Quagmire911 Lifting Journal

[Quagmire911]

Thursday

A not bad workout today, although I really only maintained. Here it is:

Oh press 52.5x3 60x3 67.5kgx4- Had a hard time keeping steady today. I thought this equalled my PR, but I did 70x4 a few weeks ago. Not bad though.

Deadlift 122.5x3 137.5x3 155kgx7- This equals my PR, and what I did on the first phase. I thought I wasn't going to get 7, but I was determined to at least equal what I had done last time. Not bad.

Dipsx10x8- Still getting to grips with these. Think I went a little low, my left shoulder felt slighlty strained at the bottom of the movement.

Leg press 150x10 175x10 200kgx12 (440lbs) PR- I guess this is good, but a leg press PR just isn't the same.

Bi curls 40kgx6 35kgx8 15-20sx3- Meh.

That was all. Was too fuc*ed to do cardio so I went on home. Will do some HIIT running tommorow.

Got drunk last night, not too much, but enough. I am mostly just maintaining and occasionally making PR's. The combination of drinking and keeping the weight down would do that I suppose. Something will give at some point, hopefully the drinking. At least I don't look like a tubby fuc*.

Well that's it for today, until next time...

Quagmire

 

[Fuglydude]

You ATG squats are coming along very nicely... 8 reps w/ around 240 is solid! How wide of a stance are you using for these? Or do you change it up?

Keep it up man.

 

[Quagmire911]

Thanks man.

I'd reckon my stance is around 1.5x shoulder width. I've tried different widths in the past, and this seems to be most comfortable.

On another note, I am quite sore today from yesterday's workout. I can't be arsed going to the gym today either, I'll maybe go tommorow. I think yesterday I might have pushed a bit much. I pretty much maxed out on the deads which I don't think I can handle every workout, especially when drinking, and with lower calories.

 

[Quagmire911]

Monday

Cardio today. Really tired for some reason. Here it is:

HIIT running 20 minutes 3.5-12.5mphx5x45s- Up to 12.5 for 45s then back to walking for 2-3 minutes.

Then went to the sauna for a while. That is all, until tommorow...

Quagmire

 

[Quagmire911]

Tuesday

Felt tired again today when I got up, ended up going back to bed. Got up and had a big cup of coffee, and I seemed better when I hit the weights. Pretty decent session, here it is:

Bench 75x5 82.5x3 92.5kgx3- I think my PR here is 4. But I didn't have a spotter, and I'm trying to leave a little in the tank. This still doesn't feel great. I'm going to give this another phase and then evaluate. The fastest my bench ever moved was when I did a 1x3, 1x10, so I think I might need higher reps on bench.

A2G Squats 92.5x5 105x3 117.5kgx4 (259lbs) PR- This felt good. I feel like I am finally getting somewhere with squats. They are making the fastest progress by far at the moment.

Bench 60kg 3x10- This was almost like speed work, quite easy. 2mins between sets.

Squats 80kg 3x10- This was really hard on the heart. 2mins between sets.

And that was all. It looks like a 300+ a2g squat should be about doable. I've done 308 to 1inch below, but I'll feel better with it deep.

Well not much else to say. Need to cut back on the cheat meals, I'm not getting fatter but its stopping me losing the last few pounds. Anyway that is all for today, until next time...

Quagmire

 

[kbear0101]

Hope you enjoyed your vacation…

On the cheat meals, think I have only had 2 this month. I don’t crave junk food or fast food anymore. This helps me anyway…Try to keep this stuff at home at all times

-I always have hardboiled eggs in the fridge

- Bought a bunch of Ball Park franks (turkey hot dogs)…0g fat 6g protein 45 cal..low carbs..high sodium (not sure if you can get these in the UK wherever you live)

-low fat string cheese

-fruit cups from the store..usually mandarin oranges…18g sugar in the ones I bought but most of it is in the syrup (I hope so anyway…better than fast food though if your craving something sweet)

-met-rx 100g protein bars/ meal replacement bars

-beef jerky

-pistachios, almonds

-soy crisps (found some that are pretty good I eat those instead of potato chips)

- I don’t like pudding or yogurt but you could find some low fat/sugar ones you like


Could type this list all day…I am sure you are aware of all this stuff just stuff…just throwing some ideas for foods to keep around the house incase you get the munchies

Take care
-

 

[Quagmire911]

Beef jerkey is yummy, unfortunately the kind I have access to is loaded with sugar etc.

It's not really cheat snacks I have. I will have some ice cream after my meal for example. This way with the protein in there it blunts the insulin response to all the sugar. I usually have it post workout as well, when the muscles are crying out for nutrients. Hence no fat gain.

I think the real issue is I'm not controlling portion sizes as much and I've only been doing cardio twice a week for a few weeks now. I think that's enough, but only if I tighten up the diet. One or the other at least. Really both and no drinking, but hey I'm not a saint.

Workout to follow.

 

[Quagmire911]

Thursday

Lower body is going great the last few weeks. Upperbody isn't doing shi*. I'm not really getting as psyched for the upperbody work, cause I don't want to give it everything and drain myself for the lower body work. I don't think that is the issue though, something just feels off. Here it is:

Overhead press 57.5x5 65x3 72.5kgx3 (160lbs)- This is 2.5kg off of my PR. The last rep was a grinder and very hard. Maybe the 6-7lbs weight loss did something here, who knows.

Deadlifts 132.5x5 150x3 167.5kgx4 (369lbs) PR- This was great. I felt really strong on these today, same as with squats the otherday. My legs were actually quite sore from Tuesday, but I was determined to PR here. 3 reps would have done it. I've got a lot of power from the floor at the moment, locking out is where the weakness is. I think I might have made 5, 4 was not bad from the floor, but pretty hard to lockout. I didn't want to completely kill myself trying it, trying to leave a little in the tank. This is just over 2x bw. Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQsNcGbouqE

Chinups +2.5kgx5
+5kgx5x5- These felt a lot better than a few weeks ago. The bicep work over the last few weeks seems to be helping. I also focused on my abs and keeping really tight which seemed to help.

Leg press 150x5 175x5 210kgx16 (462lbs) PR- Pretty pleased with this. Will throw another 10kg on next time.

Bi curls Ez bar+27.5kgx7 15-20sx3- The full bars were taken so I just used the ez, not sure how much it weighs.

And that was all. So lower body is doing well, upper not so well. I'll give 5/3/1 another round with upper and see how it goes and then re-evaluate. Bw was about 183lbs this morning and waist was about the same at 35.25".

I just looked back on the first log entry for deads on the 31/3/07 and I did 122.5kgx5 which is 270lbsx5. So today's 369x4 is just about 100lbs on my 5rm. There's been ups and downs and I haven't done everything as I should have, so I'm pretty pleased with that. Onwards and up.

I intend to do some HIIT running tommorow, hopefully my legs will let me. Until next time...

Quagmire

 

[Drum&Bass]

you look strong on the dead lift video.

Lower your hips and use more of a deep squatting stance, take your time when you setup for your pull every time you started the lift your back was in a less than optimal position.

I always tell my clients you know your ready when your hamstrings and lower back feel very uncomfortable from keeping a tightly flexed position before pulling

I recommend against plowing through reps on the deadlift.
Put some more emphasis on one arm DB rows.

 

[Quagmire911]

Thanks for the input.

I'm inclined to agree on the deadlift, but they did feel good. My scapula's are above the bar at least, but I agree that my back could probably be in a better position starting out with the legs a little lower. I prefer pulling sumo cause I can get into a better position with my legs and back, but conventional has been feeling better recently.

I haven't forgotten about one arm rows either, but I really want to get these weighted chins up.

Quagmire

 

[Fuglydude]

I'm gonna agree with DnB... you looked strong, but your back position was kinda iffy. You could lift considerably more with better form.

Your legs are progressing well, and you have good squat numbers. Get into a deep squat stance and push with your heels first to clear the weight off the ground before your lower back comes into the picture. Getting the bar off the ground is the toughest part. If you're feeling strong at this then you have a lot going for you and should see great progress in deads in the next little bit.

Keep it up man... Nice work gaining 100 lbs on your deads!

Regarding the weighted chins... try using sternum chin ups alternately with weighted chins. They're great for developing explosive pulling power... thanx to DnB for suggesting them to me.

How many bodyweight chins can you normally do when you're fresh?

 

[Quagmire911]

I don't usually do chins fresh, so I don't really know how many I could manage. I'd think around 10. I'm determined to bring them up though, and I really think that will help with closing in on a 500 dead.

I'm actually starting adding in some bodyweight stuff like handstands/l-seats, I find that stuff pretty cool. I want to work up to a one arm chin as well. This guy on www.beastskills.com does s*** like that.

 

[Fuglydude]

Have you thought about alternating your deads with the chins?

I alternate deads w/ dips and I notice that my lower back feels a lot better from this. I also notice I can handle a lot more volume than just doing an exercise for x number of sets straight through.

With deads/dips you're arguably working some antagonistic muscle groups. Also I do weight dips, and having 100+ lbs having off your waist/lower back really helps to stretch out your lower back in between sets of deads.

I'm a strong proponent of this method. I've suggested to a couple of my buddies and they said they liked it as well. So, I'm gonna suggest it to you as well!

I'm pretty sure you can do 385 x 5 quite easily once your form gets a little cleaner.

 

[Quagmire911]

Monday

Some cardio and technique work today. Here it is:

HIIT running Time 16mins 3.5-12.5mph- Up to 12.5mph 5 times for 45s, then down to 3.5mph for 2 mins. Takes the machine 15s to get up and dowm from 12.5.

Did some technique work on the deadlifts. I'm cautious of keeping my scapulas over the bar, but I can improve my back angle and lower my legs a bit. Should have taken videos sooner. I also did a little sumo work. We'll see what happens next time I go heavy.

Quagmire

PS- Fuglydude, I'll think about that in the future, but I'm really trying to stick to this 5/3/1 as it is, thanks though.

 

[Quagmire911]

Tuesday

Pretty good session today. Here it is:

Bench 65x5 75x5 85kgx6- I got this last cycle. I could maybe have got one more. It's strange though, I feel stronger than this, but I feel slow in the lift. I think its time for a video, maybe theres a form issue I'm missing. Forgot batteries today though.

Downset 70kgx13

A2G squats 87.5x5 97.5x5 110kgx8 (242lbs) PR- Pretty happy with this. Squats are doing well.

Leg press 200kgx21 (440lbs) PR- This took pretty much everything I had. I was going to do a squat downset, but my lower back already felt a little strained so I decided on this instead. On the last few reps it felt the tendons were going to rip and stuff. The last one was a grinder. Not done a 20+ set in a while, it was fun. My legs were like jelly for half an hour and still aren't right, time to eat though. Felt kind of sick for the first half hour as well and my heart rate was up a bit. Getting better now though

Well that was all. I've got my eye on 300x5 for the squats. Anyway, until next time...

Quagmire

 

[kbear0101]

Just curious how long you have been doing the 5/3/1? And have you gotten any results?

 

[kickureface]

hey quag did you get injured? i remember your numbers being higher

im doing 531 too, and from the looks of your last sets, you chose too high a starting weight which might slow down progress. did you make sure to take 90% of your 1rm?

 

[Quagmire911]

Kbear: I ran it in the first half of the year after I had some time off and my strength came back very fast, although I didn't lose much. I started it again a month or so ago and am now kind of on my third phase but the holiday a few weeks back messed the weeks up a bit, but I just played around with it and it worked. My lower work is progressing and my upper is being stubborn. But I'll crack it. You have to keep in mind, I get drunk three nights a week at the moment, which will have an impact.

Kick: I don't know how far back you are talking. My lower work is now at all time highs although its complicated. I had some time off at the start of the year and was drinking a lot, 5 nights a week usually and getting drunk. Technically I have squatted more, but that wasn't ass to grass and my form was messed up. I've now done 117.5kgx4 a2g, I did do 122.5kgx5 with the messed up form and just below parallel. So I'm counting the a2g numbers. Deads you can't cheat so there at a high. Benching I was taking my ass off the bench and got to 115kgx1, but I can do 105kgx1 with the ass on the bench which is considered legit form, and I'm using the legit numbers.

Progress has been slow if at all over the last year. With the time off, the drinking, I count myself lucky to be where I'm at. As I say above, I'm still getting drunk 3 nights, so who knows how that will affect things. Another problem I've had is not regulating the intensity and trying to go to hard, and I don't know what effect that has had.

The numbers and percents I've used are fine, I assure you. 90% of 1rm, and then 5/10lbs per cycle on the max. Lower is doing well, upper is licking balls, but like I say above, drinking will hamper progress. This isn't an excuse either, just the truth.

Quagmire

 

[EFFORT]

Wow your journal is a beast quag, way to stay consistent with posting. Have you had any contact with Warboss this year?

 

[Quagmire911]

I've talked to him at least once this year, I think that was all. He was very busy, had a lot on the go.