Preparing to apply to the 1,000lb club

19/4/16 - Tuesday - Session 2

Bench, a lot of bench.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 8
60kg x 6
70kg x 5
80kg x 3
90kg x 4x3 - wut?
72.5kg x 3x8

The top work sets were not easy by any means and weren't as paused as I would have liked but I am happy with it. The drop down sets had an awesome rhythm to each set

Close Grip Bench Press

72.5kg x 2x4
72.5kg x 9

Really wanted 10 but after all the other bench work I'm not fussed at all.

OHP

Bar x lots
30kg x 5
40kg x 3
50kg x 3 - rep pb
47.5kg x 4
45kg x 6

The fatigue is strong now.

BOR

60kg x 4x12

Lawd.

Shrugs

100kg x 4x12

Such a good session. It took a damn long while but really happy with how everything went throughout the entirety of today. Rest and sports treatment tomorrow and then super heavy bench on Thursday!
 
21/4/16 - Thursday

Bench. Nope. Ended up being a really bad session and actually missing weight I should hit without for at least doubles but never mind. It's a sign a deload is needed so the numbers are dropped further next week before the competition and then I'll drop my maxes by 10% and build back up.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
52.5kg x 8
62.5kg x 6
72.5kg x 5
77.5kg x 4
85kg x 3 - Everything up to and including this set flew
90kg x 2x2 - Harder but moved well
95kg x 2xNope. Bad positioning and fatigue from Tuesday (I'm assuming)
70kg x 3x2

Did some quick doubles to make sure I wasn't being a pillock but I did notice that it's considerably harder for me to use leg drive right now for some reason so that's something I 100% am looking into.

Tricep Pushdowns

some weight x 3x5

Left it there mainly because I was grumpy and I thought I had a food delivery 1hour earlier than what I had actually booked so I skipped the squats and good mornings.. Time to rest up for Saturday.
 
23/4/16 - Saturday

Such a good session for squat, bench and deadlift.

Squat

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 5
50kg x 3
60kg x 3
70kg x 2
75kg x 2x6
75kg x 10

Quite happy with that but my squat strength is absolutely horrific.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
52.5kg x 8
62.5kg x 6
72.5kg x 5
82.5kg x 5x4

Felt so much better than Thursday but I left the spoto press for Monday as I'm still recovering from earlier in the week.

Deadlift

60kg x 5
80kg x 3
100kg x 3
120kg(B) x 2
130kg(B) x 1
137.5kg(B) x 5
137.5kg(B) x 4x3

Super happy with with how that went everything is fried though.

Deadlift Block Pulls (5.5")

120kg x 4x4 - Beltless too :D
135kg(B) x 2
152.5kg(B) x 2 - Moved nicely.
120kg(B) x 15 - Felt solid

And that concludes the session. I skipped the accessories because that was more than enough for one session. Time to eat and rest as next week is nice and light until Saturday.
 
25/4/16 - Monday

Bench and OHP, left out the squats because I was coaching tonight so didn't have time and where my squat won't be of any significance on Saturday ti really doesn't matter what I do for them this week.

Spoto Bench Press

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 5
60kg x 3
70kg x 3
77.5kg x 5x3

Close Grip Bench Press

75kg x 2x3 - should have been 77.5kg...
77.5kg x 3

Not bad, actually it moved really well.

OHP

Bar x lots
30kg x 5
40kg x 3
47.5kg x 2
52.5kg x 3

Would have loved 5 but I'll settle for doing my old PB for 3.

And that's it. Nice and short and light enough to ensure lots of recovery.
 
Buddy said:
Nice progression. How much do you weigh?

Everyone responds differently but have you tried less sets but higher weights? E.g. your bench. Do 40kg x8 for warm up then jump straight to 70 kg, then try your max.
Click to expand...

I'm currently sat at 77kg-78kg.

I find with few warm ups I just don't move as well but when I am going for a max I'll reduce the reps per warm up or even cut a few out if I feel necessary, it really depends on how I feel on the day.

27/4/16 - Wednesday

Last day of training before the weekend. Everything moved quick but it just didn't feel as simple as it should have.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 5
52.5kg x 3
62.5kg x 3
72.5kg x 3x2

Nice and quick but my head just was not with it.

Deadlift

60kg x 5
80kg x 3
95kg x 2x2
102.5kg(B) x 3x1

Was the belt necessary? Absolutely not but I wanted the pulls to be as close to how I would do it in competition as possible.

And that concludes the most exciting training session possible. Need to rest up, eat lots and destress before the weekend.
 
Buddy said:
Out of curiosity how are these competitions judged?

Do they use wilks or is that an American thing?
Click to expand...

Lifters in their individual categories are placed purely on their total, unless two or more lifters have the same body total and then it comes down to body weight. In almost all competitions (every competition I've ever been too anyway) there is typically 1st, 2nd, 3rd and/or best male and best female lifter which is then determined by wilks score. In many team competitions it comes down to a combination or best average of wilks.

30/4/16 - Saturday - Northern Universities Competition

Weight: 79kg

I took full advantage of knowing I was several kilos underweight so I ate myself silly the night before and the this morning.

Squat

Bar x some
40kg x 5
50kg x 3
60kg x 1

Attempts:

65kg

Passed on other attempts on purpose and opened super light on purpose too. I'm currently squatting whilst recovering from a mysterious knee injury so pushing it just is not worth it and even if I did push it I still wouldn't be competitive. Kept it light so I can now just focus on the next competition which is at the end of October I believe.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 5
50kg x 3
60kg x 3
70kg x 2
80kg x 1
85kg x 1

Attempts:
92.5kg
100kg - All time PB
102.5kg - Nope

I've somehow lost the ability to use my lats int he eccentric part of the bench so my stabilisations wasn't very good and my scapulas were all over the place. On the last attempt it shifted all the weight onto the delts and I as a result I missed the lift. Never mind, still got the 100kg!

Deadlift

60kg x 5
80kg x 3
100kg x 1
120kg(B) x 1
127.5kg x 1

Attempts:

135kg(B)
147.5kg(B)
160kg(B) - 7.5kg all time PB, 10kg competition PB

https://www.instagram.com/p/BE1jk1CGGai/?taken-by=porridgeisyummy

Such a fun day and goodness forbid I ended up coming first since I was the only in my category which results in much amusement and many laughs from everyone including myself as I there's no way I should have even placed for a medal at all.

I'm now going into a very busy month with work and it's also the start of my off-season. For the next month I shall be reducing my training frequency from 6 days down to 3, squats from 3 days to 2 and deadlifts from 2 to 1. Since it's off-season it means I shall be doing lots of volume work, introducing front squats on my seconds squat day (if I can do them that is, might end up double low bar squats) and I'm also not going to do any standard deadlifts from the floor either. For deadlifts over the next month it will be either deficits or stiff leg deficits and once I'm out of this month it'll be variations such as block pulls, deficits, snatch grip, possibly tempo and possibly paused too if I need to work on control.

Lots of fun coming up.
 
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3/5/16 - Tuesday

Start of my new training block to help focus on recovery over the next month as I'll be extremely busy and it gives me a good chance to re-ingrain proper technique across the squat and bench as I noticed I was missing a few cues and reintroducing them tonight improved both lifts considerably.

Squat

Bat x lots x lots
40kg x 8
60kg x 5
70kg x 5
75kg x 10
75kg x 3x8

Knee felt good, movement felt good but fatigue kicked in on the last set.

Knee lockout

75kg x 2x12

I've been instructed that I need to strengthen the knee lockout to push it through full range of motion and to strengthen it in that range of motion where it hasn't been used as a result of me not being able to walk for a while.

Good Morning

45kg x 2x12

Nice and easy.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 5
60kg x 3
67.5kg x 5x5

Felt a lot better now that I'm 'breaking the bar' again.

Close grip bench press

55kg x 3x8

Lols.

Tricep Extension

Some weight x 4x12

And that's that over and done with. Good session to ease back into training.
 
5/5/16 - Thursday

Bench and deficit deadlift. Light day didn't feel so light.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 10
45kg x 8
55kg x 6
62.5kg x 4
72.5kg x 3
77.5kg x 2x1

Not bad.

Slingshot Bench Press

77.5kg x 3x8

Accidentally went too high in weight but never mind.

Deficit Deadlift (1.5")

60kg x 5
80kg x 3
100kg x 3
120kg(B) x 1 - Felt incredibly heavy
125kg(B) x 4x5

Just felt heavy tonight and the belt was preventing me from breathing properly. I still had good positioning but I had to take longer rest than I would have liked between reps. The last set was treated purely as singles.

Deficit Deadlift (1.5") EMOM

92.5kg(S) x 6x3

RDL

85kg x 3x8

BOR

65kg x 4x8

Felt really heavy but it's been a long few days, sleep was iffy and I guess having 1min rest periods can do that.
 
Somnambulist said:
Yeah I've started timing my rest periods recently as I found I'm slightly impatient to get on with the next set and it has made a difference. This study got posted in a group the other day too - Short inter-set rest blunts resistance exercise-induced increases in myofibrillar protein synthesis and intracellular signaling in young males.
Click to expand...

Interesting abstract, it was a shame I couldn't read the full article to see the entire study.

7/5/16 - Saturday

Front Squats and Bench.

Front Squat

Bar x lots
30kg x 8
40kg x 8
50kg x 8
60kg x 8
60kg x 3x6

Heavy enough for today but my mobility is better than I expected, just some knee clicking and general difficulty as I'm getting used to the movement again. The aim was 55kg, I hit 60kg so it's all good.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 6
60kg x 5
67.5kg x 3
72.5kg x 2x3

Feeling much better this session.

Spoto Bench Press

60kg x 3x8

Little bit of a pump and it felt good on the joints.

Snatch Grip Deadlift from blocks (10") Slow Eccentric 4Sec

40kg x 8
60kg x 8
80kg x some - Missing rotation in the shoulder/wrist to hold on properly
70kg x 4x8

That was a horrible idea, why on earth did I think that would be fun... I shall work on my shoulder and wrist mobility so I can hold the bar properly and go up in weight.

Shurgs

110kg x 4x8

A little heavier than last cycle so it's all good.

Hammer Curlz

15kg x 3x8

And that's that.
 
18/5/16 - Wednesday

Squats and deadlifts. Squats were rubbish because of my knee and my deadlifts were weak but after a week of very little sleep, poor nutrition and a lot of stress I wasn't expecting anything great anyway.

Squat

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
60kg x 3
70kg x 2 - decided I don't want to go any higher
70kg x 10
70kg x 3x8

The weight wasn't the issue at all, it was just because of the knee and lack of practice. I'm expecting the movement pattern to come back within a week.

Stiff Leg Deadlifts

40kg x few - just practicing bar position and general setup
60kg x 5
80kg x 4
100kg x 3
110kg(S) x 10
110kg(S) x 3x5

Not an impressive number by any means but challenging enough for the day.

And that concludes the reintroduction session. Not very exciting but it's nice just to get back into it.
 
20/5/16 - Friday

Bench - finally.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 5
45kg x 8
55kg x 6
62.5kg x 4
72.5kg x 4x5
77.5kg x 3
77.5kg x 5

Not as rubbish as I was expecting. Hopefully I haven't lost too much strength over the past few weeks.

Dips

BW x 3x8

Tricep Pushdowns

~20kg x 3x12

Hammer Curlz

16kg x 2x8
14kg x 1x8

And that's that. Short and sweet and feeling pretty good about the next bench session.
 
21/5/16 - Saturday

Squats, bench, deadlift.

Squat

Bar x lots
40kg x 5
50kg x 3
60kg x 3
67.5kg x 2
72.5kg x 8
72.5kg x 3x6

Much better than the other day but still so incredibly weak.

Bench

Bar x lots
40kg x 8
52.5kg x 6
62.5kg x 4
72.5kg x 2x3

Moved really well.

Spoto Bench Press

60kg x 3x8

Nice and easy.

Close Grip Bench Press

55kg x 3x8

That was enough for today considering that I benched yesterday.

Deficit Deadlift (2")

60kg x 5
80kg x 3
100kg x 3
120kg x 3
132.5kg(B,S) x 5
132.5kg(B,S) x 2x3

Not too rubbish, feels like I'm lacking a lot of drive from the floor.

Deadlift Block Pulls (5")

112.5kg x 4x4
127.5kg(B) x 2
142.5kg(B) x 2

Not too shabby.

Good training session overall and hopefully my strength will come back nice and quickly.
 
24/5/16 - Tuesday

Squats, bench, OHP

Squat

Bar x lots
40kg x 5
60kg x 3
70kg x 2
80kg x 8
80kg x 3x6

Happy with that. Mini rehab pb so looks like things are going in the right direction.

Good Mornings

40kg x 2x12

So easy.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
52.5kg x 6
65kg x 5 - Felt heavy for some reason
75kg x 4x3 - Not bad at all
70kg x 3x6 - Also not too bad

Not bad.

Close Grip Bench Press

60kg x 3x6

I've become extremely weak.

OHP

Bar x lots
30kg x 5
37.5kg x 11+1
32.5kg x 11+1
30kg x 7+5+3

Ha.

Chin Ups

BW x 3x5

I'll try to add 1 extra set next week.

It's nice to get a full session in and hopefully I can develop some consistency in my training to come.
 
26/5/16 - Thursday

Bench is still weak but diet still isn't where it should be so that is having a negative impact on my performance. Stiff leg deadlifts are fun.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
47.5kg x 8
57.5kg x 6
65kg x 5
70kg x 4
75kg x 3
80kg x 2x2

Sling Shot Bench Press

85kg x 3x5

It wasn't bad at all, moved easily but it just didn't move quick, but everything is feeling better than before regarding technique and form.

Stiff Leg Deadlifts

60kg x 5
80kg x 3
100kg x 3
110kg x 2
120kg(B,S) x 8
120kg(B,S) x 3x4

First set was rough because of bar positioning being too far away from me but corrected this on the other sets and the reps became so much easier.

RDL's

87.5kg x 4x8

BOR

65kg x 4x10

Shrug

120kg x 4x10

Not a bad session at all and it was a lot of fun too so that's all good. Bring on Saturday.
 
28/5/16 - Saturday

Utterly terrible session. I was exhausted before I started, I was also underfed too so it was unlikely it was going to be a pb setting session but I thought I'd give it a try anyway and sure enough I was wrong.

Front Squat

Bar x lots
30kg x 5
40kg x 5
50kg x 8
50kg x 5-6

The weight was fine but the sound my knees were making said otherwise. Some rest and some stretches should sort that out easy enough.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
52.5kg x 6
65kg x 5
75kg x 3x4

Really easy, but still slow.

Spoto Bench Press

65kg x 3x6

Super easy.

Deficit Deadlift (~2")

60kg x 5
80kg x 3
100kg x 3
120kg(B) x 2
130kg(B) x 1 - Heavier than expected
137.5kg(B) x 5 (treated as singles)
137.5kg(B) x 1 - my mind wandered and just not with it

That was enough, far too tired and worn out, I'm going to drop the deficit pulls down for next week and build back up. I've clearly over estimated that tiny increase of a deficit from the last cycle and being exhausted hasn't helped anything either. Food and sleep is looking to be the way to go.
 
30/5/16 - Monday

Squats and bench.

Squat

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
80kg x 3
90kg x 5
110kg(B) x 2x1 - Yay for mini rehab pb
95kg x 5
95kg x 3x3

Much better than I thought. Need more practice with the weight for perfect control and positioning but it's an improvement so I'm happy.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 6
60kg x 5
70kg x 4
80kg x 4x3 - eassssyyyyy
65kg x 3x8

Close Grip Bench Press

65kg x 3x4

Update:

OHP

Bar x lots
30kg x 5
40kg x 10
37.5kg x 10
32.5kg x 12

Much better than last time. Gains.

Really happy with that session. Need to get back into doing all the accessories after the main work.
 
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1/6/16 - Wednesday

Bench and deadlifts.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
47.5kg x 8
57.5kg x 6
65kg x 5
70kg x 4
75kg x 3
80kg x 2x2
85kg x 2x1 - Easy but really slow eccentric

Slingshot Bench Press

85kg x 5
90kg x 5
95kg x 5

Not bad.

Stiff Leg Deadlift

60kg x 5
80kg x 3
100kg x 3
120kg x 2
132.5kg(B,S) x 5
132.5kg(B,S) x 3x2

Nice.

RDL

87.5kg x 5x8


BOR

65kg x 4x12

Shrugs

120kg 4x12

All done and finished. Not a bad session.
 
GSVBagpuss said:
Bench looks good! What's your BW these days?
Click to expand...

I've been bulking for a while but when I couldn't walk, and therefore not squat or deadlift, the weight gain sped up quite a bit and I'm now sitting at 78.4kg and I fully intend on keep going once the knee is 100% and I can make some true gains on my lifts.


3/6/15 - Friday

Front Squats and Bench. Back is horrifically tight and it proved to be the limiting factor on the front squats and initially caused hassle with my left scapula when benching. Lots of warm up stuff somewhat mitigated the fightback as much as possible.

Front Squat

Bar x lots
30kg x 5
40kg x 5
50kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 5
70kg x 3x4

Any heavier and I wouldn't have been able to keep a good back position. Knee feels pretty good, quads feel pretty good too.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 6
60kg x 5
70kg x 4
75kg x 5x4

Ha...Easy.

Spoto Bench Press

70kg x 3x5

Lovely. Much pump.

Tricep Pushdowns

some weight x 4x12

Just wanted to get some blood into the muscle and into the tendons. Feels great.

And that's that. Unfortunately no deadlift session this week but that's not the end of the world as I'm leading into my heavy week of the cycle so it might even allow me to focus more on my squat.
 
6/6/16 - Monday

Well, well, well the rehab seems to be going in the right direction.

Squat

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 5
60kg x 3
80kg x 3
90kg x 3
100kg(B) x 3 - Really happy
110kg(B) x 3 - Incredibly happy with this

Really happy with that. There was more in the tank for sure but it's all about taking it bit by bit with the rehab. Gives me a good baseline to start the next cycle with and hopefully I'll make a similar level of progress too.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 6
60kg x 5
70kg x 3
75kg x 3x2
65kg x 3x5

Easy.

Close Grip Bench Press

70kg x 3x3

Not bad at all.

Happy with that session, missed out OHP unfortunately but never mind, Bring on Wednesday!
 
mrthingyx said:
Juicy squatting!

What is your BW now?
Click to expand...

Sitting around 78.4-79.1 because bulking is epic. This completely devalues the progress I've been making but I'm coming back from the knee(s) injury and I'm just enjoying training right now.


8/6/16 - Wednesday

Bench and stiff leg deadlifts. Bench was meh because I was on a horrible bench, stiff leg deadlifts were awesome.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
47.5kg x 5
57.5kg x 4
65kg x 3
70kg x 2x3
75kg x 2x2

A tad rubbish because of the super squishy bench, but damn it was comfy.

Stiff Leg Deadlifts

60kg x 5
80kg x 3
100kg x 3
120kg(B,S) x 2
132.5kg(B,S) x 1
142.5kg(B,S) x 3
142.5kg(B,S) x 3x1

Nice little deadlift variation PB.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BGZ7t3NGGSc/?taken-by=porridgeisyummy

I had a few accessories to do but it's my test week and accessories with half the volume and lower intensity anyway wouldn't do much other than move the muscles around anyway. Good session, hopefully Friday will reap some front squat and bench gains!
 
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