Quagmire911 Lifting Journal

[Quagmire911]

Thursday

Got another cold at the end of last week, bugger. I decided to do the sensible thing and drop all gym work. Low and behold it has gone away a lot faster than usual, who would have thought? Usually I go in, maybe lower the volume a bit and drag it out I think. Anyway, here is today's:

Db oh press 26kgx3x3
28kgx3
26kgx3
24kgx3x3

Chins BWx3 +5kgx3x3x3
Bwx3x3

Deads 140kgx2x2x2
130kgx2x2
120kgx2

Leg press 230kgx5 250kgx5 (550lbs) PR- Had more in me.

Kneeling rolloutsx5- Still not fully healed from last Friday.

External rotations 16kgDBx6 x6/4- Only got 4 with left arm on second set.

Bi curls 40kgx5x5- Bit heavy for the second set.

And that was all. Not a normal workout at all. I've been reading a lot this week and have become very interested in Christian Thibadeau's stuff. He has this article: http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_...le_anaconda/anaconda_protocol#the-perfect-rep

I'll not get into it, but I think I am going to try it for a while. The basic premise is that you shouldn't be killing yourself in the gym, grinding out reps all the time, especially on the big exercises. This makes sense to me. Today was only really testing the water with the method, it will take a few workouts to fully get to know what he is on about. It isn't hokis pokis though.

I've also been doing some reading on amino acids. I've been taking 5 htp for a few days and I took tyrosine this morning and feel great. This is going to be a regular thing. It is a piece of the puzzle that has been missing for me.

My waist was still 33.5-33.75". My weight was actually at 175.2lbs this morning, my lowest since 2008. My 4 upper abs are pretty much always there in good lighting. I'd say I stuggle with the umbilical region, and Poliquin says this is to do with cortisol issues which I definitely have been having over the last year or two. I don't know if this is bs or not. Regardless I intend to have better pre-peri-pwo protocol's in place which can only help with strength and will help with recovery/cortisol. Regardless, that will work or losing a touch more fat will. It is strange how that happens though. I did intervals 4 days last week and nothing happens, then over the weekend period is when the weight drops. Maybe retaining less water due to skipping Monday's workout. Who knows. I'll be back in the 180's soon though, just need to get this last bit of fat off.

Anyway that was turning into a novel, so I'll leave it there. Until tommorow...

Quagmire

 

[Fuglydude]

Can you explain the modality for your 140 kg deadlift? Are you doing 2 reps, then re-setting, doing 2 more, etc?

I don't mean to preach, but I'm really gonna push for you to restrict alcohol intake if you're serious about getting lean. Unfortunately for most of us, alcohol and abs just don't mix. The only time I drink now is before stagettes, and by that time I've already cut a fair bit of weight. I notice I feel like absolute ass the next day as I frequently drink on an empty stomach, while I'm dehydrated.

If you're gonna have a vice, maybe smoke weed after training. This will contribute to your appetite post training. Make sure you have lotsa good food around your house!

Otherwise keep it up! Nice leg presses... Do you find your legs are growing at all because of them?

 

[Quagmire911]

In the article he talks about the max force point and bar speed. His method is basically using compensatory accelaration, which I have heard a lot about. I know Benni trains this way as does Bolton. Say your max is 200kgx1, you can rep 180kgx3. Instead you do 160kgx3 but act like 200 is on the bar. You also do more sets, say 4-8. It is actually what I have kind of been doing on the deadlift, but without the "auto-regulation" he talks about and not really paying attention to bar speed. It also ties in with prilipin's table, but he talks about the differences that occur at different levels of advancement.

I don't fully understand everything yet, I'm reading up on what he says about it. I actually think I may have gone a little light today. Basically though have you ever been working out, added weight, and that heavier set is actually easier than the lighter sets before it? I know I have. This is his aim, to get to that point every time you train. I did this a couple of week's ago with 155. I did 8 sets. Set 5-6 was by far the easiest. I've done it on max efffort bench as well. I press and it is like I am pressing the bar. This is the activation you are looking for.

Thib actually likes 5/3/1 for this reason. And Wendler has stated it before, you don't need to train with weights at your maximum or say a 5rm or whatever to get stronger. Enought on that for now though.

I've actually not drank in two weeks again. I had that 6 weeks off and only drank 3 times around new year and decided to drink less again. Right now I'm taking time off completely. I know I can drink say once a week if I'm already lean ( as long as I don't eat during), but getting really lean is probably a different story. I've actually got this friend that is ripped, you wouldn't believe his diet. No cardio either, it's insane.

My legs have always been large so it is hard to tell if they grow, especially cause I'm not putting on weight right now. I did notice a difference in them when I started squatting again and took it from around 115kgx5 to 137.5kgx5.

Quagmire

 

[Quagmire911]

Friday

Cardio at home:

Db swings 20-25lb dumbbellx15xeach arm+ 15 goblet squats- Did this 5 times over a 20 minute period. The squats really sucked. I think they are goblet squats. Regardless, I held the DB out in front of me and did a front squat. It sucked.

Messing around with some gay fly movement as well, my pecs suck. Apparently the pec deck is actually good for this. I might take a look at shelby starnes log and see what moves he does for it.

I'm really thinking about this next phase I'll move into shortly, when I plan on putting on some weight. It will be 8-12 weeks I reckon, leaving some time before summer to clean up any excess gained. But I plan on doing it to the T. I really need to find some money, I want to do some EAA's, especially around workouts but preferably everday. I'll need to get some whey as well. I've actually got some leucine and creatine on the way.

Need to get back in the 180's, I feel small Damn it, I've been infected by WBA's nonsense.

Quagmire

 

[Quagmire911]

Monday

An ok workout. Here it is:

Bench 100kgx1 110kgx0- I wanted to try it, but it was pretty stupid considering I was off last week with a cold. 100kg went up pretty well. Soon.

Squat 100x3 110x3 120kgx3- My strength is way down here, probably because it has been a month or so since I did them properly. I had more there today but it was still hard. Going to add 5kg for a couple of weeks I think and get it back up.

Skullcrushers Ez+20kgx6 +30kgx5- These felt pretty good today, I think I'll do them more.

Leg press 260kgx5 275kgx5 (605lbs) PR- Cool, into the 600's Still had a little more there.

And that was all. Not much else to report. Until next time...

Quagmire

 

[Quagmire911]

Tuesday

Cardio:

Treadmill 12.5mph 5x45s
S.Bike 10 minutes HR 145

Quagmire

 

[Quagmire911]

Wednesday

Had to workout today:

Db oh press 20x5 26x5 30kgx5- Had a few more.

Push press 50kgx15- Hard cardio wise. Will use more weight next time.

Chins BWx5 +10kgx5 Bwx10

Deads 125x5 135x5 145kgx8 (319lbs)- The second set was pretty easy. The last rep on the last set was quite hard, but I was going faster than I usually do and resting less between reps.

Rack pulls (mid-knee) 140kgx5x5- Slow and akward to get going, fast once I did.

Bi curls 35kgx10x8

External rotations DB 16kgx5- Will go down in weight next time.

Kneeling rolloutsx10

And that was it. Weight was 178lbs the other day and waist was still 33.5-33.75". That's it for today...

Quagmire

 

[Quagmire911]

Friday

Cardio:

Treadmill 12.5mph 45sx5
S.Bike 10 minutes HR 150

Weight was 178-179, waist still 33.5-33.75". That's it for this week, until next...

Quagmire

 

[Fuglydude]

Do you find the rack pulls help w/ your deads? I've heard of lots of guys using them, but I've never quite figured out a way to incorporate them into my routine.

I think you should starting more weight on those weighted pull ups... I can almost garauntee that you can get 6-8 reps w/ 15 kg on a day where you're fresh.

 

[Quagmire911]

I wouldn't say I've done them consistently enough to see a difference, so I can't really say yes or no. I think I might prefer heavy DB rows with a bit more hip involvement ala Kroc syle.

With the chins I didn't do them heavy for a few weeks and they dropped a little, should be better tommorow.

Forgot to mention I did 2x10 hip adduction/abduction on Friday after the cardio. I maxed out the machines, I think it is 70kg. I just need to keep doing this to keep them involved. It isn't much but it makes quite a difference.

Raring to go tommorow...

Quagmire

 

[CarlitosWay]

Do you find the rack pulls help w/ your deads? I've heard of lots of guys using them, but I've never quite figured out a way to incorporate them into my routine.

I think you should starting more weight on those weighted pull ups... I can almost garauntee that you can get 6-8 reps w/ 15 kg on a day where you're fresh.

Rack deads help if you have problems locking out mid-way or at the top portion. So you have to set up the pins to where you have a problem. Yet Matt Kroc has also sworn by heavy ass db rows for bringing up his dead lift a lot to. Issues off the floor look into deficit deadlifts/speed work ala west side.

Things like front squats, hyperextensions, glute ham raises, reverse hypers, stiff legged deadlifts, leg curls. Are going to help build up you're dead lift also.

 

[Jitterbug]

Do you find the rack pulls help w/ your deads? I've heard of lots of guys using them, but I've never quite figured out a way to incorporate them into my routine.

I'm doing some research on this topic.

Have a read:


http://forum.dutchbodybuilding.com/f114/a-different-approach-to-improving-the-deadlift-135300/

http://www.columbusweightlifting.org/forum/index.php?forum=1&topic=3

They all reference the same sources: the "No Deadlift" deadlifting program.

 

[Quagmire911]

Monday

Good day today. Here it is:

Bench 70x3 80x3 90kgx8 (198lbs)- Good stuff. Could have done a 9th, maybe a 10th if I had a spotter which would be a PR. I didn't have the fake-rack set up, so I left it at a comfortable 8 today.

Squat 100x3 110x3 125kgx7 (275lbs)- Big difference on last week. Definitely had 8, maybe more. 7 was the first noticeably hard rep so I left it there again without the fake rack setup. I've been thinking about what I could 20 rep squat now, must be around 110-115kg (240-255). Need to get money for food and put on some more weight. My pr here is 8, although I have done 130x8.

Skullcrushers Ez+20kgx8 +30kgx5 +20kgx8- +20kg was noticeably easier than last week, +30 was a little too big of a jump. My shoulder got a little out of place on the 6th rep and I dropped it, but it should be ok. Will do +25kg next time.

Leg press 250kgx5 280kgx6 (616lbs) PR- This felt great. Will add another 5kg next week.

And that was it. Pretty good session. Not a lot else to add, met a guy today who actually knew a lot of stuff which was pretty cool, he's just getting back into it after a lay off.

Looking forward to deads+oh press. In for intervals tommorow, until then...

Quagmire

 

[Fuglydude]

130 x 8 for squats is definitely tough... I don't think I could get that. Benching 2 bills for 8 ... nice also. I've always said the bench is an over-rated movement, but mostly cuz I suck at it! Are you playing around w/ the width of your stance at all? Any narrow grip benching ?

Thanks Carlito and Jitterbug... cool pointers and those articles were great! I've been seriously stagnating on deads for the past 2 years... I think my absolute max right now is sitting at around 460ish... So I have been hovering in the 435- 460 range for the past 2 years, which is quite disappointing. Hope I can use these articles to break through this plateau.

 

[Quagmire911]

Pretty much all of my benching is with a narrorwer grip now. I do it with about shoulder width, maybe a little wider. My hands are just outside the smooth part of the bar on each side. I just feel more comfortable doing this and my bench is stronger than ever. Konstantin Konstantinov does this as well. I think it is better for raw benching, and it keeps pressure of your shoulders.

Same with squat, I just feel better with a narrower stance.

Of to the gym...

Quagmire

 

[Being_the_Don]

Pretty much all of my benching is with a narrorwer grip now. I do it with about shoulder width, maybe a little wider. My hands are just outside the smooth part of the bar on each side.

Quagmire

That's how I've done mine for well over a year now. I use my thumb for measurement: I place my thumbs at the edge of the smooth part of the bar. Then I use the distance from my thumb to the base of my hand to be the position where I grip the bar. I do this for flat bench, incline and decline barbell bench presses. It works. Yesterday I did 4 x 275 lb on decline.

 

[Fuglydude]

Ya, the narrower grip definitely takes some pressure of the shoulders. It should also help your weighted dips... Do you just do barbell bench or are you incorporating dumbells as well? I personally prefer dumbells as I have had rotator cuff issues in the past and dumbells make it easier for to stabilize than using the bar.

 

[Quagmire911]

I don't do a lot of DB benching, on occasion. I'm lazy with assistance, and haven't really used it as a main move. I've never had any problems with the barbell bench though.

Didn't bother going to the gym the other day, felt tired. Drank a lot last night so I am going tommorow instead of today.

Quagmire

 

[Quagmire911]

Friday

Good session today, here it is:

Db oh press 24x3 28x3 32kgx8- Felt strong here. I think this equals my PR.

Push press 60x1 70x1 80kgx1 (176lbs)- This equals my oh press PR. I could have done more, but I decided I'd wait till next time to push it further.

Chins Bwx5 +15kgx5 Bwx5- The 15kg set equals my PR.

Deadlifts 125x3 140x3 155kgx8 (341lbs)- I've done this for 10 before, but that was a very long set and was kind of rest paused. This set was done faster, but I reckon I'm around the level when I was when I did the 10 reps, maybe a bit better. My grip was slipping like the 10 rep set (sweat) and the reps were getting a lot harder, so I left it instead of burning out.

Bi curls 37.5kgx8 rest 20s x4
External rotations 14kgx8 rest 20s x6

Kneeling rolloutsx21 PR- I have no idea what happened here.
I think my previous best was 12 maybe. Regardless, these were a lot easier today, and I could have done more. I will need to add weight. I can't setup a ramp unfortunately. Hopefully I'll progress to standing rollouts soon.

Hip machines 70kg 2x15- Full stack. I think it is in kg, I hope it is. Getting much easier again. Need to just keep doing them, may as well add reps.

S.Bike 20 minutes HR 150- Decided I needed to do some cardio. Fitness is fine.

And that was all. Weight was 176lbs this morning and waist was 33.75". I did eat less yesterday, so I imagine it will be back to 178 by tommorow.

Pretty happy with how today went, felt strong across the board, same as on Monday. I'll look to PR next week, will see if the CNS holds up though.

That is all for this week, until next time...

Quagmire

 

[Fuglydude]

Nice chins ... 341 x 10 is nutty... I can barely cork out 315 x 10. Why such high reps on deads? I've recently capped my deads at 6 reps as I'm trying to go as heavy as I can. I'll go higher reps once I start incorporating romanian DLs in, but w/ heavy pulls... count me out of high rep work! Don't you find higher rep deads, even w/ 70-80% of your 1 RM substantially fatigue your lower back?