Vanity Log: how much in a year?

Front Squat 1RM day today.

FRONT SQUATS

70*5
100*1
110*1
115*1
120*f

Quite happy with 115kg, but it was a bit messy. If I can get my back tension sorted out (and my head), I reckon I've got enough legs to push through 120kg. Possibly would have nailed it if I'd skipped 115...


DBSS 6-6-6-6-6

25(3f)-BW-8-14-18

25s caused my coccyx pain to flare up again. Irritating because I know I should always warm up with BW work first. This is the second time I've done this... :mad:


OHP 5-4-3-3

50-55-60-60(2+PP)

Nice to get back up to 60kg, although it was hard!


A bit of an easy workout, but figured I'd see where my front squat 1RM was after my time on CBL. I'm down a rep on my previous best (115*2), but that's not catastrophic at the end of all things.

I'm switching to the 'density bulking' protocol of CBL because my body just can't cope on the 'strength accumulation' one - too much delay in recovery for five consecutive days training, and too much power loss.

Off for a week to the US next week, so hotel gym-ing with some cardio stuff and a swimming pool... much just powerclean the treadmill and front squat with that (in my head, I could do this).
 
Nice PB :)
That's always the trouble when picking a weight for a 1RM, if you nail it you wonder if you should have picked more.
 
LiE said:
Nice PB :)
That's always the trouble when picking a weight for a 1RM, if you nail it you wonder if you should have picked more.
Click to expand...

Indeed - just need to get my home gym and programme sorted and with a bit of luck 115kg will get repped at some point next year. :o :D
 
First session back in the gym after my trip to the US.

To start: hotel gyms are rubbish. I don't even know why I am posting this, but they are just awful. Dumbells to 25lbs, and shedloads of ellipticals, treadmills and steppers.

And then a pec dec and OHP machine (this just seems a recipe for shoulder agony).

Stupid business people and their fixation with 'fitness'.

/RANT

Anyway...

PAUSED OVERHEAD SQUATS 5-3-3-3-3-3

50-70-60-60-65-65

Tried 80% of 90kg, and that was too heavy for reps (just managed the first triple). I suspect this may have been too much, too soon because the 65s were fine, but... Anyway. Pauses on these are good fun and really force the core to work. :)


PAUSED FRONT SQUATS 5-3-3-3-3-3

70-90-80-80-85-85

Same story again with the loading pattern. Shape was good with these even if the weight is miles off where it should be, and pausing at the bottom was entertaining. It also highlights some glute med quirks as these pauses were causing my knees to come in on some reps.


With a bit of luck, will have my home gym up and running for heavy stuff next week. It's been put off due to a rather painful car bill, but that problem has gone and it's just a question of choosing the right bumper plates.

The Jordan Elite Steel bar (the one with the yellow caps) is an interesting piece of kit: £169, but seems to be really nicely machined from a very nice bit of unfinished (mmmmmmmmhmmmmmmm) steel. However, the sleeves clunk ever so slightly when spun (they spin reasonably freely) and the bearings are open, meaning a snatch grip for me may result in something unpleasant as the side of my palm gets eaten.

The knurling is also quite nice for a cheap bar: very even, but is more pronounced on the wide grip (identical on each side so I don't think this is a manufacturing error). The 'teeth' (?) are pronounced, but soft (if that makes sense), meaning that I can get a good grip on the bar (admittedly, without much weight - only the MP blue band doubled up) without it chewing off my callouses.

We'll see how it stands up to actual load next week, and how it deals with my bad technique and being dropped. Either way, happy days! :D
 
I'm not sure if I should laugh or cry about that, really. :eek:

I am looking forward to using chalk, however, instead of straps/nothing. Palmar aponeuro-whatever inflammation really hurts. :D
 
Ooof.

DBSS 8(WU)-6-6-6

BW-10-18-25

After squatting yesterday, these hurt. I should have appended them to yesterday's workout, but there we go. :)


DUMBELL BENCH 6-6-6-6

35-35-35-35(5f)

Well, those felt heavy. :) Nice chest pump and - for some reason - arm snake. :confused: :cool:


DB ROW ss/ CG PULL UP 8/5-8/5-8/5

ROW: 40kg
CGPU: +10kg

Rows were tough but I just love rowing. Chinups were also really hard, which suggests more gun work required. :D


Overall, not really a session I would normally do, but still waiting for the home gym stuff to pile through.

Either way, worked what I wanted to work, even if there was no Olympic lifting... damn I miss that stuff. :(
 
I walked out feeling huge.

Deflated a couple of hours later, however, leaving serious DOMS in my quads and hams. :cool:

Should be ordering some plates this evening that will hopefully arrive Friday.

Gains from Gainzville will be my next appointment. :o :)
 
Another funny day...

CLEAN FIRST PULL WU(5)-5-5-5-5

70-110-130-130-130

Under tension for the whole lot - bar didn't touch the ground for the working sets, with explosive hamstring pull and then a slower release down. And that hurt! :eek: :D

Massive burn in the hamstrings, but also my upper back. Keeping that tight was quite amusing! :D


PUSH PRESS 3-3-3-3-3

75-75-75-75

Nothing fancy, because my neglect of overhead work for the past few weeks is really showing. Lack of stability for the first few, but the bar went up without too much drama, afterwards.


PUSH JERK 2-2-2-2

80-80-80-80

Very messy. Wasn't getting my head through enough to really fix my scaps, leg drive wasn't really working... needs a lot more practice.


BARBELL OHP 5-4-3-3

55-55-55-55

Hard. Last set required a push-press start but was fine after that. Really struggled with these. :eek:


SINGLE ARM DUMBELL PRESS 6-6-6-6

20-20-20-20(5+1)

Shoulders were borked by this point, so went for volume over weight. Had to restart on the last set because shoulders were on fire. :)


Again, this shows how much I 'suffer' from detraining after only short periods. Goodness knows what it's going to be like when I take Olympic work back up. :( :D

Still, it will be nice to have a dedicated day to overhead work (will have to be in the work gym due to a low ceiling at the home one) whilst making as much noise as I want at home. Next week... :cool:
 
mrthingyx said:
Thanks. :)

I will be paying for it tomorrow. :D
Click to expand...

Yup. Triceps and delts are pretty damn sore. :D

Squat day, today.

FRONT SQUATS 5-3-3-3-3-3

60-80-90-100-105-105(2f)

Happy, happy, happy. :) These seem to be working out quite nicely. The last set was tagged on because I tried overhead squatting and my palm lit up (80% load), so just added another round of fronties. Last rep got half way...


LOW BAR BACK SQUATS 3-3-3-3

110-110-110-110

First set was all back. Then I remembered what I was meant to be doing and the rest were fine. Nice change to stimulus, I guess. These were put in because I couldn't hold the bar in overhead position, and I needed leg damage.


OVERHEAD SQUAT 6-6-6-6

40-50-50-50

Man'd up and dealt. Low weight doesn't seem to trouble my grip on the bar, so went for what I describe as volume. :D Shoulders and arms were complaining all the way. :)


WIDE GRIP CHINS 8-8-8

BW for all.

Lats didn't appreciate these after the overhead squats. :)


I was hoping to get some ring dipping in, but there was no way my tris were going to agree: for some reason, my pecs still hurt from the dumbell bench work on Wednesday. :o

Strangely, my legs didn't feel too bad after this session. I wasn't sure why until I attempted to climb the stairs to my office and realised they had just gone numb. :eek:

Nearly didn't make it.

Still, I've found the backload material of choice that seems to help next-day workouts: 2 packs of Tesco Chocolate Filled Doughnuts.

- 270 calories each;
- 35g carbz.

Managed 9 in an hour last night before I started feeling ill. Then had a roast dinner. BOOM. :cool:

Strangely enough, I felt awesome this morning. :D
 
What do you want out of the movement?

Big quads? Better support for low bar squatting? Or rock stable shoulders and core?

Overhead squats do not tax my legs but they are hell on everything above the pelvis and require serious stability/flexibility to get into a good, stable squat. Great as a core and shoulder workout, and highlighting weaknesses in the general 'squat' chain of muscles (hips? Knees? Core?)...

Front squats will be more taxing on the quads than any back squat, but won't get the same hamstring involvement.

High bar back squats will get you mid-way between the front and low bar work...

I added in back squats today because I needed more stimulus that wasn't going to destroy my quads or stress my upper back stability the same way front squats do... with a bit of luck, I won't be doing them for a while (assuming my hand heals).

I do the overhead squats whilst I can't snatch, at the moment. When I get my home gym, I will probably ditch them for just plain snatches

I've seen a bit of bumf on overhead squats being great for power and whatever, but I think that's a bit misleading. Want legs? That requires big loads, and you won't get those big loads from overhead squatting.

To throw another wild-card in, DBSS. I know you already do these, but considering them as a proper exercise in and of themselves rather than just assistance. Either that, or learn how to clean. ;) :D

So. What do you want? :)
 
I was thinking of using them to improve shoulder/upper back stability, while improving my ability to be more upright. I currently cannot squat unloaded and by very upright without holding on to something. Much like using the front squats currently as a range extender/mobility assistance exercise, i was wondering if OH would be good for addressing the points i mention.

The aim is strong legs not big legs, obvisouly they will get bigger and i am fine with that but str > size for me, and for that i have my staple low bar back squats, throw in the split squats and band squats, and i am happy with that work for development.
 
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