My Quest for 405 [Forum Archive]

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My Quest for 405

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Posted by: Stewart14

Nov 15

Squats (RI=90 sec)
Warmups
295 x 4
295 x 4
295 x 4
295 x 4
295 x 4

Glute-Ham Raises (RI=90 sec)
BW+35 x 4
BW+35 x 4
BW+35 x 4
BW+35 x 4
BW+35 x 4

Trap Bar Shrugs
370 x 4
370 x 4
370 x 4
370 x 4
370 x 4
Supersetted with:
Decline Crunches (Weight behind head)
BW+40 x 4
BW+40 x 4
BW+40 x 4
BW+40 x 4
BW+40 x 4
*No rest during the superset

Posted by: Stewart14

Nov 16

Dips (RI=90 sec)
Warm ups
BW+140 x 4
BW+140 x 4
BW+140 x 4
BW+140 x 4
BW+140 x 4

Chest Supported Rows (RI=90 sec)
180 x 4
180 x 4
180 x 4
180 x 4
180 x 4

Hammer Curls (RI=60 sec)
60s x 4
60s x 4
60s x 4
60s x 4
60s x 4

Posted by: katt

Yeah, I can do chins better,,, but I need the width in my lat area, so I've been just concentrating on the pull-ups.. any advise you can give me on that?

Posted by: yellowmoomba

You are getting closer to dipping with 4 plates

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by katt

Yeah, I can do chins better,,, but I need the width in my lat area, so I've been just concentrating on the pull-ups.. any advise you can give me on that?

I am not positive about this, but I believe that you can get the same lat development from doing both chins or pullups, with the chins allowing you to use more weight, hence more potential for overall growth.

I think that you might get some minor differences in muscles used between the two grips, mostly in the elbow muscles and the small stabilizer muscles of the shoulders, where pullups will hit your rear delt area more as well as the muscles on the sides of your elbows, plus the biceps, whereas the chins will nail the biceps, but also allow you a deeper stretch of the lats at the bottom position.

Of course, you are better off asking someone who knows better, but I do the chins exclusively for the most part because I get a pain in the side of my forearm/elbow from pullups, plus I like using more weight on the chins.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

You are getting closer to dipping with 4 plates

yep, well on my way, let's hope my elbows hold up for that

Posted by: Stewart14

Nov 18

Warmups

DB Shoulder Press (RI=90)
85s x 4
85s x 4
85s x 4
85s x 4
85s x 4

Chinups (RI=90)
BW+65 x 4
BW+65 x 4
BW+65 x 4
BW+65 x 4
BW+65 x 4

Close Grip 2 Board Press (RI=60)
280 x 4
280 x 4
280 x 4
280 x 4
280 x 4

Posted by: Stewart14

Nov 20

Decided to switch up to more of a rep progression starting today. I will take my first 5x5 weight from this cycle, then proceed to do 4x6 and then 3x8 with that same weight, then bump up the weights 6% and start over. I want to improve my work capacity, and 3 rep sets really don't do squat for that, plus the weights are jumping up too high too quickly, so this will slow that down a bit.

Warmups

Squats (RI=90 sec)
275 x 6
275 x 6
275 x 6
275 x 6

Glute Ham Raises (RI=90 sec)
BW+20 x 6
BW+20 x 6
BW+20 x 6
BW+20 x 6

Superset (no rest)
Decline Crunches
BW+35 x 6
BW+35 x 6
BW+35 x 6
BW+35 x 6

Trap Bar Shrugs
340 x 6
340 x 6
340 x 6
340 x 6

Posted by: DOMS

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

plus the weights are jumping up too high too quickly, so this will slow that down a bit.

I feel your pain, Stewart. Wait...no I don't. You suck.

Solid workout!

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by DOMS

I feel your pain, Stewart. Wait...no I don't. You suck.

Solid workout!

some day at the rate our workouts have been going, I will be saying you are the one that sucks....the mind just wants to keep at it, but the body is having second thoughts--I was looking at the weights for my original plan today, and I just thought to myself, no f'n way, hence the adjusted plan.

Posted by: Sweet_Dell

Nice workouts Stewart!! Simple but very effective, Good job!

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Looks good so far................

Are you keeping all RIs at 90 secs ?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sweet_Dell

Nice workouts Stewart!! Simple but very effective, Good job!

Thanks! Yeah, they are elegant in their simplicity

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

Looks good so far................

Are you keeping all RIs at 90 secs ?

yeah, the arm exercises I am doing 60 seconds, and no rest in the shrug/crunch thingie, but other than that, they are all 90 sec.

Should be fun with the switchup, I can't remember the last time I did 3 eight rep sets for an exercise

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Quote:

3 eight rep sets for an exercise

Just do it

Posted by: Triple Threat

Another change? I don't believe it.

I like 4x6 when I need a break from singles and triples.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

Another change? I don't believe it.

I like 4x6 when I need a break from singles and triples.

you should talk mister......

Posted by: Triple Threat

I know. I've been consistently inconsistent lately. Workouts are OK, just not focused on any one thing.

Posted by: Stewart14

11/21

Warmups

Dips (RI=90 sec)
BW+120 x 6
BW+120 x 6
BW+120 x 6
BW+120 x 6

Chest Supported Rows (RI=90 sec)
165 x 6
165 x 6
165 x 6
165 x 6

Hammer Curls (RI=60 sec)
55 x 6
55 x 6
55 x 6
55 x 6

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Only BW +120 ?? Let's see BW +180!!

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

Only BW +120 ?? Let's see BW +180!!

Let's see you do BW+120 tough guy

Remember, I got the bad elbows, gotta be smart or else

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Let's see you do BW+120 tough guy

Remember, I got the bad elbows, gotta be smart or else

Been there (BW +135 actually)

I hear ya on the injury front..............

Just trying to give you some motivation

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

Been there (BW +135 actually)

I hear ya on the injury front..............

Just trying to give you some motivation

oh you know me, I would do it if I knew I wouldn't hurt myself doing it, I mean, I am practically positive I could do it for at least a rep now, but at what cost, and would it be worth it? Probably not, if I can work up to it, fine, but I am not jumping that much on dips, too much can go wrong....

Posted by: Stewart14

Nov 24

Feeling a bit under the weather since Thanksgiving night, but I had to get back at it a bit, so I did a little session today consisting of:

Full Squats (ATG)
135 x 5
155 x 5
185 x 5
215 x 5
247.5 x 5

Bench Press
140 x 5
175 x 5
210 x 5
245 x 5
280 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 5
105 x 5
125 x 5
145 x 5
167.5 x 5

Not very taxing, but broke a nice sweat since I was wearing long pants and a heavy turtleneck. I have a working theory that it is beneficial to sweat when you have a cold, in essence, drink a TON of water and sweat a lot, and you can help to "sweat out the cold". That is my theory, but I have always stuck to it, results are inconclusive, but definitely the cold has never gotten worse, so

Posted by: Stewart14

Nov. 28

Had a workout on the 26th, highlights were deadlifts of 355x5 and the "discovery" of trap bar overhead presses.

Today's workout:

Full Squats ATG
135 x 5
155 x 5
185 x 5
215 x 5
255 x 3
185 x 8

Bench Press
140 x 5
175 x 5
210 x 5
245 x 5
287.5 x 3
210 x 8

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 5
105 x 5
125 x 5
145 x 5
170 x 3
125 x 8

Posted by: AKIRA

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Nov. 28

Had a workout on the 26th, highlights were deadlifts of 355x5 and the "discovery" of trap bar overhead presses.

Today's workout:

Full Squats ATG
135 x 5
155 x 5
185 x 5
215 x 5
255 x 3
185 x 8

Bench Press
140 x 5
175 x 5
210 x 5
245 x 5
287.5 x 3
210 x 8

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 5
105 x 5
125 x 5
145 x 5
170 x 3
125 x 8

Good volume scheme, but let me ask you, do you get winded after doing that much? I mean, I know you can lift heavier, but I was just curious cuz its a full body regime and youve got 6 or so sets.

In other words, do you walk out of the workout feeling like you worked out..?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by AKIRA

well.......see, this is following a type of Bill Starr 5x5 linear scheme. They have you put your best 5 rep attempt out at the 4th week, and then you back up by 2.5% for the first 3 weeks, so these workouts aren't all out efforts. So no, I don't feel too bad afterwards, I mean it is still somewhat tiring with all the sets, but I don't feel destroyed after or anything like that.

I did this for the past couple of days cause I have been fighting a cold and wanted to do something, but with less volume, or at least less higher intensity volume. I might as well just keep riding it out and see if I can bust past my best 5 rep sets on these exercises.

I will tell you that for me, I don't really feel like I have any more energy to do any accessory work that the program says you can do after this stuff, screw that, this is enough for me, I figure without all the extra crap, I would have more of a chance to improve the core lifts.

the squats are really tough when you actually go all the way down and hang out in the hole for a second or so, a totally different beast than what I had been doing, hence the lower weights, I mean I was squatting over 300 for 5 rep sets powerlifting style, so this was an adjustment.

Posted by: Stewart14

Nov 30

Still got this damn cold, my son still does too

Full Squats ATG
135 x 5
157.5 x 5
190 x 5
225 x 5
255 x 5

Bench Press
145 x 5
185 x 5
215 x 5
252.5 x 5
287.5 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 5
107.5 x 5
127.5 x 5
150 x 5
170 x 5

Posted by: yellowmoomba

What are you shooting for in week 4?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

What are you shooting for in week 4?

ATG Squat 267.5 x 5
Bench Press 302.5 x 5
Chest Supported Rows 180 x 5 (I made these weights very conservative, since I wanted to really focus on the form on these, instead of just slinging the weights up, I wanted to really feel the contraction in my back, so I started light)
Trap bar overhead press 160 x 5
Deadlifts 380 x 5
Pullups BW+32.5 x 5 (remember I suck at pullups, much better at chins)

I'm not really doing a weekly program, I am doing one on one off, and that allows me built in extra days off whenever I need them, since the program calls for 2 off days after the third workout day. So if I am busy on a day I was gonna workout, I can just skip it, take the 2 days off and then carry on, I won't really lose any days that way. I doubt I would ever need more than 2 days off in a row for anything other than an emergency.

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Is that 5 sets of 5 with that weight ?

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Have you seen this spreadsheet?

http://www.geocities.com/elitemadcow...diate_v0.3.zip

Posted by: AKIRA

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Trap bar OH Press? How do you get it down ?

That sounds awesome. I was thinking of doing an Alernating Periodization as well. 1 week all out, next week moderate.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

Have you seen this spreadsheet?

http://www.geocities.com/elitemadcow...diate_v0.3.zip

Yeah, that's what I've been using for my numbers.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

Is that 5 sets of 5 with that weight ?

no, that's the top set of 5 after ramping up for the first 4 sets. It is still tough cause you are still doing 4 sets of varying weights before hand, and by set 3, it is more than warmup weights.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by AKIRA

Trap bar OH Press? How do you get it down ?

That sounds awesome. I was thinking of doing an Alernating Periodization as well. 1 week all out, next week moderate.

I wrote a big long description of what I did on one of the posts that got deleted. I basically set the bar up on safety stands, then I put a sheetrock spackel bucket in the middle, crawl under the bar, get inside of it, sit on the bucket and then press, so it starts from the bottom position, there is no lowering phase on the first rep.

Posted by: AKIRA

Ohhh, maybe Ive seen someone doing something like that in the gym, but not with a trap bar.

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 2

Full Squats ATG
135 x 5
157.5 x 5
190 x 5
190 x 5

Trap Bar Overhead Presses
100 x 5
115 x 5
132.5 x 5
152.5 x 5

Deadlifts
225 x 5
275 x 5
317.5 x 5
365 x 5

Pullups
3 sets of 8

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 4

Full Squats ATG
135 x 5
157.5 x 5
190 x 5
225 x 5
260 x 3
190 x 8

Bench Press
145 x 5
185 x 5
215 x 5
252.5 x 5
295 x 3
215 x 8

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 5
110 x 5
130 x 5
150 x 5
175 x 3
130 x 8

Posted by: katt

So you're squatting twice a week?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by katt

So you're squatting twice a week?

Actually right now I am squatting every other day

but it isn't so bad....yet....cause the first day and the third day are practically identical except for the set of 3 reps which is about 2.5% higher than the heaviest set of 5 on the first day. Still with me? and the middle day is a back off day, so the weights are really way sub maximal.

I am only on my second week, so I haven't yet reached my predetermined top set of 5 which you try to get on the 4th week of the program, so right now it's pretty easy, but I expect things to get a bit more difficult starting with week 3.

Posted by: katt

Even with the lower weight day in the middle, that would really beat me up..

Then again,, maybe I should try it...

I think I may have missed it earlier, but is this an 8 week program?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by katt

Even with the lower weight day in the middle, that would really beat me up..

Then again,, maybe I should try it...

I think I may have missed it earlier, but is this an 8 week program?

It is however many weeks long until it stops working. It is linear, so if you stall on a lift, you can "reset" the weight and build up again, I guess theoretically you can do that for a while, obviously at some point you will cease to make progress.

So if you stall at say 315 x 4 and can't get the 5th rep, you can reset back 4 weeks at 2.5% each week and try to go up again.

The real question is will I actually MAKE it through 8 weeks of this program

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Quote:

The real question is will I actually MAKE it through 8 weeks of this program

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

How's Ryan? Are you adjusted ? When's #2 coming?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

How's Ryan? Are you adjusted ? When's #2 coming?

#2???? You should be answering the question first mister, you're up next, I've got some time

It's getting better, but of course, I found my new problem is taking him out now that it's cold outside, such a pain in the ass, and he totally does not like being bundled up in the big coat, hat and gloves, so I am now blessed with nice and cranky car rides anywhere we go. Other than that

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 6

Full Squats ATG
135 x 5
162.5 x 5
195 x 5
225 x 5
260 x 5

Bench Press
147.5 x 5
185 x 5
225 x 5
260 x 5
295 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 5
110 x 5
132.5 x 5
155 x 5
175 x 5

Posted by: katt

Wow, everything went up this time - those chest supported rows really went up!?!.. You'll make it through the eight weeks, I have no doubt.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by katt

Wow, everything went up this time - those chest supported rows really went up!?!.. You'll make it through the eight weeks, I have no doubt.

thanks katt, I hope so!! The bench presses were tough today, almost failed on the last rep, but everything else was relatively easy

I might have to go ahead and add in that extra day of rest I was talking about after the third day.

the rows felt awesome! I used to do sets of 6 with 180 and even 190 on there, but they weren't the cleanest reps around, but today, those 175 reps were flawless, so I guess it is working as it should, at least with the rows anyway

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 7

Cardio Circuit.....

Being I HATE traditional cardio, I wanted to try something else that would be more to my liking and still give my heart a good workout. Not too interested in the fat loss aspect, but more the heart health portion. Don't want to do sprints either, cause my program has me squatting 3xs per week, so I don't think my legs would appreciate that too much

BW squats x 10
pushups x 10
light pulldowns x 10
dips x 10
crunches x 10
BW rows x 10

rest 30 sec

total of 4 rounds (gotta build this up a bit, starting slowly)

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 8

Full Squats ATG
135 x 5
162.5 x 5
195 x 5
195 x 5

Trap Bar OVerhead Press
100 x 5
120 x 5
140 x 5
155 x 5

Deadlifts
235 x 5
280 x 5
325 x 5
372.5 x 5

Mixed Grip Pullups
3 sets of 8

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Is the word "CARDIO" in your journal ??

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 10

Full Squats ATG
135 x 5
165 x 5
195 x 5
227.5 x 5
267.5 x 5
195 x 8

Bench Press
147.5 x 5
185 x 5
225 x 5
260 x 5
302.5 x 3
225 x 8

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 5
110 x 5
132.5 x 5
155 x 5
180 x 3
132.5 x 8

Posted by: Triple Threat

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

Is the word "CARDIO" in your journal ??

Why yes, it does seem that word has made its way in here.

I guess chasing around after the little one isn't enough --- yet.

I haven't checked in lately. Are you doing some form of 5x5 routine?

Posted by: Stewart14

dec 12

Full Squats ATG
135 x 5
167.5 x 5
200 x 5
230 x 5
267.5 x 5

Bench Press
150 x 5
190 x 5
230 x 5
265 x 5
302.5 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 5
115 x 5
135 x 5
157.5 x 5
180 x 5

Benches were tough, squats and rows weren't bad. Might be time to add the extra rest day now, so I don't lose my bench progression, the next bench day is above my 5RM.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

Why yes, it does seem that word has made its way in here.

I guess chasing around after the little one isn't enough --- yet.

I haven't checked in lately. Are you doing some form of 5x5 routine?

I think that day was a fluke...hehehe. The days I don't lift, I am basically sleeping whenever the little one is, and sometimes when he isn't

I am doing that madcow intermediate 5x5 routine. I have actually made it to week 4, can you believe it???

Posted by: Triple Threat

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

I am doing that madcow intermediate 5x5 routine. I have actually made it to week 4, can you believe it???

It is a bit of a surprise given your previous track record, but I've been following along and the workouts are consistent.

So does this mean you've changed your opinion of 5x5?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

It is a bit of a surprise given your previous track record, but I've been following along and the workouts are consistent.

So does this mean you've changed your opinion of 5x5?

well, my opinion was based on the other 5x5 program, the advanced one. That one still sucks my ass, I just plugged my numbers into the spreadsheet for fun, and yeah week 3 was probably doable, but week 4 made me want to vomit with the numbers it came up with.

at least this particular program really only has one heavy set, and I can actually foresee in the future going to something like 2 warmup sets and then right to the heavy set and try to keep the progression that way, cutting out the intermediate sets in the middle. So instead of say:
135 x 5
185 x 5
225 x 5
275 x 5
315 x 5

I might try:
135 x 8
225 x 5
275 x 1
315 x 5

almost HIT like in a way, but I;m gonna play it by ear.

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 14

Full Squats ATG
135 x 5
167.5 x 5
200 x 5
200 x 5

Trap Bar Overhead Press
100 x 5
120 x 5
140 x 5
160 x 5

Deadlifts
237.5 x 5
285 x 5
335 x 5
380 x 5
*Double overhand grip except for last set.
Man I love deads now. I am getting so good at them, my form is definitely improving, I feel hardly any discomfort in my lower back anymore, and this is with squatting every other day for the past 3 weeks. My legs are totally taking the brunt of the lift now, and I know for a fact, cause my hamstrings are like chronically sore now, so happy deadlifting

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 17

Felt run down lately, so I am resetting my weights back a bit and building back up. More volume this time and less of the intense heavier sets. Also gonna drop deadlifts on the middle workout, and replace them with clean grip high pulls for this cycle, need a break on the back, even though I love doing them, the extra volume on the squats I plan on, plus deadlifts would be no good.

Squats
Warmups
205 x 5
205 x 5
205 x 5
205 x 5
205 x 5

Bench Press
145 x 5
165 x 5
195 x 5
225 x 5
245 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 5
100 x 5
115 x 5
130 x 5
145 x 5

Posted by: Burner02

Hey stew! looks like things are going well in here for ya!
How's the family?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burner02

Hey stew! looks like things are going well in here for ya!
How's the family?

Hey Buddy! Been a while huh? Been keeping busy at home with the baby, man, the kid is driving me nuts!! busy time for us, trying to sell our house and move to a better school district for the little one, the market sucks so bad right now, but I am sure I don't have to tell you about that.

how's things with you?

Posted by: Burner02

sounds likethings are ok, overall with ya!
me...eh...been better. Try not to dwell on it...it WILL pick up.
Well, as I've told clients, you may take a hit on your house, but so is the owner of the house you are buying...so it kinda equals out.

Posted by: yellowmoomba

What happened to the cardio in here ??

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

What happened to the cardio in here ??

What's cardio?

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 19

Squats
Warmups
185 x 5
185 x 5
185 x 5
185 x 5
185 x 5

Clean grip high pulls
137.5 x 5
137.5 x 5
137.5 x 5
137.5 x 5
137.5 x 5

Trap bar overhead press
122.5 x 5
122.5 x 5
122.5 x 5
122.5 x 5
122.5 x 5

Chinups
BW x 5
BW x 5
BW x 5
BW x 5
BW x 5

It's nice to reset and do lighter weights for a couple of weeks, takes a load off the stress of all that heavy stuff for a while.

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

What's cardio?

I'm not sure. I don't do much either

Posted by: Double D

Wheres this bench at now big boy?

And hows the trainers job coming along?

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 21

Squats
145 x 5
175 x 5
205 x 5
225 x 5
245 x 5

Bench Press
225 x 5
225 x 5
225 x 5
225 x 5
225 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
140 x 5
140 x 5
140 x 5
140 x 5
140 x 5

Ridiculously simple workout....the calm before the storm if you will.....

Posted by: Burner02

...was wondering...weights looked...light...for you...

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burner02

...was wondering...weights looked...light...for you...

yeah, it's a periodized 5x5 program, so the first couple of weeks aren't that challenging, but weeks 3 and 4 are gonna be a major bitch. I sometimes question the validity of going so light on these first weeks, which actually works out to 80% of my max set of 5 and 5x5 sets, but it still just seems so light....225 for working sets on the bench? Shit, I haven't done that in like 10 years

.

But in week 4 when I am scheduled for a 5x5 with 295, THAT will be a challenge

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Double D

Wheres this bench at now big boy?

And hows the trainers job coming along?

Bench is suffering buddy...bench is suffering....I think it's a combination of losing some weight and focusing on these 5x5 full body workouts for a while, where the other lifts have progressed at the expense of my bench. Oh well, I guess it's a good thing since I will be more balanced in the end...hopefully.

The trainers job is on hold for a while. Anyone who is a stay at home parent can attest to the fact that taking care of a one year old all day and then having energy to work at night is an almost impossible task. Luckily at the moment, we are OK financially for me to not have to work at night, but I know that if need be, I can walk into a gym and get something, cause I did that over the summer and was offered jobs in 3 gyms, and I only interviewed at maybe 4 total, so I am confident I can land something in an emergency.

Hopefully I will still keep up the passion for training and when the kiddies go to school, maybe I can look into doing something then since I won't be so drained from taking care of them all day.

Posted by: Burner02

...and THAT is where he does his cardio...chasing kids all day.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burner02

...and THAT is where he does his cardio...chasing kids all day.

Quoted for truth

Posted by: Double D

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Staying at home with the kids can be a daunting task. Best of luck with everything. Be aware that building a buisness from a gym perspective can take a bit, the money isnt there in the begining. Thank god I am done with the intial phase of trying to add clients. You would be a good trainer, stay strong buddy.

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 23

Squats
Warmups
255 x 5
255 x 5
255 x 5
255 x 5
255 x 5

Bench Press
155 x 5
185 x 5
215 x 5
245 x 5
275 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 5
110 x 5
130 x 5
145 x 5
165 x 5

Posted by: Triple Threat

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burner02

...and THAT is where he does his cardio...chasing kids all day.

Which is why he needs a second one.

To build up endurance.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

Which is why he needs a second one.

To build up endurance.

Posted by: Burner02

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

Which is why he needs a second one.

To build up endurance.

quardruplets!

Posted by: Burner02

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Dec 23

Squats
Warmups
255 x 5
255 x 5
255 x 5
255 x 5
255 x 5

Bench Press
155 x 5
185 x 5
215 x 5
245 x 5
275 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 5
110 x 5
130 x 5
145 x 5
165 x 5

Things are looking up in here, mi amigo!
May you and yoru family have a happy and safe Christmas!

btw...unless your link didn't update...your blog...hasn't been used...in a while...thought I'd pop in...get some nuggets of wisdom from ya...and hadn't seen a recent entry...yer slackin, son!

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 25

High Pulls
155 x 5
155 x 5
155 x 5
155 x 5
155 x 5

Trap Bar Overhead Press
140 x 5
140 x 5
140 x 5
140 x 5
140 x 5

Chinups
BW+15 x 5
BW+15 x 5
BW+15 x 5
BW+15 x 5
BW+15 x 5

Posted by: JerseyDevil

Merry Christmas Stew! How's the big guy?

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 27

Squats
135 x 8
225 x 5
275 x 5

Bench Press
250 x 5
250 x 5
250 x 5
250 x 5
250 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
150 x 5
150 x 5
150 x 5
150 x 5
150 x 5

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by JerseyDevil

Merry Christmas Stew! How's the big guy?

A little late, but Merry Christmas to you and your family too JD....

Everyone is doing good here, a bit sick, but otherwise all A O K.

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 29

Squats
Warmups
282.5 x 5
282.5 x 5
282.5 x 5
282.5 x 5
282.5 x 5

Bench Press
135 x 10
225 x 5
300 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
90 x 10
140 x 5
180 x 5

Posted by: yellowmoomba

You've been on the 5 sets of 5 for a while.........Anything new lined up for 2008?

Posted by: Stewart14

Dec 31

High Pulls
Warmups
175 x 5
175 x 5
175 x 5
175 x 5
175 x 5

Trap Bar Overhead Press
150 x 5
150 x 5
150 x 5
150 x 5
150 x 5

Chinups
BW+40 x 5
BW+40 x 5
BW+40 x 5
BW+40 x 5
BW+40 x 5

Posted by: katt

Happy New Year Stewart! Yeah, got any change-ups coming ??

Posted by: Stewart14

Happy New Year Katt and to everyone else too

To answer you and YM's question, I am probably going to stick with the 5x5 scheme for a while and fool around with periodization stuff using the 5x5. Basically instead of pounding the heavy stuff every workout, I am gonna build up to a high 5x5 workout, then drop back down and work my way back up to either 5 or 10 pounds more than that last heavy workout. Hopefully it serves to provide me with a little break here and there, and ultimately will lead to bigger gains, even though it may take longer to get there. it's more of a long range type of thinking for now anyway

i am finding i am needing more of the less intense stuff these days, and i really look forward to the resets as much as i do looking to break records

Posted by: JerseyDevil

Happy New Years Stewart!

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 2

Lever Squats
Warmups
360 x 5
360 x 5
360 x 5
360 x 5
360 x 5
*Lower back felt like it needed a break, so I switched these in for regular squats for a while.

Bench Press
285 x 5
285 x 5
285 x 5
285 x 5
285 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
170 x 5
170 x 5
170 x 5
170 x 5
170 x 5

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 4

Clean Grip High Pulls
Warmups
180 x 5
180 x 5
180 x 5
180 x 5
180 x 5
*Starting to get tough. Don't have the acceleration of the bar on the later sets

Trap Bar Overhead Press
155 x 5
155 x 5
155 x 5
155 x 5
155 x 5

Chinups
BW+45 x 5
BW+45 x 5
BW+45 x 5
BW+45 x 5
*only 4 sets cause my chinup bar is in my garage which is unheated and it's COLD outside here today.

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 6

Lever Squats
Warmups
370 x 5
370 x 5
370 x 5
370 x 5
370 x 5

Bench Press
290 x 5
290 x 5
290 x 5
290 x 5
290 x 5
*Ugh....that was tough

Chest Supported Rows
175 x 5
175 x 5
175 x 5
175 x 5
175 x 5

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 8

Stiff Leg Deadlifts
Warmups
265 x 5
265 x 5
265 x 5
265 x 5
265 x 5
*Little change here. Wanted a deadlift movement without the stress of floor deads. high pulls are nice, but are doing nothing for me on this program.

Trap Bar Overhead Presses
160 x 5
160 x 5
160 x 5
160 x 5
160 x 5

Chinups
BW+50 x 5
BW+50 x 5
BW+50 x 5
BW+50 x 5
BW+50 x 5

One more workout for each exercise scheme and then the weights reset back a bit. I am looking forward to it, believe me.

Posted by: katt

So you did your 5 sets of chins.... weather must have been tolerable??

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by katt

So you did your 5 sets of chins.... weather must have been tolerable??

haha, yeah, it's like supposed to be close to 60 degrees around here today, so yeah, it was tolerable, and quite pleasant. It's nice to work out outside in January in shorts and a sleeveless shirt

Posted by: AKIRA

290 Bench Press was hard for 5?

I am due for some kind of intensity like within the week.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by AKIRA

290 Bench Press was hard for 5?

I am due for some kind of intensity like within the week.

Well yeah, by the 4th set it was a grind. 5 sets of that shit is a lot. It's easy to do one set of 5 with a heavy weight, but 5 sets with 2 minutes of rest between the sets? it's tough shit.

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 10

Lever Squats
Warmups
380 x 5
380 x 5
380 x 5
380 x 5
380 x 5

Bench Press
295 x 5
295 x 5
295 x 5
295 x 5
295 x 5

Chest Supported Rows
180 x 5
180 x 5
180 x 5
180 x 5
180 x 5

*Last day of these exercises before the weights reset back a bit. Thank God, this workout was torturous.

Posted by: Rubes

295 five times for five sets you are insane.

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Still doing 5 for 5's !!

I'm impressed!

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

Still doing 5 for 5's !!

I'm impressed!

funny you mention that.....

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 12

Finished my planned 5x5 cycle a day early, I was feeling some overuse issues in my elbows and other upper body appendages, so I am canceling the plan for now, and going to a max-ot like legs/push/pull split for a couple of weeks. I think the change might be good anyway and hopefully get me some new strength.

Today will be legs

Leg Day (All RI=2 min)

A. Wide Stance Squats
Warmups
275 x 6
295 x 5
295 x 4
*Brutal. I just have to accept the fact that maybe I just really suck at squats?

B. SLDL
Warmups
275 x 6
275 x 6
275 x 6

C1. Lever Squats
400 x 6
400 x 6

C2. Hypers
BW+105 x 6
BW+105 x 6

D. Calf Raises
400 x 10
400 x 10

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 14

Push Day (All RI=2 min)

A. Bench Press
Warmups
315 x 3 (too heavy)
305 x 4
305 x 4

B. Trap Bar OH Press
170 x 4
170 x 4
170 x 4

C1. Dips
BW+45 x 20
BW+45 x 14

C2. DB Shoulder Press
50 x 15
50 x 12
*Fricken winded from the high reps on these two exercises, God I suck (conditioning wise)

D. Close Grip Floor Press
275 x 4
275 x 4

Posted by: katt

It does suck about the conditioning... which reminds me...I need to step up my cardio..

gj on the workout!

Posted by: Stewart14

yeah, I finished up about an hour ago, and I still feel like my heart rate is still slightly elevated. I take it that isn't too good of a thing??

I truly have gone for a strictly weight mashing approach in my workouts, pretty much forever, so I expect the conditioning stuff to be terrible, I never stick with anything like this long enough to see any effects though.

And I HATE cardio, but maybe if I stick with this high rep stuff that will be enough, at least for the beginning, to get into some kind of cardiovascular shape.

Posted by: DLDave

Stewart, how are your shoulders doing after that last push day? I'd keep an eye on them as that seems to be an awful lot of volume on shoulders for a single day, with the OH Press, DB Shoulder Press, and Dips all directly hitting them, and the 2 bench movements hitting as well. I'm assuming with this new split that you'll only be doing "push" days once per week? If so, that will help ease the concern.

Also, you put "too heavy" next to the 315x3 bench press, but did you finish those 3 reps? If so, and you can safely do them if you fail (spotted or in a power rack), I'd start there again next week and see if you can get to 1 or 2 complete sets.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLDave

Stewart, how are your shoulders doing after that last push day? I'd keep an eye on them as that seems to be an awful lot of volume on shoulders for a single day, with the OH Press, DB Shoulder Press, and Dips all directly hitting them, and the 2 bench movements hitting as well. I'm assuming with this new split that you'll only be doing "push" days once per week? If so, that will help ease the concern.

Also, you put "too heavy" next to the 315x3 bench press, but did you finish those 3 reps? If so, and you can safely do them if you fail (spotted or in a power rack), I'd start there again next week and see if you can get to 1 or 2 complete sets.

Actually, funny you ask. Last night, I had a weird pain in my entire left arm, from my shoulder, to my elbow, to even my wrist. It caused me to sleep like shit last night cause I couldn't get my arm comfortable. The good news is that so far today, it feels fine.

Remember last night I was asking you all those questions? Well, one reason was because of that pain I was experiencing, and thinking that I am and have been overdoing it a bit, especially bench pressing. I know that when I ran a Westside template, I NEVER experienced any kind of pain, except for some pain on the back of the elbows, but I corrected that by not doing any type of overhead tricep extension exercises. It was a once per week plan, but I also think I do better on less volume per workout, more frequency, which westside addresses kind of.

the 315x3 set was finished, I just knew I had no more left to try another rep. They were slow as shit reps though, another reason I am thinking about adding in the speed work, I mean, I know when I ran my westside, 315 for me was a warmup set, now it was like torture. I need to get that strength back.

This workout was a good idea in theory, but obviously, I overdid it, and need to rethink what I am doing.

Posted by: Burner02

did you maybe pinch something when you were pushing up the weight? a nerve or something?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burner02

did you maybe pinch something when you were pushing up the weight? a nerve or something?

I have no idea what happened. I was fine after the workout and for a good 4 hours afterwards too. Then all of a sudden, the pain set in. Strange, since I didn't feel a thing during the exercise. then when I finally woke up this morning, it felt fine again?

Posted by: DLDave

Your statements sound very familiar to the last time I did 5x5 for a period of time. It was just too much volume for me at the weights I was using. So it could be that you're still feeling the burn-out from the 5x5 while you're adjusting to the new splits. Personally, I also find that I need either a deload or a full week off after a couple of continuous months. I didn't read through your whole log to see if you've taken one of these recently.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLDave

Your statements sound very familiar to the last time I did 5x5 for a period of time. It was just too much volume for me at the weights I was using. So it could be that you're still feeling the burn-out from the 5x5 while you're adjusting to the new splits. Personally, I also find that I need either a deload or a full week off after a couple of continuous months. I didn't read through your whole log to see if you've taken one of these recently.

well, to save you from that, no I haven't done a deload or taken much time off if any. I am stubborn like that, but I know that I should know better....the 5x5 was good to me, but I think you are right, ultimately, it is just too much volume when you use decent weights.

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan16

Box Squats
175 x 2 (10 sets)

Speed Deads
295 x 1 (6 sets)

Glute ham raises
BW x 8 (3 sets)

Pulldowns
3 plates x 10 (3 sets)

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 17

Speed Bench
200 x 3 (3 sets) Middle finger on rings
200 x 3 (3 sets) Pinky on rings
200 x 3 (3 sets) Extra wide grip

Incline bench
275 x 5 (3 sets)

Chest Supported Rows
160 x 5 (5 sets)

*Stopped here due to massive headache

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 19

Rack Deadlifts (Mid shin)
135 x 5
225 x 5
315 x 3
365 x 1
405 x 1
455 x 1
475 x 1 PR
425 x 1
425 x 1

Hypers
BW+50 x 8
BW+50 x 8
BW+50 x 8

Decline Crunches
BW+35 x 6
BW+35 x 6
BW+35 x 6

Pulldowns
3 plates + 10 x 8
3 plates + 10 x 8
3 plates + 10 x 8

Posted by: DLDave

Nice pullin' Stewart. I guess that 455 felt pretty good since you threw another 20 on. 500 is right around the corner.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLDave

Nice pullin' Stewart. I guess that 455 felt pretty good since you threw another 20 on. 500 is right around the corner.

thanks Dave....yeah, I really want the 500 to be a real deadlift, not a rack pull, but I guess in time, we'll see what happens.

I never really get the increments right to be honest, cause probably 20 pounds more was a little too much at that point. I would have been just as satisfied to throw another 10 on there and get the 465, but I guess I got greedy.

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 21

Raw Bench Press (ring finger on rings)
135 x 8
225 x 5
275 x 3
315 x 1
335 x 1
355 x 1
320 x 1
320 x 1

Flat DB Press
105 x 8 (3 sets)

Chest Supported Rows
3 plates + 25 x 5 (5 sets)

Floor Press off pins
275 x 5 (3 sets)

Posted by: katt

Great numbers as usual Stewart! Yeah, sometimes that extra 5 or 10 pounds can just seem so heavy - it's crazy.

Posted by: Stewart14

Thanks Katt. It truly is amazing how once you hit a certain point, just adding 5 measly little pounds makes the bar not even budge.

Posted by: Triple Threat

Hi Stew, still trying to find the perfect workout?

Congrats on the rack DL PR.

I know a lot of people who would be happy to have your pressing and squatting strength.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

Hi Stew, still trying to find the perfect workout?

Congrats on the rack DL PR.

I know a lot of people who would be happy to have your pressing and squatting strength.

You know me

I am not happy with my squatting strength. I am happy with the pressing and the pulling is definitely coming along, but squatting has always been a thorn in my side, I just can't get my numbers up on the squat, and I don't know what it is. I have tried everything too, it is just fighting me!

Welcome back by the way. How was your vacation?

Posted by: soxmuscle

Yea, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that my volume is greater than yours... I guess I should work on cutting out some sets?

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 23

Dynamic Box Squats
185 x 2 (10 sets)

Speed Deads
315 x 1 (6 sets)

Decline Crunches
BW+35 x 6 (3 sets)

Pulldowns
3 plates + 15 x 8 (3 sets)

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 24

Speed Bench
215 x 3 (3 sets) Middle finger on rings
215 x 3 (3 sets) Pinky on rings
215 x 3 (3 sets) extra wide grip

Incline Bench
275 x 5 (3 sets)

Chest Supported Rows
3 plates + 25 x 5

Posted by: Triple Threat

I just noticed your location. Mind if I join you?

Posted by: DOMS

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Speed Bench
215 x 3 (3 sets) Middle finger on rings
215 x 3 (3 sets) Pinky on rings
215 x 3 (3 sets) extra wide grip

It wasn't until I started my current routine that I could truly appreciate just how tough switching up the hand placement is.

Great job, Stewart!

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

I just noticed your location. Mind if I join you?

ha, yeah, I don't even remember the last time I actually went to one....might have to just do that sometime in the very near future, and yes, you could join me, although if we both go there hungry after a heavy deadlifting session, we might eat the place out of food.

Posted by: DOMS

YouTube Video

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by DOMS

It wasn't until I started my current routine that I could truly appreciate just how tough switching up the hand placement is.

Great job, Stewart!

it isn't really so bad on a dynamic speed bench workout, of course if the weight were heavier, it makes it a lot tougher and different to use a different hand position than your "money grip"

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by DOMS

YouTube Video

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 26

Box Squats
135 x 5
185 x 3
225 x 3
275 x 1
315 x 1
335 x 1
345 x 1
355 x 1
320 x 1
*A little embarrassed by this, but whatever, I haven't done a squat for a max in a long time anyway, my highest regular squat is 385. These seemed a lot harder than regular squats, are box squats supposed to be harder?

Hypers
BW+50 x 8 (3 sets)

Decline Crunches
BW+35 x 6 (3 sets)

Pulldowns
3 plates + 20 x 8 (3 sets)

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Quote:

are box squats supposed to be harder?

No - they are supposed to easier

......

J/K - they are harder to do

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

No - they are supposed to easier

......

J/K - they are harder to do

Eh, I would have believed you either way

I have to find out if I am doing them right. When I hit the box, I kind of sit my hips back a bit and relax while on the box, pausing for about a second or so, and then I try to push myself back up, operative word is "try", cause that 355 pretty much stapled me down to the box, it was a miracle I got up....gutted that one out big time

Posted by: DLDave

A box squat at or below parallel is typically going to be a lower weight than a max box-less squat. This is mainly because you're breaking the momentum by pausing on the box, particularly if you're breaking your hips which is the correct Westside method. I don't do many high box squats, but these are typically easier and would be closer in weight to a normal squat.

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Eh, I would have believed you either way

That's the way I was taught.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLDave

A box squat at or below parallel is typically going to be a lower weight than a max box-less squat. This is mainly because you're breaking the momentum by pausing on the box, particularly if you're breaking your hips which is the correct Westside method. I don't do many high box squats, but these are typically easier and would be closer in weight to a normal squat.

Thanks Dave...my "box" is a spackel bucket, so I would venture to say I am at parallel or slightly below on it, so OK, I feel better now that my weight wasn't so great.

So in my case, a 355 parallel box squat, what would that roughly translate to on a regular squat?

Posted by: Triple Threat

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

are box squats supposed to be harder?

They are for me, for the reason that DLDave mentioned. You don't get the benefit of the stretch reflex when you come to a stop on the box.

Posted by: Burner02

'morning, stew!

Posted by: katt

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLDave

interesting.. the only way I've seen them done in our gym is people just going down to the bench and immediately going back up again.. no pause. It's definitely not below parallel... it's at.. which is the way we did them.

Posted by: Triple Threat

Quote:

Originally Posted by katt

Just because other people do them that way doesn't mean it is correct. It sounds to me like they're using the bench to gauge their depth.

Posted by: Burner02

what trips said...that's how I've come to know how to do them: people use the box/bench as a depth guage. And...of course...Ive seen people do that wrong too.
I can imagine how hard starting from the bottom would be...wow.
GJ stew!

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 28

Updated Stats:
33 years old
5'10"
215 lbs
BF%= I don't care, not a goal right now, but probably 15% or less.

Bench Press (middle finger on rings)
135 x 8
225 x 5
275 x 3
315 x 1
335 x 1
355 x 1
320 x 1
320 x 1
*Same weight as last week using a slightly different grip. I guess that's ok. Major sticking point about halfway up, I think the 355 rep took like 15 seconds, but I stuck with it.

Flat DB bench
105 x 8 (2 sets)

Chest Supported Rows
3 plates + 25 x 5 (3 sets)

Floor Press off Pins
275 x 5
295 x 5 (2 sets) PR
*Regular bench grip on these, hopefully help the sticking point in my bench. Never did 295 in the floor press, pretty cool.

Posted by: Stewart14

yes, sitting back on the box, or relaxing the hips on the box for a second or so, is a whole different ballgame than touching the box and coming back up. I hardly think you even break the stretch reflex when doing that, so yeah, I am satisfied now with what I did, definitely ok in my book considering, like I mentioned, my best ever wide stance squat was 385, so 30 pounds off on a parallel box squat isn't too shabby.

When you think about it in everyday terms, it sounds even better...think about sitting on a chair, and someone putting 355 pounds on your back and then you get up from the chair. Makes it sound more impressive I think. And for those that can do 500+ box squats....GOOD GOD!

Posted by: soxmuscle

you really mean it when you say you do your "meat and potatoes" and hit the road. how long does a workout like that take you?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by soxmuscle

you really mean it when you say you do your "meat and potatoes" and hit the road. how long does a workout like that take you?

Well, longer than I would like it to considering a lot of the time, I am watching my son while I am working out, it's just the way it works out. I try to do it when he is taking a nap, but he invariably always wakes up in the middle, so while I am trying to play with him in between sets, it winds up taking minimum of an hour and a half, but if I could do this workout at a real gym, it would probably still be close to an hour with all the rest periods. A lot of the time is spent resting believe it or not. Since I am looking for maximum strength, maximum rest is a must.

also, I think like I mentioned, as you get more advanced in the weights, it kind of necessitates itself that your workouts are shorter, or else you will be cooked in no time. See if you notice any differences when your weights get higher in your ability to recover on what you are doing now. I'll bet you will, then you need to make the choice between going for max strength or max size, you will know when you get there.

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 30

Dynamic Box Squats
215 x 2 (10 sets)

SLDL
295 x 5 (3 sets)

Decline Crunches
BW+35 x 6 (3 sets)

Pulldowns
3 plates + 25 x 8 (3 sets)

Posted by: Stewart14

Jan 31

Speed Bench
215 x 3 (3 sets) Middle finger on rings
215 x 3 (3 sets) Pinkies on rings
215 x 3 (3 sets) Extra Wide Grip

Incline Bench Press
285 x 4 (2 sets)

Chest Supported Rows
140 x 8 (3 sets)

Close Grip Bench
225 x 10 (2 sets)

Posted by: Stewart14

Feb 2

ME LOWER

Deadlifts off floor
135 x 5
225 x 3
315 x 2
Add belt + chalk
405 x 1
455 x 1 PR
475 x 1 PR!
425 x 1
425 x 1
*Either it was an extremely good day for me, or it was a fluke, either way, I can't believe I got 475 today. That breaks my old PR by 25 pounds, and
I also weighed about 10 pounds more when I hit the old 450, so 475 at 215 lbs ain't too bad I don't think. Of course, it wasn't without its casualties. I ripped off the side of my right pinky and broke open a couple of calluses, but that goes with the territory I guess.

Decline Crunches
BW+35 x 8 (3 sets)

Pulldowns
3 plates + 25 x 8 (3 sets)

Posted by: Stewart14

111

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Nice job on the deads

500 here you come

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

Nice job on the deads

500 here you come

yeah, if my lower back holds up, feels kinda funky right now

But of course, everything was fine WHILE I was working out, it's always the AFTER that you have to worry about.

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

yeah, if my lower back holds up, feels kinda funky right now

But of course, everything was fine WHILE I was working out, it's always the AFTER that you have to worry about.

Exactly......

Posted by: Triple Threat

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Deadlifts off floor
455 x 1 PR
475 x 1 PR!

Excellent! Are we going for 485 next week?

Posted by: goob

Just checked out your journal Stewart, your putting up some MAJOR numbers in here, training looks superb. Good stuff.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

Excellent! Are we going for 485 next week?

At first thought, I might want to, but I want to alternate a squat ME and a deadlift ME exercise weekly, so I don't have to wreck my back two weeks in a row.

But maybe I can do trap bar deads, the best of both worlds

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by goob

Just checked out your journal Stewart, your putting up some MAJOR numbers in here, training looks superb. Good stuff.

Hey thanks for stopping by and thanks for the encouragement, I'll try to keep it up in here

Posted by: Triple Threat

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

At first thought, I might want to, but I want to alternate a squat ME and a deadlift ME exercise weekly, so I don't have to wreck my back two weeks in a row.

Just how badly do you wreck your back? I did heavy DLs yesterday (granted, not too many) and I can't even tell today.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

Just how badly do you wreck your back? I did heavy DLs yesterday (granted, not too many) and I can't even tell today.

It is a weird phenomenon. I can't explain it. there is a spot in my lower back, where if I press on it, or roll over something like a foam roller, I get a sharp pain. I liken it to when you mess up your elbows after too much work and there is that spot on the back of your elbow that if you press on it, it feels like a bruise.

there was no sudden moment where I noticed the pain, it kind of just crept up on me subtly. the thing is, tomorrow, I probably will feel fine, which is why I haven't stopped doing these things. So the pattern is, I deal with it for the rest of the day in which I worked out, then I am usually ok. Now, I know I am probably not totally OK, but I am not "injured" enough and too stubborn to stop.

Did that explanation make sense? I don't think it is a herniated disk, cause I gave these symptoms to Akira, and he told me a slipped disk is something else. Maybe it's a ligament thing down there?

Posted by: Stewart14

Feb 4

ME Upper

Bench Press
135 x 8
185 x 5
225 x 5
275 x 3
315 x 3
325 x 3

Flat DB Bench Press
105 x 11
105 x 8

Underhand Barbell Rows ss/ Rear Delt Flies
225 x 8/40s x 8
225 x 8/40s x 8
225 x 8/40s x 8

DB Shrugs
105 x 15
105 x 15

Hammer Curls
50s x 10
50s x 10

Posted by: ironman13

i have the same senario except i have a little problem with mine. i have one month to go from 275 to 315 and right now i dont even know where to start except buying a supplement and hoping it works perfectly. any suggestions on what i should take anyone? no roids!

Posted by: AKIRA

Great job on the numbers. I think youre ahead of me on everything Ive ever done.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by AKIRA

Great job on the numbers. I think youre ahead of me on everything Ive ever done.

I appreciate it, however, things are going to be changing a little bit around here. No more one rep maxes for a while, something funky happened to my back after those deadlifts the other day, and right now, my thinking is that it isn't really worth it. A one rep max should be and only should be for powerlifters who want to win a competition. I need to get the greedy thoughts out of my head about big numbers, because really, who gives a shit if I can bench 405, it's not like anyone is ever gonna see it, I work out in my basement, it isn't even like I could impress the people in the gym, lol. Oh, so I can say I can do it? SO what. I actually think doing 3 and 5 rep maxes instead might be more beneficial, and I think they are actually a lot harder to do.

Posted by: KelJu

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Yep, happened to me, also. I loved deadlifting 405, and I really loved other people's reactions to pulling 405. It just looks so pretty and perfect. Four 45s on each side made my ego explode. Unfortunely, it nealry made a disc in my back explode, too. Now, I can't deadlift at all.

As for as benching goes, my shoulder goes out everytime I get close to 405. I can damn near taste it, then I fuck a connective tissue up, and I can't bench at all for months. I'm starting to think the number 405 is cursed.

Posted by: AKIRA

I guess its the principle that drives me.

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Plus you are not getting any younger

I agree with you ... I'm going to start doing more sets in the 5-10 rep range rather than 1-3 rr.

Posted by: Stewart14

Feb 6

Upper

Bench Press
315 x 5
275 x 7
225 x 11

Chest Supported Rows
180 x 5
160 x 7
140 x 9

DB Shoulder Press
95 x 5
75 x 10
50 x 13

Pulldowns
180 x 5
160 x 10
135 x 12

*Experimenting with a new workout scheme. These will be the weights I use every workout, with the goal being to just do more reps. I know some days will be better than others, but I think this is a good compromise between strength training and hypertrophy/endurance training. I was serious when I said no more 1 rep maxes! Besides, take the bench for example, I would be more pleased if I could do 315 x 10 than 365 x 1.

Did upper again today to give my back a break until Friday at the earliest.

Posted by: Triple Threat

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

I was serious when I said no more 1 rep maxes! Besides, take the bench for example, I would be more pleased if I could do 315 x 10 than 365 x 1.

I give you a couple of months, at which time the competitive drive within you will come calling. The lure of a 1 RM is just too great. You may be able to decrease the frequency at which you try them, but I don't think you'll be able to completely eliminate the desire.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

You are wise master TT, very wise.

Posted by: Stewart14

Feb 7

Lower

Squats
315 x 2
275 x 5
225 x 8
*Pure suck. But I have an excuse, I am taking it easy on my back, yeah that's it

SLDL
315 x 6
275 x 10
225 x 12

Decline Crunches
BW+50 x 5

Posted by: Stewart14

Feb 9

working out the kinks on a new schedule for my new workout plan, it looks like it's gonna wind up being push/pull/off/lower/off repeat, so it's every 5th day per workout. This weekend is a little bit screwy with my schedule this weekend, so I am probably over doing it on the push here, but oh well.

PUSH

Bench Press
315 x 5
275 x 8
225 x 12
*Stupid workout schedule for this past week had be heavy benching 3 times this week, what a dumbass I am, but all things considered, I did ok, not that I plan on making this a habit, but it's safe to say the bench press is my best exercise.

DB Shoulder Press
95s x 4
75s x 7
50s x Did not do
*Shoulders definitely felt the workload of the week, failed very early on these. Skipped the last set of 50s for a break.

Dips
BW+135 x 5
BW+90 x 11
BW+45 x Did not do
*Skipped the last set here too for a break, will resume the full workload on the next push day

Posted by: DLDave

Looks good Stewart. To address something you mentioned earlier regarding your new methodology, I think testing 1 RM occassionally (every 8-12 weeks) can still be beneficial. First, this will still be a good gauge of progress. Even though you may not be training specifically for 1 RM, this is still going to increase as your 3 RM or 5 RM increases. Secondly, and I'd say more importantly, this gives you a scheduled deload week where you still have something to work towards. This gets you in the gym with an actual goal, while decreasing the volume you're doing that week. The problem I have had with deload weeks in the past, unless I'm really beat up and my body is begging for a break, is that it seems like a bit of a waste of time in the gym to just go in and go through the motions. You can probably still achieve both of these with testing 3 RM during that deload week, but you have to be careful with volume that week to truly deload. And lastly, this still keeps you somewhat on track when you do decide to go back to training for 1 RM, since it sounds entirely possible that you will at some point. Just my $.02.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLDave

Looks good Stewart. To address something you mentioned earlier regarding your new methodology, I think testing 1 RM occassionally (every 8-12 weeks) can still be beneficial. First, this will still be a good gauge of progress. Even though you may not be training specifically for 1 RM, this is still going to increase as your 3 RM or 5 RM increases. Secondly, and I'd say more importantly, this gives you a scheduled deload week where you still have something to work towards. This gets you in the gym with an actual goal, while decreasing the volume you're doing that week. The problem I have had with deload weeks in the past, unless I'm really beat up and my body is begging for a break, is that it seems like a bit of a waste of time in the gym to just go in and go through the motions. You can probably still achieve both of these with testing 3 RM during that deload week, but you have to be careful with volume that week to truly deload. And lastly, this still keeps you somewhat on track when you do decide to go back to training for 1 RM, since it sounds entirely possible that you will at some point. Just my $.02.

That is sound advice Dave, thanks for the tip, of course, I would need to actually use the tip for it to be worthwhile, as I seem to have a problem with the whole notion of a deload week. Meaning, I don't think I have ever done one. I change around my "routine" quite a bit, and maybe that is what is keeping me going without being run into the ground, but I haven't done a true deload ever.

that does sound like a good idea though, to pick a week and just maybe set it up as monday shoot for a squat max, wednesday a bench max and friday a deadlift max and just do that and call it a week. Or I could try that with just bench and deads as I think I am putting off squatting for a while, I just don't like the way my body feels when I am done, I am going to substitute a lever type squat machine. Stiff legging 315 for 6 the other day felt great, I am gonna work on that for a bit as well as trying to get my bench up to 315 x 10 reps which I think would be quite an accomplishment.

I also think I need to train up in the higher reps for a while as I pretty much exclusively use low reps ( <6 ) and the high rep sets kick my ass breathing wise. since I really don't have a way to do cardio in the winter time, this might help in that regard until the warmer weather comes and I can get outside and do stuff.

Posted by: katt

Looks good in here Stew... it just sounded like you were in a little "funk".. shit, we all go through that and I really have been amazed that you haven't seeing that you push and push all the time. But then again, that self appreciation is what drives us all, isn't it?

Posted by: Stewart14

Feb 10

PULL

Pendlay Rows (underhand grip)
275 x 5
250 x 7
225 x 12

Pulldowns
4 plates x 6
3 plates + 25 x 11
3 plates x 15

T-Bar Row (Lever arm style--overhand grip)
140 x 5
110 x 10
90 x 12
*Converted my chest supported row machine to a t-bar row machine since I am moving in a month, so I began disassembling my home gym---what a nightmare it's going to be, ugh. This exercise was SO HARD like this, the leverages were completely off and it was a big struggle

Close grip underhand pulldowns
3 plates + 25 x 7
3 plates x 11

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Moving??

Where to ?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

Moving??

Where to ?

About 20 minutes east of where I am now, still on the island. Going to a town with a better school district.

I gotta tell you, this whole process is one huge pain in the ass. I make bids on houses and don't get answers for days at a time, and it sucks cause I have somewhat of a deadline, since my house is in contract already and we have a closing date on or around March 15, so I really need an answer on a house to move into, but these damn agents and people just dick around. I know they don't give a shit about me and my situation, but come on, I have a 15 month old kid at home, have some courtesy, cause I am not moving out of this house and putting things in storage and moving to my mom's or something like that, no f-in way, not with Ryan.

I just pray it all works out, it worked out for everyone else I know, so it better for us too.

Posted by: Triple Threat

You would think with the housing market heading into a decline, that any offers that come in would be forwarded to the owner quickly. Hope the housing thing gets resolved quickly, moving sucks.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

You would think with the housing market heading into a decline, that any offers that come in would be forwarded to the owner quickly. Hope the housing thing gets resolved quickly, moving sucks.

yeah that's what I thought too, apparently that only held true for my house...hmmm. My house now is in what you would call a "less desirable" school district, even though the general area is nice. We listed the house with a realtor and MLS the week before Christmas, and wound up with 3 total offers, the accepted one came in in the middle of January, so we went about 6 weeks total from listing to contract which is not too shabby given the market and where my house is.

It seems in the more desirable areas around here that the houses are selling like they were prior to the slump. I sense not a lot of urgency in the sellers of these homes, which is absolutely killing me right now. We actually have offers on two houses and still we can't get an answer in a timely manner on either of them, and one of them needs to be re-sided immediately since the shingles are falling apart! they should take our offer and run given the shape of their house. The other house came on the market I believe last week. Now, if I got an offer on my house within the first week of listing, I would have felt like a pig in shit, but it seems these people are content with waiting things out even though my offer was $10K less than asking price, and there is no way I am ever paying asking price for a house, so you can see why I am so stressed out about this crap.

And we aren't talking about super mint condition houses here, we are talking about over 50 year old houses on 60x100 properties that both need work in their own ways. It just sucks around here. I thought the hard part of selling my house was over, now it seems both parts are going to be a project. Ugh.

Any of you guys got any nice houses for sale around where you live?

Posted by: Triple Threat

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Any of you guys got any nice houses for sale around where you live?

Here

Posted by: DLDave

Not sure where you're at Stewart, but it's definintely a buyers market in my area. Several houses in my neighborhood have been on the market for months, and these are 10 year old houses in a nice neighborhood and good school district. I had been thinking of upgrading this year, but with the market the way that it is I changed my mind.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLDave

Not sure where you're at Stewart, but it's definintely a buyers market in my area. Several houses in my neighborhood have been on the market for months, and these are 10 year old houses in a nice neighborhood and good school district. I had been thinking of upgrading this year, but with the market the way that it is I changed my mind.

Long Island, NY.

It's just strange, I mean, the town where my house is now is not doing so well as far as sales go, you really need to price the house competitively and hope for the best. I made a shitload of upgrades to my house (brand new kitchen, brand new bathroom, new wood floors throughout, brand new finished basement, and still, after my realtor fees, I will be breaking even from my purchase price of 3 years ago, so I guess you could say, I am selling at a big loss considering the $$$ I spent on upgrades. But I just want to get my son into a nicer area as he deserves it, so you take it on the chin and just do it. I knew I had one of the nicest houses in the town I live in for the price we picked, so I knew it would sell, just a question of when and I am happy with it taking a little over a month, not bad.

However, I thought like you thought that it is a buyers market and that once I got my house sold, things would be easy. Unfortunately, it seems the rules of the buyers market don't apply to the towns we are looking to move to. I just don't sense any urgency in these sellers or their realtors. I remember back in August we almost sold the house then but the people backed out, and when we found a new house to move to, we had made an offer the night after seeing it, and within an hour, had the price finalized and a home inspector scheduled to look at the house. This time around it's like minimum of 2 days before we get a counter offer, then it's waiting another 2 days for them to respond to our counter offer back, it's just stupid really, I don't have the time for this shit right now.

Posted by: Stewart14

Feb 12

Lower

RI=90 sec

Squats w/ Trap Bar
250 x 5 (10 sets)

SLDL
250 x 5 (8 sets)

All over the place lately, but these are fun workouts, long and grueling at the end, but simple, to the point, and productive.

Posted by: DLDave

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Squats w/ Trap Bar
250 x 5 (10 sets)

OK, I had to go search Youtube to see how on Earth you do these. I was trying to figure out how you get a trap bar to rest on your shoulders

Looks interesting, although I'd say it's more similar to a really deep deadlift than a squat, assuming the video I found was accurate.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLDave

OK, I had to go search Youtube to see how on Earth you do these. I was trying to figure out how you get a trap bar to rest on your shoulders

Looks interesting, although I'd say it's more similar to a really deep deadlift than a squat, assuming the video I found was accurate.

I call them squats as opposed to deadlifts because I just did them without touching the ground with the bar, so in effect there is a true negative and a true positive phase. I do think next time I am going to do them on something elevated so that I can go a little lower.

what I like about it is that you can get grip work while you are squatting, plus you get some isometric trap work too. Obviously nothing beats a regular back squat, but I am just having issues with back squats and a lot of weight lately, so this helps because you can stay more upright and take some stress off your low back.

Because I didn't touch the ground, I found I had to use a lighter weight than if I were doing them as a deadlift, in fact, it was probably too light, but whatever.

Posted by: Triple Threat

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Feb 12

Lower

RI=90 sec

Squats w/ Trap Bar
250 x 5 (10 sets)

SLDL
250 x 5 (8 sets)

All over the place lately, but these are fun workouts, long and grueling at the end, but simple, to the point, and productive.

The hardest part about a workout like this is the mental part. After 4 sets, your mind is telling you that you're not even half way there yet.

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

The hardest part about a workout like this is the mental part. After 4 sets, your mind is telling you that you're not even half way there yet.

quoted for truth. I write little strike marks on a piece of paper to keep track of the sets, and when I finish a set and get to the paper and see only 3 lines, I'm like, ah shit....

Posted by: Stewart14

Feb 13

Push

Bench Press (RI=60 sec)
255 x 5 (6 sets)
255 x 4 (2 sets)
255 x 3 (2 sets)
*Short RI killed me on these...

Lever machine shoulder press (RI=60 sec)
120 x 5 (10 sets)
*I am all about improvising in my home gym, and I made this exercise up out of my lever squat machine.

Posted by: Triple Threat

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Lever machine shoulder press (RI=60 sec)
120 x 5 (10 sets)
*I am all about improvising in my home gym, and I made this exercise up out of my lever squat machine.

How much does this end up differing from a regular Military Press?

I see a lot of people at my gym using the Smith Machine for overhead pressing as well as using a seated shoulder press machine. I prefer to just use a barbell (on those few occasions when I'm inspired to do that exercise).

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple Threat

My preference would be to so standing military presses, however, having my gym down in my basement, that is out. I also don't have a decent rack to unrack a barbell and do them seated. I could do it off my squat rack, but I would have to start the bar in the bottom position and I just don't like doing that, plus it winds up being too far forward, so I can't use maximum weight cause it's awkward.

so my options are dumbbells and this concoction I just came up with. DBs are ok, but I have the homemade ones, and it's a little awkward too cleaning 95 pound dbs with 2 25 pound plates and 4 10s on the db. So the machine winds up being my best bet for right now. It seems to put me in a good line for my body, so I can press a good amount and still nail my shoulders. Also, the way I have to do it is complicated, but I am holding on to where to plates go, so in effect, it is like a "fat bar", so that makes it more challenging as well. The lever on the machine itself weighs a shit load by itself, so I don't have to load it up with plates which is another cool feature.

Eh, maybe when I move, I can set up a military press area in a room with a high ceiling

cause I always wanted to lift 225 over my head standing up, so maybe some day

Posted by: soxmuscle

Why do you prefer standing military to seated?

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by soxmuscle

Why do you prefer standing military to seated?

I probably can't explain it properly, but it feels much more stable when you have your legs as your base. Even if you do not use your legs as in a push press, I still feel like you have a much more stable base then when you are seated.

That being said, if I am doing a westside type routine with heavy deadlifts and such, I would do them seated to save my back, but otherwise, and if I were able to, I would do a standing military press always.

to be honest, I think the best thing to do would be a standing DB press or standing trap bar press (if that were possible to set up somehow) because you would have the best range of motion at the shoulder, plus the benefits from standing. I would be doing the standing DB presses now if it weren't for the ceiling issue, and I would rather not go outside to do them either right now.

Posted by: Stewart14

Feb 15

PULL (All RI=60 sec)

Pendlay Rows
225 x 5 (10 sets)

Chinups
BW+15 x 5 (8 sets)
BW+15 x 4 (2 sets)

Hammer Curls
50s x 5 (5 sets)

Brutal, brutal workout, with the one minute rests. I am so not used to this.

Posted by: yellowmoomba

60 sec RIs .... WHO ARE YOU ???

hahahaha

Looking good in here

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellowmoomba

60 sec RIs .... WHO ARE YOU ???

hahahaha

Looking good in here

heh....I hate them, but I know it needs to be done for once. It's like I go to sit down after the set and before my ass if firmly planted in my chair, the minute is up already, I'm like, sheesh!

Posted by: yellowmoomba

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

heh....I hate them, but I know it needs to be done for once. It's like I go to sit down after the set and before my ass if firmly planted in my chair, the minute is up already, I'm like, sheesh!

I definitely notice a difference between 60 and 90 sec RIs. It seems by my third set - the reps drop by at least 3 between my first set and third set.

Posted by: Stewart14

Feb 17

LOWER

Trap Bar Deads (RI=90 sec)
340 x 4 (10 sets)

Done. Enough for my low back.

Posted by: TROJANNATION

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stewart20

Feb 15
Pendlay Rows
225 x 5 (10 sets)

Great job on the Pendlay rows, 10 sets is crazy

Posted by: Stewart14

Quote:

Originally Posted by TROJANNATION

Great job on the Pendlay rows, 10 sets is crazy

Thanks man. The workout is loosely based on an article called Advanced German Volume Training by Polquin. It starts at 10 sets of 5 reps at 70% of your 1RM, then you subsequently increase the weight and lower the reps for the next workouts and you wind up ending at 10 sets of 3 reps at around 87% of your 1RM.

The killer is the short rest intervals, 60 sec for upper and 90 sec for lower.

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My Quest for 405

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