Cycle 5 Week 2 Squats

A little tight for time today but squeezed it in. Trained at 500pm. Oh, and got a new bottle of nose tork in the mail today wooooooo! That shit will open your eyes then burn them lol.

Squats - 135X15, 225X12, 315X5.
Work sets - 365X3, 385X3, 425X3.
Squats - 315X8X3.

Thats all I had time for, but it was a really good intense workout, even though my son came with me and asked me 2000 questions while I was training. He even got a little cardio in on the airdyne.

Thats week 2 done with. 3rd and final week of the cycle next week then a deload week followed by Power in the Parkland.

Cycle 5 Week 2 Bench

BB Bench - 135X20, 225X10
Working sets - 295X3 paused, 310X3 paused, 330X3 first two reps paused, 3rd rep touch and go.
Boring but big - 285X4, 275X7, 235X9, 225X10, 225X8.

Cable Crossover - 50X12X3
Lat Pulldown - 185X10X5

BBB and Lat Pulldown were supersetted. I had to get some lat work in this week somewhere so threw them in.

All sets of the BBB were supposed to be 235 but my brain is damaged today so for some reason I had 285 on the bar. After the first two sets I was like dafuq? I was all down becuase I thought I lost strength somehow over the last week lol. Oh well it didnt hurt anyway.

Squats tomorrow.

Cycle 5 Week 2 Deadlifts

It's a good thing I have training partners...I was just about to text him and tell him I was not training when he texted me first and said he was ready for a big session...so I was back in.

After a warmup of course;

Deadlifts from floor - 135X10. 225X8, 315X5

Working sets from a 1" deficit (on 45lb plates) - 380X3, 405X3, 430X3.

Rack pulls for speed (from lowest setting) - 315X5X3. Had to put on wrist straps for last set, grip was shot.

DB Shrug - 60X15X3 superset with Upright cable row - 140X12X3

Hanging knee raise - X20. - Wanted to do more but quit. Thats enough ab work. Lol.

Definitely rest day tomorrow then bench Thursday.

I am officially registered for the Power in the Parkland powerlifting contest on June 14th in Dauphin. Really looking forward to it.

Cycle 5 Week 2 Bench Assist

Trained at 930pm after a short change at work. Really didnt want to train but made myself go and ended up having a great workout.

Seated OHP - 155X10, X12, X8.
CGBP - 245X6. X6, X5.
Pin Press (1") - 275X4X3
Skullscrushers - 105X10, X10, X8.
Tri Pressdown - 140X30, X15.
Hanging knee raises - 3 sets X20.

Deads tomorrow.

Cycle 5 Week 1 Squats

Trained at 1030am again with my buddy to help spot each other and judge depth. Again, hitting some numbers to get a feel for our third attempts at the upcoming meet.

315X1, 405X1, 445X1, 465X1, 475X1(PR).

475 is a PR for me. Partner says depth was good. It actually felt pretty strong, it was not that much of a struggle. There was some left in the the tank, but wanted to finish on a positive note. Either way it gives me an idea of how to plan my attempts.

325X5X3, 225X10.

That was a great week confidence wise. Hitting a PR on all three lifts (35lb DL PR with 535, 20lb paused bench PR with 370, and a 20lb squat PR with 475).
Enough of 1RM testing now and back to training until the meet. I def wont be hitting 1RM on the DL again, might come close on the squat and probably will 1RM the bench one more time.
Time to stuff my face for the rest of the day and rest for the weekend before going into week 2 on Monday.

Cycle 5 Week 1 Bench

Still really sore from deads on Tuesday but feeling good. Trained at 1000am.

I deviated a little from the prescribed 5/3/1 lifts today as I wanted to work up to a paused 1RM with commands. I tried to replicate contest situation as much as possible (wraps, chalk, pause, commands, etc...)
So after a warmup;

315X1, 345X1, 370X1.(Paused PR).

My training partner gave me commands with a solid pause. It ws a grind and there was a little bar movement to one side but I dont think it stopped or went back down at any point. Maybe 1 red light.
Overall felt good to hit a paused PR leading up to a meet. My projected third lift will be somewhere in this ballpark depending on how things go that day.

Boring but big option;
BB Bench - 275X5X5.
Seated incline DB press - 75X12X3
Mid cable cross - 45X18, 55X12.

Feel healthy and strong, I havent felt any issues with my elbows for some time now. Some lower back pain but nothing unmanageable. Going to rest up and go for a 1RM in the squat tomorrow. Time to eat!

Cycle 5 Week 1 BB Day

Realllly sore from yesterdays deadlift session (in a good way). Decided to go ahead and do a lighter bicep/lat/abs workout.

Wide grip Lat Pulldown - 135X15, X12, X12.
Close Grip Lat Pulldown - 135X10, X12, X10.
Hanging Knee Raises - bwX20X5

EZ Bar Curl - 85X11, X10, X10.
Seated DB Curl - 30X10, X12, X10.
DB Hammer Curl - 40X12X2

Finisher - Straight Bar Cable Curl - 60X25

Nice little BB workout. There was no way I could do any kind of bent row today after deads yesterday. Working up to a heavy single on the bench tomorrow.

Cycle 5 Week 1 Deadlifts

Joined a buddy in his gym again today for a deadlift session. We are both on the same 5/3/1 schedule and are both competing in the Dauphin contest in June. We are using this week to determine attempt numbers, this week working up to our projected third attempts (the heaviest one). This will be my last heavy deadlift day until the meet.
Had a warmup then started hitting some numbers,

455X1, 475X1, 500X1, 535X1.(PR).
365X5, 385X5, 395X5.

Trap Bar shrugs 185X12X3.

35lb PR today!I'm pretty sure the 535 was a good lift, I didnt hitch and locked it out. My buddy couldnt tell if my knees were locked out cause I had baggy shorts on, but I'm pretty sure it was good. Nice to see all this work pay off. Obviously a week off (deload week) didnt hurt my progress at all. Maybe had I not went so heavy before this attempt I could have got another 10-15lbs, I dont know. Either way I'm pretty happy with that.

I planned on doing some more assistance work but I was done after the deadlifts. The next two weeks I will focus on some deficits and rack pulls and speed work. I'm pretty sure I will take the prescribed rest day tomorrow, but I will see how I feel.
Bench Thursday working up to projected third attempt.

Start of Cycle 5 - Week 1 Shoulders/Bench Assist

Finally deload week is over - time to get back at it. This is my last 5/3/1 cycle before the Dauphin Contest on June 14th. Really going to dial in everything this cycle with training, rest, recovery and food. I am going to work up to my 3rd attempts this week to get an idea of how to plan my attempts for the meet. I weighed in at a record 225lbs this morning.

I did 15/45 second HIIT intervals for 10 mins on the bike for a warmup.
Seated OHP - 115X12, 135X10, 145X8X2
CGBP - 245X6, X5, X5 all paused.
Pin Presses - 275X3, X4, X4. From 1" off chest.

Front DB Raise - 30X10X2
DB Flyes - 30X10X2
Skullcrushers - 105X8X3
Bent Laterals - 20X10X2
Tricep Pressdown - 140X20X3

My tri's were screaming after this. I worked the skulls in with the DB raises.

Deads tomorrow, working up to a heavy single. Tomorrow's deads will be the last heavy deadlift day until the meet.

Cycle 4 Bench Deload

Supposed to be a rest day today but felt like training so I did. Also supposed to be deloading, but I just dont feel I need the rest right now, so did a bodybuilding style workout which felt awesome for a change.

BB Bench press - 135X20, 185X12 paused, 205X8 paused, 225X8 paused, 225X5 paused, 135X12.
Superset with;
High cable crossover - 50X12, X10, X8, X10.

Incline DB Press - 75X7, X8, X9. Superset with Low Cable Crossover - 50X9, 45X8, 40X9.

Seated OHP - 135X6, 115X10, X12, X10.

Great workout with a good pump. Probably rest tomorrow then deload squat Friday.

Deadlift Deload Cycle 4

Rode Airdyne bike for 20 minutes for a warmup/cardio.

4" off floor Deadlifts (lowest pin) - 135X12, 185X10, 225X8, 265X5, 295X5.
Superset with Trap Bar shrugs - 135X12X3
Upright Cable row - 140X12X3
1" deficit Deadlift off 45lb plate - 135X8, 185X8.

I did the deficits to see if I got the same pain in the lower back as off the the floor or pins. They seem to feel better this way for some reason. I did this becuase last time I did deficit pulls I felt literally no lower back soreness the last time I did them I wanted to see if I got the same results. Next time I wil do them first becuase when I did them I was already sore from the previous sets of pulls.

Riding the bike seems to help with soreness after the workout. I still continue to stretch almost every day at some point see if this helps. A lot of articles I have read have mentioned hamstring tightness as a reason for sore backs so I'm doing my best to stretch them as much as possible.

Deload Week Bench assist Cycle 4

Stuck with the same routine as last week. So far really enjoying the routine. This day absolutely destroys my triceps.

CGBP - 245X6, X5, X5
Pin Presses - 265X3, X3, X4
Skullcrushers - 95X12, 115X8, X8
DB Front Raise - 30X10X3
DB Lateral raise - 30X10X3
Pressdowns - 140X25
Hanging Knee raises - 20X4

Nice quick pace, Rode bike for 10 mins for warmup. Watching weight close, 223.5 lbs today.

Deadlift deload tomorrow.

Sunday BB day

Felt like training today so went in and did a back/bicep routine.

15 mins airdyne.

BB bent row - 185X12X3
Wide Lat pulldown - 185X9, 155X10, 135X10
DB bent row - 45X15, 50X15X2
EZ bar curl - 75X10X3
Seated DB curl - 30X10X3
Cable curl - 50X10X3

45 sec-1 min between sets. It is a deload week so the lighter weight and higher reps were in order. I will do a reload bench assist workout tomorrow.

Cycle 4 Week 3 Squats - Cycle 4 complete

Warmed up and slapped on my new knee sleeves I got yesterday. They are SBD and they are heavy duty as far as knee sleeves get. They are made to the maximum specs allowed under IPF rules for raw competition. I got mine in "tight fit" to get a little pop out of them. I did get a little carry over on the squat I think, but overall they just make the knees feel really stable under heavy weight.

Rode bike for 10 mins and warmed up with empty bar for a few sets of 15-20.

Squats - 135X20, 225X10, 315X8.
Working sets - 335X5, 365X3, 425X2.

 I might have had another in the tank on the last set but didnt push it. I have backed off my squats about 20 lbs on all lifts. I'm going to admit to making a mistake - after testing maxes two cycles ago I based my Training Max on 100% of my 1RM for the deadlift and squat. The training max is supposed to be 90% of your 1RM. I used the 90% TM for my bench but not the others for some reason. Having said that, I have been still making most of the required lifts with the exception of a few, but just not any more. I havent been getting the + reps on the last set, just the minimum. Even after backing off 20lbs though, I am still heavier than I would have been with just adding 10lbs on every cycle for the upper body. Oh well I still making progress on all the lifts and thats what counts.

Boring but big option - 325X5X5.
Only took about 2-3 minutes between these sets. That was a killer. Still getting pretty sore in the lower back after squats and deads. I am trying to find a solution, it sounds like it may be a combination of my technique and mobility. I have started stretching every day (3 days in a row so far) to see if that helps. Today it was almost unbearable for about 30 mins after the workout.

So that's my fourth cycle of 5/3/1 complete. Deload week next week then start my 5th cycle which will wrap up on a deload week the week before my first full powerlifting competition. I will not post workouts for the next week during deload.

Cycle 4 Week 3 Bench

Trained at 1100am today. Finally a day off and a decent sleep last night.

I rode the airdyne bike for 10 mins with elbow sleeves on to get my elbow tendons warmed up good. Also some 1-2" range of movement rope curls for the elboes and some light DB raised to get the shoulders warm.

BB bench - empty bar - X25, 135X15, 225X10
Work sets - 270X5, 305X3, 340X3.
All reps were paused. The pause on the last rep with 340 was probably questionable but it went. 340X3 paused is a PR for me. 340 used to be my 1RM touch and go, so definitely making progress with the bench.
Chose the boring but big option to keep going. 5X5 with 75%.
BB bench - 275X5X3, 275X4.
Felt some elbow pain on the 4th set so I stopped. I havent had any elbow tendon pain for a while so I didnt want to make it worse.
Finished up with
Cable Crossover - 45X20, X15, X15.
Nice pump in the chest after the crossovers.

Last workout of Cycle 4 tomorrow with squats then a deload week. I got my new SBD knee sleeves today so I'm excited to try them.

Cycle 4 Week 3 Deadlifts

Rode bike for 5 mins and foam roller on the back and legs for to try and alleviate the lower back soreness I always seem to suffer from on deadlift day.

After a warmup - 135X10, 225X10, 315X5
Working sets - 385X5, 425X2, 475X1.

Couldn't triple the 425 as I should have. Just one of those things, I tripled 450 just last week as shown in the video. Maybe just tired. It definately wasnt for lack of eating lol. I weighed in at 222 lbs today.

Wide Lat pulldown - 205X8X2, 135X20 superset with seated DB curl - 40X8X3.
Upright cable row - 140X15X3 superset with standing DB curl - 30X14, X10, X9.

Finisher - empty bar curl (45) - X28.

Rode the bike for another 10 mins. That helped with the post workout lower back soreness for sure.

I started taking creatine again this week, so I could probably attribute the weight gain to that? I will watch my weight close I dont want to gain too much more if any. I will adjust cardio if needed, but probably not diet until after the contest June 14 in Dauphin. The top of my weight class is 231 so I have some room lol.

Cycle 4 Week 3 Monday Bench assist

So, as mentioned I changed my Monday routine to take out the OHP as a main lift for the 5/3/1 program. I will still do OHP with either DB/BB but not as a programmed lift. I wanted more bench press assistance work, so this is what I came up with,

Close Grip Bench Press - (all paused) - 275X7, 245X5, 245X4, 245X5.
Pin Press (about 3" off chest on the safeties) - 275X3, 275X3, 275X4
EZ bar Skullcrushers - 105X10X2
Tricep Pressdowns - 140X20X2

That pretty much destroyed my triceps. I tried to do;
Seated DB press - 60X8. Thats all I could do, it became evident that any pressing movements after the tricep work was not going to go lol.

DB Front raise - 25X10X2
DB Lateral raise - 25X10X2

That was a great workout,  I feel that the CG and tricep work is going to carry over to my bench more than the OHP. I will have to fit it in on squat day instead. Hopefully my elbows and everything else can handle the extra bench work. Well see how recovery goes before Thursday. Deadlifts tomorrow.

Cycle 4 Week 2 Squats (video)

Aaahhh what a grind. One of those days where the weight feels extra heavy and you just dont want to be in there. Havent had one of these days in a while. Either way, I dragged my ass in there and did just the main lifts after a warmup;

Squats - 375X3, 395X3, 420X3.

Thats it lol. Nevertheless, 420X3 is a PR for me, so still breaking pr's even though I didnt even want to lift today. Everything remains on track. Week 3 next week.

Shitty angle I know.

Also, I have decided to drop the OHP as a main lift from my routine. I will still do it, just not as a main lift with the 5/3/1 program.  I am going to start doing CG BB work as well as some pin presses and skullcrushers on Monday with shoulders to help with my bench. That way I dont have to do that stuff on bench day and I can get a good chest workout in as well or just stay with the BB bench if I feel like it. Doing it on Mondays should give me enough time to recover for Thursday.

Cycle 4 week 2 bench press

After warmup;

290X3, 305X3, 325X3. All reps were paused.

I'm pretty sure 325X3 is a PR for me. Felt strong so kept going.

355X1 paused. That ties my paused PR. Was going to go up to 365 paused but Ryan convinced me to go up to 375 for a touch and go.

375X1!! I got it with an epic struggle touch and go. That is a touch and go PR for me. That is the most I have ever benched raw, period.

Finished off with some assistance work;

Flat DB press - 75X12, X12, X8.
Cable cross - 60X12, X10, X10.
Tate press - 35X12, 40X12X2.

Great workout weight wise. Hopefully I can work up to 375 paused soon.
Squats tomorrow.

Wednesday Biceps

Was supposed to be a rest day off but felt like training so went and did a bicep workout. I usually add it in one day somewhere but it was cool just to do biceps only for a change and not have to worry about passing out from lifting heavy.

EX bar curl - 75X12, 85X12X2
Seated DB curl - 40X10X3
DB Hammer curl - 40X12X3
Seated incline DB curl - 30X9X3

No pain in the elbows from this at all which is a good sign.

Bench press later today.