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Phineas decides to move north of vag with 5/3/1

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ihateschoolmt said:
you've been doing the greater than correctly, just remember the alligator eats the bigger number haha. and also, I used to talk shit about jersey shore too but I watched it once with someone and it is straight up hilarious.
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But, in the case of there being only one number...would it look like this > 5 x ... lbs?

Please just tell me how I'd write greater than or equal to 5, lol.
 
Phineas said:
But, in the case of there being only one number...would it look like this > 5 x ... lbs?
QUOTE]

You are correct sir.

In excel or most programing languages it would be >=

Great workout yesterday by the way.
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Mesocycle B, Week 1: Military Press (Sat, Feb 26)

Warmup:

5 x 55 lbs
5 x 65 lbs
5 x 80 lbs

Working Sets:

5 x 85 lbs
5 x 105 lbs
> 5 x 115 lbs = 9

Bar Dips:

10 x BW (190)
10 x BW
10 x BW
10 x BW
10 x BW

Chinups:

10 x BW
8 x BW
8 x BW
6 x BW
6 x BW
6 x BW
8 x BW

-------------------------------

Last cycle I maxed 115 lbs at 7 reps so tonight was a 2 rep improvement. I handled the bar very nicely so I was happy with my rep out tonight.

Dips fatigued my triceps more than usual so they weren't as smooth as usual. Maybe it's because it's my first session since deloading so my muscles were, as broskies like to say, "shocked" or "confused".

Chinups sucked. I don't know what to say about them. Before this program I was doing 5 rep sets with 50 lbs strapped to me but doing high rep sets after dips and the military press seems to be extremely challenging. I really want my chinup endurance back. Last summer 10 rep sets was nothing, so when I've gotten stronger on everything else I'm confused why my chinups are going down. Weird.
 
Were you doing chins at the end of the workout before? I bet a few heavy sets of military press would fuck my chin ups up too.
 
ihateschoolmt said:
Were you doing chins at the end of the workout before? I bet a few heavy sets of military press would fuck my chin ups up too.
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I think it's doing all those dips that messes me up. I used to SUCK at dips only like 5 months ago. I improved my military press which gave me greater tricep strength. At bodyweight my dips sets before would be like 7, 5, 4...terrible. Now, I can nail all five sets of 10 with very deep ROM and smooth tempo but it still takes a lot out of me. By the time I get to chins I've exerted myself so much.
 
Amazing improvement on Military, dude! Nice work!

Chins are always touchy. Sometimes i feel really strong on them, other times i don't. Thats still a shit load of volume though, so i wouldn't worry about it.
 
Mesocycle B, Week 2: Squats (Tues, March 1, 2011)

Warmup:

5 x 105 lbs
5 x 135 lbs
5 x 155 lbs

Working Sets:

3 x 185 lbs
3 x 220 lbs
> 3 x 230 lbs = 12

10 x 165 lbs
10 x 165 lbs
10 x 165 lbs
10 x 165 lbs
10 x 165 lbs

BB Romanian Deadlifts:

10 x 185 lbs
10 x 195 lbs
10 x 205 lbs

DB Farmer's Walks:

0:43 x 200 lbs (100 lbs x 2)
0:32 x 200 lbs
0:30 x 200 lbs
0:19 x 200 lbs
0:16 x 200 lbs

-------------------------

Well.....holy fucking shit! To start off, I read the wrong workout on my calendar after my warmups. The first 2 working sets were supposed to be 3 x 185 and 3 x 205 so I fucked up and did more weight than I should have. I was worried going into my rep out because my second working set took more effort than a 205 set would have. I made sure to take a bit longer rest going in to the rep out to compensate.

Well, smack my ass and call my Judy because I added 10 lbs to my 12 RM set 10 days ago in Week 1's squat session! I can't believe how fast I'm progressing on squats. This was without a doubt my best rep out of the program. 9 reps over the minimum. Jan 15 was my first squat session of the program so in a month and a half I've gone from 10 x 210 lbs to 12 x 230 lbs. Talk about progress!

Romanians were fine. 205 seemed a bit too heavy for an assistance set. If I was bodybuilding kind of training it would have been fine but I don't want to be going nuts on those sets. Still, my hip drive was excellent, which is good because I squat fairly wide stance so any hip work is great. I'm not talking full-on sumo, powerlifting stance, but wide enough that I rely on my hips a lot more than the typical shoulder-width squatter.

I suck at farmer's walks though, haha. Honestly, I think the problem isn't really my grip but the thickness of the dumbbell handles. I have relatively short fingers and I can't get the best grip. Add to that the fact I have to deadlift them off the floor I'm finding I'm not getting the grip workout I want. It's more of a finger workout but my traps, forearms, etc, have so much more in them. I would kill for some of those plate-loaded things people use for farmer's walks. I know I could carry 200 lbs for a hell of a lot longer if I had a better handle.
 
Don't worry about it, thicker bars just work the grip harder anyways, and ya your fingers are going to tire out before your traps and forearms, pretty sure that's normal, as I have long fingers and that goes first for me too. And using the 200 DBs is far from sucking.
 
Amazing squat improvement, dude! Your numbers are really taking off now :D

We should be getting some farmers walks handles in the gym by friday which im really really fucking looking forward to, haha! Will do a vid.
 
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Yeah im jealous of your squats, i still suck at them and what hurts even more is i know you will doing them properly too will full ROM haha
 
i asked this before when you were walking down your street doing farmers walks, but do you ever just hang on the pullup bar as long as you can for grip strength? it works wonders..
 
stepaukas said:
i asked this before when you were walking down your street doing farmers walks, but do you ever just hang on the pullup bar as long as you can for grip strength? it works wonders..
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No, I've never tried that.

Thing is I'm looking for the grip but also posterior chain work, which farmer's walks do. They're more than just "grip" training. I don't like using exercises on this program that don't provide multiple benefits, as you're allowed limited assistance work.
 
davegmb said:
Yeah im jealous of your squats, i still suck at them and what hurts even more is i know you will doing them properly too will full ROM haha
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You have a great squat Don't sweat it.

Honestly, it helps that my squat stance and deadlift stance are nearly identical. My hip strength has really taken off.
 
ihateschoolmt said:
Don't worry about it, thicker bars just work the grip harder anyways, and ya your fingers are going to tire out before your traps and forearms, pretty sure that's normal, as I have long fingers and that goes first for me too. And using the 200 DBs is far from sucking.
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Actually it's 100 lb DBs x 2 = 200 lbs. I WISH I was using 200 lb DBs, lol.
 
Gazhole said:
Amazing squat improvement, dude! Your numbers are really taking off now :D

We should be getting some farmers walks handles in the gym by friday which im really really fucking looking forward to, haha! Will do a vid.
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Thanks Gaz. I'm very happy with this program so far. Now all I need is to get my bench results going. It's been okay but nothing really great. I feel this cycle it will take off.

I'm jealous about those handles. It must be nice not having to start in a low deadlift position.
 
Mesocycle B, Week 2: Bench Press (Fri, March 4, 2011)

Warmup Sets:

5 x 95 lbs
5 x 115 lbs
5 x 135 lbs

Working Sets:

3 x 155 lbs
3 x 180 lbs
> 3 x 200 lbs = 7

10 x 135 lbs
10 x 135 lbs
10 x 135 lbs
10 x 135 lbs
10 x 135 lbs

DB Bench Rows:

10 x 90 lbs
10 x 95 lbs
10 x 95 lbs
10 x 100 lbs
10 x 100 lbs

Smith Machine Calf Raises:

13 x 270 lbs
12 x 270 lbs
10 x 270 lbs
10 x 270 lbs

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Still stagnant on bench. The rep out was good but nothing great. Bench is my only lift so far that I haven't seen really good progress on. Even military started improving the last two workouts. I attribute this to my inexperience with leg drive, though I have to say I'm getting much better at it. I'm also noticing my sticking point is lockout. From the chest to half way I'm strong but I tend to get stuck at the top. I'm not sure if using rubber bands on my assistance bench sets would be wise. I have no experience training bench sticking points beyond using dead press in the past when my weakness was the bottom.

Rows felt good. Until I get really solid on the 100 lbs DBs, at which point I'll begin moving up, I'm focussing on consistency and total poundage. If you look at my rows over the last five bench workouts you'll see major poundage increases. Even last workout I started with the 85, did two at 90, then single sets at the 95 and 100. Tonight I started a bit heavier, and did the double set on the 95s and 100s. My biceps and lats feel great.

One of my favourite parts of my physique is my back thickness. When I'm in the middle of brutal bench row sets there's no feeling in the world like the pump I experience...well, okay squats and deads take the cake, but still I feel like a fucking god when my back is swollen from the reps. Even if your focus is the strength it's still nice to get the cosmetic shit going for you.

I'm very eager for my next bench session. 215 for a minimum of 1. Since I resumed benching a few months ago after a year long of using other variations in place of it I haven't bench anything over 210 (at which I've hit 5 reps twice and lower reps several times). Back in the broskie days I did 225 for 4 rep sets at half ROM so when I started benching again with my new lifting mentality I scrapped my old PRs and worked on proper form with full ROM. So, I'll be focussed as hell on hitting 5 reps at 215 for a new 5 RM.
 
you have some good strenght in your movements. and how much fun would it be if we didnt have at least one weak spot. lol

keep up the good work.
 
and i thought i was doing high volume haha.. nice leg day
 
For that sticking point try doing board presses, floor presses or maybe even do a set with negatives. Negs aren't specifically for improving lock outs but it might just might your overall bench go up. Just some suggestions.
 
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the other half said:
you have some good strenght in your movements. and how much fun would it be if we didnt have at least one weak spot. lol

keep up the good work.
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Thank you. I still am happy with my bench but it's learning leg drive that is so far preventing me from really moving up on the lift.

PreMier said:
and i thought i was doing high volume haha.. nice leg day
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Only way to do it!

ihateschoolmt said:
For that sticking point try doing board presses, floor presses or maybe even do a set with negatives. Negs aren't specifically for improving lock outs but it might just might your overall bench go up. Just some suggestions.
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I would try floor press but our squat racks' safety bars don't go low enough to press the bar off the floor. My arms would be short about 4 or 5 inches.

Another option is isometric press. Learned that one from Gaz's site. Kind of the opposite of dead press. Set safety pins a few inches shy of your lockout and press the bar into them and then hold with pressure as if you're trying to still press the bar. Supposed to be a good way to strengthen lockout.

Problem is then I'd have to switch equipment and find a bench from the other room to bring to the squat rack and my gym gets busy, so logistically that's not the best option. Negatives are cool but they're more a bodybuilding thing. I really need to improve my top portion of the lift. The thing is I've finally getting myself into a decent position with leg drive but now I have to learn better bar path. I think bands might be useful in this situation.
 
Mesocycle B, Week 2: Deadlifts (Sun, March 6, 2011)

Warmup Sets:

5 x 115 lbs
5 x 140 lbs
5 x 170 lbs

Working Sets:

3 x 195 lbs
3 x 225 lbs
> 3 x 255 lbs = 10

10 x 170 lbs
10 x 170 lbs
10 x 170 lbs
10 x 170 lbs
10 x 170 lbs

BB Split Squats:

10 x 135 lbs
10 x 145 lbs
10 x 155 lbs
10 x 170 lbs
10 x 180 lbs

------------------------------------------------

So I once again misread my calendar, lol. I was supposed to rep out 250 but put 255 on the bar. Oh well, no biggy. I was happy with my rep out. It wasn't the major increase I've seen in squats but it was an improvement, nonetheless. Last time I repped out 255 was on February 9, so less than a month ago, and I hit 9 so this was a 1 rep improvement. Nothing huge but something. And, my last deadlift workout I hit 240 for 12. Using Wendler's "estimated max" formula (I know it's not hard science, but it's something to tell me in some respects what was the stronger set) my previous rep out gave a max of 336 whereas tonight's gave me 340 so a 4 lb improvement. Hey, it's not major jumps but for 10 days difference I'm happy with that. It's better to improve in micro-jumps than it is to stay in one place year after year.

Set some nutty PRs on split squats tonight as well. 170 for 10 was a PR and very smooth I might add. 180 was painful as fuck but I got it with decent depth and tempo. My legs are getting stronger exponentially. The "weak link" in my deadlift rep outs is my lower back. It breaks down during the intensity of the rep out whereas it's holding in squats. This is why I added romanians on squat day for some extra lower back work. I feel this will go away by nexy cycle at which point my deadlift will increase at a faster rate (at leasy my fingers are crossed).

I should also mention I convinced my friend to start 5/3/1, which he did today doing deadlifts with me. He's been working out since Jan 2010. I got him into it and taught him how to squat, deadlift, etc, the benefits of compounds. He's only about 145 lbs at 7% BF but he's gotten pretty strong. He's a genetic freak on deadlifts. He surpassed me last year, and can rep 300, while I squat 65 lbs more than his 5 RM, and for 7 more reps. Weird. He repped 265 for 15 on a minimum of 5!! I've never seen him work so hard.

Next deadlift session is the final one for this cycle. Minimum 1 at 265. I'm giving everything in my body for 10 reps on that one.
 
4 pounds a workout adds up a lot over some time. Assuming your last workout was a week ago, 4 pounds a week is 208 pounds a year. And that sounds a fuck ton better than 4 pounds a week haha.
 
Even if you only get 1 more rep or even 1 lb it is progress don't stress over it.

You still had a killer session. :thumb:

Cool you got your friend to do the 5/3/1 as well. It's always interesting to see how different people and body types respond to the same program.
 
One things for damn sure: i've yet to see somebody NOT progress on it.

Great progress in here, Phin! :)
 
Yes one day soon i will try this 5/3/1 workout, you lot will probabaly be onto something else by then though!!!!!
 
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