4/28 ID

Front Squat
WU
1x5x215

WS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fm95OSiEUmE

Hard to grip, slid half way down my right shoulder on the last rep.

OHP
WU
1x5x125
2x5x110

WS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fm95OSiEUmE

Felt easyish. Pursuant to my last post about press 2.0, I plan to stick with it until it stops going up. When it stalls (which I understand happens often with any overhead pressing movement) I'll go down in weight to something I can strict press and try to progress that lift. But as long as it's going up I don't really want to switch now.

DL
WU
1x3fx380

WS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJGzXwy-n3I

WIM depleted. #sad

Press vid link is to your squat vid.

Deadlift seems like your lower back never gets fully set. Then it rounds further when the bar breaks off the floor and you're having to uncoil it at lockout. Be careful, dude.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYN3UGCYisk#t=6m58s

This entire video is probably the most useful video I've ever seen on the deadlift, but the time-stamped part particularly helped me out. Before seeing it, I think I didn't understood what pulling the slack out of the bar truly meant.

I agree with Renton (obviously, since this isn't the first time this concern has been raised in this log), and I like that video too.

UDC,
This kind of touches on a larger issue, which is "when does being a Snitch-like form nit impede real progress/don't let perfect be the enemy of good" and other such nittery. Given my general weakness, injury issues, and age, I now lean more towards the sNITch side of the equation, but I'm not going to begrudge someone lifting a (relative) buttload of weight when just starting out. Other posters that are actually strong will probably have some relevant opinions.

Once you stall out on squat and DL and have to reset, being a little more form conscious on the way back up wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, but as you like.

Yeah there's definitely a lot of stuff I could improve with the deadlift. The uncoiling at the top is more than I'd like it to be and is what I'm usign as a guide to lower back rounding. Thanks.

Anyway

4/30 VD pt. 1

Short on time so did back and bench

BB Row
WU
5x5x180

Bench
WU
5x5x185

5/1 VD pt ii
Couldn't get to the gym til 9:15, it closes at 10

Squat
WU
3x5x300

5/2 LD

FS
WU
3x5x185

Chins
3x6 @bw

OHP
3x5x105

Back Extensions
3x15 @bw+20

5/5 ID


Deadlift
WU
1x5x380

WS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03zHvJr7UBM

Harder than I'd have liked.

Bench
WU
1x5x207.5
1x5x185

People were waiting on the bench and I'm planning to do bench two weeks in a row so i cut backoff sets short at just one

Squat
WU
1x5x340

WS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl0DMWNeWzQ

Felt easy. I'd thought my last set was high so I committed to going deep this time and it looks certainly deep enough now.

5/9 VD

BB Row

5x5x180

Didn't mean to not go up in weight just messed up remembering where I was.

Squat

5x5x305

Did them beltless since my favorite belt was in use. Also did them in jeans since my car is broken and I had no gym clothes. Felt easy

Bench

5x5x185

Felt easy

5/11 LD

FS
WU
3x5x200

Felt okish

Chins
3x6 @ bw

OHP
3x5x100

Back Extensions
3x15 @ bw+22.5

5/13 ID

Squat
1x5x345

WS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oiRCTnt_aI

Felt really hard. Had a guy cheering me on which helped immensely

Bench
1x5x210
2x5x190

Felt hard. Forgot to film unfortunately

DL
1x4fx385

WS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0ZdF3UZt_g

WIM was sapped from squatting. Frustrated that I quit on this but so it goes.

Doing any power cleans? I think those might help you learn to set up correctly.

I'm not, I had a hard time getting the rack position down due to my combination of long forearms and poor flexibility. As such I'd catch the PC's too much on my wrists, and this caused a lot of wrist and forearm pain. At some point if I can find/make the time I might try to do some flexibility work toward doing a proper rack position (this would also help my front squat) but I haven't done that yet and don't want to reintroduce PC's until I do.

Last week was craziness

5/17 VD

BB Row
5x5x185

OHP
5x5x110

5/18
Squat
3x5x310

5/22

BB Row
5x5x185

5/23

Squat
5x5x310

OHP
5x5x110

Just gonna do what I should have done last week this one.

Any craziness recently?

Not really no. I went to the gym for the first time in a few weeks today. At the end of my last logging spurt I'd gone to my college reunion and hung out with some people there. I didn't lift that weekend but did go running with some girls and guys I used to run with. I'd hoped to be able to keep up with them through heart and determination, but pretty much died after 2 miles (it was a five mile loop over hilly Ohio backcountry, also I don't recommend running in Chuck's). Anyway, that was very humbling and had me questioning what I was doing with my fitness career. That turned into an excuse not to go to the gym, but did not translate into actually going running. I tried to go once right when I got back but felt really ****ty (I think my legs were still recovering from the running) and failed a rep at 295.

Anyway, I'm back. I took it light today but am planning to start TM again Tuesday with 5rms of Squat 335, DL 365 Bench 205 OHP 115, and go from there. I'm undecided on whether or not I'll do front squats, I really hate doing them but would like to get up to 225x5. My plan is to continue focusing on strength at least through September, and maybe through the calendar year. After that I'll evaluate if I want to branch out into other stuff. A bunch of my friends do BJJ which seems cool too.

Anyway, thanks for checking in, and here's today:

Squat
2x5x275

Bench
3x5x185

Chin Ups
3x5@bw

Don't give up Chuck! I don't think anyone's put more pounds on their squat since I started logging about a year ago.

And why not incorporate some conditioning and higher reps?

Thanks man I appreciate it. I might incorporate some of those down the road, but I want to make one last run at TM, and that necessitates not taking on any other stuff.

6/21
One day late, but had to stay late at work Tuesday unavoidably. Squat racks were taken when I got there so started with back.

BB Row
5x5x175

Felt easy, virtually no lower body English.

OHP
5x5x107.5

Again felt easy

Squat
4x5x295
1x5x315

All during warmups and during/before first few sets I wanted to quit very badly. Really glad I didn't. Midway through third set I start to feel psyched about this and and banged out rest of that set and fourth set pretty quick. Decided to go up in weight for fifth so I could feel that before going 335x5 next Sunday.

6/23

Light Day

FS
1x5x185
1x5x195
1x4fx195

Oh front squats how I have not missed thee. Plan was to go 185/195/205 but first 195 set felt really hard so I wimped out and decided to do another at that. I think with better focus I could have had this. I also think I'm feeling a little more beat up from VD than I normally would since I haven't done that kind of work in a long time.

Chins
5x3 @bw

Not a typo, feeling very weak today

Bench

3x5x165

Not too bad but not as light as light day upped body usually feels

Back Extensions
3x12 @ bw+20

Big lower back pump from doing these. Walked around for a bit to let it wear off before attempting to drive home.

On Thursday roughly half my company got laid off. It's startup land so that kind of thing happens, and it wasn't totally unexpected. But it's still sad and a little scary for the future.

6/25

Few days late on the logging. Squat racks were taken when I got to the gym, so i did DL first.

DL
2x2fx365
1x4fx365

Attempt 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEzmrZK_wl8
Attempt 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPLF...M&spfreload=10
Attempt 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfDVZujvlf4

My youtube is messed up at the moment and won't let me edit these. But as you can see I struggled with getting this weight up. As much a grip issue as anything else.

OHP
1x5x122.5

Not too bad. Phone ran out of battery after filming DL attempts.

Squat
1x4fx335

Probably would have had this had I not taken 3 DL sets to failure earlier. Was not about to make a second attempt at this one.

Plan is to repeat DL and squat loads next ID. I'm hoping the issues are mostly neurological/mental, and that it'll wake up soon.

6/28 VD

Bench
5x5x185

Felt light, but my hands are getting a bit torn up

BB Row
5x5x180

Felt much heavier than last week

Squat

5x5x295

There was a cute gal in the squat rack next to me, so that helped. Doing squats at the end is tough because I'm usually so tired by the end of a volume day

I think doing 5x5 rows before squats is a not great idea.

I still think your main problem is that you're not getting tight enough before you pull - your hips rise before the bar breaks the floor, and especially in the third set, there's some pretty pronounced lumbar rounding that increases under load. As someone that has dealt with back issues resulting from (almost certainly) poor technique when the weight is heavy, I'd suggest trying to clean that up ASAP.

I feel like it may take an injury for UDC to start caring enough about form to do something about it. Lets hope it doesn't come to that though.

Guys we're talking about picking up objects and setting them down lol.

6/30 Light Day

FS
1x5x185
1x4fx195
1x5x195

Crappy concentration on the second set

Chins
6x4 @bw

OHP

3x5x95

Back Extensions
3x15 @bw+25

No, we're talking about the integrity of your spinal discs. UPS and FedEx make sure their employees are trained to lift 50-pound boxes with a flat back to avoid liability. You're lifting 350-400 pounds with a completely rounded back, then unrounding your back while carrying that weight, several times a week. What is the point of even making a video if you're going to reply to serious criticism with flip comments?

Renton, i appreciate the concern, but my discs are gonna be just fine. I have a pretty good handle on what my body can or can''t tolerate.

Anyway,

07/02 ID

DL
1x5x365

WS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBPS8tnJawo

Felt easyish

Bench
1x5x205
2x5x185

WS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyrlOWplmr0

Felt hard

Squat
1x4fx335

WS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfPz0lux4JA

Frustrating to fail this two weeks in a row, combination of losing the weight forward and not eating a lot over the weekend.

07/05 VD

Row
5x5x180

Forgot to go up in weight, not an intentional repeat

OHP
5x5x110

Easyish

Squat
5x5x295

Quads pretty sore

Going camping this weekend, we'll see how that effects the schedule