My Powerlifting journey
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| Greyphantom |  | ... | 25-06-2012 @ 18:29 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Squat day Squats WU 60x10, 100x8, 140x6, 180x1 (thats it stopped there) DE squats 130x1x1 (again stopped there) GM WU 60x1x8 100x3x5 SLDL 120x3x5 Pullthroughs 35x3x5 Bit of a tough session today... Squats - the lower sets felt ok and very good, particularly the speed from the bottom of the hole... but when I got to 180 I felt my hamstring go a little and stopped after the first rep... started to talk myself into trying it again as I didnt want to give up but once under the bar as I began to lower hamstring told me nope... DE squats - so I thought light should be good and started the first set... nope hamstring just didnt want to play, its not too bad but dont want to push it too much and thus ruin the rest of my run up... GM - yeah these felt great, first warm up felt light but was needed to get form right, then the 3 working sets really felt great, felt my lower back working nicely and no hassle from my hamstring which I was dreading tbh... good solid work here... SLDL - was not sure about these today... first set was done nice and slowly to make sure the hamstring was not going to be made worse... but joy it wasnt... in fact the exercise worked a lower part and missed the sore area yay me... 2nd two sets were done with more speed and really worked well... Pullthroughs - first set felt rough, but subsequent sets were good and man by this stage my posterior chain was in bits... bit p1ssed that the hamstring twinge from last week has come back to haunt me... was feeling well up for it today but as a result I missed my target this week... sigh... hopefully will have this sorted by next week else it could be a right hinderance... was happy enough with the assistance stuff... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 27-06-2012 @ 15:10 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Bench day Bench WU 60x10, 80x8, 100x4, 115x2, 130x1 thats it... oh and Wrist rotations 11kgx3x12 Dislocations barx3x20 what a sh1t day... first the leg is pinged now its my fvcking forearm right side... from cgbp last week... pushing the 130 was an act of sheer will and I had Doug Youngs words echoing in my head... tried 140 but arm gave way half way down which was a bit scarey, tried to finish the workout but it just wasnt happening so did some forearm work and then shoulder prehab... leg is starting to show signs of healing but forearm is not great... fml 9 weeks out and its all going pear, take time off and youre supposed to freaking heal... dammit... oh well onward and upward... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 29-06-2012 @ 17:23 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Deads Day baby!!! Deads ME WU 120x9, 170x7, 210x4 250x2 280x3x1 Deads DE 175x5x3 Chins BWx3x5 BOR 120x3x5 Done baby... today was how every workout should be... fvck the niggles and sore bits just get it ON...!!! Deads - oh now how good is it to do these... warm ups felt good, today just really concentrated on correct technique (adjusting here and there) and speed off the floor... made a big difference, 250 for 2 just flew up and I reckon I could have crackd out a few more... but waited till the target numbers before stretching anything... 280 felt the best it ever has, the biggest difference being I didnt focus on the weight but moving the weight as fast as I could, because I was concentrating on speed I forgot how much the weight was and so the mind switched of the "holy fvck thats heavy" mechanism... allowed for a much smoother and faster pull... got the three out no problems... this is what heaven feels like... Deads ME - was working on speed but for some reason even though they were quick off the floor it just didnt feel as powerful as it should till the last set... then it was OH... MY... GOD...!!! felt it fully and locked that away to do it the same way next week and the week after etc... sod sex this is what its about  Chins - went well... enjoyed the lifting tbh as could feel the back work much better, got a smoother and stronger pull from the bottom and it felt easier again... think next week will add some weight on for sure... even if its only 2.5kg... every little counts hey... BOR - at first they fel meh... then a min or so after finishing the set I could feel the middle part of my upper back trying to crawl away... really pushing for power from the bottom of the pull as I find this is something I need to work on... felt wonderful and this combined with the chins gave me great ILS... um I mean pump Oh yeah finally a great workout but then it is deadlift day and its my favourite... the lifts all felt much better, smoother and faster... will have to keep working on that to make sure its progressing but so far so oh yeah baby... niggles gave me no problems and the forearm (which I thought would give me a problem for sure) was fine... in fact its feeling much better... groin thing is good and apart from a slight tightness when I squat (bw only atm) it feels on the mend and ready to try light squats at least monday... biggest difference in the last few days has been the reintroduction of cissus and joint and recovery supps, also upped the Hydro-recover/whey protein drink to two a day... the extra protein should help and the extra creatine will be a boon too... touch wood that they keep going like this now.. | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 02-07-2012 @ 15:51 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Squat day ME Squats WU barx8, 60x8, 100x6, 140x4, 180x2, 210x1 belt on 240x1xf (not parallel) mtfu talk 240x2x1 DE squats 130x5x3 GM 110x3x5 SLDL 130x3x5 Pullthroughs 40x3x5 oh yeah...!!! Was a weird feeling in the build up, wasnt sure the leg would hold even though bw squats yesterday felt strong and no pain at all, not even any pulling... Squats - warm ups all felt great... even the 210 (no belt) felt nice and tight and really good... just below parallel for that and it didnt pull the injury from last week... first single at 240 was just too high... basicall chickened out but after a stern talking to myself about mtfu I did 2 singles to good depth and it felt fine... little hard coming out of the hole but over all pretty good... Speed squats were really good, first set was a bit slow as I was hesitant but after feeling good just really concetrated on the speed out of the hole and it felt really great... GM - felt harder this week and much more through my posterior chain... still pretty comfortable but worked for sure... loving these at the moment... SLDL - wow these were excellent... glutes and hams fried by the end and just couldnt find a comfy position to sit in... Pullthroughs - harder this week, the weight seems to have jumped 10kg not 5... second set better than the first and third better again as I found the right movement... very happy that the groin thing has pretty much healed and feels fine... even happier that I had to sit there at the end and take a few deep breaths to not throw up lol... the whole workout felt really good and just like it should, best thing is I am on target with numbers and its feeling strong and good... weight is 112.5kg and usually thats a little lower after a weekend as I dont have the same pattern for eating as during the week... but I managed to get approx 300g protein in on both days and all the fats and carbs that go with it... so far so good... will keep an eye on the weight as I dont want it going too much over 115 or so... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 04-07-2012 @ 16:56 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Bench Day ME Bench WU 60x8, 80x8, 100x5, 115x2, 130x1 140x1xf DE Bench 80x5x3 Seated press 60x1x5 65x2x5 Dips BWx5 BW+5kg x 2x5 Dislocations Bar x 3x20 oh well went well but not as good as expected or hoped for... Bench - started well, arm felt fine, 130 actually went up easily and well... 140 unracked and it felt fine, down touch and up, things I forgot = keeping back tight, leg drive and squeezing the bar (stupidly instead of concentrating on the lift I was worried about the arm so focussed on that)... so down and press started fine but then half way up I realised my back had unlocked and I hadnt used the legs so focus slipped and then I noticed what was happening in my arm, my hand was bending back as I press up and this caused my forearm to hurt and on the 140 I actually felt it like a sprain (but its not) and so mental note of just one more thing to add to the list of what to do in the bench is keep the freaking hand in line with the forearm... doing this helps immeasureably... anyway not a total lose but missed my numbers this week as well... Seated Press - actually felt pretty good... the last set being the best... found the groove for the lift and managed some nice power from the bottom... Dips - wow felt these... triceps took a hit and after the first set I added some weight which is cool, only 5kg to start with but its a start... felt nice and strong too... Dislocations - oooh yeah nice stretch, loosened up the shoulders and had them feeling good... bench always my bugbear... need to work on it and get it locked in... it is getting there slowly but I would like it to get there quicker lol... arm def improving and should be fine by next week... still managing to get in circa 400g protein a day which is good... weight fairly steady about 112-113kg so thats also good... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 06-07-2012 @ 17:09 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Deadlift day (woo hooo)... ME Deads WU 120x10, 170x8, 210x5, 250x3, 270x1 290x2x1 DE deads 180x5x3 Chins BW+5kg x3x5 BOR 130x3x5 Yeah baby, after being hassled by the knob brigade all day I went into the gym to work it all off... great session... loved the deads as have added some new technique changes ala Andy Bolton and it made a big difference I think... Deads - watched a video or two (one of which posted by @JB) re deadlifting with Andy Bolton and in it he talked about speed off the floor (already working on that) and popping the hips as the bar passes the knees (something I have not been doing)... so thought I would try it out in todays workout and man it made a huge difference... the light weights just flew up and felt like, well not nothing exactly but easy, once I got to 250 it was a bit harder to pop the hips hard (like youre humping the bar basically) but activating the glutes much better helped the drive through and made lockout easier... 290 never went up so easy, only thing is I got 2 singles and would have liked 3 but I managed to rip the skin on my hands and they were weeping this clear liquid stuff (not bleeding but you know that clear liquid you get when you graze yourself, that stuff) which made holding the bar hard... speed deads were good (well after the first set) and I got them going fast and loads of hip pop... not to be confused with hip hop of which I have none... Chins - yeah baby first time ever I have added weight to my chins I think... all went up easily except for the last 2 reps on the last set which slowed and I had to struggle... felt great and def moving up from here... biggest prob was grip though as hands were stinging and a bit slippery, but muddled through... BOR - grip was not helping here either... first set didnt go as well as it should have but the second was much better and third even better still... form prob off slightly as I was worried about hands and grip... but was ok still... Excellent workout and really feeling my back now... tired, hands very sore but happy... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 09-07-2012 @ 14:27 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Squat day ME squats WU 60x10, 100x8, 140x6, 180x4, 210x2 230x0 245x0x0 DE squats 140x0x0 GM 110x3x5 SLDL 140x3x5 Pullthroughs 40x3x5 Well started the day feeling a bit tired but ok in general... go to training and felt well up for it... Squats - warm ups were awesome, felt nice and strong and easy... up till 210... first rep when I got to the bottom I felt something in my right quad pull a little... did the second rep and felt it even more so called it quits there, pulling sensation in the lower part of the outer quad right near the bottom of the muscle... kinda went numb and then sore now its pretty ok but still slightly achey... bit of massage and it should be right as rain quick enough, but I def didnt want to risk anything this close to the comp... so I am looking at today as a bit of a deload on squats day lol... would have had my target numbers for sure as 210 felt fine and easy with no belt at all... just that pesky pull... I also sacked the speed stuff for the same reason... I did do some bodyweight bench squats after GMs though just to see how it felt and it was starting to feel fine by then so maybe I just wussed out... time will tell... GM - kept the weight the same this week as form was a bit ropey last week and it paid off as it was super good this week... felt nice and tight and really good... SLDL - this felt easy today, weight was almost nothing and I had the "do I sit or stay standing?" feel when finishing the sets... really hit the glutes and hams well and hard... Pullthroughs - kept the weight the same again as form felt off last week... still not great in the first set but the last two were really good... not as tight as GM but still good enough... prob keep the weight the same next week but we shall see... Overall I am pleased with today but same time miffed I missed the target weight for today... still did not want to risk the quad with a serious injury and the squatting felt way better than it has before, great drive from the bottom and weights just didnt feel as heavy... going to take that positive forward and next week slay the damn thing... posterior chain is taking a hammering and feels great from all the assistance stuff... def keeping the bar much more stable on my shoulders during squats and midsection doesnt feel any weakness at all even at 210 with no belt... next week going to push that squat hard and not pick up a freaking niggle... sigh... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 11-07-2012 @ 17:10 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Bench Day ME Bench WU - 60x10, 80x8, 100x5, 115x4, 130x2 140x1xf (DAMMIT!!!!) large cup of mtfu 140x1x1 140x1xf sigh Wide grip Bench 100x1x1 Seated press WU 40x5 65x3x5 Dips BW+10kg x1x6, 2x5 Dislocations Bar x3x20 Oooooh yeah much better in the forearm today, kept the bar in a great line straight down the forearm... massive difference in feel... Bench - well after all the shenannigens I have been having I wanted today to go well... it had mixed results but good outcomes... warm ups felt better than ever and no problem from forearm at all... 115 felt so easy I went to 4 instead of 2 and 130 felt so nice I push out 2 nice and tight... I know I could have added a rep on 3 onto each lift... 140 loaded unracked and stuck on chest... WTF... seriously WTF... was going to give up then as a bad apple but went over it in my head as to what I could be doing wrong... first thing was too much focus on the bar lowering and not enough on it going up... sounds silly but I was thinking of lowering it safely and under control, and making sure my arm didnt hurt (it didnt) so I simply didnt think about pushing it up... second thing was I was not setting it up well enough and mentally focussing on the lift itself rather than a bodypart... got under the bar again set it up exactly and made sure the lats were locked in as explained/shown to me by a mate on saturday and man it went well, flew up and felt much easier than previously... very surprised at how it went up tbh... third attempt I got it off the chest really easy and it was going up but for some reason it went off line and slid to the left... checked my bench for lean and it was fine, bar was evenly loaded but it still went left... oh well happy enough and now know what it was and how to do it to make sure I nail the heavier weights each time... mentally locking that in... Press - 65 felt a little heavy at first but then by the second set it was getting easier and felt comfortable... still a hard lift for me... but progressing... Dips - oh yeah feeling these now, got the groove and feeling good... added 10kg to my bodyweight which I think is a best for me at least over three sets it is... and looking to go up next week... actually loving these when I used to hate them... Dislocations - such a sweet finisher for the workout... helps stretch out the shoulders and chest and loosen it all up... so got the 140 and it felt good, next week to consolidate that and maybe move up in weight... will see how it feels... got to work on that wide grip too as it feels unnatural and today it put more pressure on my forearm which is why I stopped at 1 as will not risk hurting that when its just healing... Quad is feeling great... just tight and a bit achey now... bw squats are good to go and dont make it hurt at all... bring on monday | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 13-07-2012 @ 17:28 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Deadlift day... Deadlift (back off week) WU 120x10, 170x8, 210x5 250x3x3 DE deads 180x5x3 Chins BW+10kg 5, 4, 3+1p BOR 130x3x5 Not sure I was going to make it today, sod all sleep last night feeling pretty rough to boot (nauseus and headachey) so was touch and go... but then remembered I had testicles and not even the man flu would stop me so got on with it... luckily it was a back off week anyway so wasnt going heavy... Deads - warm ups were good but didnt get the same hip drive as last week... so something to continue working on there... 210 was very easy though as the speed from the floor is improving... 250 was great, comfortable reps and while the hips need more work everything is pretty much falling into place... just did a quick 3 sets of 3 and left it there which was good as was feeling might sick at the end, speed sets I am not used to... lol... the speed work went well and hips started clicking into place... nooo not cos I am old dammit, but the movement became more coordinated and smooth... Chins - loving these right now, still a hard exercise for me but adding weight is a good thing... first time 10kg been strapped on and although I didnt get the full reps in each set I felt the bugger work... going to leave the weight the same next week and work on reps... BOR - wow these were so good this week, form was spot on and man my back was on fire after each set... so glad I decided to just crack on with it as it turned out to be a good work out... got a few areas to work on still but then thats always going to be the case I imagine... next week should be a full on week again as quad is pretty much healed and going to push squats and deads hard... lets get those numbers up... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 16-07-2012 @ 16:03 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Squat day ME squat WU 60x10, 100x8, 140x6, 180x4, 210x2, belt on 230x1 250x2x NTD (not to depth) ME Squats 140x5x3 GM 115x3x5 SLDL 150x3x5 after a pretty crappy weekend (bug floored me sat and only two meals sun plus slept funny last night so neck is all funny cricking type thing) I was wondering if it was going to be a good session... then work went longer than expected didnt get my normal meal time before training in and that always throws me... but cracked on and pleased I did... Squats - the actual squat felt ok, but as the bar got heavier my neck/trap point was hurting unless I kept my back very tight... that was not too bad till I got to 250 and started concentrating on the legs and hips so the quads were good... course as I am pretty simple I forgot to keep the upper back as tight as it should have been this meant as I went down my neck/back started hurting and I started to lose it thus not reaching depth, first single was a ways off but the second was closer but still no cigar... it wasnt till the 4th set of the speed squats I realised what I had done wrong... 230 was easy and felt so good... made some notes for next week to remind me to keep my damn back tight and chest out... this will stop me collapsing in and make me get the lift... the DE squatting started slow but then after a self pep talk got way better and nice power/speed from the bottom... GM - was not sure about doing these as neck thing was sore... but gave the first set a go to see how it would work out and no problem at all... very happy with them and the second and third sets were progressively harder... SLDL - great sets here... felt them nicely in the hams and glutes and form was really good... far better than expected tbh... was a quick one today as couldnt fit in the pullthroughs as had to pick up my boy from school... from next week wont have that problem as they are off on holiday... all in all even though I didnt get depth on the ME squats I know what the problem is and its easily rectified and I know I will nail them next week for sure... with 6 weeks of training to go I am happy enough... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 20-07-2012 @ 21:23 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Deads day ME deads WU 60x2x6, 120x10, 170x8, 210x5, 250x3, 280x1 300x1 300xf 300x1 (easier than first) DE deads 190x5x3 Chins BWx5 BW+10x2x5 BOR 135x3x5 Wooo hooo... great days training... Welshguy84 came over for a training session and it was good having the company... spurred me on a bit too which was nice... Deads - wasnt sure how these would go given the state of my back, but the first couple of light sets were a try out to see if I would feel anything and it went well so right into it... warm up sets went well and bar pretty much flew up... 250 was a bit harder but 280 seemed great so went for 300... first rep was a bit of a grind tbh but went up so very happy... second rep got it to my knees and I chickened out... total mind fvck but one thing it did do was release my back as I felt no pain at all after that... after getting a stern "youre a pussy" talking to (under his breath I might add lol) from Welshy I tried 300 again, this time it went up much easier and felt very comfortable... very very pleased with todays numbers as its the first time in a while pulling 300 and first time I have pulled it more than once in the same session... so more weight to follow for sure... time to step up!!! speed deads went well, started slow tbh but picked up by the following sets... Chins - first one was a bw set to see how the back would react... was fine... till let go lol... but nothing serious, and will be adding more weight next week as it felt really good, plus Welshy showed me up by adding more weight that me!! BOR - really nice, felt tidy and nicely in the back, no ache really and will be upping the weight on these too... As said really happy with todays session, was great to have Welshy there and he has some great skills... got loads in him for the future thats for sure and if we get the weight numbers right for his attempts he would have had some good lifts today... oops, I must learn to add better back held up fine and targets reached this week... onward and upward... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 23-07-2012 @ 17:24 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Squats day ME Squat WU 60x10, 100x8, 140x6, 180x4, 210x2, 230x1 250x2x1 250x1xNP DE Squats 140x5x3 thats it... back held up really well just had to really really concentrate on keeping it tight and solid... Squats - surprisingly went really well... warm ups felt tight and good, not a hint of ache... kept it really tight though and made sure it was solid for the whole set... 230 felt really good and went on to 250... took the first rep and it felt heavy, went nice and low but by accident more than anything lol, went down a bit quicker than I expected and it was a bit loose, but I managed to get it up nicely... second single went really well felt much better and much more controlled... loved it... last one just didnt set it up right and thus it didnt work... but over all really happy with it... the speed squats were good and felt strong... first set a bit slow but managed to pick up the pace on the remaining sets... just kept it to squats today, tried some good mornings but the back was just not ready... just glad I got the squats in tbh and can move forward, back feeling very good compared to last week and getting stronger day by day... sort of looking forward to bench day now lol... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 25-07-2012 @ 18:26 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Bench day ME bench WU 60x11, 80x8, 100x6, 115x3, 130x1 142.5xf WGBP 100x3x3 thats it... short and sweet... was very worried about my back and it showed... pre workout I took 3 ibuprofen to dull any pain and that helped but as the weights went up so did my caution and this affected my lifting a bit... no weight was hard per se but on 115 the 3 reps went up really nicely and easily and slowly as in a controlled manner rather than hard... had a few more in me but stopped at 3 cos the 4th is when my back went last week... sooo 130 the single was simple... smooth and easy but again too slow from the bottom... 142.5 was a hale mary pass really... wanted it and by rights should have had it but all I could think of on the way down was "watch the back, watch the back" and totally forgot leg drive, speed off chest and everything... funny thing is although I can still feel an ache in my back it didnt twinge, hurt or ache at all in the bench... FML... hopefully by next week will have shaken this off and will just get it all working together again... did some wide grip bench as suggested by @Dig... much different to the closer in grip I have started using also changed at something Dig said (which is feeling much better btw mate thanks for that)... feels weird doing a wider grip but also could feel it more through the chest so hopefully get a good cross over there... didnt do dips or shoulder press as both movements seem to aggravate that little spastic musle in my back lol... next week for sure... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 27-07-2012 @ 17:34 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Deads Day ME deads WU 120x10, 170x 6, 210x4, 250x2, 280x1 305x2xf ME deads 200x3x3 thats it... last few days been feeling really pants, meh or whatever... today was a bit better but started to fall asleep about 45mins before training which is never a good thing... sleepless nights due to the heat and sweating my rear off... the flaming heat which is draining as hell... all just leads to meh... anywho I went into the workout thinking it was all ok... pretty much just did deads really... the heavy ones started well but I started gassing and feeling tired at 250 ffs then 280 went up ok but didnt feel "on" but went up ok still then 305 felt heavy but the first one I wimped out as my back felt tight and tbh just didnt have the energy... or will or what ever... tried it again but still could only get it to my knees and while it felt better just still couldnt put anything into it... by this stage my shirt was soaked and I felt physically fragged... started the speed deads which felt tough and my upper glutes/lower back felt strained by them (huh??) but got 3 sets out with the last one being the best feeling as I made damn sure to get a good start and form going... absolutely gone now... feeling peeved and wasted... going to eat some bits and have a shake before bed... sleep a long sleep for the next couple of nights and get the damn fan out so I can sleep... | ||
| Greyphantom | | ... | 31-07-2012 @ 18:32 |
TL:DR Member 2858, 889 posts SQ 275, BP 155, DL 320750.0 kgs @ 110kgs UnEq | Squats day Squats 60x8 100x6 140x2 140x3 160x2 180x2 200x3+1p thats it... well July has been a right sh1t fight for me in terms of niggles and cr4p going on in life... but thank god damn near through it now... today was a day late with squats as yesterday just couldnt bend down due to issues in glute... its been there since last week and instead of working on it, stretching it out and ice/heat and deep tissue stimulation etc I let it go and have paid the price... still better late than never and today its finally started to work out and feel better so gave squats a go... tbh was pleased with 200 but numbers should be higher this close to comp day... found that as weight went up it was easier to hit depth but the last one told me it was time to stop... | ||
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