Beyond 1400: Kyle's Road to RUM VIII

The bamboo bar is just a PVC pipe! I can film a set and show you how I set it up--it's a petty good substitute.

And I've got some plans for the next few months that should be fun. After that, my supplemental situation may or may not (finally) change for RUM. My bodyweight's getting low enough to warrant the change while staying at 148. If that happens, I really do believe I'm getting into a position where I could challenge for the WR. Stay tuned.

I think you've said this before. It'll be interesting to see what happens if you follow through.

Dubya wrote:

I think you've said this before. It'll be interesting to see what happens if you follow through.

Yeah--I've been hot-and-cold with the idea for about the last year or so. I've been able to get a little closer to my weight class recently, which has changed my situation a bit. It is, admittedly, also different being in a gym in which it's not so uncommon.

Don't be surprised though if the story's completely different in a few weeks--that's just how I am with this.

Paused Beltless Squats
315x1
345x1
365x3

Double-Paused Beltless Squats
275x5
295x5
315x5

Paused Bench Press
225x10x3

Front Raises, two sets

Notes: This was probably my best top-to-bottom squat session in a while. My wrapped numbers have been good, but I've felt terribly week in the hole, and now that I'm starting to address it via a lot of bottom-position and close-to-bottom-position training, I'm feeling stronger and more confident. The double-paused squats are actually something I took from Chad Wesley Smith, and they fit my squat strength curve pretty well; the first pause (bottom) is easy to throw my hips out of, but the second one (that "half-squat" position) is where I really struggle. I've seen this a lot on my squat since switching to Oly shoes, and I think these will help me tremendously if I drill them hard for a few weeks.

Otherwise, I just made sure this was a productive session. I went real wide on my bench and added 225x10x3 for some additional volume--that felt OK, and I can tell my shoulders are pretty weak right now. Again, I know that to rebuild those sport-specific traits, I just need to train in a more-or-less specific manner for a training cycle. Each week will probably get better.

Squats w/ wraps
390x4
430x4
470x3
w/ reverse average bands
405x12

Notes: 470x3 again, same as on my birthday (August 2nd). The goal for the day was four, but it just wasn't happening. I definitely felt stronger than I did last week, but I wasn't able to hit all my reps.

Overall, it's small progress--the depth on these was better than in previous weeks, and I do feel like that's a direct result of one week's worth of paused and double-paused squatting. I'm going to keep drilling these real hard in the upcoming weeks, and I hope that I can really develop my weakness by using these movements. I'm training my squat much harder right now, and it's starting to respond. I've been stuck at a 500-520 lb. wrapped squat for the last year and a half, and it's about time I really try to sprint for a good 6-8 weeks and move it forward.

Next week's supposed to be 490x3. It's a tall order, but it's definitely not impossible. I will have to get up in the morning to train with the am crew for that one.

Deadlifts
480x2
500x2
520x2
540x3

Kneeling Squats w/ band around hips
135x25x3

Hip Thrusts w/ chains, two sets

Notes: Currently awake after some vivid nightmares, so I figured I'd log while I'm awake. Today we jumped right into our intense block and worked up to a pretty heavy double--that double ended up being 540, which I stupidly took for a third rep. The lockout was soft so it wasn't *really* 540x3, but close enough. Whatever. It reminds me of what I already know, which is that my lockout constantly needs attention. I'm thinking at this point that just programming some light Dimels twice weekly on my squat/bench days might just be what I need to put myself over the top. Okay, back to bed.

Keosawa wrote:

And I've got some plans for the next few months that should be fun. After that, my supplemental situation may or may not (finally) change for RUM. My bodyweight's getting low enough to warrant the change while staying at 148. If that happens, I really do believe I'm getting into a position where I could challenge for the WR. Stay tuned.

I guess I never really spoke with you about your position on supplementation, or why you have decided to stay away from it up unto this point, but I just assumed that you either didn’t supplement for moral/ethical reasons or you were concerned that you wouldn’t be able to stay at your current weight class. I could definitely see how things could change given the new environment and your recent progress staying closer to competition weight, though. Whatever your reason(s) and decision ultimately is, your accomplishments will mean the same to me either way. Your achievements til now as a drug free lifter are remarkable. Whatever you do though, stay safe. You are more to us than your (already) very impressive total.

That being said, the unwrapped, drug tested world record seems to have your name written on it.

Andy Awad wrote:

Keosawa wrote:

And I've got some plans for the next few months that should be fun. After that, my supplemental situation may or may not (finally) change for RUM. My bodyweight's getting low enough to warrant the change while staying at 148. If that happens, I really do believe I'm getting into a position where I could challenge for the WR. Stay tuned.

I guess I never really spoke with you about your position on supplementation, or why you have decided to stay away from it up unto this point, but I just assumed that you either didn’t supplement for moral/ethical reasons or you were concerned that you wouldn’t be able to stay at your current weight class. I could definitely see how things could change given the new environment and your recent progress staying closer to competition weight, though. Whatever your reason(s) and decision ultimately is, your accomplishments will mean the same to me either way. Your achievements til now as a drug free lifter are remarkable. Whatever you do though, stay safe.  You are more to us than your (already) very impressive total.

That being said, the unwrapped, drug tested world record seems to have your name written on it.

It's never been a moral or ethical thing, though if I were to go down this road, it would effectively end my career in drug-tested competition.

I really appreciated the kind words when I read this a few days ago. And yes, I will stay safe. I think that, as an enhanced lifter, I have a shot at the 1465-lb. unwrapped world record in February. I'm consulting with as many people as I can right now and working on making sure my weight is in a good place. I've heard all sorts of things about the weight that I can expect to gain, but the only way to find out I suppose is to try it. There will be some fluid retention, but I can manage my body-weight through my diet, and I am still a good 3-4 lbs. lighter than I was last RUM.

I'll keep everyone updated on it. My numbers will probably make my decision clear regardless, lol

You wouldn't retain water on dry compounds though right? You would if your main compound is testosterona. Is there a sound reason for test being so common besides the bro science? Guys got huge off dbol only cycles (before the days of enchilada and growth hormonas of course)not my area of expertiese but I have a penchant for the occult

Also doesn't the androgenic side of the drugs yield CNS improvement? So u dont even have to gain LBM to get some benefit. Side effects would be worse on androgens tho

Let me get to a computer so I can set some of this straight. Oh man.

Paused Bench:
230x6
245x5x7

Deadlift
455x1
475x1x2
495x1x2

Notes: Paused benching is slowly but surely getting better. I'm at least starting a bit stronger than when I finished my RUM smolov, so I'm hoping I'll be at ~340 again by the end of this. Deadlifting felt like crap, but I pulled twice last week and went 540x3 on one day and 540x2 and 555x1 on the next (failing rep #2); I reduced the training percentages way down and just focused on getting in quality singles. Jury's still out on whether this intelligent training will work.

Hey Kyle have you ever though about powerlifters who barely make depth using site enhancement oil right above the quad tendon to give the illusion of greater depth? Serious question here.

Dubya wrote:

Hey Kyle have you ever though about powerlifters who barely make depth using site enhancement oil right above the quad tendon to give the illusion of greater depth? Serious question here.

I haven't thought about it, but I mean, it seems like something that someone out there would try. I'm actually surprised there isn't at least one guy out there benching off of a synthol-board. Generally speaking, the sort of people who would be desperate enough to give this a shot just end up making feds that allow them to squat high, so there's a path of less resistance already available. There are other little tricks that people like to use, like tying their knee wraps so that the last end sticks straight up over the knee and makes the point of the knee appear "higher".

Paused Bench:
230x6
260x4x7

Notes: Paused bench is still weak, but it'll turn around quickly. I stopped on the seventh set because I hit a high-exertion set, and for this time around on Jr., I think I will just stop when I start really grinding out reps on a session. The training effect will be lower, but I'm also not about to beat the hell out of my body while I'm working through an intense phase on squat and deadlift. I'll settle for a more modest improvement if I have to.

Keosawa wrote:

like tying their knee wraps so that the last end sticks straight up over the knee and makes the point of the knee appear "higher".

I definitely do this. Why the hell would somebody not use every advantage that they can?

Chris Anderson wrote:

Keosawa wrote:

like tying their knee wraps so that the last end sticks straight up over the knee and makes the point of the knee appear "higher".

I definitely do this. Why the hell would somebody not use every advantage that they can?

I did it too for a time, but then I realized that with my squat style, you can't even see my knees from the side--because the plates are in the way--and I knew I had the ultimate squat depth cheat-code.

How do i attain this

Chris Anderson wrote:

How do i attain this

Three ways I see this happening:

(1) Remove vertebrae from spine (or else reduce relative & absolute torso length somehow)
(2) Move bar further down spine
(3) Move stance in

Brb, doing all three

Chris Anderson wrote:

How do i attain this

/\ /\ \/ \/ < > < > B A (START)

On mobile, cant even

Paused Bench Press
275x3x10

Squats
235x3x5

Notes: I'm about to head out and train, so I'll have to keep this one short and sweet. This was my first 3x10 (or 10x3) day for smolov, and traditionally, these go very poorly. Comparatively speaking, I felt like this was the best of the four times I've run it. The bar-speed on these sets never turned into a horrible grind, and I had good endurance through the session. It was a nice step forward from the previous session, and it should set me up well for subsequent weeks. I came in figuring I wouldn't log all ten sets, but it worked out well. I've got 285x3x10 in two weeks, which will be crazy, but I think it's doable. The starting weight here is also actually higher than I ended pre-RUM (275 versus 260), so that's awesome.

Also, this is the best I've felt physically at this point. Left tie-in's grumpy, but otherwise I'm feeling good. No tendonitis and no shoulder pain right now--my right shoulder was getting a little achy in the middle of the week but is fine now.

Squat didn't feel too explosive, but I got in five sets at ~55% for closely clustered triples and worked a bit on refreshing technique and increasing rate of force development. I kept it short for today's deadlifting but felt ultimately like I got something out of a quick squat run-through. It had been six days since I last squatted so I figured I'd be a bit rusty.