James Cavin's SS Log

[JCavin]

I'm 23, 5'11 and 200lbs even, atm.

I actually started doing the SS workout a couple months ago, but I was forced to stop for a bit due to getting sick and then my wife and kid doing the same.

I was following the program to a T and drinking a GOMAD. Unfortunately, when I was forced to stop lifting I kept drinking my GOMAD and eating like before. So, I think I put on some excess fat. Not to worry, though. The squats and DL will have me turning that into some good mass before too long, I hope.

I'm back in the gym now and looking forward to getting bigger and stronger. I'm going to deload and start back at some low weight so I won't stall later.

Here's my workout from 12/08/2009:
Squats 3X5 135 (I expect these to go up fairly quickly)
Press 3X5 100
Deadlift 1X5 150 (I expect these to go up fairly quickly)
Chins BWX6, 5, 4, 4

======================
Short term goals:
- Squat my bodyweight X 5
- DL 1.5 X bodyweight 5 times

======================
Long term goals:
- Uhh...get stronger
- Get bigger
- Have sex with Beyonce Knowles

[knox]

You managed to drink gomad and gain weight while you were sick? Nice work. You will definately reap the benefits now that you're back on track...I bet your strength didn't go down that much either. Good luck!

[JCavin]

There was about a week or so that I wasn't able to drink much milk, but I resumed it as soon as I was able. I didn't get nearly as sick as my wife and 9 month old(I don't typically get really sick). After my last workout I don't think it will take long to get back to my previous weight.

I seem to almost have a phobia of stalling, though. I know I can jump up a lot of weight quickly, but i'm reluctant to do so.

[JCavin]

12/10/09

Squat 145x3x5
Bench 140x3x5
Deadlift 160x1x5

My deadlifts felt really good yesterday. I narrowed my stance a little, concentrated on pushing instead of pulling and it was really easy.

Right now my biggest problem is getting to where I can squat as well as before. I seem to have lost that perfect spot that makes it so much easier(i.e. no hip drive, and I feel like i'm doing a standard leg press). I'm thinking that maybe my feet aren't wide enough and perhaps my toes aren't pointed out far enough. I'll have to study some videos and the book for tomorrow's workout.

[semperteneo]

concentrated on pushing instead of pulling and it was really easy.


this really helps me, what were your numbers like before the break?

[JCavin]

I don't have my workout book on me, but I have a general idea. These are all at 1 rep.

Squats - 215 or so. That sounds right, but i'd have to check to be sure
Deadlift - 260. I remember this because it was a big deal to me. It was also right after I started to feel like I was really getting the form down.
Press - 120. Kinda weak, I know. I have small shoulders and chest.
Bench - 190. Again, small chest.

The only one i'm positive about is my deadlift. The rest seem fairly accurate.

Not bad numbers for me. Weak for a lot of people, but until I started SS I had never done a squat or press in my life.

I had been one of the typical gym guys that loved to do a body part each day and constantly tried to make my chest bigger. It never happened though, and I just chalked it up to genetics.

When I started doing squats, though, my chest and shoulders, and everything else started growing.

Looking back, I feel like I was an idiot. Squats>any other exercise possible. If only I had realized all the benefits sooner... Then again, if I had done squats the way everyone else did them I probably wouldn't have the virgin knees I have now.

[JCavin]

I figured I would go ahead and post my eating plan for most days. I would appreciate any help you guys could give me with it. I want to make sure i'm getting enough protein and such.

GOMAD - I drink 1 tall glass every 1-2 hours at work and at home.

I typically have a large bowl of cereal as soon as I wake up for a good insulin spike first thing.

For lunch I have whatever the detainees happen to fix that day. Today, for example, we had mashed potatoes and gravy with chicken fried steak. I had 2 of the steaks, 3 large scoops of potatoes and gravy.

Dinner usually consists of lots of red meats. For example, last night I had 3 smoked pork chops and some cheesy "rice-o-roni" stuff. It was good.

On top of that, I usually have at least 1 peanut butter sandwich on wheat during the day. I also drink 2-4 protein shakes, depending on how busy we are.

What do you guys think? I'm sure i'm getting enough calories, but it's the protein i'm worried about it.

I'm 5'11 and I weighed 203lbs yesterday before my workout.

[JCavin]

12/12/09

Just got up an hour ago.

I made 6 scrambled eggs loaded with sharp cheddar cheese, 3 full slices of bacon, and a tall glass of milk. I'm about to burst.

Unfortunately, I only got around 6 hours of sleep last night, and even those 6 weren't straight through. My daughter woke up a couple times and I was having an allergy attack that made it hard to breathe.

I will still be working out today, though. As much as i'd like to crawl back into bed, my legs just keep calling me a pussy.

Oh, and my wife says i'm starting to get a gut. That's good, right? That means i'm eating like I should be.

[JCavin]

12/12/09

Just got back from the gym. It went pretty well, imo.

Squats 155x3x5
Press 105x3x5
Deadlift 175x1x5
Chins BWx5,5,4

My deadlifts felt great. The first rep at 175 was a shock initially, but the subsequent reps were easy as pie.

My squats, on the other hand, weren't so easy. For some reason I had a hard time keeping to form on my first and third set at 155. The middle set was way easier. I think it is because I still haven't gotten the form down well enough. It could also be that I didn't regulate my rest periods very well. Or, maybe I just need to switch to 5lb increases.

I'm not sure, tbh.

Press was brutal on me today. I finished all sets, but I was mentally kicking myself in the vagina to make sure I did. We'll see how it goes next week.

=======================================
So on top of the breakfast I posted this morning, today i've had 3 peanut butter sandwiches, 1 gal of whole milk, 1 really disgusting detainee-made sausage hot dog, 4 pieces of whole wheat bread with some baked beans, and i'm about to have a load of rice with 2 pork chops. I'll probably have some more milk and a bowl of cereal before bed. I really, really don't want to do bad on squats next week.

I should be okay though. I've got 3 days off for recovery.

[JCavin]

12/15/2009 - weighed in at 207lbs! Sweet. I'd like to be up to 215 within the next 3 weeks or so.

Squats 165x3x5
Bench 150x3x5
Deadlift 190x1x5

I think having the 3 days off made a huge difference in my recovery. I didn't have to work so I was able to sleep in a bit and I kept eating. When I worked out yesterday I felt really strong. I felt like I could have easily handled another 10-15 pounds on every lift, but I knew that would be a mistake.

Squats - They are getting better. I feel like they are definitely closer to how I was doing them previously. I worked on my hip drive, stretch reflex, and making sure my knees didn't buckle. All my sets felt easy and I only had a couple problems while doing them. I had a couple reps where I wasn't standing up completely in time with finishing my hip drive. Other than that, they felt great.

Bench press - Same ol' stuff. Felt light and easy.

Deadlift - Felt really good. I was actually quite surprised at how easy they felt. I'll be doing 205 on my next workout and I hope I can continue the trend.
==================================================
Today's Breakfast - 4 fried eggs, 5 full slices of bacon, 4 pieces of toast w/ butter and a tall glass of milk.

1 Gallon of milk.

==================================================
Some observations i've made since I restarted the SS program:
- I now have bright purple stretch marks on my thighs near my sack. I was so proud of those that I stripped down naked and made my wife look at them. Oh yeah, I got her with the "Batwing" while I was at it.
- My thighs have always been where I hold my fat. That hasn't changed. What has changed is that now my thighs are solid. Even the fatty areas are really firm. A coworker attempted to grab my thigh and squeeze it to put me in pain the other day. He gave up in frustration.
- My wife says my ass sits really "high." Awesome.
- I've had to buy all new jeans and I got 3 new pairs of BDU pants for work yesterday because it looked like my ass cheeks were starving...
- I've still got a little gut goin', but I don't care. I'm getting bigger everywhere at the same time and that just lets me know i'm eating correctly.
- My arms are getting big again.
- I'm awesome.
- I'm not used to being this heavy. It is really hard to put my shoes on or clip my toenails without running out of breath. I think it is probably because i'm always full.
- It is also hard for me to breathe when I don't sit up straight in this chair. Damn this duty belt!
- I'll most likely have to get a new duty belt and uniform shirts in the next week or two. Can't have buttons popping someone in the eye.

[JCavin]

Squats 175x3x5 - Easy
Press 110x3x5 - Moderate
Deadlift 205x1x5 - Easy
Chins BWx5,5,5

Only thing to gripe about was that my hamstrings felt tired as shit after my deadlifts. I'll keep doing them with squats, but I dunno how much longer I can before I have to switch to every other workout.

Oh yeah, I weighed 212. Sweet.

[JCavin]

Squats 185x3x5
Bench Press 160x3x5
Deadlift 225x1x5

Squats and Deadlifts just seem to be easy every workout. I'm guess it is because of good recovery.

I actually went up 20lbs in Deadlift last night. My work set was supposed to be 220, but I was kinda in a hurry and 225 was just easier to load on the bar. I got each rep easy. It was kind of weird because I could tell it was a lot heavier, but I didn't have any trouble pulling it. I told myself I was going to pull it no matter what and I did.

The strange thing was that I didn't feel a burn or anything in my legs or back. I'm guessing it is because I distributed the load fairly well.

Squats felt heavy at first, but I just told myself I was going to do it. In fact, I was grunting something along the lines of "fuckin' easy" with each rep. And it was.

I think my biggest obstacle at the moment is my mind. My rational thought keeps telling me that i'm not supposed to be able to lift weight this heavy. I'm just gonna keep telling rationale to fuck off in the meantime.
=======================================
Current goals:
- Get stronger.
- Squat over 250.
- Deadlift over 300
- Bench over 190
- Press over 120
- Body weight over 215. Currently still at 212 and i'm thinking that I might have hit a sort of plateau with my current caloric intake. As long as I get stronger, I don't give a shit. At least until i'm squatting and deadlifting bigger numbers.

[JCavin]

Oh yeah. I forgot to mention that the combination of squats and deadlifts is just draining the shit out of me.

I went home and crashed last night. Got about 8 hours of sleep and still woke up dead tired.

I'll be sticking to the same workout until after the holidays, but i'll probably need to start doing some power cleans then.

[StrongIslander,NY]

got to get that squat to bw. more milk for adding weight. good progress. sometimes during a session your body gives all.

keep going look forward to see you exceed goals for 2010

[JCavin]

Yeah, i'm really looking forward to getting my squat up there. I should be above bodyweight by early to mid January.

As for the milk, i'm already drinking GOMAD.

I'm actually up almost 40 pounds from October 3rd.

On October 3rd I entered the Men's Novice division(Judo) at 178lbs. Since then i've stopped training judo and i'm just focusing on the lifting.

That's not gonna keep me from eating my ass off though. I'll eat anything as long as I don't stall, lol.

[JCavin]

12/26/2009

215lbs - This seems to have levelled out on my current caloric intake. I actually expect my bodyweight to go down a bit now that I can workout 3 days a week again without worrying about hurting my family's feelers if I don't see them during the holidays.

Squats 195x3x5 - Easy
Press 115x3x5 - Moderate
Deadlift 240x3x5 - Was really easy until the last set. Gonna have to tweak my warmups.
Chins BWx5,5,5

My workout went better than I had anticipated. I only slept for about 4 hours the night before, so I knew there was the possibility of some lifting problems.

I spent much of the day mentally convincing myself that I wasn't going to let something like lack of sleep throw off my workouts. I just simply refused to believe it.

I got through squats no problem, and my presses were easier than usual. My deadlifts were looking great until the last set. The last set just killed me and I felt like I was gonna have a stroke pulling it. I managed to get all 5, but not without difficulty. The previous set wasn't a problem at all, but there seemed to be a HUGE difference in the weight for some reason.

I was texting a good friend of mine during my rest periods. He recently moved down to Texas so I don't talk to him much. I think that this probably caused me to lose focus. Combine this with a lack of sleep and they are the most likely causes of grinding through the set.

I'll be working out again today and i'm going to continue with my linear progression, even on deadlifts. One of my friends, and coworker, will be joining my gym today too. Hopefully with the extra motivation I won't have much trouble in any of my lifts.

If I have more trouble with my deadlifting today then i'll know that it is because I need to start doing powerclean and deadlifting every other workout. I don't really care as long as I get my DL over 300 in the next month.

In the meantime, i'll be eating about 4 peanut butter sandwiches to fuel up for tonight's workout.

[JCavin]

12/29/2009

Squats 205x3x5 - Easy
Bench Press 165x3x5 - Easy
Deadlift 250x1x5 - Really Easy

I had a pretty awesome workout yesterday. Everything felt really light.

I was a little concerned about my deadlifts because I had a bit of trouble pulling 240 last time. Because of lack of sleep and concentration last time, I decided to only go up 10lbs this workout. It paid off. I'll be moving back up to 15 for tomorrow to see if there is a noticeable change. If so, it probably means I need to slow down my progression to 10lbs on DL and then most likely 5 on squats.

All-in-all, another good workout. I'll be looking to continue my linear progression at 10 for squats and 15 for DL for as long as possible.

[JCavin]

12/31/2009 - 219lbs PR

Squats (PR)215x3x5 - Sleazy easy
Press (PR)120x3x5 - Easier than before. Think my shoulders are starting to get the idea of growing a little bit. Each workout has been easier than the last for about 2 weeks.
Deadlift (PR)265x1x5 - Heavy as fuck, but I pulled it easy. Weird how that works.
Chins BWx5,5,5 - Same as always, just with more dizziness, lol.
=================================================
So last night was a really interesting workout for me.

I've always been fairly immune to caffeine. I can down 3 or 4 red bulls, piss like a race horse, and then go fall asleep like I just took a xanax. I dunno why. Probably because I drank so much soda as a kid.

Yesterday I decided to take some caffeine pills before my workout, just to see if there was any improvement. So, assuming that the caffeine would have its normal affect on me(i.e. none), I took 2. Now, these are 200mg of caffeine per pill. Stupid...I could tell my blood pressure was really high because I was pretty jittery.

I didn't realize just how bad it was until I started doing my work sets on squats. The combination of heavy weight, holding a big, deep breath, and a really high caffeine dosage = nearly passing out on every single work set rep on squats, press(man that was interesting! Nothing like feeling really light-headed with weight above your head...), and deadlifts.

No joke. I spent the first minute or so of every rest period between work sets trying to make sure I didn't pass out. But, on the other hand, I got every set done and managed not to nose dive in the process.

I honestly wanted to just leave the deadlifts and chins for the next workout, but I knew i'd feel like a huge pussy if I left without getting them done. So, I manned up and made sure I didn't regret leaving.

I am setting personal records on pretty much all of my workouts now. The only one i'm not is bench press, though it won't be much longer.

Squats - They felt really good. I'm a little concerned that my depth wasn't very good at the beginning, but i'll just have to watch for it next time. Also, my back has been getting a little more of a workout than before due concentrating on hip drive so much. This has caused me to occassionally lift some of the weight with my back at the end of the rep because i'm not standing up straight in unison with my butt. It will hopefully correct itself with repetition.

Press - These have been going pretty well. In the beginning they were a grind every workout, but recently they've started to get easier as the workouts progress. I'm going to attribute this to taking longer rest periods between sets for now. That and, hopefully, i'm becoming more efficient with the form.

Deadlifts - I have had a little trouble with these the past 3 workouts or so. I had a workout where I moved from 225 to 240 and it was a brutal 5 reps. I then moved to 250 and it was much easier. Last night I continued with a 15# increase to 265. It was really heavy, but I lifted it without much difficulty. The problem was that I felt my form break down and I was a little achey afterwards in my lower back.

Summary - Due to my form breaking down in deadlifts, i'll be switching to 10# increments from now on. I'll likely switch my squats to 5# as well, just to be safe. I'd much rather keep progressing at lower weight than try and continue with bad form and potentially hurt myself.

I'm also going to be making some changes to my diet for the next 2-4 weeks. Instead of GOMAD, i'll be halfing that and adding canned tuna in its place. Hopefully the protein will still help me recover, but cut down on some fat at the same time. I think i'm just getting too many calories right now since my NEW clothes don't really fit me anymore...Man my wife is pissed about that.

I'll be adding 1 session(8 minutes max) of some metcon on Sundays, which is the day after my 3rd workout for the week. My wife gave me the best idea, which was to do some boxing training. I trained Muay Thai for about 3 years and it can puts you in really good shape. I'll most likely cut out the kicking and focus just on hitting the bag and shadow boxing.

[JCavin]

01/02/2010

So I just got to work and I feel like I just got finished with a hardcore DL workout. Even though my last workout was two days ago.

I attribute this to my momentary lapse in judgement in regards to consuming less milk because i'm worried about my uniforms fitting correctly.

I apologize profusely to all of my fellow 70's Big compadres and promise to never let it happen again.

To hopefully make up for it I will be consuming 1.5 gallons of milk today and I will still be working out even though I feel thrashed. Of course, if I feel too tired i'll just do a light workout.

ANECDOTAL GOODNESS*I just wanted to add that I was once again forced to buy new clothes yesterday. When I first began SS I was wearing 32x32 pants from Old Navy. Then, after a few weeks I went up to 36x32. Not in the waist, mind you, but I had to get 36 because the thighs were too small.

Last night my wife and I were getting ready to go to dinner with some friends. I got my 36x32 jeans out of the dryer and tried to put them on. At first, I didn't think they were mine. I thought I had found an old pair of my brother's pants or something. After inspecting them, I tried again, but couldn't even get the first buttons together. Not to mention you could practically see my hair follicles through the denim.

So, we had to go shopping before dinner. I bought two pairs of 38x34 Straight Old Navy jeans. The thighs had a little room to grow, but the waist has at least 5 inches or so. I had to go up 2 inches in the length of my jeans because my ass is literally so "bubbly" now that it is pulling 2 inches off the bottom of my pants. I went ahead and bought an extra pair at 40x34 just in case.

Then, we went to Target(the only thing open on New Years with any clothes left) to buy some shirts. The only thing I could find were flannels and t-shirts. I have now moved up to a 2XL shirt and XL t-shirt(because I typically like my under shirts to be smaller and fit more snug around the neck).

Is this a success story? Yes, yes it is. That is, of course, unless you are either:
a) Bigger than me. In that case, eat me.
b) A female trying to lose weight. In that case, yes, you can also eat me. Bow chica bow wow...
c) Not a proponent of 70's Big. In this case, don't eat me. Just go home and rinse your mouth out with buckshot.
d) A bodybuilder. You already punish yourselves enough in this case. I mean, you get razorburn all over your body, including your nuts, you shit your brains out for a day because of all the diauretics, you starve yourself of nutrients that Co-Captain Doug Young would wish you to eat, and you wear thong underwear in front of other oiled up, fake-baked, homoerotic dudes while you admire each other's breasts.

[TartanEagle]

Why are you deadlifting every workout?

[JCavin]

Because until recently I was having no trouble squatting and DL every time.

Today i'll be switching to either power cleans or some back extensions/GHR.

I just don't think I was lifting enough weight until recently for it to affect my recovery. As I near the 300 mark in DL that is starting to change, lol.

[TartanEagle]

I was concerned about recovering from DL every other workout, so I alternate PC's and DL on my "A" days. I guess that's the difference between being 23 and 36!

[JCavin]

1/2/2010 - 220lbs PR

Squats (PR)220x3x5 - Easy
Bench Press (PR)175x3x5 - Easy
Back Extensions BWx3x8 - No DL tonight. Back is a little pissed from my last workout.
================================================== ===
Squats - These went well. I've switched to 5lb progression and I feel much better about my technique. Still a challenge, but I never thought I wasn't going to be able to finish.

Bench Press - I was feeling particularly strong on bench press today so I went up 10lbs instead of the normal 5. I figured if it was hard I would just go back down. Every set was exceptionally easy. Not sure why. Maybe some muscle memory from all my old workouts. I'll be keeping it at 5 from now on unless I just feel really good again.

Summary - A good workout that didn't last too long. I managed to hit a personal record with my body weight, Squats, and Bench Press. It don't get much better than that.

I had some concerns about my "gut" and how I should go about losing it since my uniforms might object to all the button bullying. I liked Mr. City's approach to my thread so i've decided that i'll just keep doing my 70's Big thing and they'll just have to get me a uniform whether or not they like it.

[misspelledgeoff]

Great work James!

Now that DLs are getting heavy you may think about alternating with PCs.

Keep it up, man!

[JCavin]

Thanks Geoff!

I'll definitely be alternating with PC from now on.

I feel like i'm going to need my 3 days off for recovery for the first time. I'm still feeling a little beat up today, but nothing like yesterday. That's a good sign, imo.

That just means i'm starting to lift heavy shit.

[JCavin]

So I was supposed to come back to my lifting tomorrow...

But, I went to a fundraiser that my wife and her company had at a newly opened skating rink.

I haven't rollerbladed in years and it showed. I aggravated my back on my last DL workout and it seemed to be healing fine.

Unfortunately, I fell on my ass twice really hard tonight and managed to piss off my back in the process. Both times I fell I could feel the muscles in my back tense up right after I got a little shot of pain through them.

Oh well. Hopefully i'll feel better by Wednesday so I can get a workout in.

[JCavin]

I'll be getting back to my workouts today.

My back is feeling a ton better, but it is still a little light. Because of that, i'll be working on my power cleans and keeping it light until next week.

Btw, am I the only one that feels like a piece of shit if he has to miss a workout?

We've got a lot of ice and snow here for the last week and I decided last night that I wasn't going to miss it again, regardless of the weather. I'll be driving on at least an inch of ice all the way to the gym, but dammit i'm gonna get there.

[JCavin]

01/07/2009 - 218lbs

Squats (PR) 225x3x5 - Easy.
Press (PR) 125x3x5 - Hard.
Powercleans 75x3x5 -Felt like I had vertigo or something.
================================================
Squats: I finally got a belt since my back has been hurting a little bit for the last week. It is only a placeholder until I can afford a good one, but it got the job done.

The first thing I noticed was that the weight felt lighter. Then, I realized I am not used to squatting in a belt. For some reason, I felt like my form was way off. I'll have to start doing even my warmups with the belt on so I can get used to it.

Press: Fucking hard last night. I'm going to be switching to 2.5# progressions from now on.

Powercleans: Only went up to 75# because my form sucked. I'm going to be doing a LOT more work on the technique before I think about doing any real weight. If only I could get it to look and feel as good as when the bar is empty...

Summary: Squats were awkward, press was hard, and powercleans made me feel like wuss. But, they'll get better. I'll have to start doing all my squats(even warmups) with the belt. Otherwise I don't think i'll get used to them.

I think my press suffered because I attempted to narrow my grip on the bar. I've been doing them with a wider grip because of shoulder inflexibility. Not sure what i'll be doing with this one yet. I'll have to review the book and video before my next workout.

Powercleans were a hell of a lot of fun once I figured it out. The biggest obstacle will be transitioning from an empty bar to a weighted one and keeping my form in order.

[JCavin]

Quick update.

Bad week. Have had some family stuff goin' on and haven't been able to lift, eat, or sleep like normal.

I'll resume my lifting this week hopefully. Need to get a full night's rest first though.

I'm not sure if i'll just repeat my last workout or deload 10%. Feeling really puny due to lack of sleep and piss-poor diet.

I feel like i'm turning into one of the impending zombie attackers. Get strong to fight off zombies only to be turned into one. I need to go look up the definition of irony now.

[JCavin]

01/13/2010

Squats 225x3x5
Bench Press (PR) 180x3x5
Deadlift (PR) 270x1x5
=================================
Squats: Decided to repeat my last workout because I had been feeling really weak and fatigued all week. All my sets went great until I put that belt on. I think the problem is that since i've never used one before I focused on the belt way too much and didn't focus on my knees, hip drive, looking down, etc. The weight felt REALLY light though. I'll be using the belt even on my warmups from now on. Have to get used to it.

Bench Press: I actually did the normal 5# increase on bench. It had been more than one week since I last did bench press, but I knew that I could do it. And I did. The only thing I noticed was that the bar slowed down just a smidge on the last rep of the last 2 sets. My chest is frickin' sore now too. That's what I get for neglecting it for a week straight.

Deadlift: Went up 5# on these too. By the time I started to do my DL, I forgot all about feeling like crap for the last week. I was feeling strong and enjoying lifting. I only did 5 because I didn't want to overdo it, but i'll be switching back to 10# next workout. The belt helped a bunch with these. They were heavy, but I lifted them pretty easily. I can't seem to stop the Austrian grunts that escape from my mouth on every rep either. They just happen and it seems to help.

Summary: After feeling like shit for a week from poor diet, lack of sleep, and general fatigue, this workout went WAY better than I had anticipated. I ate 4 peanut butter sandwiches and a full gallon of milk before I even left work to help compensate. Maybe it helped.

I don't know why I felt so much better after my workout. In fact, I feel better today than I have in over a week. Even though my upper and lower back and chest are sore as shit. Maybe I was a little sick and I didn't know it. I rarely get REAL sick.

I'll be using my belt from now on, even during warmup sets. I have to get used to it because I can already tell it will help a ton during my squats and deadlifts.

Also, i'll be cutting down to 1/2 gallon of milk from now on. In its place i've added lots of chicken breast and canned tuna for the protein. I like my current weight (218 last time I checked) and I would like to get a lot stronger at this weight before I add more. I predict that by this summer i'll be pushing for 240, but we'll see. It might be sooner, lol.

[JCavin]

Updated.

Twice, actually. Fuck the backspace button.

[JCavin]

01/15/10 - 223lbs (PR)

Squats (PR) 230x3x5
Press (PR) 130x3x5
Back Extensions BWx10,10,10
Chins BWx5,5,4
================================================== ===
Squats: Once again, I had a little bit of trouble with the belt. At this point I am fairly certain it is just an issue of becoming used to it. I say that because the first 2 of my worksets were harder than usual, but only because my form was off. On my 3rd set I must have forgotten about the belt because they were all easy as crap. I'll keep working on it.

Press: These felt really good last night. I've brought my hands in a little bit on the bar and been focusing on keeping my elbows under it. This helped me out a lot last night and I felt like I was starting to actually "get it." This was a PR for me, but i'm most excited about my next press workout. I'll be coming off a 2 day rest and i'll be putting a 45# plate on each side. That's a nice benchmark for me.

Summary: All-in-all, a good workout. I felt kinda weak all day again because I didn't drink as much milk or eat as many peanut butter sandwiches beforehand. Won't make that mistake again. I was having a problem with wanting to throw-up every time I burped. It was gross.

As for the rest of the gym shennanigans, refer to my thread in Ends and Pieces. Lots of "gymrat" goodness.

[Mr.City]

A 1 plate press, Nice

[JCavin]

12/18/10

Squats (PR) 235x3x5
Bench Press (PR) 185x3x5
Deadlift (PR) 280x1x5
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Squats: I'm finally getting used to the belt. I think that I was possibly wearing it a little too loose before. I tightened it up and was able to squat without any problems. Well, other than the fact that it felt heavy as shit tonight.

Bench Press: These felt good. I think my last rep on my last set slowed down just a bit, but i'll chalk it up to lack of sleep and fatigue for now.

Deadlift: Set a new PR last night. Although i'm still not technically lifting over the 300 mark, I feel like I probably could for 1 rep. That makes me happy in pants.

I'll be switching to a 5# increase for my next workout since every rep of the 5 felt like a 1 rep max. Lack of sleep is a bitch.

Summary: Hard workout tonight. I ate like I was supposed to, but I only got about 5 hours of sleep. I should have compensated for the missed sleep with some extra food, but I was feeling really good all day so I didn't think there would be a problem. I was wrong. I just felt really tired after my squats.

Looking forward to my next workout. I'll be pressing a 45# plate tomorrow and i'm excited. I'll have to make sure I get enough sleep and food for fuel tomorrow.

[JCavin]

01/20/2010 - (PR) 225lbs

Squats - (PR) - 240x3x5
Press - (PR) - 135x3x5
Back Extensions - BWx10,10,10
Chins - BWx5,5,4
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Squats: These have been pretty hard the last couple workouts. With the addition of the belt and such, I think i'm having some form issues that i'll need to deload and fix. If I can't get them fixed with the belt, I may end up just saying fuck it to using a belt. Don't really know what else to do.

Press: These felt really good. I only had problems with the last rep of the second and third work sets. I think it was a form issue rather than a strength one, though. 1 plate on each side. Awesome.

Summary: Gonna probably deload 10 or 15% for my next workout and work on my form. Not really sure yet.

[JCavin]

Had some problems this week. Won't go into them, but suffice it to say they've kept me from doing anything productive, even drinking GOMAD or sleeping much.

Everything appears to be good today. GOMAD, peanut butter, sleep, etc...

I'll be deloading my squats about 15lbs because according to my notes, 225 was the last time my squats felt good w/ good form. I'll post my workout tomorrow.

[IWillLiveFreeOrDie]

What problems are you having with the belt? I just started using a belt last week, and decided to deload to get used to using it, and my new shoes.

If it is a new leather belt there is a video on 70's Big where Rip shows how to break it in. It worked like a charm on my EFS Retro belt. The belt feels a lot better now that it is broken in.

It also took a few tries to find a comfortable position for the belt to ride where it wouldn't interfere with my hips or ribs. Once you find the sweet spot the belt feels really good to squat in. I can't deadlift in it though. :(

[JCavin]

02/05/2010 - (PR) 232.8lbs

Squats - 230x3x5
Bench Press - 185x3x5
Back Extensions - BWx3x10
Pullups - BWx3x4
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I only thought I was gonna be able to keep my workouts going last week. Oops. Shouldn't have forgotten about the massive snow storm that hit us. We ended up with 1 inch of ice and then 8 inches of snow on top of it. That is a LOT of snow and ice for our area. Everything closed down for a good while. Even grocery stores. Which meant no milk. Which meant I wanted to kill someone.

Oh yeah, and I also wasn't able to refill my adderall prescription. I didn't think they were closed until the day I was going to go get some more. After 2+ years of taking a stimulant for your CNS, it is hell trying to function when you are forced to stop it abruptly. All I wanted to do was sleep for 3 days straight.

So, after these hiccups, I started drinking my milk again and got back in the gym. I lowered all my lifts just a little because I knew I would be weak from not drinking my GOMAD and eating like I should have. I was right.

I knew I was well rested, therefore the problem had to be in my diet. I ramped it up big time and came back for my next workout(yesterday) and felt really good. Not only that, but I didn't even have problems with my belt. All good.

-------Don't read the next few paragraphs if you are grossed out by poop----
The problem i'm having now is that i'm pretty sure I have a stomach bug. I crapped a total of 12 times yesterday. I was really scared I might shit myself while doing squats, so I spent the first 20 minutes at the gym making sure there was nothing left to squeeze out. :D

Oh, and I work in a jail. That means we buy everything in bulk. And that includes toilet paper. For those of you who haven't heard it before, this shit is definitely John Wayne toilet paper. Why? Because it's tough as hell and it won't take shit off nobody. Every wipe started to come away with as much pink and red as green...

Knowing that I had to workout anyways, I ate like a mother fucker despite the fact that my stomach was cramping constantly and I felt like my sphincter had been clenched for 12 hours straight. It paid off.

Today i'm still having stomach cramps, but at least I don't have swamp ass as bad. I've been eating like crazy today too, so that's good.

One last thing.

One of the trainers from my gym appears to know what he's doing. Although i've heard he's one of the biggest douchebags known to man, he was doing real squats. 455 with no belt or gear. That's pretty good. Apparently he's training for a powerlifting meet up here in the near future.

I was told that my "contract" included 2 free sessions with any of the trainers. I might have to use them to get some advice on my lifts. If I do, i'll be sure to write about it, especially if he turns out to be as big of a douchebag as i've heard.