Grant Voshell's Log

gvoshell wrote:

Feb 22, 2013

Went to UI Sports Medicine today have my arm checked out. They did a total of 6 x-rays: 3 in my elbow and 3 in my left shoulder. Doc concluded that I am way too tight throughout my pecs, delts, and subscalpularis. Basically, is recommending that I stretch a minimum of twice a day and especially post-workout, every workout. Total estimated recovery is 4 weeks. Still should be able to compete next Thursday if I keep stretching til then.

Glad to hear you had it checked out. UI Sports Med is a cool place, isn't it? Tons of jerseys from athletes from all over the world from every sport imaginable on the walls and all that. Do you mind sharing specifically what sort of stretching routine you're following? I could probably use some of that myself..

[quote="Logan Joseph"]

gvoshell wrote:

Feb 22, 2013

Glad to hear you had it checked out. UI Sports Med is a cool place, isn't it? Tons of jerseys from athletes from all over the world from every sport imaginable on the walls and all that. Do you mind sharing specifically what sort of stretching routine you're following? I could probably use some of that myself..

Yeah, they were pretty awesome. They get you in, checked out, diagnosed, and out the door pretty quickly. I had 6 x-rays and the doc figured out the problem plus the solution in about 30 minutes. The stretches are pretty common and you have probably seen them before:

1)


2)

Tip: turn your head away from the side you stretching. feel a nice pull in your neck and shoulder

[quote="Logan Joseph"]

gvoshell wrote:

Feb 22, 2013

Glad to hear you had it checked out. UI Sports Med is a cool place, isn't it? Tons of jerseys from athletes from all over the world from every sport imaginable on the walls and all that. Do you mind sharing specifically what sort of stretching routine you're following? I could probably use some of that myself..

Called "the sleeper" in case you want to google it for more info


This one feels great post-workout. It's almost another exercise

Do these 4 about 2+ times a day and after every workout. The more you do them, the faster you "loosen up" obviously. Should not take more than a few days before you start to notice an increase in flexibility.

Feb 25, 2013

Squat:
5x Bar
3x 95,135, 155
2x 185, 205, 205 (~60%)

Not overly impressed with my squat form today. Felt like my knees were buckling in on some of the lighter sets, but I think they went away towards the heavier sets. I also felt like I was not sitting back into the hole enough; it was kind of a mix between low-bar and high-bar so I will practice that tomorrow. In addition, I think I was placing the bar just a little low because it kept sliding down as I was coming up. On the plus side, the speed felt great. Definitely rocketing out.

Bench:
8x Bar
5x 75, 95
3x 135, 155
2x 185, 185 (~70%)

Bench was not too bad. Everything felt pretty well; speed, pause, form. However, the weight felt kind of heavy. Maybe with some more rest tonight, tomorrow will feel a little better.

Feb 26, 2013

Squat:
8x Bar
5x 95
3x 135
2x 175, 175 (50%)

Felt much better today. Definitely made sure to sit in the hole correctly. Speed was great as well as stance. Bar sat in a good spot today because I can feel a little tenderness on the spine of the scapula. Really starting to find a groove/ritual for my grip; apply wrist wraps, index finger on the knuckles, false grip with the bar under the meat of the thumb. Not sure if anyone else does this but in a sense, I try to displace the weight evenly across my hand and press the bar lightly like I am trying to wrap it around my neck.

Bench:
8x Bar
5x 65, 95
3x 135, 135 (50%)

Not much to say. Felt pretty solid: rocketing off my chest, form felt great, keeping my elbows under the bar, and consistent placement on the chest.

Feb 28, 2013 - Intramural Meet

Squat:
5x Bar
3x 95, 135, 155, 205
1x 245, 295
Lifts: 315, 340

315 shot right up. I played pretty conservative to get on the board. I did not think I had 350 so I played 340 and I was still iffy about that but that one shot right up too. One more attempt and I probably would have attempted 355 or 360

Bench:
5x 95
3x 115, 135, 155
1x 185, 215, 225
Lifts: 235, 260 (Failed)

235 came back up pretty quickly. On the 260 attempt, as soon as I started the descent, I knew I was out of the groove and placed the weight too high on my chest and was unable to get my elbows under it. Lesson learned.

Deadlift:
3x 135
2x 225
1x 275, 315, 365
Lifts: 395, 435 (PR +5)

Was debating sumo or conventional but my sumo was flying off of the ground so I did that. 395 came super easily. Was a little hesitant on 435 since it was a new PR but I wanted to hit 1,000 total (need to re-learn math because that would total 1,010 ). Nonetheless I pulled 435 up extremely quickly. Probably could have gone 450. Used Tanner's belt on DL. Might have made some difference, but time will see.

So total was 1010. Sumo I think is my official stance for DL. Probably had another 50-75 pounds left on the platform which I plan to get in April. Last, I start Madcow on Monday using these numbers to get ready for the meet in April

Great meet man, congrats on the PR.

Seth wrote:

Great meet man, congrats on the PR.

Thanks man. Also, thanks for be the head judge/spotter. It's kind of nice to have someone right in front of you give you that motivation and cheer you on while you lift your heavier attempts. Btw, I was wondering where you and/or Tanner bought your belts and do you recommend 10 or 13mm?

No problem, I enjoyed it. I ordered mine from elitefts. Here is a link http://www.flexcart.com/members/elitefts/default.asp?m=PD&cid=114&pid=3495

Mine is 13 mm so its all I really know, but it works great for me.

March 1, 2013

Squat:
Warm-Up Stuff..
5x 145, 180, 215, 255
3x 295
8x 215

Bench:
More Warm-Up Stuff..
5x 105, 135, 155, 190
3x 215
8x 155

Bent Over Row:
Even More Warm-Up Stuff..
5x 80, 100, 125, 140
3x 165
8x 125

Did this workout to loosen up from yesterday and to get ready for Madcow on Monday. Top set of squat kind hurt my arm a little, but felt better when I placed my hands further apart on the 8-set and eventually went away with bench. Extremely slow workout but I just took my time to get the reps in and loosen up today.

March 3, 2012

Front Squat:
8x Bar
5x 95, 135, 155, 175

Floor Press (paused):
5x Bar, 95, 115, 135, 155

Good Morning:
2x15 Bar

Kept it pretty light today because I felt tight this weekend and I wanted to loosen up before starting Madcow tomorrow. After doing the front squat, I feel like I need to develop more strength in my hamstrings. Kyle recommended using my squat stance for my Good Mornings and to keep my chest up. Definitely felt a good stretch in my posterior chain so I will incorporate those into my routine for assistance.

March 4, 2013

Week 1-Monday

Squat:
Warm-Up
5x 145, 180, 215, 255, 290

Bench:
Warm-Up
5x 105, 130, 160, 185, 215

Row:
5x 80, 100, 120, 140, 160

Weighted Hypers: 2x10x BW+25
Weighted Sit-Ups: 4x10x BW+25

First day of Madcow. Weights felt a little heavy. Might have not allowed my muscles to recover well enough + have not done this much volume in a few weeks. For bench, I am doing a paused bench and I calculated my numbers from my touch-and-go so I will probably drop that about 5-10lbs.

March 6, 2013

Week 1-Wed

Squat:
Warm-Up
5x 145, 180, 215, 215

Incline Bench:
Warm-Up
5x 95, 115, 135, 155

Deadlift:
Warm-Up
5x 230, 275, 320, 370

Squat and bench both felt pretty solid. The last set of DL was difficult. I was getting gassed so I would pause for a second or two between each rep. Side note: my hamstrings have been spazzing out today; not in a a painful way but they felt tired/tight. Maybe that made a difference. Also, going to try and bring a belt now for my top set of squats and DLs.

Do you do any glute-ham raises? They're excellent for hamstring conditioning.

KKeough wrote:

Do you do any glute-ham raises? They're excellent for hamstring conditioning.

I usually do weighted hypers. I have never really done those before. Do you just try to resist your body from falling to parallel? How many sets and reps do you do?

gvoshell wrote:

KKeough wrote:

Do you do any glute-ham raises? They're excellent for hamstring conditioning.

I usually do weighted hypers. I have never really done those before. Do you just try to resist your body from falling to parallel? How many sets and reps do you do?

Next time you're there, I will show you.

March 8, 2013

Week 1-Friday

Squat
5x 145, 180, 215, 255
3x 300
8x 215

Bench
5x 100, 125, 150, 180
3x 210
8x 150

Row
5x 80, 100, 120, 140
3x 165
8x 120

3x8 BB Curls (In Kevin's Squat Rack)
3x8 Tri Ext
3x5 Ring Dips

Terrible squat and bench day. Weight felt super heavy throughout squat until I realized halfway through my last set that I was on my toes and not my heels. Bench, I was forgetting to squeeze the bar and use my lats. Managed to get the weight up and I am glad it's over with.

March 10, 2013

Week 2-Day 1

Squat:
5x 150, 185, 225, 260, 300

Bench:
5x 105, 130, 155, 185, 210

Bent-Row:
5x 80, 100, 125, 145, 165

Bottom-Out-Squat:
3x3 205

Squat felt a little better today. Definitely have to remember to stay back on my heels. The BOS were for creating some speed coming out of the hole and to drive from my heels. Bench was a little difficult, the last set took some determination but I kind of rushed through all of the sets for no reason so I was a little fatigued. Last, I have NOT been on pre-workout since starting madcow. I am hoping this will pay off towards the end of the cycle when I decide to go back on.

March 12, 2013

Squat:
5x 150, 185, 225, 225

Incline Bench:
5x 100, 120, 140, 160

Deadlift:
5x 235, 285, 330, 380

Face-Pulls
External Rotations

Found my camera recently so I took it and recorded my squats and deadlift. As I suspected, on squats I lean forward as I go up. Deadlift, I was a little shocked to find out I send my butt running for the hills, especially when I start fatiguing. I could not quite lock out the last 2 reps for 380 because I could feel the bar slipping through my fingers and could not hold on any longer. I am thinking of dropping Madcow at this point because I am practically dropping everything. It feels like my CNS is sputtering out, which is unfortunate timing.

Here is my first video. Little choppy but do not be bashful with comments:

Did you know you have a tendency to over-extend your hips forward when you initiate the eccentric on your squats? You "thrust" forward slightly, which just creates more lateral distance for your hips to have to travel as you descend.

As far as the deadlifts go, you just suffer from the same strength imbalance that a lot of newer sumo pullers suffer from. Weaknesses in your posterior chain cause you to round over at the start, raise your hips first, and have your shoulders end up over the bar. It's just something that takes a considerable amount of time to iron out; the sumo pullers who maintain technique the best with near-max weights are the ones who have been training it for years.

And as far as Madcow goes, I can't comment on whether you should keep it or not, but I'd make sure you make that decision after at least a 24-hour break from a training session.

KKeough wrote:

Did you know you have a tendency to over-extend your hips forward when you initiate the eccentric on your squats? You "thrust" forward slightly, which just creates more lateral distance for your hips to have to travel as you descend.

As far as the deadlifts go, you just suffer from the same strength imbalance that a lot of newer sumo pullers suffer from. Weaknesses in your posterior chain cause you to round over at the start, raise your hips first, and have your shoulders end up over the bar. It's just something that takes a considerable amount of time to iron out; the sumo pullers who maintain technique the best with near-max weights are the ones who have been training it for years.

And as far as Madcow goes, I can't comment on whether you should keep it or not, but I'd make sure you make that decision after at least a 24-hour break from a training session.

Squat: I have always done that for some reason. I am not sure why though but it's a habit I should break

Deadlift: I did notice my hips shot up first causing me to lean over the bar and possibly cause me to tilt my head up when I initiate the lift. Do you just recommend things that initiate hams, glutes, back such as front squats, GHRs, etc? What are some things I could do to fix that?

Madcow: I have been thinking about doing 5x3 instead of 5x5. This way I am still lifting heavy but the volume will not kill me. I also thought of increasing the interval percentage from 12.5% to maybe 15%

March 14, 2013- Happy Pi Day and Happy National Nap Day everyone

Squat:
Warm-Up
1x 275, 315, 335 (fail), 335 - Inzer Iron-Z knee wraps
1x 335 (Fail), 335, 315 - EFS Super Heavy wraps

Front Squat:
3x5 135

Today was strictly me trying out knee wraps. So before I get started, I would like to thank Kyle for letting me borrow both of these as well as showing me how to wrap. Definitely a lot different than I expected. Iron-Z really tore up my knees but I did get a lot of stretch out of them which I did like. EFS were extremely stiff and I really had to put some crank on them but I got a nice rebound out of them. I started playing around with some different wrapping styles with the EFS wraps. I tried Kyles way first then tried the coil with an "X" on top. Really had to crank for the "X" to get it all the way around. I will try some different styles maybe this weekend or next week. Perhaps the Nichols style or the sub "X" style.

Also, since Madcow 5x5 is just slowly wearing me down, especially my CNS, I think I am going to do 5x3 until about 2 weeks out instead. At that time, I will probably start going into technique and doing singles.

Okay, next time I see you, I'll show you a GHR. I keep forgetting.

And wraps are a pain in the ass. You really do have to learn them and adjust your technique to suit them, and some are better at using them than others. But yeah, it's hard to instantly throw them on and see your numbers shoot up.