2017 – The year of no excuses

PermaChanged · 24 Jan 2017 at 15:39

I finally have no excuses, no reasons, no get out of jail free cards to stop me achieving my gym goals for 2017!

In October 2015 I had shoulder surgery, this put me out of the gym in terms of ability to make real gains for a good 7/8 months. Then, on 18th October 2016 I underwent a tummy tuck putting me out of my normal gym routine and leaving me feeling limited by the surgery but I feel I'm back to being able to do anything, so I'm ready to lift plates and smash pasties.

Current 1 RM PB’s
Deadlift: 188kg
Squat: 140kg
Bench: 80kg

Goals by end 2017
Deadlift: 200kg for reps
Squat 180kg for reps
Bench 100kg+ for reps

My bench is definitely my weak point, I’ve always used my unstable shoulders as an excuse but I no longer have that – the reason my bench is weak is because I am weak. I haven’t invested time and effort in to growing it for fear of injury and dislocation of my shoulder – these fears are all but gone so I have no excuses now.

My squat I always felt was let down by the fact I didn’t want to grow a thick core whilst I was in my weight loss phase and prior to having my tummy tuck surgery, so that when the skin was taken off I could grow in to what was left and have the taut defined stomach which I’ve never had! Again, I’ve had the surgery now – I have no excuses to not smash out the squats and develop a thick strong core now.

Watch this space for progress....

Pigeon_Killer · 25 Jan 2017 at 11:37

Your deadlift and bench goals are very conservative compared to your squat, any reason for that? Your deadlift should improve as your squat improves so I'm expecting to see far more than 200 for reps by the end of the year.

Good luck

MoNkeE · 25 Jan 2017 at 11:44

Yeah a 12kg improvement for reps is quite conservative for 12 months of progress

why not aim for 220kg Deadlift and 110kg bench.

PermaChanged · 27 Jan 2017 at 14:04

I just won't be concentrating as much on improving my deadlift as much as I'll be concentrating on building a bigger bench and squat - if I'm squatting 180kg though I'd imagine I should be able to pull 200kg from the floor relatively comfortably.

I'm very tempted to invest in a football bar for my gym though, eliminate shoulder issues completely from my bench pressing.

PermaChanged · 21 Apr 2017 at 13:27

Just as a little update, I've pulled a 195kg deadlift and squatted 155kg so far, bench hasn't seen nearly as much progress and I'm not really sure why!

GSVBagpuss · 21 Apr 2017 at 14:58

Nice lifting!! Bench is a rubbish exercise

PermaChanged · 8 Jun 2017 at 09:50

200+kg deadlift
160+kg squat
85+kg bench

I say "+kg" as the hex plates in our gym actually weigh more than the stated amount (apparently, the old PT claimed to have weighed them, and they do feel heavier), unless I use the Eleikos or the round plates in the other area.

I hate bench and how unstable it feels, I feel like I can't grind or push all my power through the bar because of the fear of my shoulder going. It's a lift I perform with much more concentration compared to the squats and deadlifts.