Very interesting thought md, I guess I can be a case study. I feel pretty confident getting into the 105 to 115 range (everything's been smooth so far, with good bar speed), but after that I suspect I'll need to microload as everyone suggests.

By the way, 205 is ridiculous -- congratulations!

My tight hamstrings have always been a problem, so I am going to try to GTG with hamstring stretches at work today -- maybe ~15-20 seconds every hour or so. Hopefully the improved flexibility will help my lifts.

4/22
Squat
wu+3x5x135

Bench
wu + 3x5x185

DL
wu + 3x215

215 didn't feel that heavy, I just have some coordination problem that prevents me from lowering the weight correctly (instead of bending at the hips my back collapses below the scapula until the weight gets below my knees). I'm deloading way down in weight and I'm really going to try to get the form down before I increase the weight.

4/25
Squat
wu + 3x5x145

Presss
wu + 3x5x95

DL
1x5x135
1x5x185

Form on the deadlift is still not there, my back is still collapsing on the way down. I'm going to keep practicing at this low weight until I get it right.

Squat
wu+ 3x5x155
My lower back collapsed a bit on the last two reps of the last set and I good morning'd the weight up a bit -- I'm going to stay at 155 on Friday and try to firm up the reps before I add any weight.

Bench
wu + 3x5x195
Still pretty smooth, I haven't decided if I'm going to go to 200 or 205 on Monday.

DL
wu + 1x5x185
I feel like my form is getting better; still rounding a bit on the way down in the upper back, but not nearly as much as before. I may stay at 185 for another workout or two before I move up just to make sure.

Took Friday and Monday off due to a bad case of strep that I am sort of recovered from.

5/4

Press
wu+ 3x5x100

Did this first because the squat rack was taken; was pretty easy.

Squat
wu+ 3x5x155

Easier than last time, although the last few reps were hard (although I got winded more easily because I'm still a bit congested). I'll definitely add weight, but I'm not sure if it will be 5 or 10 pounds.

DL
wu + 1x5x215

I still don't feel like my form is great but it is much better than it was. I'm going to try for 235 on Friday and then move to a Mon/Wed/Fri split of Pullups/DL/Chinups.

5/6
Squat
wu+3x5x160
Felt good, moving up to 165 Monday

Bench
wu + 3x5x205
Still smooth, will try 215 on Wednesday

DL
wu + 1x5x225

My form is still not where it needs to me, I have trouble keeping my back in rigid extension. I'm going to move to DL'ing once per week, and will be doing either pullups or chinups the other days. In addition, I'd also like to do some assistance exercises for my lower back to strengthen it; should I be doing anything else other than weighted lower back extensions?

5/9
Squat
wu + 3x5x165

Press
wu + 3x5x105

Pullups
6.4.2

Lower back extension
3x10x0

Squat felt good, I am getting better at keeping my weight on my heels and driving with my hips. I may try 170 on Wednesday. The press is getting challenging, but I think 110 is doable on Friday. I'm a little out of practice with pullups but I guess I did alright. Back extensions felt great, I kept my lower back flexed the entire time and really tried to work the muscles, as it is a pretty obvious weak point. I am going to start adding weight incrementally next workout.

5/11
Squat
wu + 3x5x170
Bench
wu + 3x5x215
DL
wu + 1x5x185

Back extensions
3x10x10lbs

Squat felt good, I think 175 is doable on Friday.

Bench was definitely hard, and my left external rotator felt weak, but I powered through. Not sure whether I'm going to pussy out and do 220 on Monday, or take my balls out of my purse and step up to 225. Probably depends on how my left shoulder feels.

I'm still having a lot of trouble keeping my lower back extended while deadlifting, my guess is there's a flexibility issue there as well as a strength issue with my lower back. Any tips?

5/14
Worked out this afternoon instead of Friday due to a pretty insane day at the office on Friday. Also bought and read GSLP and liked it a lot -- I'll be incorporating the full program into my routine on Monday. Fortunately enough, my 1.25 lb plates arrived today.

Press
wu + 2x5x110 + 1x6x110

Chinups
1x7x0, 1x3x0 (pussied out on the last set for some reason)

Squats
wu + 2x5x175, 1x6x175

Back Hypers
3x12x15

Lying Ext Rotation
3x12x5 (each arm)

Propped Ext Rotation
3x12x5 (each arm)

My form broke down on the squat (lower back felt weak), so I'll be sticking at 175 on Monday. Press felt fine; excited to start the full GSLP on Monday; I'll be doing the brisk walking in the morning and the frequency pushups/chinups throughout the week.

5/16

Did GSLP again . . . I'm starting frequency work pretty light: pushups for sets of 15 and chinups for sets of 2, 5-6 sets/day. Also did a 25 minute brisk walk with the wife this morning.

Bench
wu + 2x5x225, 1x6x225

EZ Bar Curl
wu + 2x12x55

Squat
wu + 1x5x175, 1x5x165, 1x6x155

Back Hypers
3x10x15

My lower back is still a weak point, and I'm going to reset my squat back to 145 and progress in weight very slowly, making sure to keep my lower back in rigid extension at all times. I think I just moved up too fast and I need to make sure my form is perfect so I don't really screw up my back.

Obviously I was pumped to get 225 on the bench; luckily my 1.25 weights came so I only have to jump up to 227.5 on Friday.

5/17

AM -- 20 min fasted walk
Frequency: 5x15 pushups, 5x2 chinups

5/18

Press
wu + 2x5x112.5, 1x7x112.5

Chins
bw x 7/5

DL
wu + 1x5x185

Back Hypers
3x12x15

HIIT
Bike -- 1 min wu + 10 intervals of 15s on/ 45s off

Frequency work
5x15 pushups
5x2 chinups

Deadlift felt better, I concentrated on really contracting my lower back throughout the movement and I did better. I'm going to increase the weight slowly . . .

5/19

Frequency pushups (5x15) and chinups (5x2) throughout the day.

5/20

Frequency pushups and chinups throughout the day.

Bench
wu + 2x5x227.5, 1x6x227.5
Struggled quite a bit on the 6th rep in the last set but managed to get it up.

EZ Bar Curls
1x12x50, 1x10x50 (assuming the bar is 15 pounds, which I think it is)

Squats
wu + 2x5x145, 1x8x145
My squat form felt quite a bit better; I am going to try to increase in weight quite slowly to make sure it stays that way.

Hypers
3x12x15

5/23

Upped my daily frequency exercises to 5x20 (pushups) and 5x3 (chinups)

Press
wu + 2x5x115, 1x7x115

Chinups
7/4 x bw

I didn't wait long enough between sets I don't think; also, I have put on ~7 pounds since starting lifting (up to around 227) so that is making these a bit harder.

Squats
wu + 2x5x147.5, 1x9x147.5

Felt pretty good, I am trying to work on keeping my toes in the air inside my shoes, and my lower back tight.

Hypers
3x12xbw+15

I'm tossing around trying sumo DLs tomorrow in lieu of regular DLs (I'm still not convinced that my back extension is optimal, or even decent, on normal DLs). Is this too early to incorporate this exercise, as I'm still a novice, or is it a viable change to make? Is one or the other generally better for someone of my height to perform (I'm 6'4")?

5/24
Frequency work

5/25
Frequency work

Bench
wu + 2x5x230, 1x6x230

Seated DB Curl
2x12x20

Sumo DL
2x5x135
1x5x190

Hypers
3x10xbw+20

HIIT
Biking -- 15s sprint/ 45 s maintenance x 10 sprints

Every time I bench I keep half expecting to not be able to move the weight, and every time I end up doing it. 232.5 next time.

Sumo DLs were interesting -- I ended up having my feet pretty wide (even with the smooth finger part of the knurling) and my hands narrower than a normal DL. I tried it with my hands at the standard width and they were rubbing on my thighs as I was bringing the bar up. Any suggestions?

HIIT was performed in the part of the gym w/o working AC -- fantastic.

Just got back from a one week vacation. Did a little bit of frequency stuff, but other than that, I didn't work out at all.

6/1
Frequency work throughout the day

Press
wu + 2x5x117.5, 1x7x117.5

Chins
2x8/6xbw

Sumo DL
2x5x135
1x7x195

Hypers
3x8xbw+25

HIIT
Bike -- 15s intensity interval/45s rest interval x 10

Press felt great, onward and upward. I'm going to try and see a doctor for my shoulder issue, because it's not going away -- hopefully it is just tendinitis.

I'll be adding a bit of weight to the chins next workout, and I'll probably just alternate between regular and sumo DL for some variety.

Nice gains, keep up the good work! Jealous of your press not slowing down

Thanks!

I don't quite remember, but I think I maxed out my work sets on the press at 120-125 back when I worked out five or six years ago. It's always been easier for me to go down a trail already blazed so to speak (hence why my squat and DL are still way out of proportion to my upper body lifts). Doing my work sets at 135 is a big goal of mine that I want to get to within the next few weeks.

I'll be squatting Friday for the first time in a week and half, so I am hopeful that goes ok. I feel better about my form since my reset; hopefully that trend continues.

Why are you doing 3 sets of deadlifts?

Only the last one is the work set, I did two sets at 135 as a warmup.

6/2 - Frequency work (still 5x20 pushups, 5x3 chinups)
6/3
Bench
wu + 5/5/6x232.5
Pussied out, probably could have gotten at least 7 but the bar was digging into my left hand a bit. Happy to keep moving up though.

Seated DB Curl
2x12x25

Dips
2x10xbw

Squat
wu+ 5/5/7x145
It had been a week and a half since I squatted -- I definitely had a few more in the tank on the last set, but just decided not to do them for whatever reason. I need to WIM it up next time I guess.

I used to never look forward to press days as much as bench days, but I am really looking forward to knocking out 120 on Monday.

Worked out off and on over the summer, had a few vacations and an illness thrown in there so things were kind of sporadic, but I've been consistently working out 5 days a week (lift MWF, HIIT TTh) for the past month or so using GSLP. I did a pretty significant reset on all the lifts when I started back up due to inactivity, and I've been since working my way back up. My frequency work for this week was 4 x 25 pushups/4 chins, will be upping to 5 sets next week. I currently take Sat/Sun off from lifting and cardio, but I just got Assess and Correct and I'll be going through the DVDs this weekend to try to get some mobility exercises to help with my super tight hip flexors and hamstrings.

Bench
wu+3x5/5/9x225

Preacher Curls
1x12x45
1x12x55

Dips
2x10/7xbw+25

Squats
wu+3x5/5/6x170

Squatting was horrible, I was really far forward on my toes on my last few reps. Going to redo 170 at a minimum on Monday, and maybe drop back down to 165 to work on some form. Bench feels really good; I'd like to max out at 315 by the end of year, and I think I'm on track to do that.

I was thinking about adding GHRs as squat/DL assistance work; the only issue is that my lifting days (MWF) are pretty full timewise (I lift during lunch). Any recovery related issues with doing them on cardio days (TTh) and maybe at home on Sat?

I've also had a tight muscle in my left arm for weeks (almost feels like it's under the area between my delt/tricep); I'm going for a deep tissue massage on Tuesday so hopefully it will get worked out there. I notice it benching but I don't think it affects anything; it does make my left arm noticeably weaker during OHP, though, so I need to get it worked out. I've tried everything I can think of on my own and can't get it right (foam roller, lacrosse ball, rolling pin, etc) so this is my last hope lol.

Montecore could you explain what your numbers mean? After reading a few logs on here I think the most common way to write it down is something like



ax^2 + bx + c = workset

And then just use a few let statements to describe your variables.


Okay trollmode over :P,

what do those things mean, specifically

wu+3x5/5/9x225
wu+3x5/5/6x170


In any case, glad to see you're lifting again, hope your arm gets sorted out properly! <3