Quest for 300/400/500. 2010 Edition.

[poopmonkey]

Yet another lost soul searching for the glorious 300 bench, 400 squat, 500 deadlift milestones. Once I hit those, life will be sunshine and buttercups. (probably).

Currently doing (and have been for the past 6 months) Starting Strength Advanced Novice Program with micro-loading to prolong progression as long as possible.

Without further ado, the first workout of 2010.

January 4th. Monday. BW 197.8

Squats:
340lbs x 5,5,4

Bench:
238.6 x 4,4,3

Weighted Chins:
BW + 42.5lbs = 240.3 x 5,5,5

[poopmonkey]

Typically, I will do front squats 3 x 3 on Wednesdays.

However, I recorded Monday's work sets for the back squat and noticed a tendency to let my knees bow inwards when the weight gets really heavy.

So today I did back squats, 2 sets of 5 at 80% of Monday's weight. I took an extremely wide stance to help exaggerate the "knees out" feeling. I liked the way this worked out and I feel a lot more confident about hitting the regular back squats on Friday.

January 6th. Wed. BW: 196.2

Light Back Squats with Wide Stance: 275lbs x 5,5.

Press:
161.2 x 5,5,5 (PR!)

PowerClean:
187.4 x 3,3,3,3,3,. (PR!)

[TartanEagle]

Nice job on the PR's. By the way, I chuckle every time I read your name.

[poopmonkey]

Thanks.

[poopmonkey]

Today's workout is titled: "The Good, The Bad & The Ugly."

Friday, January 8th. BW: 197.6

The Good.
Squats:

340lbs x 5,5,5.

These were brutally hard, but I managed to get all the reps. Each set felt like a 4-rep max and I'm amazed I got the 5th rep on every set. Did a much better job of keeping the knees out.

The Ugly.
Bench:
238.6 x 3,3,2.

What. The. Fuck.

Bench is actually moving backwards. Before Christmas, I got 238.6 for five reps on three sets. Now even the first rep has me questioning if I'm going to be able to get it back up.

I'm starting to think this is a mental thing. Next week I'll do the work sets inside the power rack and see if the added security helps.

The Bad.
Deadlift.
365 x 2.

Not happy about this either but I was just freakin' dead by this point in the workout. Only got 4 hours of sleep yesterday so that certainly didn't help.

All in all, a pretty crappy training session. Starting to wonder if I've stretched out the advanced novice program as far as it will go. Hope not, and looking to redeem myself on Monday.

[poopmonkey]

Monday, January 11th, 2010. BW: 197.4

Squats:

342.4 x 3,2,0
(Analysis below).

Press:

162.4 x 5,4,3

Chins:
BW + 43.7 (Total 241.5) x 5,5,5. (PR)

Analysis: So last Friday (three days ago) I did three sets of squats at 340.0 and completed all reps successfully. Today, I added just 2.4 pounds to the bar and was only able to get three reps on the first set?

This makes me think that 48 hours was simply not enough to recover from Friday's squatting session. I don't think the additional 2.4 pounds was the problem. I bet if i had loaded the bar to just 340 again I still would have failed.

Which makes me think it's time to make the jump to intermediate.
(Damn it.)

Unfortunately, I'm headed out of the country for two weeks. So the plan moving forward is as follows:

#1) Finish up this week without altering training in any way.
#2) Europe for two weeks.
#3) Upon return, drop weights 90% and continue with advanced novice program until strength returns to the pre-trip levels.
#4) Then make the jump to intermediate Texas program.

[poopmonkey]

Wed. 1.13.10. BW: 196.8

Since I'm doing light squats on Wed, I figured these do not necessarily have to be done first. Because of recent troubles with the bench press, I performed bench press first.

Bench: 238.6 x 5,3,2.

Performed the bench press in the rack today to see if the added mental security would help but no such luck. I'm officially stalled here.

Powerclean:
190 x 2,2,2,0,0. Wow, that 2.5 jump apparently made a big difference. I'll stick to 1 pound jumps on these from now on.

Squats (Light).
Just did one set of five at 225. Took ultrawide stance.

All in all, I feel like I'm burning out big time. Only one more workout and then I've got a much-needed two week break. So I'm do my damndest to hit some PR's on Friday and finish on a high note.

[Mr.City]

Those are very nice lifts. How often you been deloading?

[poopmonkey]

Bit of a long story there. Did SS for first 6 months of 2009, started stalling out and so I would deload. But I've never had any success with a deload. I would just work right back to my original sticking point and get stuck again.

So I made the jump to intermediate during the 2nd half of 2009, and for some reason I made absolutely zero gains. Perhaps I wasn't eating enough (although I was eating enough to gain weight) but for whatever reason I failed.

So I went back to advanced novice and I'm trying to get my numbers as high as possible before attempting intermediate. Long story short, I deload quite infrequently because right now I think it's better to just stick with the weight for as many sessions as it takes to break through.

Time will tell if this is correct.

[Mr.City]

It may be time to follow an intermediate method for your squats. You could make more progress with 5lbs week than 2.4 lb jumps twice a week coupled with the stalling issues.

[poopmonkey]

Yeah, I agree. I will be switching soon. Plan is at the bottom of post #6.

[poopmonkey]

Finally back after two weeks in Europe.

Walked more than 10+ miles per day, drank copious amounts of beer with 14% alcohol, ate very little food (just didn't have the time to sit and eat) and ended up losing about 8 pounds.

I didn't plan on going back into the gym until Monday morning but I thought I'd go in today and just do a light workout to help ease the blow of Monday's "back to reality" workout.

Good thing I did because even this light workout ended up being pretty difficult.

Squats: Two sets of five with 275lbs.
Bench: Two sets of five with 185lbs.
Clean and Press: Two sets of five with 135lbs.
Deadlift: 315lbs x 3.
BW Chins: 7.

[poopmonkey]

So I'm still extremely sore from Saturday's "light" workout.

Looks like the road back will take a little longer than expected.

Monday, 2.1.2010. BW: 191.8

Squats:
295lbs x 5,5,5. (Tweaked hammy a bit, nothing major. Seems to happen when squatting while still sore. Should be fine for Wed.)

Bench:
205lbs x 5,5,5.

Chins:
BW + 40lbs (231.8 lbs) x 5,5,5.

[poopmonkey]

Still re-building strength lost on trip to Europe.

Wed. 2.3.2010. BW: 193.4.

Squats:
305lbs x 5,5,5.

Press:
145lbs x 5,5,5.

Powerclean:
165lbs x 3,3,3,3,3.

[poopmonkey]

Saturday. 2.6.10.
BW: 192.4

Squats:
315lbs x 5,5,5. (Felt strong, good form).

Bench:
215lbs x 5,5,5.

Deadlift:
335lbs x 5.

[IWillLiveFreeOrDie]

Nice recovery after 2 weeks off! Sounds like you had fun in Europe.

[poopmonkey]

Nice recovery after 2 weeks off! Sounds like you had fun in Europe.
Thanks. Still haven't completely regained previous strength levels but should be right back where I left off in another week.

Two weeks in Europe were fun. Two weeks away from the squat rack was heavenly.

[poopmonkey]

I don't know why squats felt so damn heavy today.

It could be:

1) Too much junk food, alcohol from super bowl party yesterday.
2) Lack of sleep.
3) Gym was freezing cold this morning.
4) Not fully recovered from squatting on Saturday.
5) Low-back still fried from DL's on Saturday.

I'm leaning towards #5, but it's probably a combination of all points. Either way, I squatted 315 on Saturday with ease and then 320lbs buried me today.

Hopefully this is just a bad workout and not an indication that it's time to switch up to intermediate programming. Guess we'll find out on Wed.

Monday. 2.8.10. BW: 194.2

Squats:
320lbs x 3,2,1.

Press:
150lbs x 5,5,5.

Weighted Chins:
BW (194.2) + 40lbs: 234.2 x 5,5,5.

[poopmonkey]

Lesson of the day: Training after the age of 30 is hard.

Not because of joints, bones or anything like that but because the amount of stupid bullshit you have to deal with in everyday life.

Yesterday, I had to fire my property management company because I found out they were billing me for repairs that were never performed. (ie: stealing money, as I call it.) Now, they're threatening to sue me for firing them.

Sure, they have no ground to stand on and it's all just talk but finding out you're going to be sued keeps you up at night. This shit didn't happen when I was 18.

So I got less than 2 hours of sleep. Went to the gym anyway because I had plenty of aggression to take out on the barbell but it didn't quite work out that way:

Wed. 2.10.2010. BW: 191.2 (This is most likely due to the lack of sleep as I have actually increased food + milk consumption during the past few days.)

Squats:
320lbs x 5 (I got good and pissed off for these and was happy to get all 5 reps on the first set. But then I started continually throwing up in my mouth -- which sometimes happens when I go to the gym after less than 2 hours of sleep -- so I called it a day on the squats.)

Bench:
220lbs x 5,5,5. (Difficult, but got the job done.)

Power Clean:
175 lbs x 3,3,3,3,3. (Again, very difficult but I managed to grind through.)

Well, the hard part of the day is done. Back to dealing with this sue-happy but utterly incompetent real estate company.

[poopmonkey]

Finally got some sleep and some food over the past couple days.

As a result, today's workout was awesome. (Funny how that works?)

Friday. 2.12.2010. BW: 193.2

Squats:
320lbs x 5,5,5. (Felt good. I took a slightly wider stance and pointed my toes out more and this seemed to help.)

Press:
155 lbs x 5,5,5. (Difficult, but I got the job done. Will switch to 2.5lb micro-loading now on this exercise.)

Deadlift:
345 x 5. (Felt strong. I think I've finally got my form down on this exercise so I was able to just walk up to the bar and rip it off the floor rather than thinking about my spine and hips all the time.)

[poopmonkey]

I was originally scheduled to train tomorrow (Monday) but tomorrow is president's day and my gym will be closed. (Gym is city-owned).

Rather than miss a training session, I went to my wife's gym with her this morning.

Sunday, 2.14.10. BW: Did not weigh myself this morning.

Squats:

325lbs x 5,5,5. (Went very well. Widening my stance and pointing my toes out more has made quite the difference. )

Bench:
225lbs x 4,4,2. (Unfamiliar bench press with no spotter. I'm not too worried about this.)

Chins: (They did not have a chain to add weight so I just did some easy BW chins. Did not go to failure.)

BW x 10,7,6.

[misspelledgeoff]

Nice squats poopmonkey!

[poopmonkey]

Much obliged sir.

[poopmonkey]

Yuck.

Today's workout was godawful. I only got 2 hours of sleep last night. I've always struggled with insomnia but lately it's just gotten out of control.

Needless to say, a 6:30 am workout on 2 hours of sleep just isn't going to work.

2.17.10. Wed. BW: 192.2

Front squats
225 x 3,3,3. (I wasn't planning on doing a "light day" today but if I knew I had to do heavy back squats I doubt I would have made it into the gym at all so this was a compromise. Yes, I'm fully aware this makes me a pussy.)

Press:
157.4 x 3,5,2 (Just awful. Bar got out in front on first set, 2nd set was good, had no energy left on the last set.)

Power Clean: Skipped -- no energy left.

There you have it folks, the worst workout I've had in two years.

Moving forward:

#1: I have simply got to find a way to get some sleep. Beer, Ambien, something but this is killing me.

#2: Time to face the facts: It's been 2 weeks since I got back from Europe and I have not gained a pound. I am not eating enough, plain and simple.

I need to step it up and start pounding some calories. I think I will experiment with a nightly blender bomb and possibly a shot of olive oil with dinner.

Stay tuned for Friday's workout. I'm coming back with a vengeance.

[poopmonkey]

Wow.

Today's workout was sponsored by #1) a good night's sleep and #2) Amped energy drink. Seriously, I thought this shit was only for 16-year old skater punks but I'm now considering some sort of energy drink as a requirement for 6 a.m. lifting sessions. Plus it was on sale for $1 a can.

Friday, 2.19.2010. BW: 194.2

Squats:

330lbs x 5,5,5.

Bench:
225 lbs x 5,5,5. (Made sure to rotate my hands -- pointing thumbs more at my toes -- and this seemed to help.)

Deadlift:
355 lbs x 5.

[poopmonkey]

Monday. 2.22.10 BW: 194.0

Squats:
335 lbs x 5,5,5.

Press:
157.4 lbs x 5,5,3 (got 3 more reps than last time, so that's a good improvement. Should get all 15 reps on Friday.)

Weighed Chins:
BW + 42.5 (236.5 lbs ) x 5,5,5.

[poopmonkey]

Wed. 2.24.2010. BW: 192.8

Squats:
340 lbs x 5,5,5. (Felt strong, very happy with progress here.)

Bench:
227.4 lbs x 5,5,4. (Pretty wiped out from squats. Will begin micro-loading in one pound increments from here on out.)

Powerclean:
185 lbs x 3,3,2. (Elbow was screaming pretty bad by the third set so I cut these short. Need to adjust carry position on the squats because that's usually what causes the elbow pain.)

[poopmonkey]

Friday. 2.26.10. BW: 195.0

Squat:
345 lbs x 5,5,5.

Press:
157.4 lbs x 5,5,4 (Just barely missed locking out last rep. Will get it next time.)

Deadlift:
365 lbs x 5.

[poopmonkey]

Monday. 3.1.2010. BW: 195.6

Squats:

350 lbs x 5,5,5. (PR!) These were extremely difficult. Switching to 2.5lb jumps from now on to see if I can squeeze out a few more weeks of straight linear progression before adding a light day.

Bench:

227.4 lbs x 5,5,5.

Chins:
BW (195.6) + 45 lbs: 240.6 x 5,5,5. (This was a 2.5lb increase from last week. Will probably slow things down a bit from here and add just 1-2 pounds per week.)

All in all, pretty happy with today's workout. Been a long time since I hit a PR.

[poopmonkey]

Wednesday, 3.3.10. BW: 195.4

Squats:

352.4 lbs x 5,5,5. PR. (Very tough, but got the job done.)

Press:

157.4 lbs x 5,5,4 (This is probably the 5th time training session I've been stuck at this weight. Which is just plain stupid because this could have been avoided if I'd have microloaded in 1 pound increments instead of 2.5 lb increments. I'll give it one more workout to see if I can get that last rep.)

Powerclean:
185 lbs x 1. (Same problem as last week. Just absolutely nothing left and my elbow was on fire. When the squats get tough I find myself pushing on the bar with my hands and that seems to make my right elbow flare up. Need to correct that.)

[poopmonkey]

Friday, 3.5.10. BW: 197.6 (had a real salty dinner last night so saw a nice spike in bodyweight this morning.)

Squats:

355 lbs x 5,5,5. (PR!)

Bench:

228.6 lbs x 3,3,3 (elbow still hurting, messing up my pressing progress.)

Deadlifts:

375 lbs x 5. (PR!)

[TartanEagle]

Nice job on the lifts!

[poopmonkey]

Thanks Tartan.

Monday, 3.8.10. BW: 196.0

Squats:
357.4 lbs x 3,3,2. (Right hip and lower-back/spine felt pretty beat up and sore. This could be carry-over from Friday's deadlifts, or simply the result of sitting on my ass all weekend. Need to start doing some light cardio during the weekend to see if that helps.)

Press:
157.4 lbs x 5,5,5. (Finally.)

Weighted Chins:
BW + 46.2 lbs = 242.2 lbs x 5,5,5. (PR!)

[poopmonkey]

Wed. 3.10.2010. BW: 195.6

Squats:
357.4 lbs x 5,5,5. (PR! But damn these were hard.)

Bench:
228.6 lbs x 4,4,4. (Got 3 more reps than last time, probably could have got all 5 across but my elbow was killing me after squats. Common theme, I know.)

Powerclean:
185 lbs x 3,3,3. (I'm only going to be doing 3 sets of powercleans from now on simply because I'm running out of time.)

All in all a pretty good day. I've decided to reward myself with a belt when I hit 365 for three sets across in the squat so I'm getting excited because that should happen soon.

[poopmonkey]

Friday, 3.12.2010. BW: 196.5 lbs.

Squats:

360 lbs x 3,2,2. (After watching Zach's squatting videos, I decided to experiment a bit and narrow my stance and my grip. This felt a little weird, which caused me to pitch forward and miss some reps. I should be able to get a few more reps on Monday.)

Press:

158.6 lbs x 5,5,5. (Felt strong.)

Deadlift:
385 lbs x 3. (Damn it! Got greedy and took a 10 pound jump instead of a 5 pound jump. I KNEW I should have only added 5. Dumbass.)

[poopmonkey]

Monday. 3.15.2010. BW: 197.6 lbs.

Squats:

360 lbs x 4,4,3. (I re-widened my stance and re-widened my grip (thumb on rings. This felt better and allowed me to get three more reps than last time. Plus my elbow didn't hurt afterwards! Finally!)

Bench:

228.6 lbs x 5,5,5.

Chins:
BW + 45.6: 243.2 lbs x 5,5,5. (PR).

Happy with the progress so far. I changed my warm-ups today. Until today, my last warm-up for squats was a single with 295lbs. However, that's a 65 pound jump between my last warm-up and work set.

I think that was too much which made my work sets feel extremely heavy. So I added a single at 315lbs at did the same for bench (adding a single at 205.)

In both cases, I think this helped.

[poopmonkey]

Wed. 3.17.2010. BW: 196.0

Squats:
360 lbs x 3,3,3. (Felt heavy as fuck. It's definitely time to make Wednesday a light day.)

Press:
160 lbs x 5,5,5. (Good. Now back to within 2 pounds of my previous PR.)

Power Clean:
187.4 lbs x 3,3,3. (PR.)

[poopmonkey]

Friday. 3.19.2010. BW: 197.6

Squats:
360 lbs x 3,3,3. (Still fucking around with form. Think I finally got it figured out and should be able to get 4 reps across on Monday.)

Bench:
230 lbs x 5,5,5.

Deadlift:
385 lbs x 4. (Lock-out on last (4th) rep was shitty.)

I sure use a lot of profanity in this log. Weird.

[poopmonkey]

Monday. 3.22.2010. BW: 199.6 lbs.

Squats:

360 lbs x 3,3,2. (Ok, I'll admit defeat. I'm officially stalled here. Time for a reset and the addition of a mid-week light day.)

Press:
161.2 lbs x 5,5,5. (Last set was brutal. Couple of the reps got out in front of me but managed to get all reps done anyway. Happy with this.)

Chins:
BW + 45.0. Total: 244.6 lbs x 5,5,5. PR.

[poopmonkey]

Wednesday. 3.24.2010. BW: 197.6.

Squats (light):
275 lbs x 5,5.

Bench:
231.2 lbs x 5,5,5.

Powerclean:
190 lbs x 3,3,3. (PR)

[SamGriffin]

Long story short, I deload quite infrequently because right now I think it's better to just stick with the weight for as many sessions as it takes to break through.


I do the same thing. A deload is a nice mental break but I never seem to be much stronger when I get back to where I previously stalled. If I stick with the weight it might take a few workouts to get my reps, but at least I am making progress. Also, my progress seems to come in streaks sometimes. In the press it took me 3 workouts to get 140, 2 workout to get 145, 5 workouts to get 150, then I got 155, 157.5, 160, in consecutive workouts.

[poopmonkey]

@ Sam:

We see eye-to-eye on the deload. John Christy (used to write for hardgainer) actually recommends simply dropping the reps from 5 to 3 when you get stuck at a weight. (I mean when you are good and truly stuck).

This way you can continue to add weight to the bar but you are getting a bit of a deload (in the sense that you are now only doing 3 reps instead of 5) and your nervous system doesn't get the chance to detrain.

Speaking of detraining, I missed a week at the gym. No good reason - felt too lazy to go last Friday, gym was closed on Monday and boom, now it's already Wed again.

Wed. 3.31.2010. BW: 193.4

Squats:
315 lbs x 5,5,5.

Press:
161.2 lbs x 5,3,3.

PowerCleans
(Didn't do, had no energy left.)

[poopmonkey]

Gym was closed again on Friday, hence the Saturday workout.

Saturday. 4.3.10. BW: 194.2 lbs.

Squats:

325lbs x 5,5,5. (Felt strong.)

Bench:

231.2 lbs x 5,5,5. (Spotter goaded me into going for a 6th rep on the final set, he helped but I think I could have got it on my own. So that's a good confidence boost.)

Deadlift:
385 lbs x 2. (Blah.)

[poopmonkey]

Monday. 4.5.10. BW: 196.8

Note: My low back is still wrecked from deadlifts on Saturday. So that was definitely the "weak link" today which caused me to miss a couple reps on squats and presses.

Squats:
335 lbs x 5,5,4. (Missed last rep due to low back. Will get this easily on Friday.)

Presses:
161.2 lbs x 5,5,4. (Same as above.)

Chins:
BW + 48.1 lbs: Total 244.9 lbs x 5,5,5. (Final rep was incredibly difficult.) (PR)

[poopmonkey]

Missed Wed. workout because my dumbass upstairs neighbor kept me up all night (I live in an apartment, at least for the next 30 days.)

So I had to go Thur morning and because of time constraints I did not have time for light squats.

Thur. 4.8.10. BW: 194.8 lbs

Power Clean:
190 lbs x 3,3,3.

Bench:
232.4 lbs x 5,5,5.

Planning to train again tomorrow (Fri) morning and get back on schedule.

[poopmonkey]

Friday. 4.9.10. BW: 195.6

Squats:

335 lbs x 5,5,5. (Weight felt heavy, but form was good.)

Press:
161.2 lbs x 5,5,3. (Not thrilled about this, but I suspect this is the result of pressing 24 hours after benching heavy.)

Deadlifts:
385 lbs x 3 (slowly making my way back.)

[Mr.City]

How long do you rest between warm up sets on the deadlift?

[jameson]

We see eye-to-eye on the deload. John Christy (used to write for hardgainer) actually recommends simply dropping the reps from 5 to 3 when you get stuck at a weight. (I mean when you are good and truly stuck).

I know I'm a little late in this conversation, but I agree with you guys (and John Christy). I never liked the idea of lowering the poundage on the bar unless I've taken some time off. I do this to still make progress, and I'm glad there are a few people who agree with this method. Most just reset and never really make progress, start adding assistance exercises, etc.

[poopmonkey]

@ Mr. City.

Just long enough to switch the plates. But my warm-ups on deadlifts are light and easy. Just three reps with 225, a single with 315 lbs and then I jump to the work set.

@ Jameson:

All the anti-reset folks are coming out of the woodwork now! Viva la revolution!

[poopmonkey]

Monday. 4.12.10. BW: 195.6 lbs

Squats
340 lbs x 4,4,3. (Guess maybe a 5 pound jump was too much. Will see what happens on Friday.)

Bench:
233.6 lbs x 5,5,5.

Chins:
BW + 50lbs, Total: 245.6 lbs x 5,5,5. (PR. Plus it feels pretty awesome to knock out chins with a nice, even 50lbs strapped to your waist.)

[poopmonkey]

Wed. 4.14.10. BW: 195.8 lbs

Front Squats:
225 lbs x 3,3,3. (First time doing this exercise in a while so I went easy.)

Press:
161.2 lbs x 5,5,5. (Finally.)

Power Clean:
192.4 lbs x 3,3,3. (PR -- and getting dangerously close to a BW Power Clean for reps. Hopefully I'll get that next week.)

[poopmonkey]

Friday, 4.16.10. BW: 195.6 lbs.

Squats:
340 lbs x 5,5,5. (Wasn't easy, but got the job done. Will switch to 2.5lb jumps now.)

Bench:
235 lbs x 4,5,5. (This blows, should have got all 5 reps easily but didn't have a spotter on the first set and didn't feel confident enough to go for the 5th rep on that first set. When I got spots on 2nd and 3rd sets, I got all 5 reps easily.)

Deadlift:
385 lbs x 3. (No love here. Thing I need to tweak my technique a bit as something just doesn't feel right.)

[SamGriffin]

January 4th. Monday. BW 197.8



Monday. 4.5.10. BW: 196.8


Do you think a lack of weight gain is slowing your progress?

[Mr.City]

Goddamn at those lifts.

[poopmonkey]

@Sam.

Yes, a lack of weight gain is most likely slowing my gains. However, I have REPEATEDLY made the mistake of trying to gain weight too fast and every single time I just get fat. So I'm taking the slow road, if I only gain 1-2 pounds a month, so be it.

More likely the main thing that's slowing my progress is that I should probably jump to the intermediate program, however my schedule simply does not allow time for the volume workout. This will change very soon though as I hope to have a home gym set up in a few weeks.

@ City. Thanks!

[poopmonkey]

Monday. 4.19.2010. BW: 197.6 lbs

Squats:
342.4 lbs x 5,5,5. (Again, not easy but got the job done.)

Press:
162.4 lbs x 5,5,5. (PR! Finally.)

Chins:
BW + 48.7 lbs: Total: 246.3 lbs x 5,5,5. PR.

[poopmonkey]

Wed. 4.21.10. BW: 195.6 lbs.

I've boosted food intake thanks to Sam G's pointing out that I haven't gained a single pound in months.

Thought I was just gaining weight slowly but he pointed out that I'm not gaining at all. So I'm boosting protein and adding one peanut butter sandwich per day. Will watch the scale for a week and adjust.

Today's workout:

Front Squats:
235 lbs x 3,3,3.

Bench:
235 lbs x 5,5,5.

Power Clean:
195 lbs x 3,3,3. (PR! And I achieved a big milestone -- BW Powerclean for reps. Woot woot.)

[poopmonkey]

Friday. 4.23.10. BW: 196.8 lbs

Squats:
345 lbs x 3,3,2.

Press:
163.6 lbs x 4,4,4.

Deadlift:
385 lbs x 3.

Pretty awful workout. It's raining buckets outside and my joints are killing me. Everything just felt heavy today. Tried the hook grip on the DL today. Didn't make much difference.

[poopmonkey]

Monday, 4.26.10. BW: 197.4 lbs

My knees are absolutely killing me. I've had patellar tendonitis before but this is a whole new level. Funny thing is, I have no idea how this happened -- thought my squat form was better than ever.

Tried to do squats today but even the warm-ups were killing me.

Squats: No work sets.

Bench:
236.2 lbs x 5,5,5.

Chins:
BW (197.4) + 50. Total: 247.4 lbs x 5,5,5. (PR.)

I think I've squeezed all I can out of novice training. I have one more training session left at this gym, then I'm moving so I'll have a week off and hopefully I'll have a home gym set-up within the next 7-10 days so I can just jump into intermediate programming.

[homerj742]

I'm jealous of your numbers, good job man.

I guess we're a few of the freaks that like to workout in the A.M.

[poopmonkey]

Thanks, I've been training in the AM for two years now.

It's definitely an acquired taste.

But once I get my home gym set up, I think I'll most likely end up ditching the morning workouts.

[poopmonkey]

This final week on novice programming hasn't gone as planned.

I was hoping to get one more training session done before things got too crazy (I'm moving this weekend) but it just didn't happen.

So I'm off for a week and when I return I'll probably jump right to the Texas Method/Intermediate programming.

This will most likely be my last post in this log, see you all on the intermediate side.

Peace!

[homerj742]

Congratulations on exhausting the linear progression!

(And I echo ditching the morning workouts once I have a home gym too).