Had to attempt 100-105% on all lifts today. Definitely didn't look ahead to today. Not that I'm making excuses (but only kind of) I have a broken rib, and was not 100% rested.
Squat: I was really happy with my squats. They were wrapped, so it's definitely a new element, I think I might have been able to push another 5 lbs with a belt on, but who knows. Overall, very happy I broke that 3 plate barrier. It felt really solid, but I need to work on that sticking point right above parallel you can see in the video. That's always been my weakness. I really like how the wraps felt. Shout out to Dave man for letting me borrow his wraps. I used the most elastic ones. The heavies felt WAYYY too stiff for me at this level.
Bench: Bench felt good. Tried real wrist wraps for the first time (shoutout to Lorenzo for those). I think my ass might have come up on the 245 lift, I can't say for sure though. I have to work on driving my heels. Other than that it's just keeping up the volume and the numbers will follow.
Deadlift: GAHHHHH. I'm more so making excuses for my deadlift. I found a skinnier belt at Magni that I used for the DL that wouldn't hurt my rib. I was pissed I didn't get 405. I've been hunting that for awhile. I really don't even know what to critique. Is it not enough volume? Maybe. My sticking point has always been off the floor to 3 inches off the floor. I'm not gonna dwell on it too much and just keep hitting deficit work.
Keosawa American-Record Holder
Posts : 3174 Join date : 2011-10-30 Age : 37
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Wed Apr 30, 2014 11:51 pm
Don't sweat the deadlift miss--you just broke a rib, after all!
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Fri May 02, 2014 8:29 pm
Comments: Good training session. It was awesome to see the regular faces and some new ones.
First session using knee sleeves. HOLY BEST INVESTMENT BATMAN. My knees would nag the shit out of me by the end of my workouts but these sleeves prevented that. I didn't expect any rebound from them, nor did get any, but it just kept my knees super warm and compressed during the entire workout.
Went an extra 20lbs on the last set of squats since my knees weren't bugging me at all. Went with paused squats as well. I'm really liking the improvements I'm seeing in my squat, not necessarily through strength, but through technique. Strength improvements will soon follow it though. I know I have mad butt-wink going on and I'm trying to improve it through mobility work, but I'm not too worried about it at this point.
Bench went well, bumped it up an extra 5 pounds on the last set. My initial gains from starting a volume focused program are slowing down, but I still feel more and more comfortable under the bar with every session.
I feel like I may be getting super analytical during these write ups, hell nobody probably reads them, but it's nice to look back through the weeks, and even months, to see where my mind was at during these workouts.
tl;dr gains on gains on gains
Keosawa American-Record Holder
Posts : 3174 Join date : 2011-10-30 Age : 37
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Fri May 02, 2014 9:27 pm
SSchwartsenator wrote:
I feel like I may be getting super analytical during these write ups, hell nobody probably reads them, but it's nice to look back through the weeks, and even months, to see where my mind was at during these workouts.
A while back, I started jotting down notes in my log, and I felt like it helped me contextualize my training. I can see what you're saying in that I oftentimes feel like I'm writing just to myself, but diaries can be very therapeutic, not to mention informative. I don't read everything, but I definitely follow a lot of what's written in here.
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Tue May 06, 2014 12:52 am
Comments: Solid day. Didn't get enough fuel in me earlier in the day to last the whole workout though. I was gassed, which doesn't really happen anymore. Filmed some working bench sets so I'll upload that later. Still trying to work on bar path and exactly where I want the bar to touch on my chest. I come down to below even the xiphoid process, which might be a little too low on the chest. Don't really know what feels comfortable yet.
Wrapped up for the last couple sets because A) I was gassed and B) I wanna get more experience using them. Wasn't really any killer weight, but it's nice to know exactly what to expect out of them. I have my own set coming later on in the week. I bought a set of the EliteFTS normal wraps, I don't like the super stiff ones, nor do I think I even need them quite yet.
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Fri May 09, 2014 11:49 pm
05/07/14
Sheiko 32 Week 2 Day 2
Deadlift up to knees: 1x3 @ 195 2x2 @ 235 2x2 @ 255 3x1 @ 275
Comments: Good Workout. Still pissed I can't use a belt, because I feel like I'm not working my deadlifts to their full potential. I'm using a little thin one at Magni doesn't hurt my rib, but I'm getting close to nothing out of it.
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Fri May 09, 2014 11:54 pm
Comments: So I have no idea where I got 292 from, because I came home, looked at my spreadsheet, and I was supposed to do 5x3 of 255... It wasn't a miscalculation with the kilos, I just legitimately thought I had read 292 on my spreadsheet. Oh well, I[ll consider it a victory since I got through it. I slowed down a bit at the end, but Chris' cues helped me concentrate on trying to speed it up out of the hole.
I'll finish off the rest of what I was supposed to do today at Magni tomorrow.
Other than that, I helped out Karl today. He favors the narrower high bar squat. Pretty much the opposite of what I do... He came in squatting pretty sloppy, but putting some small plates under his heels made it night and day compared to how he was squatting. If he just remembers his cues and focuses on volume he can build strength pretty quickly
Guest Guest
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Sat May 10, 2014 12:00 am
What the hell is with all them funny numbers? You using them kee-los?
We already got one commie President, and that's enough! THANKS AGAIN OBAMA
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Sat May 10, 2014 12:17 am
No my American friend, I actually had to convert them to the CORRECT measuring system of pounds, because those damn your-a-peein's don't know how to count their numbers the RIGHT way.
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Sun May 11, 2014 4:43 pm
05/10/14
Sheiko Week 2 Day 3 (finishing up incomplete workout + accesory)
Band Pulldowns: 2x12 w/ orange band 3x12 w/ orange+black band 1x12 w/ orange band
Glute-ham Raises: 4x8
Comments: Good workout. I think I'm gonna start adding more days in between the prescribed workouts. I take over 2 hours usually and normally don't get to all the accessory work, so I may just leave the core workouts the same, and then leave accessory work for the days in between. All in all, I just need to get these finals out of the way cause it's been wreckin mah groove.
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Mon May 12, 2014 9:26 pm
Comments: Squats felt bleh. I'll chalk it up to just an off day. I just cannot build speed out of the hole. The weight wasn't necessarily heavy, I just can't explode. I never feel like I'm coming up fast enough.
Bench was easy peasy. This felt reallll nice like. I stopped myself from using heavier weights, which I easily could have, in an effort to stick closer to the sheiko template.
Chris Anderson Anabolic Furnace
Posts : 3023 Join date : 2011-11-02 Age : 31 Location : The City of Iowa
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Mon May 12, 2014 9:39 pm
I think that working on speeding up your eccentric will help a lot. On the reps that I watched, whenever you descended faster, your speed got better. Also, you're probably like me, in that I never feel fast enough, but video shows the weights flying up. Build that confidence dropping into the hole and let the tension increase as the rep goes on.
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Wed May 14, 2014 9:51 pm
Comments: Tried my first AMRAP on bench today. Went pretty well, I expected to get 5 or 6 reps, and managed to push through to 7. I really wanna incorporate more rep maxes into my training.
Deadlift: Still feels bleh. Not fast enough. I'm not gonna tweak much, if anything, with it until I'm 100% healed from my rib and can wear a belt again.
Slingshot bench: Felt really good. Have to build up some consistency. Gotta really concentrate on form and coming down the exact same way every time. By the end of it I was feeling more and more comfortable. This is something that will take time to fully ingrain in my head.
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Mon May 19, 2014 10:19 pm
Comments: Didn't really stick to Sheiko today, because it calls for a deload to max out on saturday. I'm gonna grind my weaknesses hard this week, then deload next week so I can hopefully PR all my lifts at 22nd St Barbell next Saturday.
Bench is feeling awesome. I just like to remind myself that I couldn't hit 215 at the intramural meet the end of February and I just did 4 sets of doubles at 225 with relatively little problem or grinding. FUCK YEAH. I just need to really focus on consistency and keeping the bar path the same every time.
Also, I'm gonna hit accessory work A LOT more. It's something I've been lacking. Just posting this so I can hold myself accountable and don't get lazy.
Keosawa American-Record Holder
Posts : 3174 Join date : 2011-10-30 Age : 37
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Mon May 19, 2014 11:55 pm
SSchwartsenator wrote:
Also, I'm gonna hit accessory work A LOT more. It's something I've been lacking. Just posting this so I can hold myself accountable and don't get lazy.
Dude, I hear you--sometimes when I push the main-movement stuff real hard, I really start neglecting everything else. It's hard sometimes not to just shut it down after you're finished your primary lift for the day.
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Wed May 21, 2014 1:51 pm
Keosawa wrote:
SSchwartsenator wrote:
Also, I'm gonna hit accessory work A LOT more. It's something I've been lacking. Just posting this so I can hold myself accountable and don't get lazy.
Dude, I hear you--sometimes when I push the main-movement stuff real hard, I really start neglecting everything else. It's hard sometimes not to just shut it down after you're finished your primary lift for the day.
Yup, that's exactly how it is, but I've been neglecting my weaknesses. I've gotta work on the little things too.
Rows fo da hoes
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Wed May 21, 2014 2:00 pm
Comments: FUCKING DEADLIFTS. Not only am I not progressing on deadlifts, I'm actually taking steps backwards. I wanted to work up to sets of doubles at 365, but struggle with the first and couldn't hit anything but singles at that weight. Today was the first day I could put on a belt while deadlifting, I hoped that would have helped me out A LITTLE, but it didn't do jack shit. Deadlifts can go jump off a cliff right now.
I guess I should write something positive at least... I learned how to properly do good mornings, and holy cow those are a lot harder than I imagined. Next on the list to learn how to properly do is Glute-Ham Raises.
Chris Anderson Anabolic Furnace
Posts : 3023 Join date : 2011-11-02 Age : 31 Location : The City of Iowa
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Wed May 21, 2014 2:09 pm
SSchwartsenator wrote:
2x 75 yard drags w/90lbs going backwards
I'm actually taking steps backwards.
literally
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Wed May 21, 2014 2:52 pm
Chris Anderson wrote:
SSchwartsenator wrote:
2x 75 yard drags w/90lbs going backwards
I'm actually taking steps backwards.
literally
SSchwartsenator Admin
Posts : 511 Join date : 2014-02-12 Age : 32 Location : Curlin' in yo squat rack
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Thu May 22, 2014 5:02 pm
miserable attempts at power cleans: 1x5 @ 95 1x5 @ 145 1x5 @ 175
Attemped to Clean and Jerk 185. that failed horribly.
Comments: Not much to say about today. Had to fit a quick bench session in before the blackhawks game. Really focused on form and staying tight throughout the pauses. Everything after bench was just fucking around.
LTomasiello Class II
Posts : 235 Join date : 2013-10-29 Age : 28
Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log Thu May 22, 2014 5:50 pm
A miserable attempt is better than no attempt... so props to you sir. Now I really wish I could have witnessed that clean and jerk attempt.
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Subject: Re: Gains on gains on gains: Sam's Training Log