Squat / Press / Pull-ups
Repeat
Front Squat 45x5, 135x5, 225x5x3
Press 45x5, 115x3, 145x5x2, 145x4
DL 45x5, 225x3, 315x2, 405x5
DL felt great. My grip was a bit weak on 4 and 5, but the movement was smooth and I pulled straight through. I love the smell of success in the morning.
Good luck dude, I can't help thinking 275 is monstrous, won't that affect your metcon abilities? I also think you might be ready for like an intermediate lifting program, SS or otherwise, since it seems like your body has already hit some fairly big numbers on lifts. Your CNS has adapted to the movements and is more taxed by the 3 heavy workouts a week than a less experienced lifter. A lot of programs will go heavy-light-heavy which would probably help out a lot.
275 is huge. I'm pretty sure I won't be cranking amazing times on CF workouts, but I also probably won't maintain 275 for very long unless I get into power lifting. I'm hoping to level out around 245-255 and lean. My main goal right now is to just get as strong as I can on the novice programs and see where that leaves me.
Squat 45x5x2, 225x3, 315x2, 390x5x3
Bench 45x5, 135x3, 185x3, 205x3, 235x4x3
Pull-ups 4,4,3
My left biceps tendon is really hurting today. Came home and iced it first thing. Squats felt great, I like the advanced novice program, I have time to recover.
BW 247
Squat 45x5x2, 225x3, 315x2, 395x5x3
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x3, 145x5x3
Chin 7,4,5
Still fighting sore biceps on my left arm. Pressing really aggravates it and ice seems to calm it down pretty well for the time being. Need to figure out how to treat it to make it quit hurting.
Front Squat 45x5, 135x5, 235x5x3
Bench Press 45x5, 135x3, 185x3, 235x5x2, 235x4
PC 45x3, 135x2, 235x3x2
I had insufficient rest to get all 5 reps on my bench. PC cut short because I had to leave and because my left bicep was really screaming.
Squat 45x5x2, 225x3, 315x2, 400x5x2, 400x3
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x3, 150x5x2, 150x4
PU 6,5,4
I'm doing my best to milk every last drop of squat progress out of the advanced novice plan before I have to admit to myself that I'm really an intermediate. I have not done a reset yet, and might before I switch. My conditioning is also becoming a limiting factor. I know they are only 5s, but having to catch my breath as I squat or press is costing me a rep here and there. I am not a big fan of transitional stages. Too much uncertainty, but a lot to be learned.
Well, I took a week off to try to allow my left bicep to heal. It seems to be doing well even after my workout.
Squat 45x5x2, 225x3, 315x3, 385x5, 365x5 Squats were murder. 385 nearly buried me, then 365 nearly did too.
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x3, 135x5x3
No pulling today as I'm still resting my bicep and want to give it all the break I can.
milesdyson
09-28-2009, 06:35 PM
Just looked over your log. Did you really gain 30+ pounds in the first three weeks? Looks like a 5000 calorie surplus. Is that about right?
Yeah I really did. I wasn't really uncomfortable doing it either. I just ate and drank a lot of milk and picked up heavy stuff.
Squat 45x5x2, 225x3, 315x3, 365x5x3
Bench 45x5, 135x4, 185x5x3
DL 225x3, 315x3, 365x5
I felt way better than Monday aside from being pretty sore. Seems like my legs are waking back up, the weight was fairly light. I guess I'll just treat this like a reset and work my way back to 405x5x3 on the squat. BP was very light because I'm still trying to baby my left arm and really ease my way back into things to keep it from flaring up again.
misspelledgeoff
10-01-2009, 06:15 AM
Squat 45x5x2, 225x3, 315x3, 365x5x3
Bench 45x5, 135x4, 185x5x3
DL 225x3, 315x3, 365x5
I felt way better than Monday aside from being pretty sore. Seems like my legs are waking back up, the weight was fairly light. I guess I'll just treat this like a reset and work my way back to 405x5x3 on the squat. BP was very light because I'm still trying to baby my left arm and really ease my way back into things to keep it from flaring up again.
do you think the left bicep is due to having elbows too underneath the bar on the heavy squats?
It never bothers me when I squat. I hurts when I bench mostly.
BW 255
Squat 45x5x2, 225x3, 315x3, 375x5x3
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x3, 145x5x3
Back Extensions 4x10 @ 50, 60, 60, 70
Squat is continuing to feel better, I'll be back to making progress again in a week or so. Still staying away from chins since my bicep is still temperamental. I'm going to email our athletic trainer here and see if he has time to see me and see what he says. I don't really want to go to a doc who will just say if it hurts, don't do it anymore.
Haven't done back extensions weighted in a very long time. 70 lbs is a good place to start next time.
Squat 45x5x2, 225x3, 315x3, 385x5x3
Bench 45x5, 135x3, 185x3, 205x5x3
DL 225x3, 315x3, 385x5
Squats continue feeling lighter. Bench is still fairly light, but 205 got my bicep a little unhappy. I found that a wider grip helped a little bit, but I'm still not sure what's going on. DL was pretty strong. Overall good workout for me. I hope to be back over 400 on squat and DL by next week at the latest. I'm not sure about how bench is going to progress b/c I'm not sacrificing my arm on the altar of gains before I find out what the deal is.
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 395x4
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x3, 150x5x3
Back Extension 70x10x3
BigJavs
10-08-2009, 12:32 AM
May I suggest doing sets of light curls in the 12-15 rep range? I hurt my left biceps/elbow benching and I found doing some curls helped out. I think it has something to do with the triceps becoming a lot stronger than the biceps because of all the pressing you're doing and it throws things a bit out of whack.
May I suggest doing sets of light curls in the 12-15 rep range? I hurt my left biceps/elbow benching and I found doing some curls helped out. I think it has something to do with the triceps becoming a lot stronger than the biceps because of all the pressing you're doing and it throws things a bit out of whack.
It's certainly worth a try. Did you do them every workout? 3 sets of 15? I'm open to anything that's not obviously harebrained at this point.
BigJavs
10-08-2009, 05:36 PM
I started out really light so as not to aggravate my biceps. I did them every day with a mini band. Then I moved on to dumbbells and did them 2 or 3 times a week for 3 sets of 15. Because I broke my wrist as a kid and it hurts to supinate the dumbbell, I did them concentration curl style. I felt like a douche doing them that way but it did help. Let me how it works if you try it.
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 390x5x3
Bench 45x5, 95x5, 135x5, 185x3, 210x5x3
Bicep Curl 45x15x3
Sit-up 45x10x3
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 395x5x3
Press 45x5, 95x4, 115x3, 135x2, 155x4
Curl 55x15x3
BE 75x10x3
StLRPh
10-13-2009, 02:55 PM
I just read over your log and its pretty impressive. 50+ lbs in 6 weeks is staggering:eek:. Good luck on your goals.
I just read over your log and its pretty impressive. 50+ lbs in 6 weeks is staggering:eek:. Good luck on your goals.
Thanks!
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 400x5x3 PR
Bench 45x5, 95x5, 135x4, 185x3, 225x5x3
Curl 65x15x3
Sit-ups 60x10x3
misspelledgeoff
10-15-2009, 07:28 PM
your next squat increment will be 4 plates on each side. holy shit man.
K.Diesel
10-15-2009, 10:55 PM
Looking at your last entry, I remembered squatting 400 x 4 and 390 x 5 once and how hard each of those sets were (different days). 400 x 5 three times on the same day is insane! And gaining 50 lbs in 60 days? Even more insane!!! You definitely deserve some award man. That's some phenomenal stuff. Reading that kind of stuff gets me amped to eat and get to the gym!
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 405x5
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x3, 155x5
Curl 75x15
Short one today. I'm going back to MWF and decided to just do one work set of each lift and get back to work on my normal schedule.
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 405x5x3
Bench 45x5, 95x5, 135x5, 185x3, 230x5x3
Curl 75x15x3
Back Extension 80x10x3
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 410x5x3
Press 45x5, 95x3, 115x3, 155x4, 3
Curl 65x15x3
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 415x5
Bench 45x5, 95x5, 135x3, 185x3, 235x5, 4
DL 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 425f
Bad night. Neither my mind nor my body was there.
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 330x5x2
Press 45x5, 95x5, 135x5x3
BE 80x10x3
Chin 6,4
Recovery day. I was still feeling beat up from last week. Didn't sleep well over the weekend. I feel a lot better now than I did earlier today. BW pretty stable around 265.
I still feel terrible. Haven't slept through the night in about 5 days. I'm a little worried about over training again. I'm kind of pushing the envelope on recovery at the top end of the novice cycle trying to squeeze out as many 5 pound jumps as I can get on my squat before I have to change the programming.
StLRPh
10-27-2009, 08:32 AM
Sounds like it may be time for a deload and then a switch to intermediate style programming. I don't think that anyone can say that you didn't get everything you could out of novice programming. Good luck
misspelledgeoff
10-27-2009, 12:12 PM
shit man. i'd think about going to 2.5# per w/o before intermediate programming. a 2.5# increase is still 30# per month on the squat.
Foam rolled and stretched today. Planning to go back to the weights tomorrow. I might start TM on squats starting Monday depending on how tomorrow goes.
Mr.City
10-29-2009, 10:34 PM
Nice numbers, man.
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 405x5x3 Felt great!
Bench 45x5, 95x5, 135x5, 185x3, 235x5x3 PR
Back Extensions 85x10x3
Going back to advanced novice next week. I'll see how the break on Wednesday affects my recovery. I'm pretty sure I still have some gas in the tank for it. Maybe up over 425, who knows?
In other news, I'm up to 270lbs. I think I'll try for another 35. No one believes me when I tell them I weigh that much. It's all in my legs though. I have skinny arms.
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 410x5x3
Press 45x5, 95x5, 115x3, 145x5x3
jacob cloud
11-03-2009, 06:38 PM
Awesome log, Brandon. Very inspiring stuff.
Have the curls helped out your biceps at all, from a pain perspective? I'm a little worried - between you, me, another buddy of mine, and several other devoted Rip-followers that I've kept up with online, biceps tendinosis is becoming pretty common. I think maybe we shun curls TOO much in the beginning stages of the program, as much as I hate to say it. It's annoying that several people I know who train like complete idiots never have these problems. Of course, they also aren't strong. Hmm.
Glad to see you are progressing steadily, I'll be watching your log and using you as motivation, since we are really close, strength-wise. I'm currently "bulking" as well, but only for the next month since I've decided to compete in a 275 class, which gives me room to grow. Not sure I could do 30lbs in a month, but 20 outta help my levers plenty.
The pain was reduced doing curls. I think I developed it by having bad bench technique. My elbows tend to move through the motion and that rubs the tendons all over the place. Curling 3x15 with 90 seconds rest between sets was reducing the pain, but I also dropped the weight on my bench at the same time. I would endorse them as long as they don't become a main lift.
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 335x5x2
Bench 45x5, 95x5, 135x4, 185x3, 240x5x2 PR
DL 45x5, 225x4, 315x3, 405x3
DL was very easy. I was pretty happy with that. Biceps are flaring up again and hurt pretty badly during my bench press.
Played 2 games of full court basketball to 11. Was about all the gas I had in the tank and made my shoulders and arms hurt worse.
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 415x5, 4
Press 45x5, 95x5, 115x3, 150x5x3
Curl 45x25x2, 15, 10
Back Extensions 90x10x3
Squats dumped me over on rep 5 of set 2. I think it's time to go to TM on my squats as much as I hate to admit it, I think I'm at the wall for my novice gains on squat. Biceps pain is back and now in both arms, hence the curls. They'll be a staple for awhile as the pain seems to decrease after about a week of doing them. A lack of pulling has resulted in a bit of a loose upper back that I'm fighting with squats too. Time to bring it back up to par as well. You're only as strong as your weakest link as they say.
misspelledgeoff
11-06-2009, 07:52 PM
well you've had a helluva run on the novice programming. I'm a bit frightened to think where you'll be a year from now if you keep this up!
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 415x5, 4
Press 45x5, 95x5, 115x3, 150x5x3
Curl 45x25x2, 15, 10
Back Extensions 90x10x3
Squats dumped me over on rep 5 of set 2. I think it's time to go to TM on my squats as much as I hate to admit it, I think I'm at the wall for my novice gains on squat. Biceps pain is back and now in both arms, hence the curls. They'll be a staple for awhile as the pain seems to decrease after about a week of doing them. A lack of pulling has resulted in a bit of a loose upper back that I'm fighting with squats too. Time to bring it back up to par as well. You're only as strong as your weakest link as they say.
Squat 45x5x2, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 385x5x3 out of 5
Workout was cut short unexpectedly. I'll be postponing the official start of TM until next Monday.
After a horrid layoff, I'm going back to the gym today. Will be taking it extra easy as I want to walk this weekend.
misspelledgeoff
11-27-2009, 12:19 PM
did you get sick or injured? or just crazy busy?
A combination of busy and lazy. It was just what the doctor ordered though now that I think of it. I was getting pretty burned out and I was excited to get back under the bar today.
Squat BWx10, 45x5x2, 95x5, 135x5, 185x5, 225x5x3
Press 45x5x2, 95x5, 115x5x3
DL 135x5, 185x5, 225x5
I'm just trying to ease into the crippling soreness that I'm expecting before I can get back to honest work.
Another note, after reading about Gary and other's experience with belts, I'm going to be getting one. If it will give me 30 lbs in my squat, I should be able to get to 440ish x5x3 before I have to move to more complex programming. I've decided to go to 5/3/1 when I run out of easy gains on SS because I want to focus more on conditioning and playing sports again rather than solely lifting heavy weights.
JC400
11-27-2009, 02:07 PM
Great log BCS! It is good to see when someone actually lifts and eats big get great progress with SS. It proves that it is possible to stay with linear progression well in to 400+.
I think for whatever reason some people are far too keen to be called intermediate lifters and look to skip through SS as quickly as possible.
Hope your biceps sorts itself out in the near future and you get back into the swing of things.
Squat BWx15, 45x5, 135x5, 225x5, 315x5x3
Bench 45x5, 135x5, 185x4, 225x5x3
Wannabe Kroc Row 85x20 1 set each side
My legs are still waking back up from a 3 week layoff. It will be 2 or 3 weeks before I get back into PR territory. Hopefully by then my belt and knee wraps will have arrived and I'll be placing an order for the Rogue Squat shoes for Christmas. I'm going to attempt to hit 440x5x3.
On the Kroc Rows, I'm not sure how useful they will be for me overall as I don't have any DBs over 100lbs in the gym. He's pulling 225 like it's a toy.
Squat BWx15, 45x5, 135x5, 225x5, 325x5x3
Press 45x5, 95x5, 135x5x3
I am officially back in the saddle...again. Students have gone home and I now have the time to get back to lifting steadily. In other news, I just got a big red belt from EliteFTS. Quality is superb although I'm not used to the belt so it pinches the snot out of me.
Squat BWx25, 45x5x2, 135x5, 185x5, 225x5, 275x5x3
Press 45x5, 95x5, 115x5x3
DL 135x3, 225x3, 315x5
Felt good, was pretty easy although I'll pay for it tomorrow. I'm sure I'll be dreadfully sore. Coming out of the bottom of the squat with the belt on was magical. I'm sure I'll enjoy wearing it out sometime in the next half century.
kittenSmash
12-14-2009, 09:06 PM
Glad to hear you're back at it man. You should be rockin' the heavy weights again in no time. I still can't believe how much weight you've been able to put on, badass. Have you been able to maintain it lately?
I just got a big red belt in the mail today too. But I had a smaller blue one before. Looking forward to the progress.
I haven't weighed lately to know. I think I lost a little with about a month of layoff from the gym, but not much. I'm going to get over 300 before I stop and start to try and lean up a bit. I intend to make linear progress on squats up to around 450x5x3 with a belt. We shall see how that goes.
I just read my whole log and now I want to go lift today. I hate coming back from a layoff b/c you feel like you have so much energy and can go everyday. I need that residual fatigue to remind me to be thankful for a break instead of running myself into the ground.
Squat 45x5, 135x5, 225x3, 315x5x3
Bench 45x5, 95x5, 135x5, 185x3, 225x5x3
DB Row 100lbsx15 each side
Squatted with knee sleeves today. I am a fan of the warmth they provide now. I need to hire someone to cook for me. I haven't been eating much lately.
I need to eat and sleep more.
Squat 45x10, 45x5, 135x5, 225x5, 335x5x3 Still easing my way back in.
Press 45x5, 95x4, 125x5x3
Curl 45x10x5
Bench pressing above 200 sends me down the spiral of elbow/biceps pain. HATE
Still easing my way back into good squat numbers.
Squat 45x10, 135x5, 225x3, 315x2, 365x5x3
Bench 45x5, 95x5, 135x5, 185x3, 235x4, 225x5, 230x5 I'll hit 230x5x3 next time. Got greedy.
DB rows 100lbsx17 each side. +2 reps PR
Hey BCS,
What seems to be working best for you with the elbow/bicep pain?
I started feeling this my last two workouts. I think its because my powerclean form sucks..and I pull too much with my arms.
-Dwayne
Rest and high rep curls. Fix your PC form. Are you catching the bar on your anterior delts or in your hands with your elbows below the bar? I think that's what initially made mine unhappy and then the pressing compounded it.
StLRPh
12-22-2009, 10:30 AM
Bench pressing above 200 sends me down the spiral of elbow/biceps pain. HATE
Ever considered elbow sleeves?
Squat 45x10, 135x5, 225x3, 315x3, 375x5, 385x5x2 375 turned out to be too light. I should be back into squat PR territory in about a week and a half.
Press 45x5, 95x5, 115x3, 135x5x3
Squat 405x5x2, 405x4
Practice bench technique.
I am slobbishly out of shape. I'm testing maxes this week and going to 5/3/1 next week so I'll have time to condition. I hate finishing my squats and feeling like I can't do anything else for the rest of the day because there's so little gas in the tank.
Maxed my squat today. I made three attempts. 445 was pretty easy. 470 was kind of tough. 5 wheels went up with a fight. That's right 5 wheels to end the year!
JCavin
01-01-2010, 09:41 AM
Holy shit, dude!
Congratulations! That's a lot of fucking weight!
Hopefully 6 wheels+ is one of your resolutions. You got that shit, no problem man!
Mr.City
01-03-2010, 11:26 AM
Wow, nice job!
That's awesome BCS.
Out of curiousity, two things:
1. Sorry if I asked before. Did squats ever give you any arm pain and how long did it take for it to go away?
2. What was your best 3 sets of 5 before this five plate accomplishment? (just curious to find out how the percentage your 3 sets of 5 relates to your 1RM...)
thanks
I did 405 for 3x5 the Tuesday before. Yes, squatting hurts my arms and shoulders. They hurt more the more weight I have on the bar. I don't think my grip is wrong, but it could be. I'm going to get a camera soon and post some vids of my lifts for critique. I'm 100% self taught and as such have never been coached on my lifts.
Press Day
95x5, 115x5, 135x8
75x10x5
Chins 3,2 and done because of my bicep pain.
I'm hanging out around 260 right now. I'm up in the air about gaining weight or attempting to lean out a little and then pumping it up from there. According to Robb Wolf, you gain more muscle mass and less fat overall when you lean out before a bulking stage. I'm doing 5/3/1 now because my mind is tired and I'll be able to make gains while focusing on one big lift per day rather than 3, albeit less quickly.
Deadliftish day
I didn't have a max DL so I maxed at 455. I feel like it's kind of weird that I'm so uncomfortable in the DL as opposed to the squat. I feel some pulling tightness around my SI joint that makes me a little nervous. When I get a camera, I'll post some footage for critique. Perhaps with some coaching and practice that will improve. My total DL workout looked like this: 135x10, 225x5, 315x3, 405x1, 405x3, 455x1, 350x5
Then because I hadn't had a bench max in a long long time, I got that so I can figure out Thursday's workout. It went: 45x10, 135x5, 225x1, 245x1, 265x1. I can just barely bench more than my current bodyweight of about 260.
Now I'm taking my wife to Outback for a date.
Bench
45x10, 95x10, 135x5, 155x5, 180x5, 205x11
115x10x5
DB Row 100x20 reps each side
I feel like it's time to update my training goals since I have gotten somewhat stronger.
Squat - 6 wheels
DL - 5 wheels
Bench - 3 wheels
Press - 2 wheels
I don't care too much about my bodyweight right now. I might gain or lose some over the next few months just depends on how I feel. I'm going to be adding a little conditioning work to 5/3/1 because I hate walking up a hill and being out of breath. I'll probably lean up a little come May.
TartanEagle
01-08-2010, 09:36 AM
"Somewhat" stronger? Just a bit of an understatement. By the way, I've really enjoyed following your log. It was one of the things that spurred me to get my own rack to start the program. I look forward to following your progress on 5/3/1.
Thanks for the kind words Tartan. Best of luck to you as you train!
Squats
65x10, 135x5, 225x5, 290x5, 335x5, 380x8
380x8 was the hardest thing I've done in a long time.
Press
45x5, 95x5, 105x3, 120x3, 135x10 +2 Rep PR
85x10x5
Chin 3x3
Deadlift day
135x10, 225x3, 290x3, 330x3, 370x7
185x10x5
My back and forearms are shot.
Bench
45x12, 115x5, 155x3, 170x3, 195x3, 215x9
135x10x5
One Arm DB Row
100x25 each side
Squats
45x5, 135x5, 225x3, 310x3, 355x3, 400x9
225x10
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRYMXUTu0Pw
Press
45x10, 115x5, 130x3, 145x9
115x10x5
Chin/Pull ups
3, 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38M-HPbEZBg
I'm going to try to post videos of my last work sets of each day on 5/3/1.
BW 272 on the way to 300.
I also emailed our state head for USAPL to inquire about raw meets in South Carolina. I hope to lift in the state meet at the end of June.
How much has the beard helped? I started growing mine this month too, and I think it's helping.
SerusMournstar
01-18-2010, 07:00 PM
Squats
45x5, 135x5, 225x3, 310x3, 355x3, 400x9
225x10
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRYMXUTu0Pw
That 400 x 9 squat is fucking insane. You are doing awesome man, keep up the good progress.
Much like Samson's hair, my beard is the source of my power. My wife is playing the role of Deliliah in trying to get me to shave it, but I'm afraid of the consequences if I do.
Deadlift
135x5, 225x3, 310x5, 350x3, 390x8
185x10x5
310x5
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-XG-s4GcSQ
350x3 with American Idol in the background.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VK3nW4p2N0
390x8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtVaEa53CA4
Weighted incline sit up with a plate behind my head
10 lbs x 10, 5, 5
I wanted to add that before I started SS in August of last year, that my 1RM was 385 on the deadlift and I just pulled 5 lbs heavier for 8 and might have had 1 or 2 in the tank. I've never deadlifted to failure before. I think it would be ugly.
Bench
45x10, 95x6, 135x5, 180x5, 205x3, 230x6
145x10x3, 155x10x2
One Arm DB Row
100x30 Each arm
I ate 10 tacos from Taco Bell immediately before this, then went home and drank about half a gallon of milk.
Squat
45x10, 135x6, 225x3, 335x5, 380x3, 425x7
I had 2-3 more reps at 425, but I've been having some stomach issues today and didn't want to risk a solid fart. Racked it and went straight to the locker room to hang with John.
Didn't have time for any assistance work, I'm heading out of town in just a few minutes for the weekend.
Deload Week
Press
45x10, 65x5, 80x5, 95x5
85x10x5
I feel like I did nothing. This deloading thing is weird to me.
Bench/Conditioning
45x10, 95x5, 120x5, 145x5 This deloading is weird.
I missed my DL day this week, so I incorporated it into a short conditioning deal.
3 rounds of DL 315x5/100 reps Jump rope. I set the timer for 6 minutes and I was about 25 hops shy of 100 so I just went ahead and finished it out.
Paul Sousa
01-28-2010, 06:14 PM
Are you scrapping accessories altogether during your deload week? I have been just decreasing volume. But then again my weights on squat and deads aren't even close to yours.
I'm just messing around this week to try to figure it out a little. I don't do much that's really set in stone though. This is my first deload, so next month it will likely be different. I also didn't feel like doing much after that DL/Jump Rope workout.
Press
45x10, 100x5, 115x5, 130x12
115x10x5
Chins 4
Deadlift
135x6, 225x4, 275x5, 315x5, 360x12
Some jump rope work.
My butt and hammies know that it was deadlift day.
Bench
45x10, 95x5, 135x5, 160x5, 185x5, 210x11
155x10x5
Kroc Rows
100lb DB 23 reps each side
Jump Rope Warm Up
100 both
50 r/l
100 Alt
100 both
Bad Day
Squat
45x10, 135x5, 225x3, 295x5, 340x5, 385x7 Target was 11.
I felt like crap all day and just crowned it in the gym. I blame it on lack of good sleep and milk. Back on the milk tomorrow and hopefully a better squat day next week.
Press
45x10, 95x5, 110x3, 125x3, 140x10
115x10x5
StLRPh
02-10-2010, 11:30 AM
Deadlift
135x6, 225x4, 275x5, 315x5, 360x12
Some jump rope work.
My butt and hammies know that it was deadlift day.
Looks like your Deadlift is coming up, great job
Deadlift/Power Clean
PC
135, 185, 225, 245
DL
265x1, 295x3, 335x3, 380x10
Jump Rope ~300 with some double unders peppered in.
Bench
45x10, 95x5, 135x5, 170x3, 195x3, 220x9
160x10x5
Kroc Rows
100lbx31 each side 1 rep pr
Jump rope WU - 100, 50 r/l, 50 alt, 50
After lifting - 100, 25 double unders, 50, 25 du, 25, 25 du, 100
Squat
45x10, 135x6, 225x5, 320x3, 365x3, 410x6
225x10x5
Some random jump rope for warm up.
I am dead after all that volume.
Press
45x10, 95x5, 115x5, 130x3, 150x8
120x10x5
Some jump rope.
PC
135x2, 185x2, 225x1, 245x1, 250x1 PR
DL
315x5, 360x3, 400x6
Jump rope wu - 100 before and 200 after
I am still not recovered from Monday's volume. I'm going to have to scale that assistance squatting way back.
It's my birthday.
bench
45x10, 135x5, 185x5, 210x3, 235x7
165x10x5
Nothing like a birthday bench. :)
Happy Birthday.
Press
45x10, 95x3, 105x5, 120x5, 135x12
105x10x3
Chins
2, 6, 4
Thanks Sami.
Press
45x10, 95x5, 105x5, 120x5, 135x11
Annie
50-40-30-20-10 of DU/SU
14:36
I was sick with a fever last week and lost the week recovering. Rec/Church league basketball is coming up soon so I decided to keep the 5/3/1 worksets and then use CF as my assistance work to condition and lean up a little. I'm also going back to the Zone at 25 blocks/day, 1/2 carbs w/ 2x fat to start with and will add food if my main lifts start suffering. I've chosen 8 CF workouts that I will rotate through.
Press day will be either Annie or Helen
DL day will be either Grace or Isabel
Bench day will be either Cindy or Nicole
Squat day will be either a BB complex or 21-15-9 C&J/Push Ups
I wanted to add explosive work on leg days and pull-up heavy work on upper body days. Hopefully going 2 on 1 off/2 on 2 off will not burn me up. Here's to experimentation!
DL/PC
PC
135x2, 185x2, 225x2, 245x1, 255 high pull
DL
280x5, 325x5, 365x8
Grace w/ power cleans not full squat cleans @ 135
6:11
Getting back into shape sucks.
Bench
45x10, 95x8, 135x5, 165x5, 190x5, 215x9
Mini Cindy
Amrap 10 min
1 pull up, 5 push ups, 10 squats
9 rounds
Squat
45x5, 135x5, 225x3, 280x5, 325x5, 365x6
then
BB Complex
3 Rounds for Time of:
6 DL
6 Bent Rows
6 Hang Power Clean
6 Thrusters
6 Push ups with hands on the bar.
11:37 w/ 135# bar.
Beware the Ides of March
Press
45x10, 95x5, 110x3, 130x3, 145x8
Mini Helen
Run .15, 21 swings, 6 chins for 3 rounds
14:12
PC/DL
PC
135, 185, 205, 225f, 225
DL
300x3, 345x3, 385x8
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