11/23/13

1.  Deadlift
315x3; 365x1; 385x1; 405x1; 425x1; 315x5; 315x10

2.  Bench
225x3; 275x1; 315x1; 275x3; 275x3

3.  Squat
135x5; 185x3

4.  Bent row
135x10; 135x10; 135x10

Notes
Mediocre strength today.  Can't expect much with the workout frequency.  Squats felt better than last night.  I'm really sore - like sore as fuuuck.

11/22/13

1. Backsquat
135x3; 135x3; 135x3; 135x3; 135x3; 135x3; 135x3

2. Overhead Press
135x5; 135x5; 135x5

3.  BB Curl
45x50

11/19/13

1a.  Overhead Press
115x5; 115x5; 115x5; 115x5

1b. 90/90 Lunge
115x2; 115x2; 115x2; 115x2

2.  Backsquat
135x5; 135x5; 135x5; 135x5; 135x5

3a.  Bench
135x15; 135x15; 135x15

3b.  Cable Row
100x15; 100x15; 100x15

Notes
Searching for a comfortable hand setup and bar placement on the overheads.  I'll probably stay at 115 for a few weeks and work up in reps.  Maybe throw in some increasingly heavy singles like I originally did with BTN.

I experimented with low bar and high bar squats.  Low bar I was just bouncing off the crease of my hips.  High bar I was getting stretch reflex.  Also, no knee extension, so it felt fine.   Quads were on fire lol.

11/16/13

1. Deadlift
315x3; 365x1; 385x1; 385x1; 405x1; 315x5; 315x5

2. Bench
250x3; 275x3; 285x3; 185x22 (PR)

3.  Overhead Press
95x5; 95x5; 95x5; 95x5

4a. Facepulls
15; 15; 15

4b. Decline Leg Drop
6; 6; 6

5a.  3 Month Pullover
70x2; 70x2; 70x2

5b.  BW Hip Thrusts
15; 15; 15

5c.  Curls
35x10; 35x10; 35x10

Notes
Deads felt fine.  No groove really but not bad.  Bench was meh.  Kind of went off-plan in terms of percentages mostly because I was lifting with a bunch of other people and having fun.

My entire body felt inflamed and wrecked after this session.  Seriously, just kind of felt old haha.  I'm just totally deconditioned at this point.  I still have the skill to do the lifts, it just takes so much out of me.  I'll get it back, but wow, really its nuts how this workout left me feeling like I got hit by a train.

11/12/13

1.  Bench
205x5; 225x5; 260x5 . . . 185x10

2a. RDL w/ DB's
100x15; 100x15; 100x15

2b.  Facepulls
50x10; 50x10; 50x10

3a.  Hip Thrusts
12; 12

3b.  Pushups
12; 12

3c.  Curls
40x8; 40x8

Notes
Quick after work session in the apartment.  I'm going to run 531 percentages for some of the lifts.  This is the tentative plan:

Day 1
-Bench
-RDL

Day 2
-Overhead
-Pendlay

Assistance as needed. The last couple of months I've used assistance mostly for joint function and posture. I like this approach.  I'm really just maintenance training at this point.  If I hit some barbell PR's, sweet.

11/09/13

1. Deadlift
315x1; 315x1

2.  BTN Press
165x3; 165x3; 165x3

3a. DB Row
85x8; 85x8; 85x8

3b.  Decline Ab Drops
6; 6; 6

Notes
This was the morning after my Friday session.  My back was really sore.  I talked more than lifted.

11/08/13

1. Deadlift
315x3; 365x2; 365x2; 365x2

2.  Bench
225x3; 245x1; 275x1; 300x1; 315x1; 185x20

3. Bent Row
135x5; 135x5; 135x5

4.  BTN Jerk
245x1

Notes
Fun session just shooting the shit with everyone.  Bench felt solid.  315 went up relatively smoothly.  My upper body definitely functions differently now when pressing.  I wouldn't have dreamed of trying this weight before without actually building up through a program, etc.

Edit: forgot to talk about deadlift. Haven't pulled in a few months.  Felt relatively solid and went up fast.  Pendlays are the truth.

11/04/13

1. Flat Bench
225x3; 225x3; 255x2; 275x5

2. Pendlay Row
185x5; 225x5; 225x5

3.  Hip Thrusts with 5 second contraction at top
BWx10; BWx10

Notes
My last legit bench session was April 28th - 190 days ago.  I had no real expectations tonight, especially considering I maxed on a heavy press yesterday.

My shoulder and upper back/scapular stability feel completely different than I've ever felt before on flat bench.  I lack the technical acumen to describe what was happening, so I'll leave it at "it felt good."  275x5 felt very easy considering I have zero groove for this lift.  Traditionally, 275x5 has been my baseline where I feel I'm strong enough to start training heavy.  Also, usually it takes me a few weeks to get to that point.  I feel I'm way past that, so next week I'll start some bench programming.

Update

I let the blogging get away from me for about 3 weeks.  I lost interest because my workouts became random and unplanned.  I've been averaging about 2 sessions a week.  And they certainly haven't been big ones.  But for whatever reason, my strength has been excellent, and I've set the following PR's:

Incline: 185x16; 290x1

BTN Press: 135x12; 195x1; 200x1

I'm very happy with the incline - that is a 15lb PR.  I'm also pleased with the BTN press.  When I started messing around with this lift 5-6 months ago, 115x5 was difficult.  And after I got a groove going, I told myself I was going to keep with it until I hit 200 for a single.

I think the PR's are simply a demonstration of strength.  What I mean by that is, I certainly haven't been building any strength lately.  I think that the 3+ months of 531 did some nice things.  And who knows.  January - May working out 7 days week with Connor probably did some good shit too.  So the past few weeks I've been well rested from lifting, and I'm fresh enough every session to hit heavy weights. Don't really know, don't really care. 

I'm not really sure what my plan is from here.  I do know I'm dropping incline and BTN and moving back to regular bench and traditional overhead.  I'm not sure if I'm sticking with RDL's or going back to some conventional deadlifts.  I feel the RDL's and hip thrusts are a nice 1-2 combo for what I need right now.   I tried some goblet squats to a box tonight and everything felt fine.  *shrug* (Minus the fact  that could barely complete a rep without falling over).   

I've come to accept I'm not going to have 4x a week ball busting sessions for the foreseeable future.  Work has been exhausting me.  But I'm slowly adjusting to the lifestyle.  I'm getting better sleep, learning how to make my diet work with the schedule, and also learning how to effectively fit training into the whole scheme.  

In a weird way, this is why I love training and everything that goes with it.  There are always knew challenges to be addressed.  Sometime it feels like there are more valleys than peaks, but for me, all the fun is in climbing back to the top.

Tonight's workout:

1.  BTN Press

135x5; 155x3; 170x1; 185x1; 200x1 (PR); 135x5; 135x5

2a.  RDL

225x6; 225x6; 225x6

2b. Pushup

BWx12; BWx12; BWx12

2c.  Windmill

70x2; 70x2; 70x2

3a.  DB Row

85x6; 85x6 85x6

3b.  Decline Leg Drop

6; 6; 6

4a.  Hypers

10; 10; 10

4b.  Band Pull aparts

20; 20; 20

5.  Goblet squat to box

Bwx5; 35x3; 35x3