The Ups and Downs of high-bar squatting

15/7/15 - Wedesday

Squats and Bench. Yes, more squats :D

Squats

Worked up to 50kg for a few lots of few, dropped back and worked up again. Tried low bar and high bar but there was no consistency between which was better or why. I decided to try front squats instead.

Front Squats

Bar x lots
30kg x 2x5
40kg x 2x3
50kg x 3
60kg x 1
50kg x 3x3

One or two clicks throughout all of them so all in all I'm chuffed. If doing front squats is the way for me to squat for a while then so be it. I know Mrthingyx will be happy about this...

Bench

Bar x some x millions
40kg x 8
52.5kg x 6
60kg x 2x4 - ugggh
70kg x 2x3 - BOOM

Happy with that. On one rep my head came up but that was just because I lost a tad of concentration, the rep after was perfect, as was the set afterwards.

BOR

Bar x lots
30kg x 12
35kg x 4x15

Nice and easy.

Happy with that session since I found a way to squat, whether or not that just worked for that session - who knows, and my bench work sets felt great in comparison to the warm ups.

No squats tomorrow but I shall be doing some deadlift technique work. And holy hell my upper back feels wrecked, either because of front squats or the high volume of rows. Legs feel decent though so it's all good.
 
16/7/15 - Thursday

Deadlifts. Hamstrings were a tad tight so my lower back had minor rounding but it was nothing to be concerned about and the weights I was lifting didn't cause an issue. Just means more stretching.

Deadlift Knee Pulls

70kg x 4
90kg x 4
105kg x 5x3

Paused Deadlift Above Knee

75kg x 3
90kg x 3
105kg x 3
112.5kg x 4x2

Surprisingly tiring towards the end but hamstrings and glutes got worked nicely. Had a little bit of issue keeping tight but never mind.

Chin Ups

BW x 7
BW x 7
BW x 8

Yay, made it this time.

Nice and easy session, not feeling worn out at all but can certainly notice that hamstrings and glutes have done their job.
 
17/5/15 - Friday

Squats, Bench, OHP - today was a good day.

Squats

Bar x lots x lots
30kg x 2x5
40kg x 2x3
50kg x 3
60kg x 3x2
70kg x 1
75kg x 1 - current pb!

Ok, so it's not really a pb but it's a sign that things are improving. I had way more in me but I don't want to stress the knee too much.

Front Squats

Bar x lots
30kg x 2x5
40kg x 3
50kg x 3

Thought I'd leave it there as I intend to front squat tomorrow and deadlift so I didn't want to do lot today and ruin tomorrow.

Bench

Bar x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 6
60kg x 2
65kg x 2
70kg x 7 - rep pb!

Really happy with that! I didn't get the 9 I needed but it felt really good, maybe another week or two and it should be there.

OHP

Bar x lots
27.5kg x 6
35kg x 3
42.5kg x 1
47.5kg x 1 - So much better than last time
50kg x 1 - PB! And better than the last attempt
52.5kg x 1 - Another PB!

Minor sticking point as the bar was clearing my face but it didn't stop so it counts! Super, super happy with this!

BOR

Bar x 12
30kg x 10
35g x 4x15

Nice and easy. Feeling it more in rear delts rather than back but I'm pleased with that too as it'll help shoulder mobility. Upping weight next week.

Done and finished! Really pleased with that, PB's everywhere!
 
18/7/15 - Saturday

Front Squats and Deadlifts. Relatively light session but a rather long one too.

Front Squats

Bar x lots x lots
30kg x 2x5
40kg x 3
50kg x 3
60kg x 1
65kg x 1 - Current Pb!
45kg x 2x5

Knee started to click so I left it there, especially since I had deadlifts to go.

Deficit Deadlift 3"

70kg x 3
80kg x 3
95kg x 2x3
102.5kg x 5x3

Starting to get a really nice position on these.

Snatch Grip Deadlift

80kg x 3
90kg x 2x4
97.5kg x 4

Should have done 4x4 at 97.5kg but it's just a bit too heavy for me atm and it was putting my shoulder into an awkward position so thought I'd play it safe and leave it. I'll drop the %'s over the next block to get mope volume in at a lighter weights.

Chin Ups

BW x 7,8,7+1

Leg Extensions

5kg x 4x15

Silly light but it's helping the quads stabilise a bit. I simply need more mass in the quads but I know there are conflicted views towards whether or not leg extensions are bad for your knee or not.

Good Mornings

Bar x 3x12

Back Extensions

BW x 3x12

Done. Finally a day off tomorrow! Hopefully high bar squats on Monday, some bench and some OHP!
 
blairw said:
Good session - how's the knee holding up?
Click to expand...

As of this moment it feels pretty damn good! I think the low-ish volume, super low intensity but increased frequency squatting is helping a lot as it's keeping me mobile. It also means that I'm on top of stretching and mobility so I think that's helping too. I might try to squat 4-5 times next week with a combination of high bar and front squats and see how it goes. Hopefully I'll be hitting some semi-respectable numbers soon enough.
 
20/7/15 - Monday

Squats, Bench, OHP - all a tad meh, yet ok.

Squats

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x lots
50kg x 3
60kg x 3,2 - (kind of rest pause)
60kg x 1
70kg x 1
77.5kg x 1 - Current PB!

Managed the last 3 reps with no problems whatsoever, but also performed with bizarre (but perfectly ok) form. I had to extend my hips as far as possible without going into hyper extension and it worked just fine, just looked odd.

Bench

Bar x lots
40kg x 8
40kg x 6
50kg x 6
60kg x 2
70kg x 4x3
65kg x 3x6

Didn't feel terrible,but not amazing either. Legs have become more mobile so I was more stable on the bench but also had zero leg drive so that didn't help too much.

OHP

Bar x lots
27.5kg x 6
32.5kg x 3
37.5kg x 5
35kg x 5
32.5kg x 8

All were horrid, shoulders, tricep and back just fried. All went up ok but didn't feel amazing.

BOR

Bar x 15
40kg x 4x12

Done and finished.

Kind of pleased that I managed everything but also a tad disappointed that everything felt thought. Just one of those days and it really doesn't matter tbh. More Squats tomorrow and hopefully a more optimal form, and fingers crossed for a smooth squat session. And also a lot of deadlifts incoming tomorrow...
 
21/7/15 - Tuesday

Squats and deadlifts!

Squats

Bar x lots x lots
30kg x 2x5
40kg x 3
50kg x 2x3
60kg x 1
70kg x 1
80kg x 1 - Current PB!
90kg x 1 - Newer current pb!

Every rep from about the 50kg was almost a 5 second negative with a 2-3second pause to ensure I had correct position and to make sure I wasn't sitting on a particular hip or anything like that. Weight was relatively easy but with doing so many negatives I need to be able to move quicker in order to move higher weight.

Deficit Deadlifts 3"

70kg x 4
90kg x 4
97.5kg x 2x3

Deadlift

92.5kg x 3
110kg x 3
120kg(B) x 8 - Rep PB!
135kg(B) x 1

Kind of pleased with that as it's still a pb but it doesn't put me on or above my projected one rep max. But I know doing high rep deadlifts isn't accurate anyway, as well as I had done deficits before and the crazy negative paused squats.

Chin Ups

BW x 8,8,8

Getting really tough...

Good Mornings

Bar x 3x12

Back Extensions

BW x 3x12

Pretty happy with that as that's a current squat PB (without the crazy hip extensions like yesterday too), as well as rep PB in conventional deadlifts.
 
22/7/15 - Wednesday

Squats and Bench! Clicky elbow and clicky knee decided to pay me a visit tonight... all in all though it was an ok session. Improvements all round.

Squats

Bar x lots x lots
30kg x 2x5
40kg x 5
50kg x 3x5
60kg x 2,1,3
70kg x 1
80kg x 1
90kg x 1 - bit of clicking on the outside of the knee

I tried to be quicker with the reps than yesterday, and it worked well, but my left hip was tight so clicking was inevitable. But because stretching the hip helped a fair bit (didn't completely get rid of it), I knew I didn't have to worry as much and just focus on stretching it out (a lot!) along with everything else and I should be back to normal in no time.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 6
52.5kg x 6 - both sets were supposed to be 52.5kg...oh well.
60kg x 2x5
65kg x 2x4
70kg x 3x3

The 60kg and 65kg warmups weren't fun at all but the main work sets were really good. Clicky elbow went away and pressing became easy. I'm starting to learn how to press the weight backwards and with leg drive rather than straight up, it felt strong.

Finished up with lots of stretching and shoulder prehab stuff.

Time to rest.
 
24/7/15 - Friday

Squats and Bench! PBsssssss! (Kind of)

Squats

Bar x lots x lots
30kg x some x lots
40kg x some number
50kg x 1
60kg x 1
70kg x 1
80kg x 1
90kg x 1
95kg x 1
100kg(B) x 1 - Booooom!

100kg Squat

Back to 100kg! Still tiny weight I know but a great (mini) milestone on my journey back to squatting! It was slow because I had to be super controlled, not because it was super difficult. I had another 5kg - 10kg in me but thought I'd be sensible and play it safe and try another day.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 6
60kg x 3
70kg x 8 - Rep PB!

I was convinced I had 9 but my training partner said 8 so I'll take his word on it. Gutted I missed rep 9 but so pleased with hitting 8. It felt a lot better and a lot stronger than last week so progress has definitely been made regardless.

OHP

Bar x lots
27.5kg x 6
32.5kg x 3
37.5kg x 3x5
32.5kg x 3x8

I did every rep from a dead stop and made sure that I didn't press if there was a slight bounce from the bracing. Main work sets were a tad hard because I wasn't being quick like I usually was but the back-off sets were straight forward.

BOR

Bar x 15
30kg x 15
40kg x 4x12

Easy enough.

Finished up with lots of hip and shoulder stretching/mobility.

Happy with that, annoyed about the bench but still super pleased!
 
26/7/15 - Saturday

Front Squats and Deadlifts. I did lots of warm ups with high bar but it was too inconsistent, front squats however felt great.

Front squats

Bar x lots
30kg x 8
40kg x 3
50kg x 2
60kg x 1
65kg x 1
70kg x 1
75kg x 1 - 5kg off my all time PB!

75kg Front Squat

Deadlift Knee Pulls

75kg x 3
90kg x 3
105kg x 3
112.5kg(S) x 4x3

Getting much better positioning now that hip and hamstrings are a tad looser.

Deadlift Block Pulls 3"

82.5kg x 3
97.5kg x 3
112.5kg x 3
127.5kg(B) x 4x3

It felt heavy in my hands but the lifts were almost effortless, and being able to open my hips up to get more hip drive helped tremendously!

Chin Ups

BW x 8,8, 5+2+1

I think I might start doing weighted chins for a while just for a change and because it fits in nicely with with my volume and strength phase of training occurring for the next 11 weeks.

Happy with that, especially since the front squat felt great. I could have done more but I thought I'd play it safe and leave it for another day.

I've also been thinking about high bar squatting 3 times a week and front squatting twice (on the days that I deadlift) to help ease back into high frequency training, and even more so since I'm coming back from an injury and doing too much (too heavy) too soon could be detrimental.
 
27/7/15 - Monday

Squats and Bench. Horrid session, nothing worked.

Squats

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x some
50kg x some
60kg x 2 - No thanks.

Knees were clicking and it felt like something was moving around in the left knee so left it there. Well... I thought I'd give front squats a go.

Front Squats

Bar x lots x lots
30kg x 5
40kg x 5
50kg x 2
60kg x 1
65kg x 1

Leaving it there. Probably could have handled more but my front rack position turned to pot, elbows started to point down, back couldn't keep tight so I thought I'd try again tomorrow.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 6
60kg x 3
67.5kg x 2
72.5kg x 4x3
60kg x 3x8

The main work sets were decent but the back off sets felt a bit off.

BOR

Bar x lots
30kg x 15
42.5kg x 4x10

Easy. Done.

It was an ok session and nothing more. Lots and lots of stretching and mobility to hopefully get the legs working for more squats throughout the week.
 
28/7/15 - Tuesday

Squats and Deadlifts. Super light.

Squats

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x lots
50kg x lots
60kg x 1
70kg x 1
80kg x 1
90kg x 1
102.5kg(B) x 1

It was ok, not amazingly comfortable, nor uncomfortable.

Deadlift

70kg x 5
87.5kg x 5
100kg x 5
112.5kg x 5

Snatch Grip Deadlift

75kg x 4
82.5kg x 2x3
90kg x 4x2

Chin-ups

BW + 5kg x 3x5

Felt good, definitely tougher than just body weight.

Well hips are horrifically tight as if there is glue between the tissue and the hip joint. I found sitting in a squat position with either the bar or some weight and then open the hips up more and carefully turn the body in various directions to try and stretch the hips as much as possible worked wonderfully. This followed up with deadlifting and opened up hips at light weight as well as then doing snatch grip deadlifts in the same manner feels like it has helped tremendously. I can stop worrying about my back rounding on deadlifts now as it was just my hip being tight causing it, after a bit of wiggling I could get my back perfectly flat and it made the pull feel much nicer. What I need to work on is having the hips open without having to throw my knees out (my feet were pointing forward when deadlifting) as it felt like I lost power even though it pulls were a lot more comfortable.
 
29/7/15 - Wednesday

Low bar Squats, Bench, OHP.

Squats (High Bar)

Bar x millions x millions
40kg x some number
50kg x another number
60kg x millions of singles and doubles - various stances, deep rotation, isometric rotations etc.
70kg x 1 - (Swap to low bar)
80kg x 1
90kg x 1
100kg(B) x 1

So tonight was a night for low bar instead of high, still a minor niggle but almost non-existent and there was no discomfort either. I left it at 100kg as I wanted to save the elbow for benching. I feel confident of another 10kg+ in me.

Bench

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 8
52.5kg x 2x6
60kg x 2x5
70kg x 2x3
77.5kg x 2x1 - Competition Paused too!

Super happy with this the last singles were really comfortable so I can assume my max is now higher than what it was (80kg).

OHP

Bar x lots
27.5kg x 6
35kg x 3
40kg x 3
37.5kg x 4
35kg x 6

Pretty straight forward, not too amazing since I had just done pretty heavy benching but still easy.

Hanging Knee-raises

BW x 12
BW x 10
BW x 8

Done and finished.

I was bleh to begin with due to the knee not working but if it means just doing low bar and front squats for a while then that's fine by me. I was also a tad bleh because tight pecs and tight rear delts made benching a tad more challenging but it went away by the time I worked up to 70kg 2x3, after that I was fine.

Rest day tomorrow! :D
 
31/7/15 - Friday

Front Squats and Bench. High bar and low bar just was not working. I've been working on my hips so much my knees almost felt hollow so I thought I'd avoid those movements. Front squats however were absolutely fine.

Squat

Bar x lots
40kg x lots
50kg x some
60kg x 2

Nah, just did not feel quite right.

Front Squat

Bar x millions
40kg x lots
50kg x 3
60kg x 1
67.5kg x 1
72.5kg x 1
80kg x 1
85kg(B) x 1 - All time PB!

85kg Front Squat PB!

Super happy with that, it felt like I had more in me too but that's a fight for another day.

Bench

Bar x millions x millions
40kg x 8
50kg x 6
60kg x 3
70kg x 9 - Rep pb!

Super happy with that, admittedly the last rep was super ropey but it was still perfectly legitimate by IPF standard, no video though :(

Because of that rep pb I get to up my numbers for the next cycle!

Really happy with tonight, front squat felt decent and the fact I'm making progress on bench is amazing! Super massive session tomorrow though!
 
1/8/15 - Saturday

Squats, deadlifts, OHP. Awesome day, but I did have to spend (I think) close to 90 mins just mobilising and warming up to get the hips and knees working. It was worth it.

Squat

Bar x millions
40kg x 5
50kg x 3
60kg x 2
70kg x 2
80kg x 1
90kg x 1
97.5kg x 1
105kg(B) x 1
112.5kg(B) x 1 - Current pb!

112.5kg high bar squat

Really pleased with this. There was a loud click on the outside of the left knee but the knee felt fine and there was no pain or discomfort.

Deadlift Paused Above Knee

75kg x 3
90kg x 3
105kg x 3
112.5kg x 4x2

All DOH so I'm quite pleased.

Deadlift Block Pulls 3"

97.5kg x 3
112.5kg x 3
127.5kg(B) x 2x3
135kg(B) x 3x2

132.5kg x 2 block pull

Really pleased with this as I don't think I've managed 135kg from blocks for all intended sets and reps before! Or at the very least last time it didn't go well and this time it did so I'm happy.

OHP

Bar x lots
27.5kg x 6
35kg x 3
40kg x 3x3
35kg x 3x6

Lovely jubbly.

Chin Ups

BW + 5kg x 5,5,6

Nice. Much easier than when I did these during the week.

BOR

Bar x lots
30kg x 15
42.5kg x 4x10

More weight next week.

Barbell Side Bends

Bar x 3x12

Hanging Knee Raises

BW x 3x12

Done and finished. Horrifically long session but so pleased with how it went. A big thank you to Mrthingx for mentioning the butterfly and pancake stretch in another thread as well as going though "Becoming a Supple Leopard" book by Kelly Starrett, has helped tremendously in the past two days. Lots more stretching and mobility and hopefully more squatting!
 
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3/8/15 - Monday

Just some light squats and bench.

Squats

Bar x lots x lots
40kg x 5
50kg x 3
60kg x 2
70kg x 2
80kg x 1
90kg x 1
100kg(B) x 1

Thought I'd leave it there as I had really but the legs hard with stretches and mobility work and didn't want to over do it and to try and keep some benefits of the stretching and mobility work I had just done.

Bench

Bar x lots
40kg x 8
50kg x 6
60kg x 3
65kg x 2
72.5kg x 3x2
62.5kg x 3x5

Pretty straight forward.

Decided to leave it there and shift the OHP and back work to another day because the music was so loud you would have thought we were in a nightclub (on Monday's there's a DJ and they forget it's a gym) and my gym partner and I ended up having headaches so we left.

Lots of deadlifts tomorrow :D
 
GSVBagpuss said:
Bench seems to be coming along nicely?
Click to expand...

It has indeed since I changed the program a while back to focus more on reps in lower %'s a they're just as important as doing heavy %'s. So far I've found by doing more work (than I did) with lower weights, it has really helped with ingraining correct form as well as help with hypertrophy aspects of training whereas before I only focused on the top sets and if they did not go correctly then I'd reset, build back up and find myself just repeating that for too long.
 
4/8/15 - Tuesday


Deadliffffffttttssssssssssss. Decided not to squat so I could just focus on deadlifting today, and after playing it cautious last night it paid of nicely. Hopefully lots of squats tomorrow.

Deadlift

70kg x 5
100kg x 5
112.5kg x 3
127.5kg(B,S) x 8 - Whooooop! Rep PB and projected max pb!
135kg(B) x 1

It honestly felt like I could have got another one or two reps on the amrap set but I've still got to be sensible. The goal was 6-8, I hit 8 so I knew my job was done. My legs were so shaky afterwards which did not help with the 135kg single but it went up easy enough, but damn I was tired.

BOR

Bar x 15
30kg x 15
40kg x 12
45kg x 4x8

Easy enough.

Kneeling cable crunches

64kg x 3x20

Done and finished.

Super pleased with the deadlifts and it was nice just having a single movement to focus on for once. Ready for Squats and bench tomorrow!
 
5/8/15 - Wednesday

Front squats, bench and OHP. I actively decided not to do back squats just because I deadlifted yesterday and didn't want to abuse the fact that my hips and knees were feeling good for once. Just because I can does not mean I should. I warmed up with high bar (with just the bar) regardless, it felt good but there was a tiny bit of discomfort in the right knee where it has compensated recently. No big deal, just rest and it'll be fine.

Front squat

Bar x lots
40kg x 5
50kg x 3
60kg x 2
70kg x 1
80kg x 1
87.5kg(B) x 1 - PB!
92.5kg(B) x 1 - PB!
97.5kg(B) x 1 - Bigger, better PB!

97.5kg Front Squat

12.5kg pb since last week! I had another 2.5kg - 5kg in me but thought I'd save it. 100kg is coming soon.

Bench

Bar x lots x millions
40kg x 8
45kg x 5
55kg x 4
62.5kg x 3
67.5kg x 2x3
72.5kg x 2x2

Nice and easy.

OHP

Bar x lots
30kg x 6
37.5kg x 3
42.5kg x 2
40kg x 3
37.5kg x 5

Well now my shoulders and triceps are knackered.

Chin-Ups

BW + 5kg x 5,6,6

That was hard after everything I had done and I had to use a different belt with a ridiculously heavy chain so it was more than what I was used to.

Kneeling Cable Crunches

70kg x 3x20

I kept slipping because of sweaty hands and having knee sleeves on just allowed the weight to pull me around (a bit).

Happy with that, everything just seemed to work today. Lots of rest and stretching to prepare for Friday and Saturday training sessions.
 
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