5/11

sumo DL
236x5

off 9" blocks
236x5
326x3
416x2
506x1 - double overhand - my major accomplishment today
596x1 - tried double overhand, nope, had to use mixed grip

suit
686x1
736x1 (no straps)
776xf - I tried with no straps. When the weight was ~2/3 of the way up, the finger tips of my left hand caught my leg and that caused them to open slightly. That weight is too heavy to recover from that.
776x1 with straps. I got it locked out fine, but this felt harder than the last time I did 9" blocks.
816xf - I tried conventional and the bar bent, but the weight didnt come off the blocks.

I had no energy after that.

RDLs
310x8
400x5
bleh

5/14

DL
225x5x2
326x3
416x2

suit
506x1
606x1
656x1
666x1

https://rumble.com/vh7dz3-666-lb-deadlift.html

My form is coming around. My strength is not quite where it was about 5 or 6 weeks ago, but it's getting close. I hope I can pull with form like this at nationals.

Band DL
405 + medium band x 3
My right hand was getting ripped up, so I stopped and did some light 1 leg RDLs.



5/16
shoulder rehab stuff
pushups

2 board press
45x15
95x10
135x10
185x5
225x3
275x3
315x2

blue SDP
3 board press
455x1
495x1
545x1 - This felt a little challenging to press. It also was a mild shock to the CNS. Its less than what I used to use as my first shirted warmup six + months ago, but I have not held this much weight in a long time. I felt more sore and stiff in my hips and legs today after doing this than I did from DLing Friday.

chaos pushups
5 sets of 10 reps
Last week I tweaked my neck doing these when my right shoulder shrugged up a little on the last rep of the last set after being fatigued. I am not going to push myself doing these again for a while. I'll just do lots of easy reps.

band lat activation

PNF D2 flexion

1 arm cable rows
3 sets working up to the whole stack x something like 10-12 reps

machine pulldowns
2 sets

machine rows
205x12
250x10
295x12
My strength is coming back somewhat on these, but I was doing ~15 or 16 reps prior to the shoulder procedure.

machine rear delts

great lift!

have you worked through what your plan will be at the Nationals in terms of entry weight and where you'll hope to get to?

Thanks!

Weight classes are 220, 242.5, 275, etc. I weigh ~242 right now, and I intend to be under 242.5 at weigh in. I need to make sure that happens.

The WPC world record for DL only, 55-59 years old at 242 body weight is 650.

My plan is to open with 600, then do 656 on my 2nd attempt. I'll pick my 3rd attempt partially based on how that goes. I had hoped I could have a shot at 711 prior to the cat attack/antibiotics ****ing me up. That looks like a long shot right now. I am thinking ~672 - 683 might be in my wheelhouse if everything goes right. I'd be thrilled to get any more than that. I'll know more after I pull heavy from the floor this Friday and possibly next Friday.

The way my 1st and 2nd attempts are set up, I can take 656 on a 3rd attempt if I somehow miss it on #2 (that would suck), or I can do anything between 661 - 711 on the 3rd depending how I feel. You usually want the jump from 2nd to 3rd attempt to be equal or less weight than your 1st to 2nd attempt.

Since this is DL only, I should be pretty fresh compared to how I would feel after squatting and benching max effort attempts prior to DL, so that will help a lot.

I have pulled more than 678 in a meet only once, and while that was technically a full meet, I took token squat and bench attempts because I had an injured left shoulder at that time, so I was fresh for DLs and I pulled 617/661/705 (see my avatar).

I've only pulled over 700 two other times and those were both 715 about 1.5 - 2 years ago in the gym prior to my first of two hamstring tears. I'd love to set a meet PR with 711, but again, it looks like a very long shot right now.

5/18

Sumo DL off 6" blocks
240x5x2
326x3
416x2
506x1 - double overhand to this point
596x1

suit
686x1
736x1
776x1 - this was hard. I am unsure, but it might be a 6" block PR.

SSB squats in briefs
350 + 44 lbs of chains x 3
350 + 88 lbs of chains x 3
350 + 132 lbs of chains x 3
350 + 176 lbs of chains x 3

5/19

shoulder rehab, pushups, abs, pulling....


5/21
DL
236x5x2
326x3
416x2

suit
506x1 - smoked it with great form

606x1 - not a perfect start to the pull, but not bad and it went up fast.
https://rumble.com/vhhylt-606-lb-dl.html

631x1 - misload. I forgot a 25 lb plate on the left side. It felt off, but it moved well for being heavy on one side and light on the other.
https://rumble.com/vhhyol-631-lb-dl.html

656x1 - this felt heavier than it should, but I got it with no issues.
https://rumble.com/vhhyrx-656-lb-dl.html

676xf - it broke off the floor, but it was not going far. I am not exactly sure what happened. I might have rested too long. I might have been thinking too much about form and not enough about pulling as hard as possible. I might just be too weak. My daughter said it looked like I was a little forward, but I didnt see that in the video. I was pretty much spent at this point, so I did some GHRs and stopped.

Meet plan is 600 / 656 / ???. I still need to figure out what I think I can pull on my 3rd attempt. I'm 3 weeks out. I was going to back off and only take a 1st and 2nd attempt next week, but I do not feel beat up or drained from what I have been doing, so I will do 606 / 656 and try for something heavier again next week.

nice lift!

what kind of rests do you get between lifts in the meet? do all the lifters go through 1st, 2nd and 3rd lifts in order or is it like O lifting where the bar only gets heavier and the lifters choose at what point they enter?

also interested in what kind of taper is generally thought of as GTO when prepping for lifts?

Most meets have about 12 - 15 lifters per flight. In each flight, each lifter does the their first attempt in order of lightest to heaviest lift, then each lifter does their second attempt lightest to heaviest, then each lifter does their third attempt, lightest to heaviest.

That usually makes it about 10 - 15 minutes between attempts. Squats might be on the high side of that because of people wrapping knees. Bench is probably also towards the high side because of wrapping wrists and setting up. DLs are usually on the low side of that because there isn't much prep time for them for most people.

Taper as in lighter training lifts? What I and most of my team typically does is we attempt 100% of our goal weight in training about two weeks out, then we do our opener the week before the meet and rest for a week leading up to the meet. There are all kinds of variables, so that isn't set in stone. What I was intending to do going forward was hit 100% three weeks out, 2nd attempt two weeks out and opener a week out. This was to try to get me to the meet feeling closer to 100% healthy. I have basically never done a meet feeling 100%. My age and injury history have a lot to do with that. This time, since I am doing DL only at the meet, and not training squat and bench with any intensity or volume to speak of, I am probably going to pull 100% this Friday (two weeks out) assuming I feel good after the opener and 2nd attempt.

5/23

shoulder rehab stuff
pushups

bench press
2 boards
45x15
95x10
135x10
185x5
225x3
275x2
315x1

blue SDP
3 boards
495x1
545x1
565xf
I did 495 & 545 with my feet tucked under me set up way tighter. This aggravated the right SI issue I had in the past from benching. I set up flat foot for the 565 and was way too loose to handle it. I got it about half way up and could tell it was going to be a grind if I continued and I knew I was set up loose, so I gave up.

I have figured out that the SI issue likely is related to my right psoas not firing. This is obviously the main problem in my right hip and I figured out that since it isnt really doing anything, its putting my pelvis in a bad place when I bench heavy when I set up with my feet tucked. I didn't think too much of it while I was in the gym because this has happened so many times in the past, I cant count them, but its been bugging me a lot since I got home yesterday when I move certain ways.

I need to get this fixed somehow. The exercises my PT gives me to get the psoas firing dont work. When she does MAT on the psoas, it fires up and works for a while, but the exercises she gives me to do later just fire up my quads, which are taking over for the psoas because the psoas does not want to work.

I was talking to my doc who does regenerative injections about this and he said he wants me to be his guinea pig to try some new things. Of course I want that - every time he does stuff on me, its something new and every time its been very effective. He plans to do PRP into the psoas and a lot of the other surrounding muscles. Recovery time it very quick for this because its only into the muscles and not joints, tendons or ligaments. I hope to get that done shortly after nationals.

5/25

7.5" block pulls

Up to 766. 816 f & 806 f. bleh.


5/26
shoulder rehab, pulling and abs


5/28
DL
236x5x2
326x3
416x2

suit
506x1 - fast, form great
606x1 - fine
656xf - not sure what happened here, but it felt like something was off.
656x1 - it went ok, but it felt heavier than it should have.
676xf - weak. I weighed 238.0 that morning. I dont know if losing a few lbs matters much or not for my ability to pull 650+. I am going to try and weigh in right around 240 and I will try to put on some weight after weigh in.

briefs only
416x7 - all moved fast. I got slightly forward with the last one, so I stopped after that.

I figured out that I can do a little something to activate that right psoas that has not been firing. If I press on the pelvis near the attachment points for a few seconds, that seems to get it going. Doing that a few times daily has helped make the SI issue that got all fired up last Sunday go away by ~90%. I need to do lots of stuff for this, but this seems to be one of the keys. I talked to my doc about it and he says its good & that I should do it 3+ times per day. I'll talk to my PT about this next time I see her too.

5/30

shoulder stuff

bench press
2 boards
45x15
135x10
185x5
225x3
275x2
315x1

tight black SDP
3 boards
545x1
585x1

pushups
pulling stuff


6/1

DL
245x5x2
346x3
436x2

suit
526x1
606x1
656x1 - this was a little better than last time.


6/4
DL
225x5x2
315x3
405x2

suit
515x1
605x1 - moved well

A friend of the team brought an InBody body composition machine to the gym. Results:

body weight 243.8

skeletal muscle mass 117.9

body fat mass 39.4

percent body fat 16.2% - this was lower than I expected. I must be doing something right.

visceral fat level 8. Apparently under 10 is good.

ECW/TBW 0.375 - "ECW/TBW, the ratio of Extracellular Water to Total Body Water, is an important indicator of body water balance. In a healthy state, ECW Ratio should be between 0.36 to 0.39." I'm right in the middle of that range, which is apparently a good thing.

Basil Metabolic Rate - 2372. "Basal Metabolic Rate is the minimum number of calories needed to sustain life at a resting state. BMR is directly correlated to Lean Body Mass." This seems a bit low, but I suppose I need more than that to maintain my weight because of my activity. I think my maintenance level is ~2800 - 3000 with the activity level I've been at the past few months.

Great job on the consistency of staying at your goal weight. Composition looks solid for powerlifting.

Thanks!

The comp is this weekend?

yes

meet update?

Just got home. I'll post a trip report when I can find the time. WRs fell.

uh oh....

6/12 APF Nationals, Fort Lauderdale, FL

I weighed in at 238.

DL only
600 - smoked it, 3 whites
https://rumble.com/vin36x-600-lb-dl-...nals-2021.html

656 - 3 whites, new world record (55-59 years old, 242 lb weight class). It was shaky around the knees, but it was never in doubt. So far so good.
https://rumble.com/vin3wr-656-lb-dl-...ld-record.html

In major APF meets, if you have at least two internationally certified judges, you can set world records. If your 3rd attempt of the meet is good, and the existing WR is within 20 KGs, you can do a 4th attempt for the record. I wanted to attempt 711 because I have never pulled that much in a meet before. 683 is right in between 656 and 711, and I have only once pulled over 678 in a meet (705 in 2015), plus I have attempted 683 before in meets and never got it. 683 would be a nice milestone if I could pull it. Lifetime, I've only pulled more than that about 3 or 4 times in the gym plus the one time I pulled 705 in a meet, so 683 is a huge number for me.

Between 2nd and 3rd attempts, I watched the video of the 656. I knew it was not a great lift, but I wanted to see why. Looking at it on my phone, it looked like I kept the bar over the middle of my feet well and form was decent. It was hamstring weakness that caused me to be shaky. I thought about that for a while and decided it would be a good idea to try and pump up my hamstrings. I walked around the warmup room doing air hamstring curls, focusing on contracting the muscles hard as I went. Believe it or not, it worked!

683 - three white, smoked it for a bigger WR, woohoo!! This was way better than the 656.
https://rumble.com/vin3yf-683-lb-dl-...ld-record.html


711 - I got about 3 minutes from the time I finished my 3rd attempt until they said "the bar is loaded". The spotter guys stalled a bit, cleaning the chalk off the bar and wiping the floor. I was so pumped that I didn't even care. I was ready to go. But someone must have glued it to the platform, lol.

https://rumble.com/vin3zt-711-lb-dl-...2021-miss.html


I'm very happy with the 683. I would have been satisfied getting the 656, but 683 was great There was little chance of 711 at all, but no chance on only a ~4 minute rest, so I am in no way disappointed.

Awesome work cha! Can def tell you have dropped some weight in that video. I will try pumping up my hamstrings with air leg curls next time I pull lol

Thanks, yeah, it worked for me. I think most people pull their 2nd DL rep better than their 1st because their hamstrings get pumped up after the 1st rep. If you can get those things firing hard before the first rep, that's the best way to pull heavy singles imo.

I weighed in at 268 last meet at WPC worlds last year. 30 lbs lost. I probably gained 5 back the rest of the trip, lol.

truly incredible stuff. huge congratulations brother! well done - you should be very proud.

(I think the organisers let you down tbh. 711 would have come off the floor with some more aggressive music - where's the Thrash metal?)

Thanks!!

Wow, we now have a strongman champion (aidan) and a powerlifting world record holder (cha). Does S&F now usher in a new golden era? Congrats Cha!!

I don't really know what to think of inbody. It seems okay but I add 4%. So my 11, I round up to 15.

Congrats! I am really happy for you after all the injuries and cat attacks!