a quick blurb, and some presses

Patience has been my greatest trainer, rehabilitator, counselor, and mentor. Patience is what has taught me that a life of health and wellness is NOT an 8-week race to vanity, but a lifetime pursuit of a strong body, a stronger mind, and the strongest spirit.

A healthy lifestyle produces much more meaning than a few weeks of self-torture. Adopt this mentality, and a huge weight will be lifted off of your shoulders.

In-and-out for now. I'll have to throw a huge update on all the numbers later. Retro posting whoo!

Iced my knee really well this am and for about a good 8-10 minutes, I could move/squat pain free. It was the greatest feeling ever, but also a bit sobering.


Gotta work through the pain and discomfort; train with efficiency and patience.


I'll update later on with the deadlift numbers, and the squat/presses this past week.

UPDATE:

DL

100 x 5
125 x 5
150 x 5
165 x 5
190 x 5
215 x 5

sandbag step ups
sandbag x10 x 5

front squat
95 x 10 x 5


MP
45 x 5
55 x 5
60 x 5
65 x 5
75 x 5
95 x 5

Lat PD
105 x 10
105 x 10
105 x 10
105 x 10
105 x 10

dip machine
6 x 10
6 x 10
6 x 10
6 x 10
6 x 10

test week review!

All lifts completed as prescribed over the last week and a half!

Day 1 Overhead Press	Day 2 Deadlift	Day 3 Bench Press	Day 4 Squats
35 lbs x 5	80 lbs x 5	65 lbs x 5	80 lbs x 5
45 lbs x 5	100 lbs x 5	85 lbs x 5	100 lbs x 5
55 lbs x 3	120 lbs x 3	100 lbs x 3	120 lbs x 3
70 lbs x 5	150 lbs x 5	125 lbs x 5	150 lbs x 5
80 lbs x 3	170 lbs x 3	140 lbs x 3	170 lbs x 3
90 lbs x 1+	190 lbs x 1+	160 lbs x 1+	190 lbs x 1+

day for squats tonite. will update with a new post later

A day of digging deeper

I just returned 30 min ago from doing something I'm particularly proud of. Why not?

10 min jog to the local YMCA (~.55 mile)
30 min rower machine
5 min, x2 step machine
10 min job back home


I feel great, and I want to do it again. Dig deep, reach the pits of your own soul, and raise up your standard to perfection.

Military Press

Pulled out the oly racks and did some presses today. Good stuff, and it really gave the lower body more needed rest.

Military Press

45 x 5

45 x 3

55 x 3

65 x 3

75 x 3

85 x 6

Dip Machine

"6" x 10

"6" x 10

"6" x 10

"7" x 10

"7" x 10

Lat Pulldown

105 x 10

105 x 10

105 x 10

105 x 10

105 x 10

The pulls didn't feel as productive as last week's was. I know I wasn't contracting the latissimus correctly; this is something I hope to do better next week.

Triceps Extension (rope pulley)

60 x 10

50 x 5, 40 x 5

40 x 9

40 x 10

Pure form on this one. I didn't feel embarrassed in the slightest that the weight was low. The reps were quality, and I felt the work get done. A good day for the press!

pulls

So after a few days rest from squatting on Saturday, I set out to deadlift today. Unfortunately, my glutes and hamstrings were still sore, very tight, and thus ended my extra work during the lunges. At least I got the minimal done: 185 x 8 B) Did something new and added in some hang cleans before I started.

Hang Clean
75 x 5
95 x 3

Deadlift
135 x 5
135 x 3
155 x 3
165 x 3
185 x 8

Lunges
27.5 x 10
27.5 x 8

^ended the day three sets early into lunges. I had leg curls also planned, but considering the near-cramping of practically the entire posterior-chain I decided instead to dedicate the rest of the hour to stretching.

Bench

2 min - Rower warm-up (I'd like to try a cardio day with this machine. Love it.)

BP
65 x 5
85 x 5
100 x 3

115 x 3
135 x 3
155 x 3

Incline DB Press
35 x 10
35 x 10
35 x 10
30 x 10
30 x 10

DB Row
35 x 10
35 x 10
35 x 10
35 x 10
35 x 10

Week 1 of 5/3/1

Back to the go-to 5/3/1. I love this program to death: the methodology and logic is simple, no-BS, and it's worked for me for the last 4-5 years I've been lifting. I haven't posted day-by-day, so consider this an umbrella retro-post that summarizes the past week.

Day 1 (Last Sunday)
BP
125 x 5
135 x 5
155 x 5

DB BP
35  x  10
35  x  10
35  x  10
35  x  10
35  x  10

DB Row
35  x  10
35  x  10
35  x  10
35  x  10
35  x  10

Day 2 (Past Wednesday)
DL
135 x 5
155 x 5
175 x 5

Fr Sqt
95  x  10
95  x  10
95  x  10
95  x  10

Day 3 (Past Thursday)
MP
65 x 5
75 x 5
85 x 5

Dip Machine
"6" setting  x  10
"6" setting  x  10
"6" setting  x  10
"6" setting  x  10
"6" setting  x  10

Lat Pulldown
105  x  10
105  x  10
95  x  10
95  x  10
95  x  10

Tri Ext, EZ-bar (cables occupied)
20  x  10
20  x  10
30  x  10
30  x  10 *L. elbow sharp px, some discomfort


TODAY, SOME MOFO-IN SQUATS!!!!
Seriously, I had a great great great time today with squat. I loved todays workout; it was fantastic.

Some notes: Had a serving of Jack3d to try it out. Pretty gnarly. Also had some quick carbs via some ramen. Oops.

SQT

80 x 5
100 x 5
120 x 5
135 x 5
155 x 5
175 x 7

I've included the warm-ups in the above, which is why the sets look twice as long. Rest assured, I've been doing warmups for my previous days, it's just that this time around I was able to keep track of it, thanks to this little tool/site.


RDL

65 x 10
65 x 10
65 x 10
75 x 10
75 x 10

Damn my legs were shaking after this. But, I felt great. Love that feeling; missed that feeling.

Box step-ups

BW x 10
BW x 10
BW x 10
BW x 5, Sandbag x 5
Sandbag x 10

My lower back was really feeling it after the straight-leg deadlifts, so I improvised from the originally-planned front squats and decided on step ups instead. On the 3rd set, I was really getting fired up and although I logically assumed I needed to dig deep soon, my body said "bring it." I was ready to go. So, halfway through the 4th set, I picked up a nearby sandbag and finished off the rest with it on my shoulders.

By the 5th set I was amped. Sandbag and all, I knocked off a solid 10 on each leg before calling it a night as the gym was closing. What if I had the time? I was ready to go for some plank work. A great time training today, and a good close to the first week. BP, round 2 starts tomorrow.

B]