Entry #1014

Yesterday I lifted through what I can honestly say is the crappiest I've ever felt while making myself train. Goes to show how pragmatic I am now and will stay consistent regardless of how inoptimal a busy day might be. Ended up deadlifting a slow 440 x 5, doing a set of Bulgarian split-squats, and calling it a night. I was sleep-deprived, nauseous, and full, but sometimes you just have to get in and punch the clock. Slept for 12 straight hours after.

Ran hills in the rain tonight. Feeling a lot better, and am ready for tomorrow.

Entry #1113

Had a good deload.

Swiss bar press:
130 x 5
150 x 5
170 x 8
> Major suckage, but I'm sleep-deprived and was working during the day, so I'm not worried. I actually lost balance on rep 4 and had to catch myself. My press has been bad lately, but I'm going to be patient with BBB for this cycle and if nothing changes, I'll make a single alteration like Dan John suggests to experiment.

Swiss bar pause press with Fat Gripz:
105 x 5 x 10
> No more resets from here on out. Gonna settle on this and keep ascending.

 V-handle pull-ups:
11, 11, 10, 10, 10
> New goal is 12 x 5.

Alternating hammer curls:
60s x 10 

Dumbbell external rotations

I'm learning to have fun even on my bad days, a major change in maturation as a lifter.

Thursday

Swiss bar bench:
210 x 5
240 x 3
270 x 6
> Decent. Not what I was vying for, but still enough to be a 5 lb gain over last cycle, which is what it comes down to.

Swiss bar pause bench:
170 x 5 x 10
> Ditched the Fat Gripz this time, but I'm going to bring them back. I feel like they hit the triceps uniquely.

Dumbbell rows:
120 x 5 x 10
> Doing these between sets of pause bench and I was hauling ass to finish before closing time. Barely got everything done and had no time for curls.

 

Friday

Tonight was a helluva session. Again, pressed for time, I somehow did max effort squats and deadlifts back to back.

SSB box squat:
420 x 5

Deadlift:
380 x 5
430 x 3
480 x 4
> Had another in me, but the shock of pulling this heavy for the first time got to me. I'm also not rest-pausing at all. It was pretty badass to get this with such short timing between sets and having to pee. 490 x 5 next time!

Have also discovered that my sporadic deadlift performance is partly because of not squatting low enough to pull. I surmise that this is a result of not squatting deep for so long. Consequently, I'm starting too high and pulling too much with my back, like a Romanian deadlift. It's not QUITE that exaggerated but the drift to that is there. I felt stronger today by consciously keeping a lower posterior and using my quads more.

Partial leg press super-set with GHR

One of the douchy owners comes in and interrupts my GHR set.

"Time ta go."
"I thought you close at 9."
"What does the clock say?"
"I don't have my glasses. Probably 8:55."
"Two minutes to 9."

Dude, bring it down. I know you have to make the rounds and close up but there's no need to be that silly. I was doing my last set and would have been out by 9. This is the problem when people who don't care about training run gyms.

Entry #1111

Swiss bar press:
145 x 5
165 x 3
185 x 5
> Strength is down on this. Felt tight and explosive and by all indications what I would feel on a PR day - just didn't have what it took for more.

Swiss bar press with Fat Gripz:
120 x 5 x 10
> Huge reset, but with pauses and shorter rests this felt just as hard as 135. I think what I want to do next cycle is reset down to maybe 115, ape Emevas with the pauses, and get some 1-1.5 lb plates to microload. I feel like I started at a good weight with this but the 5 lb increases just had me plateauing too fast.

V-handle chin-ups:
5 x 10

Curls 

Entry #1110

SSB box squats:
420 x 5

Squat holds:
560 x 20 seconds, 20

Partial squats:
290 x 10, 15, 15

Barbell hip thrusts:
155 x 10
185 x 12, 15

Planks

Legs hurt right now, not from muscle soreness but more of a Charley horse feeling.

Entry #1109

Missed recording a poor deadlift day of 455 x 4. My body just did NOT want to pull that night; even the warm-ups felt majorly heavy. If I can get 480 x 5 next week I'll feel redeemed.

Tonight? Great bench press session.

Swiss bar bench:
200 x 3
225 x 3
255 x 9
> Blew this away, had gas for another rep. It's kickass how fast I'm improving at wielding the Swiss bar. Last cycle at this time I gutted out 250 x 7. 

Three I've adopted that seem to be helping:
1. External rotation exercises.
2. A warm-up that has variation over repetition (i.e. not doing the same primer movement for multiple sets but moving on to cover more ground).
3. A set or two of plyos before the main sets, like clapping push-ups. These did make my elbows click, though. 

As a result my shoulder feels fantastic. I'm actually tempted to go back to straight bar pressing.

Swiss bar pause bench with Fat Gripz:
165 x 5 x 10 

Dumbbell rows:
117.5 x 5 x 10
> With straps, no thumb, between sets of presses. 

Swiss bar curls with band:
10, 6

External rotations:
10 x 12, 15 

Entry #1108

Swiss bar press:
135 x 3
155 x 3
175 x 6
175 x 8
> Had trouble concentrating. Felt sleepy and foggy, and my form was loose. Took a breather and tried again with better results. Still not the 9 I was shooting for, but a comeback is always badass and at least I equaled what I did before.

Swiss bar press with Fat Gripz:
135 x 10, 8, 7

Reg Park press:
55s x 6
25s x 4
> Shoulders felt dead by this point. I was short on time due to the gym closing. 

NG pull-ups:
11, 10, 10, 10, 10
> At the park.

So I'm employed...sort of. It's a contracting job so I work whenever I want at the store. Worked on Saturday and the lack of sleep definitely hit me today, despite crashing and getting 12 hours before the gym. People make PRs on no sleep, so I'm definitely hopeless, haha. 

Entry #1107

SSB box squats:
420 x 3, 1, 1
> Took video on the last rep to see how the depth was:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOILcO3468Y

Not fantastic, but I'm intentionally not sinking my full weight into the stool for the sake of my back, and I still have a plate to remove.

Squat holds:
560 x 20, 10 seconds

Barbell hip thrusts:
135 x 15, 15, 12
> Yeah, I went there. Wanna fight about it?

Partial squats with no lockout:
240 x 15, 15

Planks

Entry #1106

Swiss bar bench press:
185 x 5
210 x 5
240 x 11
> Last cycle I got 235 x 10...on floor press. So this felt good. Had another rep in me, but as always, I reserve myself for the third week.

Fat Gripz Swiss bar bench press:
160 x 5 x 10
> Pauses.

Dumbbell rows:
115 x 5 x 10
> Done between sets of benching, and with straps. Goddamn, straps bring in a whole 'nother degree of lat activation, thanks partly to the thumbless grip that's now possible. Never gotten a better lat stretch before.

Swiss bar curls with band:
55 x 10, 7, 6

Drinking a shake post-workout again, and have been on creatine for four days. 

Entry #1105

Deadlifts:
330 x 5
380 x 5
430 x 11
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qh01xV4uKDo
Using my crappy weightlifting belt. Helps a little. My back was arched the most consistently it's ever been. Not feeling much more ab activation than normal, but that's expected because of the taper. 

GHR:
25 x 8, 6
> Mystery solved as to why I was suddenly able to bust out sets of 25 last week: I didn't do them after max deadlifts.

Ab wheel rolling:
4 x 5 

Entry #1104

Missed recording two deloads. Nothing eventful.

Swiss bar press:
125 x 5
145 x 5
165 x 10
> Felt weak and shaky. I was going for 11 but last rep was hard.

Swiss bar press with Fat Gripz:
130 x 5 x 10
> Phew, also hard. Had to rest pause a little, but I don't care.

Neutral-grip pull-ups:
5 x 10
> Finally hit my rep goal.

External dumbbell rotations:
5 lbs x 20, 20

Need to eat when I wake up and not wait an hour and a half before breakfast. All this reading about carb backloading and intermittent fasting is making me feel more comfortable about going hungry. It would seem that a picture-perfect breakfast (steak, two slices wheat toast, milk, broccoli) isn't quite enough to completely negate glyco depletion pre-meal, at least in the immediate aftermath with a training session. I'm also off creatine.

Still, this is progress compared to the first week of last cycle. It's important to not expect too much too frequently.

Entry #1103

Back is actually feeling better a few hours later. Crazy. Deadlifts always seem to help with back pain.

The pool closed today. I'm glad I got in one last great session yesterday evening. 5 laps with more to spare. I'm going to miss swimming. 

Entry #1102

Deload

Deadlifts:
200 x 5 (FG)
250 x 5 (FG)
300 x 5 (overhand but no Fat Gripz) 

GHR:
25 x 20, 15, 15

Weighted crunches:
50 x 20, 15

Back is still hurting. 

Entry #1101

Deload

Swiss bar military:
75 x 5
95 x 5
115 x 5 

Javelin press:
45 x 5 x 10
Super-set with:
Lat pulldowns:
180 x 12, 10, 10, 10, 15

Swiss bar overhead extensions:
40 x 20, 15
Super-set with various curls

External rotations with bands

Done in about 50 minutes. Got a good pump.

I've been neglecting to record my swimming progress. I'm up to doing 5 laps now, which is big for me. 

Entry #1100

SSB box squats:

330 x 5

380 x 3

420 x 3
> Back twinged on the last rep. Might have had my belt too tight. I definitely would have gotten 5. 

 

GHR super-set with leg press:
25, 15, 10
15, 15, 15 

 

Planks

 

No squat holds today because I didn't want to risk my back, even though it mostly felt fine after racking. Shame, I can tell they've been doing a LOT of good. Core felt rock-solid on squats. I almost felt like I was using a Smith machine.

Entry #1099

Swiss bar bench:
210 x 5
235 x 3
265 x 6 
> I have to come to terms with the Swiss bar bench press being harder and that it should be seen as a separate movement. This felt good. Accomplished what I wanted to do, and according to my 1RM calculator it's a 7 lb improvement over last week. 

Swiss bar bench with Fat Gripz:
145 x 3 x 10
155 x 3 x 10
> Made a mistake and forgot to account for the bar being 10 lbs lighter than a normal one, so only started with 145. Added an extra 155 to make up for it. Lots of pause reps. This might actually be too light, but whatever, I'll just keep ascending until I hit a roadblock.

Dumbbell rows:
112.5 x 4 x 10

Pull-ups:
5, 10
> First was done at the gym before they closed, and second at the park after driving over.

Band curls with dumbbell handle:
15, 12

Short run thereafter to stimulate growth hormone. Currently taking no supplements except spoons of dry whey dissolving in my mouth when I'm hungry from waking up but want to go back to sleep.

Entry #1098

Swiss bar military press:

140 x 5
160 x 3
180 x 7
> Underwhelming. I was shooting for 8. Back was unstable. I found out today that it really pays off to tuck back the scapulae ala a bench press. It helps keep the bar close. Remember to do that.

Swiss bar military with Fat Gripz:
125 x 5 x 10
> This was actually hard. Took my time between sets. 

 

Neutral-grip pull-ups:
10, 10, 10, 10, 5, 5
> Done at a park. 

 

Kettlebell curls with band 

Entry #1097

SSB box squats:
330 x 5
380 x 3
415 x 5

Squat holds:
545 x 20 seconds, 10 seconds

Leg press super-set with calf raises

Planks

Bad night again. Thanks for being there, iron. 

Entry #1096

Gonna stop editing the time of entry from now on, just to keep things accurate for future viewings. Sometimes I do that if I log early in the morning and I want to indicate the day prior.

Finally got to bench press for the first time since the last incident. A little bit of a weak sensation in my left pec, but no actual pain. 

Swiss bar bench press:
195 x 3
220 x 3
250 x 7
> Again, halting before the bar speed starts to really slow down. I have no interest in straining right now.

Swiss bar bench press + Fat Gripz:
150 x 5 x 10

Dumbbell rows:
110 x 5 x 10

Assorted curls 

Pretty rough night, on personal fronts. Gonna go out to a park right now and practice some martial arts in the dark. Training keeps me sane.

Entry #1095

Deadlifts:
350 x 3
400 x 3
450 x 8
> Had another one or two in me, but I remember how my back hurt last time I rep-grinded. I think it's probably smart to keep the bar speed fast when doing high reps, out of safety. I've never hurt anything doing a 1 rep max, but I have getting fatigued from multiple reps. Using my belt, too.

Good mornings:
170 x 10, 4
> Tweaked my back. The sensation lasted scarily long, like 2 seconds (basically as long as it took to dip under the bar and squat it back up), but the severity didn't feel too terrible. I think I'm not conditioned enough to be adding good morning in to ME deadlift day after doing no assist work for so long. Rest longer next time. I was feeling rushed because the gym was closing soon and I wanted to get 5 x 10 in.

Entry #1093

Today was boring. Boring...but big. Yeah, gonna stop doing that now. It's getting out of hand.

I'm off creatine as of yesterday.

Swiss bar military press:
130 x 5
150 x 3
170 x 9
> Awesome, I'm as strong as I was before when using a regular barbell. Had another rep in me, but I'm not truly going to push it until the third week. I was worried that doing dumbbells for so long meant that I'd detrain from pressing weight heavier than 160, but nope. This was a morale-booster. Make sure to keep the bar close to my body at all times. A couple of instances there was outward drift and it made my shoulder feel it. I'm also holding up the last rep of every overhead set to build structural integrity.

Swiss bar press + Fat Gripz:
120 x 5 x 10

V-handle pull-ups:
10, 10, 8, 8, 7, 7

Swiss bar curls + bands:
> Messed around with a couple of set-ups here to get maximum tension from the band and less from the bar. Think I found a good one by standing on a bench with the band anchored to the floor.

External band rotations:
12, 15

Rests were a little longer this time. Ended up a 90 minute session.

Entry #1092

After just a day of strict dieting my body composition looks completely different. Guess it was just glycogen bloat.

Today sucked, though I had fun. Not only was I hungry but my abs are still sore from ab wheel rolling on Sunday. 

SSB box squats:
155 x 5
245 x 5
415 x 2, 3
> Shaky under the bar, but legs felt strong. Need to either eat more or train sooner post-meal.

Squat walkout:
515 x 20 seconds

Leg press + calf raises

Planks 

Entry #1091

Swam four laps, then floundered around in the water and practiced swimming form for awhile. Four used to be a peak, but now I can hit it everytime pretty easily. It's all about the form and learning to not just muscle through the water.

Entry #1092

Yesterday: swam laps and then went on an hour walk right after.

Today I used the Swiss bar to bench. Actually not as bad as I thought it would be. The key is to keep the bar completely flat (it feels good to let it angle a little, like you might allow with dumbbells, but this must be resisted) and to unrack swiftly. Unfortunately, I didn't feel good about my chesticular ability by 190. No pain, but that distant sensation in a problem area that separates the wise from the weak. Decided to slash my training max and make floor presses my new best friend until I'm healed 100%.

Swiss bar floor press:
215 x 5
235 x 10
> Whew, what is with light floor presses tiring my triceps out like this lately? I surmise it's from the arms sinking into the floor each rep. Seems like it's blocking the shoulders and pectorals from helping out like they would in a bench press, especially with the Swiss bar. Felt like all triceps.

Pause floor press:
155 x 5 x 10
> Boring. Boring...but big.

Dumbbell rows:
100 x 5 x 10
> Absurdly strict. Just gonna drive myself crazy here for a cycle before switching to Kroc rows.

Curls:
Whatever.

Belly's looking fatter and arms seem massive, but last time I weighed myself I was only 211. Weird, but as long as I'm strong.

Entry #1091

Deloaded on deadlifts today since I've already been doing 5/3/1 for them all along and I did the first day for them last week.

Deadlifts:
195 x 5 (Fat Gripz)
245 x 5 (Fat Gripz)
295 x 5

SSB good mornings:
170 x 5 x 10

Standing ab wheel rollouts:
5 x 5

Entry #1090

I've procured a Swiss bar. Felt good to go a session without tricep extensions.

I'm doing 5/3/1, four days a week. I'm not going to miss max effort dumbbell work.

Swiss bar press:
125 x 5
140 x 5
160 x 10
> Had a few more in me, but not looking to exhaust myself right now. I actually wasn't sure by the end of it whether I'd done 9 or 10, so I did an extra rep just to be sure. It might have been 11 but I'm counting it as 10.

Fat Gripz Swiss bar press:
125 x 10
115 x 10 x 4
> Underestimated this. 115 is the weight to proceed from.

Chin-ups:
10, 10
> Switched to v-handle because it feels better on my shoulder. 

V-handle chin-ups:
8, 7, 6, 5, 4
> Aiming for 50 total reps in as few sets as possible. Trying to work toward 5 x 10. 

External band rotations
> 15, 15 

Fun day. Was in and out of the gym fast. I bet my recovery is going to be kick-ass now that I don't have to deadlift the weight up every press set.

Entry #1089

Swam laps today. Really makes my shoulders feel good.

Yesterday:

SSB box squat:
410 x 5 
> Used the belt. Despite a painful back everything went great. 

Squat walkout:
515, 20 seconds
> Taking a cue from Emevas to use these super heavy for squat training post-squats instead of as a pre-squat primer. I find it doesn't really make a huge difference for box squats, for some reason. I'll take anything I can for squat training since I still can't squat without a box.

Pause floor press:
225 x 7, 8, 8 
> Staying light because I'm still cautious about pressing horizontally, but so far so good. No pain. Suprisingly good resistance from this when taking it slow. 

Incline skullcrushers with Fat Gripz:
40s x 8
30s x 10, 8 

Went home, pigged out on an Indian recipe I'd made the night before, then went to the park.

Neutral-grip chin-ups:
18, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 5, 6, 5
> Good quality reps - a dead hang on every one and zero cheating. 

Entry #1088

Swam today, as I have been pretty consistently for the last two months.

Back is sore as hell but it was worth the deadlift PR. The swim helped, and now I'm foam rolling before bed.

Entry #1087

Deadlifts:
315 x 5
375 x 3
425 x 12
> Head wasn't in the game; hungry and a little perturbed from having lost my headphones. I was supposed to do 325 instead of 315 on the first set, and 5 reps instead of 3 on the second. Still, owned this. Couldn't believe how light the weight felt. I've found it really helps to start counting down backward (thanks, Poliquin).

Push-ups super-set with mini + monster mini band rows:
25, 13, 12, 10, 10         25, 20, 20, 16, 20
> Sticking with calisthenics for horizontal pressing and making OHP my main movement until I feel comfortable maxing out using my chest again.

Mini band expansion:
12

Back is hurting. 12th deadlift rep was a little bit of a grind, but that usually doesn't do anything. More sure, I need to not sit in a slouched position before I head to the gym. Basic stuff I was stupid about.

Entry #1086

SSB box squats:
410 x 4

Overhead press:
185 x 5
> Keeping things easy today for CNS recovery.

NG chin-ups:
17, 15, 12, 6, 5

Body feeling great.

Entry #1085

Haven't been keeping up with updates. My last non-deload:

SSB box squats:
405 x 5, 5, 5

Unilateral dumbbell press:
142.5 x 4/2
> Felt something snap in left arm pit on that second rep. And with that, I'm officially retiring this exercise, at least as a main movement. Going this heavy with this much mechanical instability isn't a good idea. If I had the means of using two dumbbells at a time then I could keep going.

Did some light dumbbell rows (100s x 12 - felt too burned out for anything more) and called it a day.

No pain persisted, but a couple days later I was doing deloaded floor press and my armpit pained up, so I reracked. It only hurts under pressure. Handled overhead pressing fine the next session.

Quads are still sore but for the first time in four weeks they're actually notably better and I'll probably be able to full squat next week.

Entry #1086

Decided mid-workout today to be wise and not put much pressure on my chest for awhile. I can just focus on overhead pressing as my main movement until I feel safe going back to horizontal pressing.

Deload

SSB box squats:
290 x 5, 5, 5

Leg press:
90 x 15

Dumbbell military press:
60s x 5, 5, 5

Facepulls:
15, 12

Slow push-ups:
15, 12

Slow dumbbell rows:
100 x 15, 12, 10, 10, 10

Entry #1084

Lifting with an injured back, so I donned my dad's old weightlifting belt for the first time ever.

Deadlift:
370 x 5
415 x 3
465 x 5
> Felt so strong, but stopped early as back pain set in. Still a PR. Can't wait to see what I can do next cycle after I'm healed.

One-arm overhead press:
80 x 5, 5, 5/8
> 8 reps on right arm for the last set. Right arm is much stronger here, but on dumbbell bench press my prior-injured left is usually the easier side. Weird.

Face-pulls between press sets

Neutral-grip chins:
15, 8, 8, 6, 6

SSB box squats + monster mini bands:
240 x 5, 1
> Back twinged, so terminated the exercise.

Incline dumbbell skullcrushers:
50s x 4
40s x 10, 8

Missed logging last session.

SSB box squat:
400 x 5, 5

Leg press + lying calf raises

Floor press:
300 x 5, 5, 4
> 1-second pause.

Weighted chin-ups:
90 x 5, 5, 5

Skullcrushers + hammer curls

Back sored up again from the squats and quad is still as painful as ever, making it two weeks now. I'm going to stick with box squats with a belt for the rest of this cycle (only two days, anyways). No more quad isolation work for now.

Entry #1082

Loaded squat walkout:
440 x 10 seconds
> I dig these a lot. Instant squat performance improvement + ab work.

Safety bar squat:
385 x 5
> Quad is STILL sore, making it well over a week. Should I count it as an injury? Still squatted strong.

GHR:
17, 12

Calf raises

One-arm dumbbell press:
140 x 5, 5, 5

Dumbbell row:
185 x 5/1
> 5 in left arm. When doing the other I felt a twinge in my back so I stopped.

Weighted chin-ups:
45 x 10, 10, 6

Dumbbell pec squeezes:
40s x 5, 5, 4

Back pain is persisting. Nothing serious, it should go away in a day or two. Between squatting, the GHR (which always stiffens my back), barbell calf raises, and finally, 3 sets of having to manhandle a 140 lb dumbbell off of the floor and into my lap, my back is getting stupidly pumped by the end. I might need to look into belting up.

While I'm at it, I should use straps for things like rows, too. The way this routine is peppered with unilateral things I'm taxing my grip a ton, to the point where I barely even use my Fat Gripz anymore. It's time to go full-on puss mode with belts and straps, I'd say.

So in a strange turn of events, my CNS is healthy and I still feel fresh, but my body is a little beat up. Lots of healing for the next two days, and maybe just box squatting next week if my quad isn't back to normal.

Entry #1081

Goofy session yesterday.

Deadlift:
340 x 3
390 x 3
440 x 5
500 x 0
> Equipment failure. Basically, the barbell fell apart, and it took me until the middle of putting the plates back to realize what had happened. I was doing 440 for 9 but felt the weight start to shift to the left, and by the 5th rep it was completely lopsided. I thought my grip was just uneven but I didn't want to go for high reps again, so I loaded up 500, pulled it off the floor and again felt the barbell tilt on its end. Eventually I found out that the screw had fallen out and the plates were gradually pushing against the collars, migrating to the end of the bar.

Unilateral overhead press:
75 x 12/5, 10/5, 10/5
> Right and left arm, respectively. Looks like one-handed is definitely the way to go for isolating problem areas. Doing two hands with the 80s meant I was forcing reps on my left when it couldn't extend all the way and underworking my right. I'll keep doing this until both sides are even. Oh, and there was less (read: none) pain than usual this way, thanks to being able to devote 100% focus to each side at a time. Guess I'm no longer in any hurry to get a Swiss bar.

NG pull-ups:
12, 12, 10

SSB squat:
255 x 5, 5, 5

Fasted walk today. Weighed in at 216.

Entry #1080

Been taking it easy for two days, doing nothing but fasted walks and foam rolling. Took an extra day off to really get prepped for deadlifts tomorrow. Today's training consisted of massive Canyon Grill burgers, gyro feasts at Grapevine with the girlfriend and her sister, and Vietnamese beef pho with steak.

I'm starting to really hone in on some key details for cutting weight. Saturated fat and sodium can actually spike insulin levels quite a bit even in the absence of carbs, so I'm not eating immediately before bed anymore in order to allow a growth hormone spurt during sleep. I'm also looking to bring back cottage cheese more instead of saltier cheddar.

Shoulder has been a little achy. Weighted dips last week were extremely disagreeable. It's less of a painful sensation and more a feeling of it just being stiff. I can press fine, though, as evident by the 140 lb dumbbell press day before yesterday.

Entry #1079

SSB squat:
380 x 5, 5, 5
> Almost did box squats today because my leg is still sore. Rather than DOMS I think I pulled the quad stretching a week ago. Still, crushed this. Very happy.

GHR:
10 x 12, 10

SSB calf raises:
135 x 12

One-arm dumbbell press:
80 x 5
110 x 5
140 x 5

Dumbbell row:
180 x 5, 5, 5
> Chalk helps. Pull to the side, not in front.

Band pressdowns super-set with hammer curls:
20, 12, 12          60s x 14, 14
                         40s x 16

Great day.

Entry #1078

Had a case of DOMS in my quads during warm-up Hindu squats, so I decided to change things up today and avoid squatting deep.

SSB box squat:
400 lbs x 3, 4, 3
> Could have hit 4 on all sets but kind of wanted to hold back today. Never squatted 400 for reps before. Clearly I'm proficient with the stretch-reflex from squatting ATG so much because I had terrible pop coming off the stool. It felt like I was trying to rip my legs out of being super-glued. Once I actually moved off the rest of the rep was easy.

GHR:
10 lb plate x 15, 12

Floor press:
295 lbs x 5, 5
> No struggle, had a couple more reps in me.

With 2-second pauses:
275 lbs x 5

Dumbbell row:
180 lb dumbbell x 5, 5, 5
> Done standing with the power rack for support.

Dips:
25 lbs x 10, 10
> Taking it easy for my shoulder.

Alternating hammer curls with Fat Gripz:
60s x 14, 12

I didn't even want to train today but it ended up being fun as hell. Hit some solid numbers while still cruising on easy. I'll be ready to get back to business on Saturday.

Entry #1077

Haven't been updating lately.

Deadlift:
330 x 5
370 x 5
415 x 12

Dumbbell military press:
80s x 6, 6, 6
> Last set was sans Fat Gripz. I hate to admit it, but for my situation, this movement seems better without. The dumbbells + the overhead balancing + the Fat Gripz makes it too unstable to get great mileage out of it. As a result, my troublesome shoulder has difficulty locking out unless I take them off.

Overhead band shrugs (x 12) + external rotation machine (100 lbs x 12)

NG pull-ups:
15, 10, 8

SSB squat:
255 x 5, 5, 5

Been suffering from "weightlifters' headaches" ever since the start of my deload. It began with a set of 25-rep good mornings, and persisted the next time I tried those. Always at rep 20. Today, it reared its head again on deadlifts, although not nearly as severe.

Last night I managed to finally get good sleep (10 hours) after probably a week and a half of only 5-6 hours a night. Need to keep that up or else I'll be forced to take time off so I can recover.

Entry #1076

Ran 5 miles yesterday in 50 minutes. Wasn't even out of breath by the end of it, but stopped for my joints. This is, hands down, the best my cardio has ever been at. A combination of HIIT and swimming can be attributed to this.

Deload

SSB squat:
260 x 5, 5, 5

Good morning:
150 x 20

One-arm dumbbell press:
85 x 5, 5, 5

Hang clean:
135 x 5, 5, 5

Push-ups super-set with dumbbell rows:
25, 15                           100 x 25, 12, 10

Curls

Finished in 45 minutes, Good time.

Went jogging with le girlfriend at night. Probably netted some good growth hormone release from it.

Entry #1075

Deadlifted 455 x 5 in a weak showing on Saturday. Haven't had a great week...until now.

SSB loaded walkout:
440 x 10 seconds
> A trick I learned from Pavel to fire up the proprioceptors before a big effort.

SSB squat:
380 x 5
> Blew this out of the water.

One-arm dumbbell press:
137.5 x 3/5, 5, 5
> Only got 3 on my right arm for the first set. Guess I need to warm-up better.

Dumbbell row:
137.5 x 15, 12, 10

Dips super-set with dumbbell curls:
16             40s x 10

Entry #1074

SSB squat:
250 x 5
325 x 5
380 x 3, 3

Dumbbell press:
137.5
Right arm: 3
Left arm: 0

Holy shit, I felt burned out. Definitely time to switch exercises on at least squats. One of my worst days this year. I did film the squats in anticipation of getting my usual 5 and my form is fantastic, at least. Back is upright, my knees don't go past my toes, and depth is well below parallel. The first two reps on each of the heavy sets were breezy and the third was just killer.

It's funny to think that I at least set a PR for bad days, haha. Last time I felt burned-out I grinded 360 x 3.

Finished up with some push-ups mixed with chin-ups.

Entry #1073

SSB squats:
375 x 5, 5, 4
> First time in 11 years of lifting that I failed on squats. Only got 4 reps on the last set before failing a fifth. Dumped the load overhead without a problem. Reminds me of Emevas scoffing at people worrying about failing and not having spotters.

One-arm dumbbell press:
80 x 5
110 x 5
137.5 x 5

Dumbbell row:
137.5 x 12, 10, 10, 8
> No floor loading, just constant tension.

Isometric dumbbell pec squeezes:
40s x 4, 4, 4
> 5 second hold. Done between sets of rows.

Dips:
12, 8, 8
> Shoulder fatigue from earlier movements.

Curls

Might try adding GHR after squats.

Entry #1072

Didn't get to train today because of waking up from a nap at 6 and the gym closes at 8 on weekends. I'd rather just wait another day and have a night of tissue work and myofascial release than rush and train with no nutrition.

This entire week, in fact, I've had two days of rest after each session (the first time being from wanting to rest after a late night of drinking, which actually seemed to refresh me and help set a deadlift PR the next day). That's why I love this program. Doing a full-body day means no one region is ever going too long untrained if life happens and I need to take a day off.

Did 5 minutes of HIIT yesterday and swam laps in the pool tonight. I've been eating a lot of vegetables lately and less fruit.

Entry #1071

Deadlift:
365 x 3
405 x 3
430 x 10
> Had another one or two in me but was mentally held back a little bit from my thumb. No blood, thankfully. Nice PR.

Dumbbell military press:
80s x 5, 6, 6

NG pull-ups:
12, 10, 6, 6, 6

SSB squat:
255 x 5, 5, 5

Entry #1070

SSB squat:
245 x 5
320 x 5
375 x 5
> Oof, getting heavy. Last rep was probably the hardest-fought squat I've ever done.

One-arm dumbbell press:
135 x 5, 5, 5

Dumbbell row:
135 x 10, 10

Horizontal band row:
20

Sliced my thumb wide open with a razor blade and it impacted how tightly I can grip. Had to cut rows short because blood was seeping everywhere.

Entry #1069

Deadlift video: 410 x 12

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xm0HGGYNbTk

Today:

SSB squat:
370 x 5, 5, 5

One-arm dumbbell press:
80 x 5
110 x 5
135 x 5

Dumbbell rows (no dead pauses):
135 x 8, 8, 8

Dips:
15, 8

Curls

Entry #1068

Taking a cue from MadCow this cycle and progressing on presses and squats with at least one day of work-up sets per week before conquering that weight for 3 sets next time, rather than 3 sets of 5 and doing a linear increase in poundage next session. This way I'm increasing at half the rate as before (5 lbs on squats per week instead of 10, 2.5 lbs on presses per week instead of 5), a necessary tapering down as I get stronger.

This time I didn't see any benefits in workout length, though, because I found out I can no longer progress on dumbbell rows with 25 lb plates - there is simply no room on the dumbbell. I had to take some time to experiment with 35 lb plates and increasing the height of the bench, which worked out fine.

SSB squat:
290 x 5
315 x 5
370 x 5

One-arm dumbbell press:
132.5 x 5, 5, 5

Facepulls:
10, 10, 10

One-arm dumbbell row:
180 x 5, 5, 5
> Less leg drive now that I'm higher up. Also, holy crap is my left arm stronger than my right, despite being the side that was injured three times. The weight shot up in my left arm yet I had to really grind it out in my right. 

FatGripz skullcrushers super-set with alternating dumbbell curls:
45s x 8, 8 50s x 16, 16

Entry #1067

Haven't been updating as much because of technological reasons. Luckily, this has been a deload week so there's not a ton to report. I did have a badass swim session in the middle of a thunderstorm, and cardio has been consistent all around.

Despite all this I weighed 212 yesterday. It's either from creatine, muscle gain, or both. Despite the increase I look as lean as ever.

Tuesday~

SSB squat:
255 x 5, 5, 5

Unilateral dumbbell press:
85 x 5, 5, 5

Hang clean:
135 x 5, 5, 5

Unilateral dumbbell rows:
100 x 25, 12

Today~

Fat Gripz deadlifts:
190 x 5
230 x 5
280 x 2, finished the last 3 holding onto the bar

GHR:
20

Dumbbell military press super-set with chin-ups:
65s x 5, 5, 5               15, 10, 8, 8, 8

SSB squats:
205 x 5, 5, 5

Neck machine