Training Update - 7.22.11

I haven't' posted in over two months. I have still been hitting the gym regularly but honestly there for a while I was just kind of going through the motions and not making any real progress. Here in the last couple of weeks that has changed.

I read something on T-Nation about how you can sabotage your workout by doing too many warm-up sets, so I tried cutting back on my warm-ups and got to the working weight faster. I saw a difference immediately in my workouts by doing this. I think by doing so many warm-ups I was just fatiguing myself so much that I didn't have the energy to lift heavy weight when I finally got around to my working sets.

My working weight has improved steadily over the last few weeks with this new approach. I've blown past my PR in deadlift and I'm quickly getting back to my best-ever squat weight. I was even able to get past my sticking point on bench press and get back up over 200 pounds again for the first time in a few years. On bench I realized I had my grip too wide by about 2". When I brought the grip in the difference was immediate and I was able to get up 185 x 5 without struggle when previously I had been struggling to even get 5 with 175 pounds. I felt so good that night I threw on 205 pounds just to see if I could do it and got 2 reps up unassisted.

I've given up on the barbell military press for now. I don't know if it was my grip width or just my wrists but every time I did the exercise I would have shooting pain in my left wrist. For now I'm just focusing on doing dumbbell presses and it's going well so far.

Last week I also had my body fat measured at our gym. It was the old fashioned caliper pinch test, and my results came in much lower than I was expecting. I was thinking I'd land around 18-20% and instead he said I was 14.7%. I am still thinking this number is off by at least 2-3% but I guess it gives me a reference point for later tests. The test was free since we are members, so I will have to have another test done in a couple of months and see if I've made any progress. I really should start doing some cardio but I can't quite bring myself to do that yet. So boring!

squat - 245 lbs
deadlift - 275 lbs
bench - 205 lbs
press - 60x2 lbs (dumbbells)

Training update - 5.09.11

Friday night's workout - squats, back, biceps

Sunday morning's workout - deadlift, bench, incline DB bench

Friday night we had to wait on the squat rack for at least a half an hour because this guy was doing deadlifts. He was doing an impressive amount of weight. We saw him get up 405 lbs once or twice. He then put another 100 pounds on the bar and tried 505 but could not get it up.

My squat sets went fairly well, but they were a bit tough. I managed 215 lbs and got through all three of my working sets. It was tougher than my squat workouts have been lately. I might stick to that weight another workout before moving up again.
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Sunday morning I was feeling pretty good, having taken Saturday completely off from lifting or cardio. After quite a few warmups on deadlift, I loaded up 225 lbs and knocked out my first set. It didn't feel too heavy and I knocked out my reps with no problems. I slowed down a little on my last set but still finished strong.

I did bench press next, doing quite a few warmup sets to loosen up my shoulders. Once I felt warm I racked up 175 and attempted a set. I managed 3 good reps and then struggled and needed a spot on the 5th rep. Frustrated, I dropped the weight back to 165 and then knocked out the rest of my two sets. I'm thinking that my shoulders are my weak link on bench press, so I'm going to make it my goal over the next month or so to focus on my shoulder workouts more. I am going to try to hit shoulders twice a week to see if I can get them to catch up.

squat - 215 lbs
deadlift - 225 lbs
bench - 170 lbs
press - 85 lbs

Training update - 5.06.11

last night's workout - deadlift, military press, shoulders

Last night I was pretty pumped and ready to get to the gym to hit deadlifts. I was increasing weight and trying 205 lbs for the first time ever. After doing quite a few warmup sets to get ready, I loaded up 205 and gave it a go. Being fairly new to deadlifts, my form is not quite there yet. My first rep or two were probably pretty sloppy on form and I managed to skin my left shin pretty well. I started bleeding right away, more of an annoyance than anything. Liz suggested that I try to keep my knees closer together so my grip wouldn't have to be so wide to clear my knees. I tried this on successive sets and it seemed to work fairly well. I don't feel like I have very much flexibility in my hips and I figure being flat footed doesn't help me either. In any case, I felt really strong with my three working sets and finished with no struggle. I know I could have easily gone 10-20 pounds heavier, but no reason to overdo it and hurt myself.

Next I did military press. I'm still fairly new to this movement as well, and it doesn't feel natural yet. I did a few warmups with the bar to get my shoulders loose. The first set went fine and then on the second set I nearly dumped the weight back over my head as I pushed it to the top. It was just a lack of concentration for the most part. I still struggled with the 85 pounds so I'll have to take this one slow as I increase the weight. I followed up with some shrugs on the Smith machine and then some lateral raises with some dumbbells.

This morning I measured my waist with our measuring tape and it read an even 38". That's another 1/4" inch lost from where I was at last check. If I can lose about 1/4" every week or two and keep that going, I'll be where I want to be in no time. I'd like to see my waist at 36" or less, ideally. My weight has still been holding steady around 209 lbs. We are 33 days out from our lake trip, so if I can stay consistent and keep lifting hard I think I should be in pretty good shape by the time it gets here.

squat - 205 lbs
deadlift - 205 lbs
bench - 170 lbs
press - 85 lbs

Training update - 5.4.11

last night's workout -squats, bench, biceps

The gym was pretty busy last night and our usual d-bag personal trainer was circuit training again in multiple stations, including the squat rack. I managed to get on the squat rack fairly soon after we got there. After a few warmups I managed to get in 3 good sets of 205. I'm glad to be over 200 again on squats, slowly building it back up to where I was a couple of years ago.

I followed with bench press. After a few warmups I managed to do three sets of 170 with moderate difficulty. I believe I managed all three sets without need of a spot, but I still feel pretty weak on bench. I still think my shoulders are a weak spot and that I should focus on shoulders more for a while and try to bring them up to speed with the rest of my body. Trying to resist the urge to ditch the barbell bench and go back to dumbbells.

Ended the workout with 35 minutes on the treadmill. I was pretty tired by the time I got to the treadmill but still managed a decent cardio burn.

Taking the night off tonight to recover and also to mow the grass.

squat - 205 lbs
deadlift - 195 lbs
bench - 170 lbs
press - 85 lbs

Training Update - 5.1.11

this morning's workout - deadlifts & back

The gym was mostly empty and quiet as a crypt this morning, as Sunday mornings usually are. We started with deadlifts and did a few warmup sets to begin with. My body was feeling really good today. I took Saturday off as a recovery day and I think it was beneficial. My legs felt particularly good as I was warming up, no pain, no kinks, just smooth and strong.

I set up for my first working set and cranked out 5 reps with no problem. I tried using some lifting straps but they were just distracting and got in the way, so I ditched them and just went back to my gloves and an alternating grip. I cranked out two more sets super strong and didn't even need any extra breaths in the last rep or two. It felt great. Last week I felt like I struggled with 195 and today I dominated it. Next round I will put on 205 and try that.

I followed up deadlifts with some barbell rows for my back. I will need to rethink doing these immediately after deadlifts because my glutes and hamstrings were already fatigued. Bending over with the bar made it pretty tough to keep my back straight and not pitch forward or bend my knees too much. I cranked out a few sets and called it done.

I was pretty impressed with my energy level at the gym today. Before we left for the gym I drank about 10 oz of some Diet Mt. Dew, and then at the gym I drank my 32 oz water bottle with 4 scoops of my XTend energy/recovery drink. I'm guessing the caffeine from the Dew and the XTend combined with a little adrenaline from my great deadlift sets all contributed to my elevated energy levels.

I followed up on the treadmill and felt pretty awesome, increasing the incline from my usual 3.0 to 3.5, and my walking speed from the usual 3.5 to 3.7. My heart rate seemed to stay in the 130's, so I think that's where I'd like to be. Hopefully I can continue to make some small gains with my cardio. Tomorrow is intervals and no lifting.

squat - 195 lbs
deadlift - 195 lbs
bench - 160 lbs
press - 85 lbs

Training update - 4.30.11

I measured my waist this morning for the first time in about a week. I was surprised to see that it read 38.25". This is quite an improvement from the 39" it was the last time I checked. While my weight seems to stay about the same on the scale, between 208 and 210, my waist is slowly shrinking. This is ideal to me because it shows that I am slowly burning fat and putting on some muscle at the same time. I just need to stay consistent with my diet, work out hard, and keep doing that blasted cardio at the end of my workouts.

last night's workout - squat, military press, shoulders, 30 min cardio

Friday nights at the gym are always dead and last night was no exception. There was barely five people working out at any given time. I love an empty gym. We tried our new XTend workout recovery drink in our water bottles at the gym. I got the lemonade flavor and it wasn't too bad. It was a little strong at times and would give me a shiver, but I managed to drink it all. I don't know if it was placebo effect or what but I did feel pretty good throughout the workout, plenty of energy.

I started with squats and it went really well. My legs felt great and I powered through my sets with no real problems.

Next I did military press. This is a pretty new movement for me, as in the past I've done it with dumbbells. Pressing the barbell is still kind of awkward so I went fairly light and will continue to do so until I learn the movement and proper form.

squat - 195 lbs
deadlift - 195 lbs
bench - 160 lbs
press - 85 lbs

Training update - 4.29.11

Last night's workout - deadlifts, bench press, triceps, 30 min cardio

I had a decent workout last night. The weather was nice for the first time in about a week so the gym was nearly empty as a result, a total bonus. I started with bench press and did a few warm-up sets. I put on 160 for my working sets and knocked the first two out without a problem. The last set I kind of got stuck on the last rep, but I made it through with what my wife called "a fingernail spot."

My shoulder felt a little tweaked after I finished all my sets but so far this morning it's feeling OK. I've been worried that going back to barbell bench press would tweak my shoulder again. I've previously blamed the barbell bench as the culprit behind the shoulder problems I had a year ago. I'm trying to focus on good form and pressing up from my lower chest, so my arms aren't 90 degrees out from my chest. We'll see how it goes over the next few weeks. I may have to bail and go back to dumbbells.

I followed bench with deadlifts. After a few warmup sets with 135 I put on 195, which is the highest I've tried so far. It felt heavy, but my first two sets went pretty well. My last set was tough and I had to take a breath or three between the last three reps. Overall it went OK. I felt a little humbled by the weight but later reminded myself that the 195 pounds was the most I've ever done on deadlift, so it's an overall victory. I think I'll stick to this weight another round or two because I felt my form was sloppy. I'm fairly new to standard deadlifts so I want to try to iron out the kinks before I go too stupidly heavy.

squat - 195 lbs
deadlift - 195 lbs
bench - 160 lbs
press - 85 lbs