Pressing

Press: 63.5 x 3 x 5. This was one of those sessions where it felt a littl heavier than it should have. *Max rep set last session.

Bench: 80 x 3 x 5. Short rest. Damn these felt heavy too. Was fatigued.

BW Dips: 55 total. A little tiring toward the end.

TCPD: 48 x 2 x 12.

Day 2

Pull ups: 20 x 5, 10 x 3 x 5. I wanted to pick a weight for the first set that I could hit for atleast 8 reps. I thought 20 would be that weight but they were a little heavier than I wanted them to be. Next session I will drop the first set down to 15kg, then I'll eventually just cycle through the rep ranges.

EZ Curls: 40 x 6 x 6. Again, a little too heeavy really. Next session will pick a lighter weight that I can hit for 12.

Shrugs: 190 x 5 x 5. More hectic trap fatigue.

DB Rows: 32 x 2 x 12

Hammer Curls: 16 x 6, 14 x 6.

One thing I have learnt from Ed Coan's routine is that he even cycled through his assistance just like his big lifts. The other thing I have learnt from Vladimir Zatsiorsky is that 5-6 and 10-12 rep ranges are the best for hypertrophy and that sub maximal effort (multiple sets not to failure) and repeated effort (to failure) methods should be combined for hypertrophy. So, I will start my assistance of at weights I can hit for 10-12 reps with only 1-2 mins rest then add weight until I'm hitting sets of 5-6 reps. I will incorporate repeated effort method into the last set of each assistance exercise every second session.

Back In The Gym

Well, I got my training underway today. This week wont be quite like the week I layed out in yesterday's post due to the fact that I'm taking a break from squats and deads for the week.

Press: 60 x 3 x 5. Medium difficulty.

Leg Press: 10 plates x 15, 8 plates x 2 x 15. I'll build reps up until I get to 20 then add a plate.

Dips BW: 5 x 10. I was better at these than what I thought. Man, these gave me a hell of an upper body pump.

Rope Tricep Pushdowns (RTCPDs): "42" (whatever that means) x 3 x 10.

Think I'm bigger already : /

On another note, I like the fact that I've turned what was a 3 day routine into a 4 day routine. It means that I can add an assistance exercise or two in, my sessions are still shorter, and I can hit them with more vigour. I will probably also add a 5th day of training in there when I go back to squatting 2 x a week. Considering almost everything I have read recently reccommends training light instead of not training at all (in order to accelarate recovery) ,this 5th day will be a light day.

For example:

Sunday: Press, Bench, assistance
Monday: Squat, assisatnce
Tuesday: Light Squat, light press/bench (calves and abs maybe too)
Wednesday: Press, Bench, assistance
Thursday: Squat, Deadlift, assistance

My Plan

It's a little bizzare looking back on my weight training over the last year; it's been so haphazard. This is obviously due to some decision I made regarding weightloss and playing soccer so that's fine - no regrets. Sort of anyway.

Now is the time to focus my efforts into getting bigger and stronger and over the next year I except to be making some great gains. Considering where I am at at the moment, this is what my training will look like for the next few weeks:

Sunday
Press, Bench, BW dips, Tricep Pushdowns (TCPDs)

Monday
Squat, Leg Press, DB Rows, BW Chins, Curls

Wednesday
Press, Bench, Weighted Dips

Thursday
Squat, DL, Weighted Chins, Shrugs

Basically I will be prioritsing press for a cycle. I'm going to start with 3 x 5 and then when progression runs out, switch to a TM setup and progress the intensity day reps all the was down, week by week, until I find my 1RM. The bench will be done at something like 3 x 5 at 75% of my 1RM after press. After the press cycle I will probably prioritise bench for a cycle before finding a compromise.

I've got squats in the program now but I wont really be doing these for probably 2 weeks as I rehab my hip. Until that time I will conventional deficit deadlift on Monday. When I get to squats I will do the same programming as my press.

I'm going to run my deadlift on a linear progression too until I find a new 1RM.

Can't wait to get into it and put some mass on my frame.

My First Powerlifting Meet

Intro

So, yesterday was my first powerlifting meet. I was heaps excited the night before and knew I would have a little trouble sleeping. I was in bed by about 1am and then woke up at about 7am then went back to sleep, woke back up, went back to sleep...etc. Finally got up at about 830am but wasn't feeling that tired.

I picked my mates up from the gym; Joe, Chris and Edwin. Edwin wasn't competing, he was just taking some footage.

We got to the gym where the meet was held at about 1130am for weigh in. I wasn't sure if I would be just over or just under the 83kg class....turned out I was just under; 82.15kg.

My goal for the day was to hit a 500kg total for the weight of the three lifts combined.

Squat

The event started with the squats so all the competitors went to warm up. The warm up section was just the regular gym area of the facility. The squat power rack there ws shit though. The uprights were too close together so you would scrape your hands when you racked the bar and there were these bizare metal plate type things on the floor which prevented me from getting my feet positioining right. It was also a challenge for me in terms of timing my warm ups because I was never really sure how long it would be until I would be lifting. With more experience I could of judged this better.

I eventually went out to the platform for my first attempt at 170. I knew this was going to be easy and it was. Even though it was my first meet and I was a little nervous, once that weight was on my back, it seemed there was nothing else around me. And I don't think this focus was due to any heightened sense of adrenaline due to the competition (I simply wasn't that pumped up), it's just how I lift every rep every time I'm in the gym. The meet was no different. There wass a slight bit of controversy though, after the lift I had a guy (who was taking photos of everyone at the meet and giving them generic cues during the lifts) came up to me after the attempt and said, "Good squat but you have to have your thumbs around the bar". I shrugged this statement off really, because I believed he didn't know what he was talking about and continued on my way.

Second attempt was 180. Smashed this one too. The plan was never to push myself hard in the squat though because of my recent hip tendonitis. I'm on the road to recovery. Again though, the same guy was back with the thumb comments, this time he was a little more forward with his recommendations. I could see this was developing into a problem  but I honestly thought, "these guys don;t know what they are talking about" and just continued on my way.

For my third attempt, I was considering 190 or 185. I ended up going conservatively with 185 because I didn't see much point in pushing myself at this stage. Coming off a lay off and no PR in sight, I was never going to win the competition, I just wanted the experience. So, out I went onto the platfoorm and gripped the bar, as I do, thumbless. I unrack the bar and the judge says to me, "You have to grip the bar with your thumbs"
I reply, "I can't". I literally couldn't with the grip I had. Biomechanically impossible.
"Then rack the bar", he says. So I rack the bar and get ready to start over, not really knowing what I'm going to do. The judge says to me again, "You can have a thumbs over grip but they have to wrap around the bar"
By this stage, I'm still totally convinced they don't know what they are talking about; lots of people squat with a thumbless grip and the whole point is that the thumbs stay out of the way so you can get better bar placement and shoulder position etc. Just before I unrack the bar for a second time I reply to the judge, "I've been holding the bar like this for 2 years, I'm not going to change my squat form now". He didn't reply to that. At this stage, I was well and trully over the politics of the situation and just decided, in that moment, that I was going to squat the way I wanted, all the same expecting the judge to fail the lift. So I unracked it, easily squatted the weight, but didn't wait for the judge to give me the "rack" command before racking the bar. I failed the lift.

Afterwards I had officials telling me I had to wrap my thumbs around the bar. I replied that I would have to see that in the rule book myself before I believed it. They assured me it was, however, I still didn't buy it. However, the incident was great ammunitiuon for humpurous jokes by the boys all day long. "I'll be banned from the federation for disrespecting the officials" we all quipped. It was a great old laugh. Needless to say, I couldn't of cared less about their decision.

As soon as I got home, I was on the IPF (Intenational Powerlifing Federation) websited to check their official technical rules document. The rules stipulate that fingers must wrap the bar, not thumbs. Benchpress rules however, stipkulate fingers and thumbs must grip the bar. I was right. Morale of the story; don't trust authority and people that claim they know what they are talking about, usually don't.

Bench

First attempt 102.5 x 1. Got it. Second attempt 107.5 failed. Got close to lock out but couldn't get it. I easily got this in the gym a week or so ago but in the comp I realised I was working under fatigue. By this stage it was about 2pm and we had already been there for 2 and a half hours. Lifts are extremmely spaced out and there is a great deal of waiting around involved. This coupled with heavy lifts is extremely tiresome. I literally could have layed down and fallen asleep at this stage. I didn't bother with a 3rd attempt bench. Was back was cramping up and it wasn't really feasible that I would get 107.5. My bech was so far behind the competition. 120-180kg benches were the order of the day. In my weight class, the good benchers were hitting 130.

Deadlift

I was most excited about the deadlift because I knew I could get a PR. 1st attempt 195, easy. Second attempt 205, pretty easy. 3rd attempt 210 and got it pretty easy too really, considering I really jerked the bar off the floor. This was a 10kg PR which was great considering I've only been deadlifting for 6 weeks, I think, after months out through the soccer season. I was glad it was all over though.

Summary

I had a great time hanging out with the boys from the gym but overall the experience wasn't as fun as I thought it would be. The waiting between attempts is a bit ridiculous. I waited about 30 minutes between squat attempts which isn't fun and also not optimal for performance. I mean, realistically, unless you want to make some sort of living out of competition, I don't see much of a point in it. With that said, I'm sure I will enter another down the track. A good experience nonethe less.

Here's the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TphbFzbyneg&list=UUvzsj4BPiX2zewq6o_LPdtw&index=1&feature=plcp

180 my old friend, I've come to squat you once again.

Squat: 60, 80, 100, 120, 140, 150, 160, 170, 180 x 1. Went in the gym to test myself somewhat on the squat before the meet so I could have a better idea of what to go for and see how my hip would hold up. 170 was pretty straight forward so I though this would be a good time to hit 180 and get some confidence back. 180 went up pretty well which was also encouraging. Needs slid forward on the 170 rep, it seems, but everything else looked pretty solid. Looking forward to properly rehabing my squat after the meet. Hip is a little sore now though.

Here's the vid http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jzuRbaIJig&feature=youtu.be

Press: 60 x 3 x 3

Curls and Arnold DB Presses.

Preperation

Bench: 100 x 1, 102.5 x 1, 105 x 1, 107.5 x 1 (all paused). Had a bit left in the tank after the 107.5. Will probably go for a 110 at the meet for my final attempt.

DL: 190 x 5. 5th rep was hard. This was pretty much a 5RM.

Squat: 100 x 5, 120 x 2, 140 x 1, 100 x 5. The 140 hurt my hips slightly. The 120 didn't hurt at all which is encouraging because last time it did cause a little pain.

Shrugs: 185 x 4 x 5.

Good times really.

Pressn Shoulders - Pressn Legs

Press: 60 x 5, 62.5 x 3, 65 x 3, 60 x 4. All these reps were  couple shy of failure. Thought I would give the bench a rest today before hitting it again Thursday than one last time Sunday before the meet.

Squat: 60 x 5, 80 x 2 x 5, 100 x 3, 120 x 2. Top set caused some hip pain unfortunately : (

Leg Press: 12 plates x multiple sets of 5 followed by final set of 15

Rows: 38kg x multiple 5s

Curls

Deadlift Volume

Bench: 92.5 x 5, 95 x 4, 97.5 x 3, 100 x 2, 102.5 x 1. All first reps of sets were paused. Top set also paused. Not too hard but a good challenge.

Deadlift (conventional off 10cm mats): 170kg x 5 x 3. Solid effort. By the 5th set I was pretty glad it was over. So that's about 15 reps at 85% of my 1RM which is right in the middle of Prilepin's chart.

Chins/Pulls: 21.25kg x 6 x 3. I'm just running a linear periodization on these. Up weight while slowly decreasing volume.

Traps are still sore from last Thursday!

In search Of Bane: Trap Explosion

Bench: 90 x 5, 92.5 x 4, 95 x 3, 97.5 x 2, 100 x 1. The 100kg went up pretty easily, especially considering I had done all these reps prior. Could be a good sign but we will have to wait and see. I wont run the typical wave cycle now seems I'm trying to peak for the meet. So instead of taking 2 steps back on Sunday, I'll just progress to a 102.5 top set. Then have just the Sunday session on the week of the meet before going light.

DL: 185 x 5. 5th rep was a little slow but it was never in doubt. This was a very rewarding set. I'll make another 5kg jump next week and hopefully hit 5 again. Next week's session will be my last deadlifting session before the meet.

Barbell shrugs (Power Shrugs): 180 x 4 x 5. Short rest. My God, my traps still feel like they are going to explode. And this is 4hours after I worked them. After hearing Rippetoe, Starr and Pavel champion this exercise, I just could ignore them no longer. Hopefully in the next few weeks, I can really pack some mass on my traps. I will move them to Sundays now though.

Squat: 60 x 3 x 5, 80 x 2 x 5. No pain at all.
Curls

Hips Feeling Better

Bench: 87.5 x 5, 90 x 4, 92.5 x 3, 95 x 2, 97.5 x 1. Many of these were paused.

Kirk's Shrugs: 60 x 5 x 5. Short rest.

Squats: empty bar then 60kg x heaps of reps. Hips feeling a lot better. Almost no pain. Before 60kg warm up sets would cause considerable pain.

Rows: worked up tp 40 x 5. Short rest.

Throw An Extra Couple Of Light Days In Your Week

It's hard not to be inspired by Jamie Lewis of chaosandpain.blogspot.com. As well as being extremely knowledgeble, he is hilarious. His training philosophy and motivational qualities are right up there with Jim Steel and Pavel for mine. I've just been  going through his old posts as well as reading more Pavel and it seems doing the big lifts, 4 or 5 times a week, has been a pretty common occurence for lifters throughout history. By the same token, some of the greats have only squatted 1x a week too so it goes both ways.

But I can't help but feel lifting 5 x a week is a good idea. Pavel talks about the greats conceiving weights as practice. Obviously you can't approach every session with the same intensity but if you cycle your loads I think there is good reason to believe that extra sessions are at least going to help neurological efficiency as well as promote recovery.

Jim Steel has also talked about "squattin everyday" and how it kept him feeling fresh. I always felt best squatting 3 x a week and it was when I went to 1 x a week squatting that I started feeling sore and tight all the time.

No doubt you could make strength gains by training only 30mins 3 x or even 2 x a week. But is this the most optimal way to train? Especially considering all the other hours of the week are spent sitting around doing nothing? I know this wroks for plent of people but surely that extra frequency and volume has benifits.

There's a lot more to strength training than just stressing the muscle so it can grow stronger. Train more often, improve technique, become more efficient and recover better. Some weeks, 3 days in the gym might feel like plenty, but other weeks, I just wanna get in there and do a little something everyday I can.

BW chins, pulls and dips

Light incline DB: 20kg x 4 x 5

Power Cleans: 60kg x 10 reps total

Squat Rehab: Bar x 3 x 10, 60kg x 1 x 10

Cuff work

Calf work

Hectic Ab routine

...In The Absence Of Squats

Bench: 85 x 5, 87.5 x 4, 90 x 3, 92.5 x 2, 95 x 1. I was gonna take a deload week but the first couple of sessions are pretty easy for this wave cycle so I thought, 3 weeks out from the meet, I may as well just start it as the program has you hitting a new PR at the end of week 3, so let's see how it goes!

Press: Bunch of sets 3-5 reps, short rest.

Deficit DL off 10cm Mats: 140 x 4 x 3, 160 x 2 x 3. The extra range of motion required definitely makes the lift harder but all in all, the session wasn't anything too hectic, hence adding an extra 20kg for the last 2 sets. These were all conventional stance (which I haven't pulled infor a while and dam it hits the lower back). I basically planned on hitting somewhere between 15-20 reps.

Chins, Pullups, Hammer grips: 20kg: 20 reps total.

Really fun session.