8/30: Cube W2 Heavy Squat

Squat:
55x3
105x1
145x1
195x1
235x1
265x3
295x1
315x1
325x1
325x2x2 PR
285x6 PR

Cambered bar goodmorning:
45x8
95x8
115x8
135x8x2

This cambered bar was different than the one I've been using, it was cambered an extra inch or two. This had the weight swaying a little more and was even more comfortable on my shoulders. I'll probably use this bar for squats/goodmornings and the other bar for rows since I don't need that much extra ROM.

Hack squats:
45x8
90x8x2

Walking lunges: weight per side
40x10x3

My weight is down to 207-208 but my strength seems to be going up on all exercises so I guess I'm OK with it. My diet's been pretty solid lately but I'm eating more carbs than I would like. I guess its better than the alternative of not being able to eat enough carbs, but eating >500 carbs everyday actually does get old after a while. If I ever want to stop eating hundreds of calories worth of icecream/sweets every night I'm going to have to add in a high calorie shake which is something I've been avoiding out of laziness/lack of discipline.

9/1: Cube W2 Press Day

Axle bench press: long pause last rep
30x10
100x8
140x8
160x6
180x5

Log press:
75x5
95x5
125x5
145x4
165x2 PR

I failed on the first rep of 165 but managed to get two solid reps in after regrouping.

Flat dumbbell bench:
55x10
75x10

Decline lying triceps extension:
60x12x3

Barbell curls:
40x12x2
40x10 pronated

Lateral raises:
15x12x2

High cable curls:
20x15

Reverse cable flyes: unilateral
5x12x3

9/2: Cube W3 Heavy Deadlift

Deadlift: sumo
135x3
225x1
315x1
365x1
405x5
455x1
405x1

Pin pulls: 3rd pin, 6-8in high
135x2
315x2
405x1x3
405x1x3 conventional

Trap bar deadlift:
170x5
260x5
350x5
440x7 PR
440x5

9/4: Cube W3 Explosive Bench

Bench:
55x8
105x5
145x5
165x3
195x3x6

I did two sets each of my normal grip, narrow grip, and wide grip. Wide grip moved the fastest but was least comfortable. My normal grip is pinky just inside the smooth, my narrow is about 1.5-2 inches inward, and my wide grip is ring finger on the smooth.

Bench: 2 board
195x5x3 close grip (close grip is a few inches closer than my narrow grip)
145x10 extra wide grip (middle finger on smooth)

This was my first time board pressing but it definitely won't be my last. I'll probably do all my close grip work with boards now to spare my shoulder from excessive internal rotation.

Axle press:
30x8
80x8
120x6x3
140x5

SSB squat: narrow stance
60x5
150x5
200x5
200x5 normal stance

These narrow stance squats bothered my lower back a little bit so I only did one set before reverting back to my normal stance. During my narrow stance sets I kept my knees more forward instead of pushing them out which may have caused some lower back rounding. My normal stance felt a lot better, but I wanted to give my hips a break so I backed off.

Decline lying triceps extension:
60x12
70x10x2

Lateral raises:
15x12
20x10

Reverse cable flyes: unilateral
5x12
10x8

Low cable flyes:
20x10x2

Impressive leg progress -- there's hope for fakebusto after all!

Even your widegrip bench is pretty narrow -- how tall are you?

Thanks! I dunno about fakebusto though, I don't think any amount of reps at or below 185 is going to lead to much progress! I didn't start seeing any real leg development until 3-4 months ago when I started repping 275 for multiple sets.

I'm just under 6'1 with a 6'3ish wingspan. I started out with this narrowish grip and never even thought about messing with it until recently. I might try to slowly bring it out a little bit but if I feel any strain I'll bring it back in.

Eh, I wouldn't mess with your grip too much if you've found something that works for you, I was just curious. DT, a noted tall, also has what I consider to be a pretty narrow grip when he EL, and it seemed to be working out for him the few times a year he benches.

I'll probably be repping 275 by this time in 2018, so I'll report back then.

9/6: Cube W3 Squat Reps

Reverse band squat: monster minis
195x5
245x5
285x2
315x3
285x1
335x3
350x2
335x4
285x10

Upon racking the last set, the clip on the left decided that it had been on long enough and convinced the plates to abandon me along with it. This was pretty unfortunate, but I managed to stay with the bar and eventually unrack the other side without any additional fail. I have no idea how much weight the bands took off of the bottom, but they took very little if any off of the top.

GHR:
bwx8x3

Hack squats:
45x8
95x8x2

would love to try out reverse band squats just to see what it's like, but I don't have a cage accessible where this set up is possible. Your squats seem to have really climbed. This cube programming seems legit. Nice work.

Thanks! Reverse band squats are probably fps for somebody of my strength level, but they were fun to try out. I really like the Cube, but I've made some pretty major modifications to it to make it suit my needs.

9/8: Cube W3 Press Day

Axle bench press:
30x8
120x8
140x8
160x8
180x5x2
160x8 close grip 2 board
160x8 wide grip 2 board

Log press:
75x8
95x8
125x6x2
125x8

Decline lying triceps extension:
60x15x2

Barbell curls:
60x12x2
50x10 pronated

Lateral raises:
15x12x3

Reverse cable flyes: unilateral
10x10
15x8

Seated calf raises:
45x12
90x15

Standing calf raises:
120x10x2

9/9: Cube W4 Deadlift Reps

Deadlift: sumo
135x3
135x3 conventional
225x3
225x3 conventional
275x2
275x2 conventional
315x2
315x1 conventional
365x3
365x1x2 conventional
365x4
315x5 conventional, 3in deficit

Stiff leg deadlift: 3in deficit
225x6x3

SSB squat:
60x8
150x5
200x5
220x3
240x3
250x2
250x3
240x3

Seated cable rows: unilateral
70x10x2

Straight arm pulldown:
40x10x2

9/11: Cube W4 Heavy Bench

Bench:
45x10
115x10
135x10
165x6
185x5
210x2x2
210x2x3 wide grip
210x3
185x5 close grip 2 board
205x5 close grip 2 board
185x8 extra wide grip 2 board

Axle press:
30x10
80x5
120x5x2
120x7

Flat dumbbell bench: slingshot
65x15

Lying triceps extension:
70x10x2

Lateral raises:
15x12x2

Seated calf raises:
45x15
90x12x2

Standing calf raises:
120x10x2

Reverse cable flyes: unilateral
10x15
15x10

Face pulls:
35x15
50x10

9/13: Cube W4 Explosive Squats

Squats:
55x5
145x3
195x3
225x1
275x1 paused
305x2
315x3
285x5
245x1x6 5-7 second pause, beltless

My walkout with 315 was by far the best its ever felt, so I guess the reverse band work paid off. I'm going to try to either do more reverse band work or just some heavy walkouts since I think this may be a weak point in my squat. I also set up with the safety straps instead of pins today and I felt a lot more secure. I've never failed a squat before but the straps are positioned so perfectly that I'll probably be more aggressive next time I go for heavy singles.

Cambered bar goodmorning:
45x8
95x8
135x8x3

Hack squats:
45x8
90x5

Walking lunges:
45x8
55x8x2

Is there any reason you haven't? I remember being scared of failing in squats, but once I did, it was really helpful for knowing how much I have in the tank.

I was afraid earlier in the year when I stalled at 275 for a few months but since then I've hit PRs easily without getting that close to failure. Now that PRs are starting to get harder to come by there's definitely more risk of failing but I'm prepared and not worried about it anymore. I also never fail on my higher rep sets since my cardio always gives out way before my legs/back, which I'm slowly working on.

9/15: Cube W4 Press Day

Axle bench: paused
30x8
110x8
170x5x2 long pause last rep
190x5 long pause last rep

Log press:
75x8
125x5
145x5
165x1
145x5

Seated dumbbell press:
30x10
45x8x2

These were easy but felt very awkward so I'm going to increase the weight slowly, if I even keep this exercise in the rotation.

Tricep pushdowns:
60x12x2 neutral
40x10x2 supinated

Dumbbell clean and jerk:
50x5x2

Lateral raises:
15x12
20x10
15x12

Seated calf raises:
45x20
90x12x2

Standing calf raises:
120x12x2

Reverse cable flyes: unilateral
10x15
15x8
10x12

9/16: Cube W5 Explosive Deadlift

Deadlift: sumo
135x5 conventional
135x5
225x5 conventional
225x5
275x3 conventional
275x5
315x2 conventional
315x1 lost balance, almost got pwned
315x3
365x1 conventional
365x1x8

Stiff leg deadlift: 3in deficit
225x6x2

Snatch grip deadlift: 3in deficit
225x5

These were turrible even at such a light weight. That probably means I should keep doing them but they really, really sucked.

Pin pulls: 5th pin, 10-12in high
135x5
225x5
315x5
405x5
455x1
495x1
535x1
555x1

I strapped up for these and that made a ridiculous difference. My grip is rarely a problem, but apparently supinating one hand throws me off more than I thought. 555 was nowhere near a max and I wouldn't be surprised if I could lock out >600 from this height. Also, I'm not sure if I mentioned before but all my pin pulls have been sumo.

Pullups: neutral grip
bwx5

I hate pullups so cotdamn much but its extremely obvious that I need to put some work into them. Today wasn't that day though.

Lat pull down: pronated
120x10
160x8

9/18: Cube W5 Bench Reps

Bench: wide grip
45x10
95x5
135x5
165x5
185x5
195x1
205x6 PR
175x5 close grip slingshot
175x5 close grip 2 board
165x5 extra wide 2 board

I might make this wide my grip my new normal grip. It doesn't feel uncomfortable at all and I'm much faster off of the chest even though its only a finger's width wider. The extra wide grip on the 2 board feels even faster but still also feels awkward. I also determined that I like the 2 board more than the slingshot for close grip work.

Isolateral row: unilateral
90x10 neutral
90x10 pronated
135x6 neutral
135x10 neutral

Flat dumbbell bench:
55x15
75x10

Axle Press: unknown weight, ~75-100 is my narrowest guess
axle x10x2

I couldn't find the axle that I've been pressing so I picked up this random thick metal bar instead. It worked out fine but it was a little light since I couldn't add any weight to it.

Dumbbell clean and press: unilateral
40x5
50x5
50x6

Decline lying triceps extension:
60x15x2

Barbell curls:
60x10x3

Lateral raises:
15x10x3

Reverse cable flyes: unilateral
5x10x3

Seated calf raises:
45x20
90x12x2

Standing calf raises:
120x12x3

I've been sick the last ~2 weeks so I've been skipping my Tues/Thurs/Sat sessions and doing my extra accessory work on my main days. Everything's going well with that, but my upper back definitely isn't appreciating the steep drop in volume.

9/20: Cube W5 Heavy Squat

Squat:
45x10
145x1
195x1
235x1
285x1
305x2
325x2x3 PR
340x1 PR
295x3

I was planning on hitting 325x2x5 and 295x5 today but my cardio wouldn't have it (apparently doubles are now cardio). I'm pretty sure I have some of that there bronchitis but it can't be that bad if I'm setting PRs...

Trap bar deadlift:
80x3
170x3
260x3
350x3
440x3
490x1 PR

The best part about using the trap bar so infrequently is that I'm able to hit easy PRs every single time I pick it up.

Walking lunges:
50x10x3

9/22: Cube W5 Press Day

Axle bench press:
30x10
100x10
120x10
170x5 long paused
190x5x2
170x8 close grip 2 board
170x6 paused close grip 2 board

Flat dumbbell bench:
60x10 paused

Seated dumbbell press:
45x8

Dumbbell clean and press: unilateral
50x5x2

Tricep pushdowns:
50x15x2

Seated calf raises:
45x12
90x12
90x10

Standing calf raises:
120x12
120x10

Lateral raises:
15x12x2

Barbell curls:
70x5x3

9/23: Cube W6 Heavy Deadlift

Deadlift: sumo
135x5 conventional
135x3
225x3 conventional
225x3
275x3 conventional
275x2
315x1
365x1
405x2
435x1
435x2
405x3

Something was wrong with my form today. The bar kept drifting away from me which made the lifts a lot harder than they need to be.

Pin pulls: 4th pin, 8-10in high
135x3
225x3
315x3
405x5x2

Pulling from this height felt a lot better than it did the last time I tried it. Hopefully that means I've gotten stronger and not that I've acquired the skill of pulling from the 4th pin in my rack.

Stiff leg deadlift: 3in deficit
135x3
225x7
245x5
245x6

Isolateral row: unilateral, neutral grip
90x10
135x8
160x8
160x10

9/25: Cube W6 Explosive Bench:

Bench:
55x10
105x10
145x5
175x3x3 narrow grip
175x3x3 wide grip
175x3x3 normal grip
175x3 close grip 2 board
195x3 close grip 2 board
195x5 close grip 2 board

The 9 sets of 175x3 were all done ~5 minutes. All three grips moved pretty fast and the 2 board moved extremely fast.

Flat dumbbell bench:
50x20

Pullups:
bwx5 neutral grip
bwx3 pronated

Lat pulldown: pronated
140x10
160x8

Chest supported row:
90x10x2

Seated calf raises:
45x20
90x15
110x10x2

Lying triceps extension:
60x10x3

Front raises:
15x12
20x12

Lateral raises:
15x12x2

Barbell curls:
60x8x2

Reverse cable flyes: unilateral
10x10x3

9/27: Cube W6 Squat Reps

Squat:
55x10
145x2
195x1
235x1
265x3
285x5
305x2x2
235x10

235x10 is probably a PR but I honestly can't even remember the last set of 10 I've done. It was pretty terrible though.

Cambered bar goodmorning:
45x8
95x8
115x8x2

GHR:
bwx8x3

Walking lunges:
45x12
60x10x3

Isolateral row: unilateral, neutral grip
90x10
135x10x3

Pullups:
bwx5 neutral
bwx3 pronated
bwx3 supinated
bwx4 supinated

FUUUUU I suck with all grips. I was hoping maybe I'd be stronger with a supinated grip, but naw.

9/29: Cube W6 Press Day

Axle bench press:
30x20
80x10
120x5
160x3
180x3 long pause
195x3 long pause
200x4 long pause
170x5x2 close grip 2 board

Incline dumbbell bench: neutral grip
45x10x2

Log press:
75x8
125x5
125x7
125x8

Pullups: with monster mini
bwx8 supinated
bwx5 pronated
bwx6 supinated
bwx5 pronated

I suck even with a monster mini assisting me. I'll probably try with a light band next week and see if I can get in the 10-12 rep range. If that's too easy I'll just add a mini or a micro mini instead.

Lateral raises:
15x12
20x10
15x10

Front raises:
15x20

Seated calf raises:
45x20
90x10
90x6, cramped up

Standing calf raises:
120x10
120x12

Tricep pushdowns:
65x10
55x12x2