# Mike,s strength training log



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Im new to strength training and have decided to keep a log, mainly to keep motivated and to pick up as much help as possible, im hoping to compete later in the year or early next year depending on how i progress. I have been training 5x5 for 3 weeksand plan to do this til the gains slow down then lower the reps,as i said imnew to this so any pointers will be appreciated

This is where im at at the moment

Squat 92.2 5x5

dl 120 5x5

bp 92.5 5x5

age 28 5"11 and 78kg

goals

Squat 140

dl 180

bp 115

my routine is a 3 day split made up from info ive gathered from here, will be squatting later today and will post my routine as i do it.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

1-03-12

Squats

5 warm up sets

92.5 x5 2 sets

92.5 x3 3sets

front squats

35kg x8 2sets

good mornings

30kg x8 2sets

sldl

50kg x8 2sets

hamstring curl

75kg (i think) x8 2 sets

military press

50kg x7

x6

couldnt manage 5x5 on my squats this week, couldnt get the bar to sit right so a little disappointed as i felt i did 90kg easy last week, keeping it light on front squat and good mornings while i learn technique. thiese links are the first and second sets of my squats


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

03 03 12

dl 120kg x5 5sets

Pull ups

bw+20lb x 8

x 7

bbell row

60kg x 8 2 sets

back extensions

10 kg x8 2sets

Usually do some abs every session but was pushed for time last 2 sessions


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

05-03-12

bench press

90kg x 5 3sets

100kg x 2 2sets

Incline dbell press

30kg x 8 2sets

dips

bw + 50lb x8 2sets

cgbp

70kg x 7 2sets

decline sit ups

10kg x10 2sets

Went a bit heavier on bench today, took advantage of having a training partner(usually very rare). thats my week training plan would appreciate some advice from some powerlifters/strong men, was thinking of adding sumo squats to my pull day or would that lead to overtraining?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

07-03-12

squats

92.5kg x 5 4 sets

x 3

hamstring curl

75kg x 8 2sets

sldl

50kg x 8 2sets

front squats

40kg x 8 2sets

decline sit ups

bw +15kg x 15 2sets

hanging hip raise

bw x15 2sets

had to change things a little bit this week due to the gym being busy (seasonal bodybuilders starting to come back after the winter break). could have probably pushed out the last 2 on squats should have used a spotter for the last set, still getting to grips with the front squat felt like it was working abs well, not sure if that normal ?


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## Rob68 (Sep 16, 2008)

Your squats looked ok to me in the vid,good luck with your training and hopefully competing :thumbup1:


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## barrettmma1436114759 (Feb 28, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> Im new to strength training and have decided to keep a log, mainly to keep motivated and to pick up as much help as possible, im hoping to compete later in the year or early next year depending on how i progress. I have been training 5x5 for 3 weeksand plan to do this til the gains slow down then lower the reps,as i said imnew to this so any pointers will be appreciated
> 
> This is where im at at the moment
> 
> ...


fcuk me mate, your bench is very good considering your other lifts dude!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Rob68 said:


> Your squats looked ok to me in the vid,good luck with your training and hopefully competing :thumbup1:


 thanks for the support


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

barrettmma said:


> fcuk me mate, your bench is very good considering your other lifts dude!


yeah i must admit ive been guilty of neglecting squatting and deadlifts in the past, but i aim to bring them up to scratch as soon as i can, il be benching sunday il try to get a vid up


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Elo mate good to see another guy looking to get into powerlifting 

You're already better at benching than me :lol:

Squats didnt look too bad. Make a conscious effort to push knees outwards through lift especially when getting outer hole (I struggle with it too). Also try and get hips thrusting through more (another thing I struggle with lol).

Looking at your 01/03 session then 03/03 session I wouldn't do so much volume with 1 days rest before deadlifting. I would leave the sldl, GMs and hamstring curls for deadlift day and put the rows on dl day on bench day.

Good luck mate subbed in :thumbup1:


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Elo mate good to see another guy looking to get into powerlifting
> 
> You're already better at benching than me :lol:
> 
> ...


 cheers mate i appreciate the advice, im deadlifting later so il try what you said and see how i get on


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

09-03-12

deadlift

122.5kg x 5 5sets

pullups

bw + 20lb x 8 2sets

sldl

52.5kg x8 2sets

ham curls

75kg x6

75kg x 8

good mornings

37.5kg x 8 2sets

decline sit ups

6kg(held behind head) x8 2sets

had to dig deep to get thelast couple of reps on last set of dl, the bar i used was thicker than the one i normally use, so had to use a mixd grip, anyone know which bar i should be using?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

11-03-12

bench press

92.5kg x 5 2sets

92.5kg x4

92.5kg x 3 2sets

barbell row

60kg x8

62.5kg x 8

incline dbell press

32kg x 8 2sets

dips

bw + 50lb x 8 2sets

cgbp

70kg x 7

70kg x 6

rope crunches

full stack x 15 10secs rest

x 15

not a soul in the gym so had to play it safe with my bench press, dont feel like im making gains with my pressing on 5 x 5 at the moment prob go for 5 trebles @ 95kg next week and try to add reps from there.


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Re deadlifts it sounds like it could have been a thicker competition deadlift bar. Doesn't matter which bar you use, thicker bar will be abit harder for some. I'd get used to using a mixed grip though you'll need to when the weights increase.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

13-03-12

squats

92.5kg x 5 5sets

front squats

42.5kg x 8 2sets

military press

50kg x 8 2sets

rope crunches

full stack x 15 secs rest x 15

finally managed to get 5x5 @92.kg, struggling like hell with the front squats cant get the bar to sit right and end up holding the weight up with my arms, try again next week if not il have to try a differnet exercise


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Nice job cracking 92.5  Try and get your elbows high when you have bar in front squat position. Haven't done a lot myself and struggle to get elbows up cause im inflexible but its the way to keep bar in good position so I'm told.


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Subscribed

Good luck mate.

I ran strong lifts 5x5 last year but struggled with recovery after about 12 weeks.

Your 3 day split should give you more recovery time so with luck you may get more gains for longer


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> Subscribed
> 
> Good luck mate.
> 
> ...


thanks for the support mate, what sort of gains did you make?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Nice job cracking 92.5  Try and get your elbows high when you have bar in front squat position. Haven't done a lot myself and struggle to get elbows up cause im inflexible but its the way to keep bar in good position so I'm told.


im having the same problem, flexibility is poor , i can just about manage back squats but shoulders are in agony the next day, im gonna try and stick with it for a while tho.


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:


> thanks for the support mate, what sort of gains did you make?


Squats from 60 to 110

Press from 35 to 60

Dead Lift from 75 to 175

Bench from 45 to 102.5

all for 5 sets of 5


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> im having the same problem, flexibility is poor , i can just about manage back squats but shoulders are in agony the next day, im gonna try and stick with it for a while tho.


Try these with a band or broom handle/mop etc


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Try these with a band or broom handle/mop etc


cheers mate il give that a go befor i squat and see if it helps


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> Squats from 60 to 110
> 
> Press from 35 to 60
> 
> ...


thats cracking progress mate , was that from the 12 weeks 5x5 only?


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:


> thats cracking progress mate , was that from the 12 weeks 5x5 only?


Yes that was over 12 weeks.

I would point out however that the starting lifts on the programe is worked out for you.

You enter the weight and reps of your current max and its gives you the weight to start the 5x5 programe at for me it was


*Weight*

*Reps*

*5RM*

*Starting Weight*

*Squat*

110

8

121

60

*Bench*

80

8

88

45

*Press*

50

10

59

30

*Row*

85

6

88

45

*Deadlift*

110

5

110

55


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Wow bestbefore your deadlift flew up from 110 for 5 up to 175 for 5 in 3 months??!! Thats some serious progress  Is that natty or assisted??


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Wardy21 said:


> Wow bestbefore your deadlift flew up from 110 for 5 up to 175 for 5 in 3 months??!! Thats some serious progress  Is that natty or assisted??


I was on Sus 250 but it all went wrong I messed up the diet and put on loads of weight and managed to damage my right shoulder.

I've been training unassisted so far this year and dead lift is going good, hope to break the 200kg next week. Shame I bench like a little girl.

Anyway don't want to hijack Mikes journal. If you're interested mine is at http://www.uk-muscle.co.uk/member-journals-pictures/160883-fat-flabby-49-fit-fabulous-50-pics.html

Shameless thread whoring:blush:


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

BestBefore1989 said:


> I was on Sus 250 but it all went wrong I messed up the diet and put on loads of weight and managed to damage my right shoulder.
> 
> I've been training unassisted so far this year and dead lift is going good, hope to break the 200kg next week. Shame I bench like a little girl.
> 
> ...


Cool I'll check it out. I think you'll nail 200 with 175 for 5. Its the same as my deadlift 5rm and I've pulled 200


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

16-03-12

deadlift

125kg x 5 5sets

pullups

bw + 25lbs x 8 2sets

good mornings

40kg x 8 2sets

sldl

55kg x 8 2sets

hamstring curls

75kg x 7

x 8

cable crunches

full stack x 15 2sets

need to get myself some decent shoes for deadlifting, stuggled on the first set, so did the rest barefoot and it felt 10 times better, keep having the same problem with sldl everytime i put more than 50kg on i feel it less and less in the hams, so i keep dropping the weight and starting again, i do not struggle at all with this weight so its annoying that i cant seem to progress, anyone else find the same with sldl?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

18-03-12

bench press

95kg x 3 5sets

incline dbell press

34kg x 8 2sets

barbell row

62.5kg x 8 2sets

dips

bw + 55lb x8

x7

cgbp

70kg x 8

x 6

decline sit ups

6kg held behind head x 8 2sets

5 trebles @95kg felt comfortable, will go for 5 sets of 4 next week, vid below of pressing(1st set) sorry bout the poor quality my phone is poop and so is the light in the gym.


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:


> 18-03-12
> 
> bench press
> 
> ...







added for you


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

I have never done sldl but some guys at my gym do it stood on a block (about 6 inch) and use real light weight despite being big guys so might be worth a try..


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> I have never done sldl but some guys at my gym do it stood on a block (about 6 inch) and use real light weight despite being big guys so might be worth a try..


well perhaps im trying to go heavier too soon, il keep it light aad just try to feel the stretch


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> added for you


thanks how do you do it tho?


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Click icon that looks like a piece of film (Insert video)

Paste youtube url


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

What he said ^^^^^^^


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

cheers lads


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

20-03-12

squats

95kg x 5 5sets

front squats

45kg x5

45kg x 8

military press

52.5kg x 6 2sets

put belt on after first 2 sets of squats(first time ive used one) could not beleive the difference it made. finally got the bar to sit nice on front squats after weeks of trying, couldnt keep it there for the first set, but did on the second so i was happy with that.


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Good going, I can sympathise, I find front squats very uncomfortable as well


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> Good going, I can sympathise, I find front squats very uncomfortable as well


, yeah they are awkward but i seem to have found how to get it bearable now, finally


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Glad you have found a way to front squat cause think I've given up and gonna do it on machine instead :lol:


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

having a nightmare with my shoulders after squatting, should be deadlifting tonight but cant cos my shoulders are still sore as hell, tried to do some dislocations before squatting but only had a standard bar to do them with which was way to heavy, gonna have to get some bands(or steel the belt out of the wifes gressing gown) hopefully i can train 2moro or il be right effed off.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

23-03-12

deadlift

127.5kg x 5 5sets

pullups

bw+ 25lbs x 7 2sets

good mornings

42.5kg x 8 2sets

leg curls

75kg x 7

x 8

cut session short cos i was absolutely fcuked after deadlifts, think i might have to drop a couple of exercises from deadlift day just to make sure i can recover,im already taking 2 days off after squatting and dont want to have to do the same with deadlifts, anyone got any thoughts on this ?


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

5 working sets of 5 reps is a lot to me. I have been following starting strength and only do 1 working set of 5 reps


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> 5 working sets of 5 reps is a lot to me. I have been following starting strength and only do 1 working set of 5 reps


originally i wanted to do 8 weeks 5x5, then 2 weeks of trebles and 2 weeks of doubles then have a crack at at my 1rm,s again and see what sort of progress ive made in12 weeks. ive only got 2 weeks left of 5x5 so i will try to stick it out, but after ive done my 1rm,s im definately gonna change routines, not sure what yet tho


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

25-03-12

bench press

95kg x 3 5sets

barbell row

65kg x8

x7

incline dbell press

36kg x6

x5

cable crunches to failure

couldnt do a full sesh cos my missus is nights and wanted a power hour before she went, i planned to go for 5 x 4 @ 95kg this week but no one was in the gym and i didnt fancy getting pinned to the bench for the night, so stuck with 5x3 which actually felt heavier than last week:cursing:


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

was gonna say what bestbefore said 25 reps on top set for deadlift is ALOT! Probably taking you about 5-6 days to fully recover from that I'd drop to 3 x 5 if you want to put some volume in on top set cause 15 reps is still alot.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> was gonna say what bestbefore said 25 reps on top set for deadlift is ALOT! Probably taking you about 5-6 days to fully recover from that I'd drop to 3 x 5 if you want to put some volume in on top set cause 15 reps is still alot.


yeah i think im gonna have to tbh, im fcuked all the time at moment and im training when i feel like iv got nothing in me which is probably having a negative effect, so perhaps ill drop a couple of sets and see how i get on, thanks for the advice lads


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

27-03-12

squats

95kg x 5 3sets

front squats

45kg x8

45kg x6 (bar slipped off and made me look a right nob)

military press

52.5kg x 4

52.5kg x 6

cable crunches followed by some hanging hip raises

blasted through my squats tonight thinking i was squatting 97.5kg couldnt wait for next week to conquer 100kg for reps, then noticed i had only put 95 on by accident, what a plank. never mind il have to wait an extra week for the magic 100. gonna drop the weight back down on military press, i just couldnt seem to get enough reps out tonight


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

29-03-12

deadlifts

130kg x 5

belt on

130kg x 5 2sets

chin ups

bw + 25lbs x 8

bw + 30lbs x 8

good mornings

47.5kg x 8 2sets

hamstring curls

85kg x 5

75kg x 8

decline sit ups

bw + 10kg x 20 2sets

swapped pull ups for chin ups just to change things up a bit, also going to swap incline dbell press for flat dbell press on upper body day for a couple of weeks, felt strong on deadlift tonight, pulled 140kg for one when i went for 1rm 7weeks ago, pretty sure i could have pulled it for 5 tonight, anyone think i should go for it next week or keep increasing it 2.5kg a week?


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

I would say it's a marathon not a sprint, why risk steady improvements just to boost your ego?

Having said that you do need to challenge yourself so how about changing from 2.5kg to 5kg increases and see how you get on?


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## biglbs (Jan 26, 2012)

why wait,the worst will be fail?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> I would say it's a marathon not a sprint, why risk steady improvements just to boost your ego?
> 
> Having said that you do need to challenge yourself so how about changing from 2.5kg to 5kg increases and see how you get on?


yeah you right just an ego boost, if if i try and run before i can walk probably gonna come to a sharp halt very soon.



biglbs said:


> why wait,the worst will be fail?


 thats what ithought at first but after a bit of thought, probably better to just keep progressing slowly, less chance of injury and il be at 140 in 4 weeks anyway if things go well(so yeah i pussied out):no:


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

31-03-12

bench press

95kg x 5 pb

95kg x 4 2sets

barbell rows

65kg x 8 2sets

flat dbell press

40kg x 7

40kg x 6

dips

bw+ 55lb x 8

bw+ 55lb x 7

cgbp

70kg x 8

70kg x 7

finally got 5 reps @95kg maybe could have got it in the 2nd and 3rd set but didnt want to risk it

because there wasnt anyone else in the gym, i got a vid below. i read ss yesterday and decided to change how i did the bbel row to the way rippetoe says to do it, tbh it felt better the way i usually do it but il stick with for a couple of weeks just for a change.also below a video of my dbell pressing.


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Well done on the bench press PB :thumb:

looks like the magic 100kg bench press is just round the corner


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

cheers mate hopefully i can get it in the next 4-6 weeks


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## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

Just read through your journal and subbed! Good work mate, I think you've done right to drop from 5x5 to 3x5 on top sets. I tried 5x5 but after about 6 weeks I couldn't keep it up I was knackered all time and couldn't recover in time! Your similar to me also that your bench is your best lift I really need to push my squat and deadlift! Top read tho mate!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

mikemull said:


> Just read through your journal and subbed! Good work mate, I think you've done right to drop from 5x5 to 3x5 on top sets. I tried 5x5 but after about 6 weeks I couldn't keep it up I was knackered all time and couldn't recover in time! Your similar to me also that your bench is your best lift I really need to push my squat and deadlift! Top read tho mate!


cheers mate, yeah got to get that squat and deadlift moving im probably gonna start starting strength fort my next routine in about 5 weeks so il be squatting a couple of times a week then and hopefully can force my squat up. youre right with that 5x5, its a beast i was going to work the next day and i would be fcuked not good when your getting paid by how much work you do lol


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

02-04-12

squats

97.5kg x 5 3sets

front squats

45kg x 8 2sets

military press

50kg x 8

50kg x 7

squats were comfortable tonight, felt strong, 100kg next week. wanted to do some abs but i was pushed for time,


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

04-04-12

early sesh today, fcuking rain made me finish early.

deadlift

132.5kg x 5

belt on

132.5kg x 5 2sets

chin ups

bw + 35lbs x 8 2sets thought my head was gonna pop

gm,s

50kg x 8 2sets

ham curl

75 x 8 2sets

ab wheel

x 10 2sets

weight of the deads was no problem but im not sure about my form, seems like my ar$e is coming up too quick, notsure if its worth putting a vid up cos the quality of my camera on my phone is so crap that you prob wouldnt be able to see properly. forgot to breath on chins nearly passed out. is this problem with the deads worth worrying about o should i just carry on as i am?


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Film it


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

will do, but like i said quality is no the best, what do you reckon the best angle is to film it from. (im not taking the pi$$)


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> will do, but like i said quality is no the best, what do you reckon the best angle is to film it from. (im not taking the pi$$)


Hanging from the rafters (I am taking the pis5)

Seriously, side on


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:


> 04-04-12
> 
> forgot to breath on chins nearly passed out.


 :lol: how can anyone forget to breath :rolleye:


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> :lol: how can anyone forget to breath :rolleye:


who knows, i was just going for it and got a bit carried away, what with breathing being such a complicated thing to do:laugh:


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

I did pull ups for the first time in ages yesterday, forgot just how hard they are


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

06-04-12

bench press

97.5kg x 4

97.5kg x 3 2sets

bbell row

67.5kg x 8 2sets

dbell flat bench

42kg x 6

42kg x 5

dips

55lbs x 8 2sets

cgbp

70kg x 7 2sets

wasnt happy with todays sesh, felt tired going to the gym,didnt warm up properly, kept getting cramp in my hips during pressing:cursing:


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

09-04-12

deadlift

135kg x 5

belt on

135kg x 5 2sets

chin ups

35lbs x 8 2sets

gm,s

50kg x 8 2sets

sldl

50kg x 8 2sets

ab work

had a couple of days off from training and must say felt alot better for it, felt strong on all my lifts today, was supposed to be squat day but wanted to video my dl form while the gym was quiet, so il squat on wednesday instead. feels like my a$$ is coming up to fast during deadlift, feel free to critique/rip the **** out of it, video is of my last set so my form should be at its worst and sorry again about the quality of the video im poor and cant afford a decent phone


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

I am no expert It did look to me like the lift varied slightly from rep to rep but it didn't look particularly out to me.

I tend to try and start the lift by thinking about driving my legs (or heals) through the floor if that helps


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## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

Technique wasn't 100% perfect but it looked pretty good to me mate, and tbh better then mine! Well done!


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Didn't look too bad to me mate - a$$ might be rising a touch too soon so work on pulling with your traps and driving chest up from the bottom.

Walking with the bar and putting it back on racks scared me though looks a good way to do yourself injury especially when your lower back is fatigued!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

cheers lads, a couple of thing for me to work on, il have a go and get another vid up in a few weeks


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

11-04-12

squats

100kg x5

belt on

100kg x 5 2sets

front squats

47.5kg x 8 2sets

military press

50kg x 7

50kg x 6

well happy with todays sesh, 100kg was comfortable(apart from the bar hitting the catchers in the cage after 3 reps of my first set). front squats felt natural hopefully can start getting some weight on the bar gradually now.was gonna start starting strength this week but have decided to leave it til after my holiday(may 26th) and carry on as i am being as im still making gains.


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

strong pressing:thumbup1:

is your military press standing?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

yes mate standing, no use of the legs and all the way down


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

13-04-12bench press

95kg x 4

95kg x 3

90kg x 4

barbell row

60kg x 8 2sets

dbell bench press

40kg x 7

40kg x 6

sacked the sesh early today, struggling with bench sessions lately. think i need to start listening to my body, i felt tired all day but went anyway. i seem to be able to get away with turning up tired for squats or deadlifts but not bench press. still got doms from squats wednesday does that mean i havent recoverd yet? or am i meant to be training through this? fcuk me ive think ive gone through every excuse in the book here:cursing:


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

I am the same, my squats and dead lifts are way ahead of my bench and shoulder presses.

:sad:

if you still hurt 3 days after training a body part, try to train that body part again but using only light weights. That way you force blood back into the sore muscle and increase recovery time. or that's the theory


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

16-04-12

squats

102.5kg x 5

belt on

102.5kg x 5 2sets

front squats

50kg x 8 2sets

just wanted to get my squatting done today, absolutely fcuked from the weekend gonna be an early night for me tonight:sleeping:


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

18-04-12

deadlift

140kg x 5 had to dig deep for this set

belt on

140kg x 5 2sets

chin ups

35lbs x 8

35lbs x 6

good mornings

50kg x 8 2sets

sldl

50kg x 8 2sets

happy with todays sesh, training havnt been the best lately. got a bit greedy on deadlifts and added 5kg instead of 2.5kg, found them hard as fcuk but glad i did it, think its time to buy a decent belt now, ive been using a velcro one and i honestly thought it was gonna pop:eek: anyone got any reccomendations?. i should have been going up in weight on chins and gms but deadlifts tooks alot out of me so i decided to leave it for next week. time for a big feed


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Going good mate.

I have also been looking at belts and think I may go for

https://www.strengthshop.co.uk/powerlifting/powerlifting-belts/strengthshop-13mm-lever-belt.html


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> Going good mate.
> 
> I have also been looking at belts and think I may go for
> 
> https://www.strengthshop.co.uk/powerlifting/powerlifting-belts/strengthshop-13mm-lever-belt.html


i looks ok mate

do you know anyone who used one, thats expensive tho, you can get a titan toro shipped from the us for around 70 squid


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

These are good enough really. And a bargain price

http://sshealthfoods.com/pages.php?page=lt.fitnessgear&details=1354


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Its says medium and large both 38 inch on last hole. I shall have to give them a call as that IS a bargain.

Well found Tass


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Oh yeah, they're all too small for me....Skinny fcukers


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

yeah cheers mate thats looks quality, and for £25 cant go wrong, il prob have to have the kids size tho


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

20-04-12

bench press

warmup

100kg x 2

110kg x 1 pb

112.5kg x fail

90kg x 5 2sets

incline dbell press

60lb x 8

75lb x 8 2sets

dips

50lb x 8 2sets

cgbp

70kg x 7

70kg x 6

dbell row

80lb x 8 2sets

todays sesh went well, trained with my mate who always goes for 1rm so i thought id give it a bash considering i havnt done it for bout 10 weeks.

110kg flew up and i felt confident 112.5kg would aswell, failed miserably tho seemed to take the bar down too close to my neck and didnt come close to getting it up tbh. been struggling with pressing lately so was well happy to see ive made some progress(failed 110kg last time i tried). hopefully my mate will train with me on the weekend, if so il go for a 1rm on my squats and see where im at with them and also the same with deadlifts next week


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

well done mate.

Off to do mine now


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> well done mate.
> 
> Off to do mine now


thanks mate, il see how you get on later


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Nice to test the water and make some progress! I'm supposed to be able to do 110 based on 1rm calculator but I'll be fcked if I can :lol:


----------



## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

Wardy21 said:


> Nice to test the water and make some progress! I'm supposed to be able to do 110 based on 1rm calculator but I'll be fcked if I can :lol:


I assume 110lbs you mean there! :confused1:

And my advice for a belt get a turner sports one they're cheap I got one for £20 I think and it's done me fine and still working mate. Think it was from turner sports anyhow.


----------



## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

Bongon don't go for one RM to often though mate, and be careful you don't get stuck or injury yourself.


----------



## eateateat (Apr 21, 2012)

my nan is stronger than you


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

strongmanmatt said:


> Bongon don't go for one RM to often though mate, and be careful you don't get stuck or injury yourself.


tbh matt thats the second time ive ever done one, first time was about 10 or 11 weeks ago, plan 2 do them around every 3 months ish and see what progress ive made


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

eateateat said:


> my nan is stronger than you


reps to your nan


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Nice to test the water and make some progress! I'm supposed to be able to do 110 based on 1rm calculator but I'll be fcked if I can :lol:


just had a go on that 1rm calc, deadlift 167 and squat 125 according to that, i think the deadlift is a bit generous tbh but il find out this week how accurate it is, but i suppose its better to use the calculator rather than maxing out all the time just so u can workout what weight to be lifting


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

23-04-12

squats

warm up

90kg x 2

100kg x 2

110kg x 1

120kg x1 pb

100kg x 5

fronties

52.5 x 8 2sets

military press

50kg x 7 2sets

rained off from work so trained early today, disappointed that i couldnt go for a true 1rm because the gym vwas empty so there was no one to spot me, sure i could have got 125kg and def would have a go at 130kg, but nevertheless pleased with the pb


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

No squat rack with catchers?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> No squat rack with catchers?


there is but i hope i never need them tbh, i went for the pb and thought il leave it there and hopefully next time il have a spotter and i can push it all the way and see exactly how far ive progressed


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

What I mean is you don't need a spotter.

Practice with a low weight dumping the weight onto the rack spotters (catchers) just in case you fail a 1rm attempt


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> What I mean is you don't need a spotter.
> 
> Practice with a low weight dumping the weight onto the rack spotters (catchers) just in case you fail a 1rm attempt


 oh i see what you mean,id prefer a spotter but if i havnt got one next time i go for it, il give it a bash. thanks


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

what a night! had to go to the hospital after all the feeling went in the one side of my face(i currently look like sloth). after 4 hours they diagnosed me with "bells paulsy" its nerve damage in the ear caused by stress or a virus.

went to work this morning and went a bit wobbly on my feet and decided i shouldnt be working on a scaffolding, the doc already told me i coult drive. im wondering if it could be linked to lifting(hope not). got go in this afternoon for them to run some more tests and hopefully no more about it.


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> what a night! had to go to the hospital after all the feeling went in the one side of my face(i currently look like sloth). after 4 hours they diagnosed me with "bells paulsy" its nerve damage in the ear caused by stress or a virus.
> 
> went to work this morning and went a bit wobbly on my feet and decided i shouldnt be working on a scaffolding, the doc already told me i coult drive. im wondering if it could be linked to lifting(hope not). got go in this afternoon for them to run some more tests and hopefully no more about it.


sh1t man! defo wise to take day off work you don't wanna fall off a roof :lol: hope its not serious mate


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

cheers pal, they said most people go back to normal after a few weeks, but could be months. theyve got me on the a course of steroids for the week(feel like ive been turned), hopefully the ear specialist can tell me more.


----------



## pirus (Sep 22, 2010)

Look like your making good steady progress mate! Seem to have a good program there also! Ill be following, good luck! :rockon:


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

I had bells palsy when I was working the cruise ships. Made eating and drinking very awkward. Was constantly dribbling. Think it lasted 3/4 weeks


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> I had bells palsy when I was working the cruise ships. Made eating and drinking very awkward. Was constantly dribbling. Think it lasted 3/4 weeks


 im the same mate ive hardly eaten fcuk all, and can only take small sips or it just dribbles out. im gonna make an effort to eat every couple of hours tomorrow and hopefully train thursday. the docs told me to take a week off work just because i work at height and balance can be dodgy, but said i can train when i feel ready and that hes almost certain that its not from lifting. so happy days


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

pirus said:


> Look like your making good steady progress mate! Seem to have a good program there also! Ill be following, good luck! :rockon:


cheers mate, id like to be progressing a bit quicker but gotta keep patient and keep at it and il get here in the end. got the training program from a few peoples advice on here.


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

eateateat said:


> my nan is stronger than you


Your nans on nap 50s!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

26-04-12

deadlift

warm up

100kg x 5

120kg x 3

140kg x 1

150kg x 1 pb

160kg x 1 pb

170kg x fail

140kg x 5

chin up

35lb x 8

havnt been able too eat properly for 3 days due to this bells palsy, but decided to go anyway, didnt have the energy and my head wasnt really in it.ive got a bit paranoid about people staring at my face so i cut the sesh short. anyway pleased with the pb on deadlifts have to be honest didnt even get 170 off the floor tho.

anyway after 3 months ish of specific strength training my lifts are as follows. squat 120kg, bench 110kg,deadlift 160kg. obviously still got a way to go but il put in another 3 months of hard training then hopefully wont be to far away from my original goals of ' squat 140kg, bench 115kg, deadlift 190kg.

once i reach these targets my plan is to do another 12 weeks training cycle and the enter the next local meet, hopefully end of the year or early next year


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> 26-04-12
> 
> deadlift
> 
> ...


Prob not the best time to go for a 1rm tester but looks like a good effort mate! Get in the BDFPA with me I need a fellow natty friend and we can be in the same weight class  Theres one in July in Newquay not too far from ya?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Prob not the best time to go for a 1rm tester but looks like a good effort mate! Get in the BDFPA with me I need a fellow natty friend and we can be in the same weight class  Theres one in July in Newquay not too far from ya?


 id like to mate but i think july is probably a bit soon for me tbh


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> id like to mate but i think july is probably a bit soon for me tbh


Or if you don't mind journeying to Bournemouth theres one in November - thats my next one  qualifier for the 2013 Brits too!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Or if you don't mind journeying to Bournemouth theres one in November - thats my next one  qualifier for the 2013 Brits too!


 yeah i think thats a more realistic date to aim for, when the closing date for entry?


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> yeah i think thats a more realistic date to aim for, when the closing date for entry?


Probably like a month before or something mate plenty of time


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

well i got no probs travelling to bournemouth mate, so il see where im at around the end of august and if i think that my lifts are good enough not to get me laughed off the platform:lol: then il enter, will be good to have someone to compete with and a little more incentive to train


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> well i got no probs travelling to bournemouth mate, so il see where im at around the end of august and if i think that my lifts are good enough not to get me laughed off the platform:lol: then il enter, will be good to have someone to compete with and a little more incentive to train


Thatta boy! You'll never be laughed at mate. Well I'd aim for 400 in your first comp and you've got plenty of time so aim for somewhere around that and any extra would be a nice bonus  How old are ya mate?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Thatta boy! You'll never be laughed at mate. Well I'd aim for 400 in your first comp and you've got plenty of time so aim for somewhere around that and any extra would be a nice bonus  How old are ya mate?


 funny you should ask that, im 29 today:beer:


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> funny you should ask that, im 29 today:beer:


  :thumb: :beer: awesome happy birthday mate!!! any plans??


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

no mate, my wifes grandma shares the same bday and shes her only family so she ruins my bday everyyear, and my face is still like sloth so im kinda in hiding at the moment:cursing:


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> no mate, my wifes grandma shares the same bday and shes her only family so she ruins my bday everyyear, and my face is still like sloth so im kinda in hiding at the moment:cursing:


Not good well have a good one anyway and don't scare anyone with your funny faces :lol:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

cheers


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

:rockon: *HAPPY BIRTHDAY* :rockon:


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Happy Birthday matey

You should have moaned and groaned whilst pulling the deadlift PBs and looked like a right mong with your fcuked up face ..PMSL


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Happy Birthday matey
> 
> You should have moaned and groaned whilst pulling the deadlift PBs and looked like a right mong with your fcuked up face ..PMSL


 that would have been some sight lmao:laugh:

cheers for the birthday greetings lads


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

28-04-12

bench press

warmup

90kg x 4 3sets

barbell row

60kg x 8

70kg x 8

dbell flat press

75lb x 8 2sets

not too concerned about the poor pressing today, only just started eating properly again so hopefully after a couple of days il be back to normal,


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Nice.

Are you still dribbling or have you got back the feeling in your face?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> Nice.
> 
> Are you still dribbling or have you got back the feeling in your face?


 nah its still the same mate, but at least im managing to get some food down me now, its an effort tho! im seeing the specialist tomorrow again so see what happens with that. im going on hols on the 23rd so i hope im back to normal by then:drool:


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Try and look on the bright side, at least they sell waterproof sun screen :lol:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

01-05-12

squats

warmup

105kg x 5

105kg x 4

105kg x 3

realised after this that i shouldnt have been in the gym and called it a day. training not going well at the moment and ive lost half a stone so im fcuked off at the moment, wondering whether i should do a weeks deload then drop weight a little and start again?


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

I think you should get a blender get 5kgs of peanut butter and oats and drink your meals like I do when I've not got an appetite. MyProtein peanut butter has 600kcals per 100g - 2 tbsp of that with 3 scoops oats and 2 scoops whey you have around 1200kcals! You should be aiming for 3000 kcals a day as your about the same size as me.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> I think you should get a blender get 5kgs of peanut butter and oats and drink your meals like I do when I've not got an appetite. MyProtein peanut butter has 600kcals per 100g - 2 tbsp of that with 3 scoops oats and 2 scoops whey you have around 1200kcals! You should be aiming for 3000 kcals a day as your about the same size as me.


yeah im gonna make sure i get 2 of them down me a day, ive been back to work today so ive got set times to eat and i dont miss any meals when im in work which is something i struggle with when im not in work.


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> yeah im gonna make sure i get 2 of them down me a day, ive been back to work today so ive got set times to eat and i dont miss any meals when im in work which is something i struggle with when im not in work.


Yeah me too mate I struggle without the routine. If it werent for home made shakes I'd be a bag of bones (even more so than I already am anyway lol)


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

03-05-12

deadlift

warmup

140kg x 4

140kg x 4

140kg x 3

chin ups

25lb x 8 2sets

good mornings

50kg x 8

50kg x 6

sldl

50kg x 8 2sets

felt alot better than i have lately, strength still down a bit but im glad to finish a sesh tbh, gonna keep smashing the food down me and try to pack on a few pounds and hopefully il be hitting some pb,s again soon


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

08-05-12

squat

warm up

100kgx 5

belt on

105kg x 3

110kg x 3 my first treble @ 110:thumb:

front squats

50kg x 8 2sets

military press

50kg x 8

50kg x 6

power cleans

50kg x 3 2sets

some calf raises

should have been bench day but felt a bit tired and i seem to come away disappointed when i try to bench tired so i opted to squat. ive had 5 days off, my head havent been in it lately so i need to get some consistency back

anyway got my first treble @ 110kg and tbh it wasnt as difficult as i expected so i was happy about thta. im goin away for 2 weeks in 2 weeks time so im not

going to worry about sticking to a routine til i get back. im just gonna do a couple of heavy trebles and doubles and then start a new routine when i get back.


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Nice progress :thumbup1:

How are you keeping? have you got the feeling back in your face?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

im feeling ok mate but still cant move the one side, suppose im im starting to get used to it


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

10-05-12

bench press

80kg x 5

90kg x 3

100kg x 3 almost had it but did need help with the last one

95kg x5 spotter helped with the last rep

flat dbell press

80lb x 7 2sets

dips

40lb x 8 2sets

did some skull crushers and some tricep pulldowns at the end, hols is only a week wednesday so il throw in some t shirt stuff at the end of each sesh, prob should have started a bit earlier reallyops:


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> 08-05-12
> 
> squat
> 
> ...


Love the fact that you squatted on a ****ty day! Most would bottle it if they were tired!


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> 10-05-12
> 
> bench press
> 
> ...


Never to late but you not heard? Curls for the girls and tris for the guys!!!


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

Just catching up, some good work here well done!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

14-05-12

deadlift

110kg x 5

130kg x 3

140kg x 1

150kg x 3

130kg x 5 2sets

bbell row

60kg x 8 2sets

gm,s

50kg x 8 2sets

pullups

bw x 8 2sets

dumbbell curls

40lb x 8 2sets

been a bit slack with training again, im having far too much rest between sessions but i having been working seven days a week for a few weeks now so at least ive got an excuse(a sh*t one all be it).

got my first treble at 150kg tho so iwas pleased with that, and i was gonna rest for a week when i go away but im having second thoughts now as ive had so much rest lately. and also my bells palsy is much better and will hopefullt be completely back to normal soon and then ive got no excuse for being an ugly fooker:lol:


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

well done on the dead lift :thumbup1:

and glad to hear your on the mend :bounce:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

thanks mate, appreciate it


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Glad to hear face spasms are finally going :lol:

Yeah I've had too much rest myself mate I vote stop being lazy and get some sessions in


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Glad to hear face spasms are finally going :lol:
> 
> Yeah I've had too much rest myself mate I vote stop being lazy and get some sessions in


cheers mate, yeah i know its getting too easy to say ah

fcuk it il go tomorow instead


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

16-05-12

squats

80kg x 5

100kg x 3

110kg x 3 3sets

front squats

55kg x 8

55kg x 6

military press

50kg x 8 2sets

felt strong on squats def had some left in the tank, been reading a couple of strength books and one suggested that you should not be training to failure so i decided to try that for a bit, im not sure if im getting enough reps in though, is 3 x3 enough?


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> 16-05-12
> 
> squats
> 
> ...


Well you definitely wouldn't want to fail a squat set :lol: but yeah general rule for strength training you don't go near failure too often. Heavy 3 x 3 work on squats is what a lot of lifters do. A lot of experienced lifters I see doing one tough set of 3 (building up with a few toughish triples) but thats the difference between an experienced lifter and a beginner/intermediate - thats why its a head **** cause you get opinions from some great lifters that IMO won't generally be best for lifters who are newer to it all. I think you would do better with 5s personally for a good few months yet and see better progress.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Well you definitely wouldn't want to fail a squat set :lol: but yeah general rule for strength training you don't go near failure too often. Heavy 3 x 3 work on squats is what a lot of lifters do. A lot of experienced lifters I see doing one tough set of 3 (building up with a few toughish triples) but thats the difference between an experienced lifter and a beginner/intermediate - thats why its a head **** cause you get opinions from some great lifters that IMO won't generally be best for lifters who are newer to it all. I think you would do better with 5s personally for a good few months yet and see better progress.


yeah mate thats the plan, im just ticking over till i go away on wednesday and when im back im probably gonna do rippetoe ss

which will get me doing 5 reps again. definately think that squatting more often will benefit me


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

mikemull said:


> Love the fact that you squatted on a ****ty day! Most would bottle it if they were tired!


i wish i could says its because im a warrior but that would be lying, if i dont feel right im totally pathetic at pressing(even more so than usual anyway)



mikemull said:


> Never to late but you not heard? Curls for the girls and tris for the guys!!!


 :lol:


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Hows the mongolioid face. The bells ! The bells ! .....


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Hows the mongolioid face. The bells ! The bells ! .....


lmfao. its almost back to normal mate


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

19-05-12

bench press

90kg x 5 3 sets

barbell row

60kg x 8

70kg x 8

dbell flat press

80lb x 7 2sets

cgbp

70kg x 7 2sets

nobody in the gym so i just stuck with 5 reps on bench press, wasnt easy tbh, havnt been eating very well lately and felt weak, dont know whether its njust in my head or not . im starting to dread pressing days as i train on my own and you just get a key to the gym and quite often their is nobody else in there, so its difficult to push yourself.

i seem to be taking 1 step forward then 2 steps back with pressing.


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> 19-05-12
> 
> bench press
> 
> ...


Is there a rack to pin press when no-ones there? Tbh I get this a lot but I just crack on, if you fail just tip it or roll it!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

mikemull said:


> Is there a rack to pin press when no-ones there? Tbh I get this a lot but I just crack on, if you fail just tip it or roll it!


yeah mate theyve got a rack, b ut tbh im not a fan of that pin press because sometimes if i lower the bar and it hits the one side first it knocks me right out of my stride so i dont get on with that at all. when you say tip it or roll it, do you mean on a free bar?


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> yeah mate theyve got a rack, b ut tbh im not a fan of that pin press because sometimes if i lower the bar and it hits the one side first it knocks me right out of my stride so i dont get on with that at all. when you say tip it or roll it, do you mean on a free bar?


Yeah mean free bar mate. I don't like pin press either!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

mikemull said:


> Yeah mean free bar mate. I don't like pin press either!


never tried rolling it, not sure id be able to perhaps id better practise it with lighter weights first, the gym is very quiet on weekends and i dont fancy spending the night trapped under the bar:lol:


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> never tried rolling it, not sure id be able to perhaps id better practise it with lighter weights first, the gym is very quiet on weekends and i dont fancy spending the night trapped under the bar:lol:


I wouldn't practice this mate I was just saying to save yourself as an emergency!!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

mikemull said:


> I wouldn't practice this mate I was just saying to save yourself as an emergency!!


 i know but what if i cant get the fooker off, did you see the thread on here earlier of someone dying in their home gym from getting trapped under the bar, i dont really fancy that tbh


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

21-05-12

deadlift

80kg x5

100kg x 5

120kg x3

140kg x 5 3sets

pullups

20lb x6 2sets

absolutely fcuked from the deadlifts so decided to call it a night


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Deadlofts are.coming alobg nicely mate!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

im flying to cyprus in the morning so most probably wont be on here for a couple of weeks, so make sure you all keep hard at it. im going all inclusive and a going to eat like fcuk and l try to get my body weight back above 13 stone(currently 12st 5), gonna try and find a decent gym out there and fit acouple of sessions in also. see you in a couple of weeks


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> im flying to cyprus in the morning so most probably wont be on here for a couple of weeks, so make sure you all keep hard at it. im going all inclusive and a going to eat like fcuk and l try to get my body weight back above 13 stone(currently 12st 5), gonna try and find a decent gym out there and fit acouple of sessions in also. see you in a couple of weeks


Good time for bulking I reckon mate! Have a good one! I'm well jelly :tongue:


----------



## pirus (Sep 22, 2010)

bongon95 said:


> im flying to cyprus in the morning so most probably wont be on here for a couple of weeks, so make sure you all keep hard at it. im going all inclusive and a going to eat like fcuk and l try to get my body weight back above 13 stone(currently 12st 5), gonna try and find a decent gym out there and fit acouple of sessions in also. see you in a couple of weeks


Lift your ass off and surprise us when u get back  

Update yor journal if you can from there mate


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> im flying to cyprus in the morning so most probably wont be on here for a couple of weeks, so make sure you all keep hard at it. im going all inclusive and a going to eat like fcuk and l try to get my body weight back above 13 stone(currently 12st 5), gonna try and find a decent gym out there and fit acouple of sessions in also. see you in a couple of weeks


All inclusive nice  I went Cyprus all inclusive years back mate just get in about 2000 kcalories each day from your breakfast and let the booze top up the rest :lol:

Seriously though mate eat as much deep fried bacon and as many pancakes as you can fit in your belly!


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## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> im flying to cyprus in the morning so most probably wont be on here for a couple of weeks, so make sure you all keep hard at it. im going all inclusive and a going to eat like fcuk and l try to get my body weight back above 13 stone(currently 12st 5), gonna try and find a decent gym out there and fit acouple of sessions in also. see you in a couple of weeks


Training well mate good stuff. Have a Nice Holiday, and yeah get as much beef on you as possible, even bulk can help mate!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

right then back to reality. had a cracking 2 weeks, drank way too much and now its time to get back to training properly. i did manage to get one squat, one deadlift and one bench sesh in while i was out there and used the 2nd week as a rest week, hit a pb with my squatting as well so i was well happy with that( 2 x 5reps @ 110kg).


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> right then back to reality. had a cracking 2 weeks, drank way too much and now its time to get back to training properly. i did manage to get one squat, one deadlift and one bench sesh in while i was out there and used the 2nd week as a rest week, hit a pb with my squatting as well so i was well happy with that( 2 x 5reps @ 110kg).


Good stuff - got any holiday pics to depress me with?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Good stuff - got any holiday pics to depress me with?


 i dont want to even look thru them myself i could end up in a depression.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

07-06-2012

first sesh back, im gonna try starting strength for a while. the last 3 x 5 weight i used were dl 140kg, squat 110kg and bp 90kg, so im gonna knock 10kg off these and use these as my starting weights.

squat

100kg x 5 3sets

bench press

80kg x 5 3sets

deadlift

130kg x 5

chinups

20lb x 5

25lb x 5 2sets

started off struggling tonight il put that down to 2 weeks of abusing my body but things diid get easier. squats felt very heavy but did get them done, bench was easy enough and deadlift was pretty easy also. pi$$ed the chins, feel i could go a fair bit heavier for 5 reps.

quite happy with the sesh tbh, considering ive had a week off and its the first time iv squatted and deadlifted on the same day. could feel the doms kicking in as soon as i finished squatting but i also get it when i take a week off. looking forward to seeing what progress i can make from squating 3 times a week


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

oh and i weighed myself st the gym last night, 12st 13lbs so i put on 8lbs in 2 weeks:beer:


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:


> 07-06-2012
> 
> first sesh back, im gonna try starting strength for a while. the last 3 x 5 weight i used were dl 140kg, squat 110kg and bp 90kg, so im gonna knock 10kg off these and use these as my starting weights.
> 
> ...


IMO 10k is not enough of a drop for most of your lifts.

you need to drop from between 10% and 15% of your past weight per rep range or you will stall inside a month


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> IMO 10k is not enough of a drop for most of your lifts.
> 
> you need to drop from between 10% and 15% of your past weight per rep range or you will stall inside a month


tbh mate i did this sesh before i read your response. but i couldnt download that calculator for some reason anyway. didnt totaly understand your post, do you mean 15% of my 5 rep max? if so that would leave me with squat 95kg ish, bench 75kg ish and dl 120kg. and if i used 10% of my 5rm then i would have been somewhere close:confused1:


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> oh and i weighed myself st the gym last night, 12st 13lbs so i put on 8lbs in 2 weeks:beer:


The all inclusive werent too shabby then? 

Squatting 3 times a week is awesome but I was shagged after about 8 or 9 weeks. Can always run rthis for 2 months and then move on to something else though - I think it'll do ya good


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> The all inclusive werent too shabby then?
> 
> Squatting 3 times a week is awesome but I was shagged after about 8 or 9 weeks. Can always run rthis for 2 months and then move on to something else though - I think it'll do ya good


 the food was quality mate some meals i was having 4 different meat dishes on my plate, yum yum. im planning to squat 3 times week until i can squat 120kg 3 x 5, ideally i would get this within 6 to 8 weeks but if it takes a bit longer so be it, then il try a couple of weeks of trebles and doubles .


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

should be training today but got the leg doms, so il put it off til tomorrow


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

10-06-12

squats

warmup

102.5kg x 5 3sets

military press

45kg x 5 3sets

hang cleans

bar x 5 3sets

barbell row

60kg x 5 3sets

cable crunches

fullstack x 15 3sets

not the hardest sesh ive ever had but im sure in a week or 2 i wont be saying that. did some hang cleans just to try and get better flexability in the wrists, once i think i can get the clean grip right then im gonna stat some powercleans.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

12-06-12

squats

105kg x 5 3sets

was in agony with my shoulder so i left the gym after squatting, havnt had any trouble with it for a while now but it started to hurt after my last sesh ,dont know why really because ive warmed up the same as usual.

not to worry though i got my squats done and thats the main thing, im not training til friday now so hopefully it will be better by then


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## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

Good work! I will be training squats 3 times A week. One back to front! ANd dropping deads off floor for awhile.

ANd really pushing my bench!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

yesterdays sesh

squat

warmup

107.5kg x 5 3sets

bench press

82.5kg x5 3sets

deadlift

132.5kg x 5

shoulder still sore, so id just did what was needed,hopefully next sesh it will be better and i can get some rows/chins done aswell.

had to push hard on squats,so the next couple of sessions will be interesting. bench was difficult also, hoping its because im doing them after squats and not because my bench is getting worse!


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## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

Good session mike,

Lifts look like they are coming on well keep up the hard work mate!

Also congrats on putting on 8lb in 2 weeks!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

cheers mate


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

19-06-12

squats

warm up

110kg x 5 3sets

military press

45kg x 5 3sets

barbell row

65kg x 5 3sets

chins

bw x 5

30lb x 5 2sets

squats was very hard tonight, on the very last rep i think i cried a little on the way up :lol: been slack lately, i keep getting pis$ed up watching the footy then cant be bothered to train because im so rough the next day.

no doubt il be having a few tonight though, come on england:beer:


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

21-06-12

squat

warmup

112.5kg x 5 pb

absolute agony in my shoulder again, had to leave it as i didnt want to make it any worse. im getting right fcuked off with it, icant seem to get any continuity in my training.

tbh im not sure what to do about it, i dont want to take a couple of weeks off, im thinkin that 5 reps aint helping because my shoulder is under pressure that little bit longer so im considering dropping to 3 reps. anyone think that will help?

i havnt got great flexability in my shoulders so im hoping that its just that and with a bit of felex work it will be back to normal. theres a comp around my way in august which i was hoping to enter but i cant see how i can if i cant even finish a sesh. any advice ?


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

What type of pain is it


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> What type of pain is it


its like a dull ache but its constant, and it might sound wierd but im not sure where it is exactly but i think i can feel it in the back of the shoulder. i think its from my shoulder being forced back but i could be wrong


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Does it ease up with a wider grip ?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

funny you should say that because i warmed up with a wider grip today and it felt much better and i thought to myself ah ive cracked it but as soon as i did my work set i realised that i hadnt


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

good journal going on here , sounds like a grip width issue thats turned in to a constant pain .


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Does sound like a flexibility issue.

Do you do any mobility stuff ?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> good journal going on here , sounds like a grip width issue thats turned in to a constant pain .


thanks ewen, i had this problem when i first started squatting a couple of months ago and i started warming up shoulders a bit more before squatting and it seem to go away so im hoping that ive just aggravated something small and it,ll go away


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Does sound like a flexibility issue.
> 
> Do you do any mobility stuff ?


tbh i spend about 10mins warming up, including stretching and rolling my shoulders and thats it really


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> thanks ewen, i had this problem when i first started squatting a couple of months ago and i started warming up shoulders a bit more before squatting and it seem to go away so im hoping that ive just aggravated something small and it,ll go away


never ignore a niggle as these will turn into something more painful .

put some face pulls in at the start and get your shoulders nice and warm .


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> never ignore a niggle as these will turn into something more painful .
> 
> put some face pulls in at the start and get your shoulders nice and warm .


ok thanks, il look on youtube and find out how to do them and il give them a go on the weekend


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

these are the variation i do .


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

thanks ewen


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## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

I've started doing rotator cuff warm ups before every session as well!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

mikemull said:


> I've started doing rotator cuff warm ups before every session as well!


what is that mike?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

23-06-12

face pulls x 12 3sets

squats

warm up

112.5kg x5 2sets

bench press

85kg x 5 3sets

deadlift

135kg x 5

calf raises 3 x 12

ab work

wasnt looking forward to the gym as i was planning on doinbg safety squats and didnt feel i would be squatting anywhere near what i wanted to be squatting. anyway tried a couple of sets at 60kg and it just didnt feel right so i decided fcuk it im gonna squat normally.

i took extra time to warm up and did face pulls in between every warmup set, did the two sets ok but felt a slight twinge so decided that id pushed my luck enough for one day and left it at 2 sets.

no problems through the rest of the sesh so i was happy with that, im gonna front squat on monday to try and get a little extra rest and fingers crossed il be ready to go after that.

il also do face pulls at the start of each sesh to try and help with flexability.


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

hows it feel after your face pulls ?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> hows it feel after your face pulls ?


well i did 3 sets, and usually when i roll my shoulders it clicks like mad but after i did them they were rolling smooth with no clickin and thats only the first time ive done them, so hopefully after a few weeks my flexibility will improve.

after doin the first set i could see how inflexible my shoulders were, so definately need to work on that


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Do shoulder dislocations, rotator cuff exercises and the facepulls as part of your warm up. Look them up on youtube.

Here's one cuff






You can use pink dumbells if you don't have a band


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

I did a lot of this


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## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

Yes that's it!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

thanks lads, i think some of the exercises will have to be done at home, you could quite possibly catch something from lying on the floor in the gym i train in:lol:


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

There's loadsa variations. Youtube the mothers


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

will do, them sorts of exercises i can do in the house even on non training days


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

You should do them as a warm up as well, specially before heavy pressing


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

thats why i think it a flexability problem, because if i go to gym and press without squatting first, i dont get any problems. but you,re right, like most people i dont really warm up properly


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

last nites sesh

face pulls

4 x 12

some dumbell shoulder mobility stuff

squat

112.5kg x 5 2sets

112.5kg x 4

military press

50kg x5 3sets

power clean

50kg x 5 3sets

gutted i didnt get that last squat,, i seriously need to get a training partner, i think if someone was there to push me i may have got it.

although i did push myself quite hard, after the second rep i didnt think i had anymore but managed to squeeze another 2 out, but the last one took so long for me to come up that i just didnt attemp the 5th(pussy).

think im gonna deload this week because i seem to have a couple of niggling pains creeping in, the inside of my elbow is aching and my shoulder still not right, i dont usualy deload so im hoping that it may help and im probably gonna start to deload more regularly.

not sure how much longer i can take doing this starting strength, i want to give it a fair crack of the whip but its boring as hell!


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:


> last nites sesh
> 
> face pulls
> 
> ...


I promise you as soon as you start smashing your PB's you will find it a lot more enjoyable


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Maybe take the week off completely. Clear your head, do loadsa stretching/mobility stuff.

Come back the week after totally refreshed


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Maybe take the week off completely. Clear your head, do loadsa stretching/mobility stuff.
> 
> Come back the week after totally refreshed


 i think i will,i dont enjoy lifting lighter weights thats prob the reason why i dont deload but after this week off im definately gonna deload every month ish whether i want to or not.



BestBefore1989 said:


> I promise you as soon as you start smashing your PB's you will find it a lot more enjoyable


 i know, i guess im just frustrated at the moment that i cant get any continuity and therefore aint making the progress i want. but i am gonna stick with it for a while.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

03-07-12

face pulls

3 x 12

some rotator cuff work with dumbells

squats

warmup

100kg x 5

105 kg x 5 2sets

bench press

80kg x 5

85kg x 5 2sets

pullups

bw x 8 2sets

rear lateral raises

20lb x 8 3sets

first sesh back after a week off so didnt want to go to mad,gonna use this week to get back into it, not gonna worry to much about routine just gonna get plenty of compounds done.

ive done loads of research into what could be causing my shoulder pain,obviously cant be sure 100% but ive come up with a few possible candidates and im doing what i can to rectify them all.

so ive rested a week and im taking anti inflammitries just in case its a touchof tendonitous, have done plenty of rotator cuff work and will continue to do so, also spending alot more time warming up. also ive read that shoulder pain can be caused from neglecting the rear delts(which im definately guilty of), so im gonna do face pulls regular and also rear lateral raises to try and help with this.

last but not least my squat form, read through wendlers tips on the squat and he says get your elbows under the bar, which i dont, i tend to pull my elbows back to try to keep tight.

so with all that considered i did my sesh and must admit i do feel better, i honestly think that i was causing myself problems by pulling my elbows to far back when setting up the squat. anyway early days yet but lets hope i can get a couple of months of injury free training.


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

What does that mean? Elbows under the bar?


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

I am worried that from what you said you are going to try to get your arms forward rather than your elbows down


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> What does that mean? Elbows under the bar?


 so the elbow points down instead of back if that makes sense


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> so the elbow points down instead of back if that makes sense


see that's okay as long as you've got enough muscle on your back to rest the bar on. If you haven't then you will be holding the bar up rather than pressing it down. Your wrists will suffer.

If you don't have enough muscle on your back you will need to shove elbows up to create a ledge for the bar.

But really, if your shoulders are inflexible you kinda just really need to find what works for you.


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## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> i think i will,i dont enjoy lifting lighter weights thats prob the reason why i dont deload but after this week off im definately gonna deload every month ish whether i want to or not.


This is a big thing for me, I hate people seeing me lift light weights it's a major head ****!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> see that's okay as long as you've got enough muscle on your back to rest the bar on. If you haven't then you will be holding the bar up rather than pressing it down. Your wrists will suffer.
> 
> If you don't have enough muscle on your back you will need to shove elbows up to create a ledge for the bar.
> 
> But really, if your shoulders are inflexible you kinda just really need to find what works for you.


it didnt feel like i was holding the weight, but im not 100% sure, i understand what your saying though il see how it feels in the next couple of sessions.like you said though i think its a case of trial and error.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

mikemull said:


> This is a big thing for me, I hate people seeing me lift light weights it's a major head ****!


tbh mate im not worried bout other people, its a mental thing for me, it sort of feels like 3 steps forward then one back. but i gotta accept that it needs to be done and just get on with it.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

last night,s sesh

face pulls

3 x 12

some rotator cuff stuff with dumbells

squats

100kg x 5

105kg x 5

110kg x 5

military press

50kg x 5 3sets

deadlift

130kg x 5

problems with my shoulder again, not as bad as it has been but still not right, gonna give it a week or so if its still no better then perhaps i might have to start training with lower percentages of my 1rm.

and maybe keep squatting to once a week cos thats definately where the problem starts.


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Fatstuff had flexibility probs. Maybe ask him what hes been doing to overcome the prob


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Fatstuff had flexibility probs. Maybe ask him what hes been doing to overcome the prob


il have a look and see if hs got a journal


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

07-07-12

fronties

50kg x 5

60kg x 5 2sets pb

deadlift

100kg x 5

120kg x 5

140kg x5 2sets

face pulls

4 plates x 10 3sets

flat dumbell press

80lb x 5 3sets

ab work

first time using an olympic grip on fronties and got a pb so happy with that,although felt alot of pressure on the wrists is that normal?.

ive decided im gonna go back to squatting once a week and hopefully that will help with my shoulder as il have almost a week in between squatting. not what i wanted really because i thought that would push my squat up nicely, but if im in pain and cannot train the its pointless really.

so il write up a new program for myself and il start it tuesday, il post it up later so you lot can stick your noses in and tell me how $hit it is and at least il have time to change it


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

this is what ive come up with for my new program

bench press 3 x 5

barbell row 3 x 5

incline dumbell press 2 x 8

dips 2 x 8

cgbp 2 x 8

skull crushers 2 x 8

ab work

squats 3 x 5

powerclean 3x5

military press 3 x 5

stifflegs 2 x 8

calf raises 3 x 12

rear later raises 2 x 8

ab work

deadlift 3 x 5

pullups 3 x 5

fronties 3 x 5

gm,s 2 x 8

dumbell rows 2 x 8

face pulls 3 x 10

ab work

looking at it now it does look like alot, my only goal is to get my squat deadlift and bench press higher, ive put face pulls and rear laterals in just for shoulder health.

please feel free to critique, im not the most experianced so il definately consider making changes if needs be.

every 4th week im gonna use as deload/speed work and every 3rd week im plan to work up to a heavy triple,then beat this each time before a deload week and repeat.


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

are you aiming for power lifting ?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

yes mate


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

then your doing far to much work , i would advise following the stronglifts 5x5 training routines from beginner to advanced .

or look into eastern block training and periodisation .


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

doesnt sl 5x5 involve squatting every sesh, if it does thats a definate no no because squatting cause me shoulder problems which has ruined my training lately. gonna look into that eastern block stuff now, ive read power to the people by pavel tsoul.... cant spell his name but you know who i mean. but i do admit i stopped half way through because i thought it looked a bit ropey, he suggested just do deadlifts and some ohp movement that ive never heard of and that was it, have you read it? if so what did you think


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

http://www.uk-muscle.co.uk/training-articles/75649-russian-style-loading-peaking-routine.html

do you mean some thing like this ewen?


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> doesnt sl 5x5 involve squatting every sesh, if it does thats a definate no no because squatting cause me shoulder problems which has ruined my training lately. gonna look into that eastern block stuff now, ive read power to the people by pavel tsoul.... cant spell his name but you know who i mean. but i do admit i stopped half way through because i thought it looked a bit ropey, he suggested just do deadlifts and some ohp movement that ive never heard of and that was it, have you read it? if so what did you think


havent read it mate .

my favourite way of training is less is more also griff prefers the primative training style .

every exercise needs a solid reason behind you doing it , i dont bench press at all my pressing is push press and dips im adding in db ohp single arm for the strongman stuff and thats it i press once a week 3-5 sets of 3-5 reps depending how i feel but each session must be better than the last by either 1kg 1 rep or 1 set .

for bench press you could do something like ...

flat bb bench focusing on acceleration (start low and build your speed this will push your top end weight up without stressing joints)

db press

dips .

back

deadlift

block pulls

good mornings

legs

squats

lunges

sldl


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> http://www.uk-muscle.co.uk/training-articles/75649-russian-style-loading-peaking-routine.html
> 
> do you mean some thing like this ewen?


yeah mate thats a good example .


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

right ok, thanks for that routine, il use that, would you suggest that i use the exact same method asthe example in that link for the main lifts and a higher rep range for the rest. also block pulls is that a partial deadlift?

ive got that ebook also some old school strongman book if you want them


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> right ok, thanks for that routine, il use that, would you suggest that i use the exact same method asthe example in that link for the main lifts and a higher rep range for the rest. also block pulls is that a partial deadlift?
> 
> ive got that ebook also some old school strongman book if you want them


yeah cool click the little man symbol it shows my email , thanks .

yeah partials but off blocks not rack as it replicates the actual movement .

follow that routine with the link example .

on back day add in chin ups i keep forgetting them but they are very good once you get to a point you add weight they hit biceps very well and upper back .

keep your main lift reps/sets as in the link but only go up to 5x5 on all other lifts as you want to do low volume high intensity so you stimulate and then eat .


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

thanks mate, ive sent them over to you


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

got them and repped thank you :thumbup1:


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

09-07-12

bench press

87.5kg x 2 6sets

flat dumbell press

34kg x 5 5sets

dips

bw x 5

25lg x 5 4sets

cable crunches

full stack x 15 2sets

started a new program today, 10 week cycle maxing out on the 10th week, hopefully 5% more than my previous 1rm.http://www.uk-muscle.co.uk/training-articles/75649-russian-style-loading-peaking-routine.html this is the principles il be using.

tbh ive based my bench 1rm on 110kg which i did about 10 weeks ago but im sure my bench has gone backwards in this time, so i may have started a bit high but il just complete the cycle and whatever i get at the end of the cycle, il use on the next and i know that willbe accurate. im gonna use a 1rm of 160kg for my deadlift and 120kg for squat which i definately can do.


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

looks good how did it feel ?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

tbh 87.5kg felt heavier than it should have, gotme thinkin that i might struggle with 6x6 but thats in 5 weeks time maybe if i get plenty of grub down me il be able to do it.


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

yeah exactly mate keep carbed up and full of protein and sleep well the night before you`ll be fine .

im running this same method from tonight but i dont bench anymore so it`ll be on log pressing .


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

will you be logging your progress?


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> will you be logging your progress?


yeah mate i will log it


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

11-07-12

deadlift

127.5kg x 2 6sets

block pulls

100kg x 5

120kg x 5 2sets

130kg x 5 2sets

good mornings

30kg x 5

50kg x 5 4sets

chin ups

bw x 5

15lb x 5

20lb x 5

25lb x 5

30lb x 5

enjoyed tonights sesh, really tried to concentrate on pulling as fast i could on deadlift, didnt go too mad on the block pulls cos its the first time ive done them so wanted to make sure form was good.


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## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

Looking good Bongon, keep up the hard work mate, and slowly increase. Sure you will do fine. Good to see your training hard still.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

14-07-12

squats

97.5kg x 2 6sets

dumbell lunge

bw x 5

15lb x 5

30lb x 5

40lb x 5

50lb x 5

sldl

60kg x 5 2sets

70kg x 5 3sets


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

doing great. :thumb:

about time you videoed your workout again


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

yeah i know mate, but the camera on my phone is so $hite that you can barely make out what exercise im doing, no joke.

il see if i can take my wifes phone and get a couple of vids


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> yeah i know mate, but the camera on my phone is so $hite that you can barely make out what exercise im doing, no joke.
> 
> il see if i can take my wifes phone and get a couple of vids


of your wife


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

chance would be a fine thing:lol:


----------



## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

haha, Yeah sounds like a great idea.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

got a bit of a dilemma. im going to reading festival 24-26 of august, which means nigh on a week of abusing my body and not training.

i want to finish my current training cycle before this because il be good for nothing for a while after it. festival is in 37 days time and ive got 24 training sessions and 3 sessions for maxing out to get done in this time.

what i think is, skip a week of my cycle so that leaves me with 24 sessions in 37 days. do able or not? or do you think that will just cock it all up?

or might it be better to just have a week off and then repeat the previous weeks training and carry on that way?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

16-07-12

bench press

87.5kg x 3 6sets

flat dumbell press

50lb x 5

60lb x 5

70lb x 5

80lb x 5

88lb x 5

dips

bw x 5

25lb x 5

40lb x 5

50lb x 5 2sets

dbell side bends

40lb x 10 3sets

got some vids of my sesh, this is the 1st set 87.5kg x 3






88lb dumbells x 5






and dips 50lb x 5






ewen/matt sorry theyre not the vids you wanted


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> got a bit of a dilemma. im going to reading festival 24-26 of august, which means nigh on a week of abusing my body and not training.
> 
> i want to finish my current training cycle before this because il be good for nothing for a while after it. festival is in 37 days time and ive got 24 training sessions and 3 sessions for maxing out to get done in this time.
> 
> ...


have you worked out week week of your cycle it falls on ?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> have you worked out week week of your cycle it falls on ?


week 6/7


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

good stuff mate well done all i would say is slow the negative a little more and accelerate the bar on the concentric as fast as you can .


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> week 6/7


is it 4 week cycles then 5th week is a deload ?

if so add another week in so do week 1 or 2 twice to put a week on then it falls on a deload/week 1 of next cycle .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> is it 4 week cycles then 5th week is a deload ?
> 
> if so add another week in so do week 1 or 2 twice to put a week on then it falls on a deload/week 1 of next cycle .


theres no mention of a deload week, i was assuming you deload after maxing out?


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> theres no mention of a deload week, i was assuming you deload after maxing out?


no im being thick i thought you was doing wendlers but your running the russian thing same as me .

i would say if its mid way through week 6 then when you return start back at week 6 although if you drink enough you`ll be full of energy :lol:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ok thats what il do, thanks


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Nice :thumb:

well done for getting the videos up


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

18-07-12

deadlift

127.5kg x 3 6sets

block pulls

100kg x 5

120kg x 5

130kg x 5

140kg x 5 2sets

gm's

bar x 5

40kg x 5

50kg x 5

55kg x 5 2sets iive got a vid for everyone to have a giggle at, ive never seen myself do these before, form is awful

chins

bw x 5

15lb x 5

25lb x 5

30lb x 5

33lb x 5 2sets

got some vids, feel free to critique, they definatly look like i need to work on them.

127.5kg x 3






140kg x 5






33lb x 5






55kg x 5






and no taking the pi$$ outta my legs you cnuts


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

cant take the pi55 till you make the vids public


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)




----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

think its sorted now


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

deadlifts ... bar is to far away from you and hips rise first then you pull with back .

block pulls ... you dont lock out :cursing: thrust your hips forward into the bar like your nailing it .

chin ups ... let yourself go to the absolute bottom F.R.O.M .

good mornings ..... look painful , legs straight back curved slightly but in a natural way and push your ass out and thrust hips forward on way back up .

have a watch of some dave tate videos on youtube , elitelifts.com .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> deadlifts ... bar is to far away from you and hips rise first then you pull with back .
> 
> block pulls ... you dont lock out :cursing: thrust your hips forward into the bar like your nailing it .
> 
> ...


do you mean when i stand at the bar get closer cos when i drop my hips my shins are touching?


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> do you mean when i stand at the bar get closer cos when i drop my hips my shins are touching?


if you look again when you press the world away the bar comes into your body .

probably due to ankle flexibility .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> if you look again when you press the world away the bar comes into your body .
> 
> probably due to ankle flexibility .


yeah i see what you mean, the bar needs to go up in a straight line right? i watched 2 vids on youtube both from elite fitness, one says stand off the bar to allow yourself to pull back and the other says get close:confused1:


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

yeah yours is like a bow .

bring the bar off your shins a touch but it will touch a little higher up .

watch andy bolton vids .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ta, will do


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

My little tip for you is when you stand to the bar and look down, the bar should cross your foot above where you tie your shoes laces


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

right, been to the gym for the first time in a week, just done a feww its and bobs really. this weather is fcuking killing me, i dont want to be the one complain about the very little sunshine we have but i just cant handle it, im working in it all dayin it and by the time i finish im good for nothing. also i weighed at the gym and im down 8lbs, a combination of poor diet and sweating my tits off all day me thinks. rant over


----------



## cub (Jul 14, 2011)

It looks like you're not standing up straight when you're deadlifting, as your legs still bend slightly at your knees?


----------



## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

Good lifting liking the video's mate.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

strongmanmatt said:


> Good lifting liking the video's mate.


cheers,as you can see though form needs some work, im gonna keep the vids regular for a while til i get form sorted


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

just bought meself a power cage, bench and 175kg barbell kit, its getting delivered thursday so theres no more excuses for not being able to get to the gym


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

any pics ?


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:


> just bought meself a power cage, bench and 175kg barbell kit, its getting delivered thursday so theres no more excuses for not being able to get to the gym


NICE :thumb:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> any pics ?


 bought this http://www.powerhouse-fitness.co.uk/premium-strength-package.php#

and an extra 30kg. it came with a free belt and gloves which i got them to swap for the dip bar attachment.


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> bought this http://www.powerhouse-fitness.co.uk/premium-strength-package.php#
> 
> and an extra 30kg. it came with a free belt and gloves which i got them to swap for the dip bar attachment.


I wonder what you will actually receive :lol:


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> bought this http://www.powerhouse-fitness.co.uk/premium-strength-package.php#
> 
> and an extra 30kg. it came with a free belt and gloves which i got them to swap for the dip bar attachment.


 :nono: serious :blink:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> I wonder what you will actually receive :lol:


yeah ive read that they can be a drama, hopefully not though its been bad enough already, my bank got some fraud protection scheme and cancelled my card when i tried to pay the fcukers



ewen said:


> :nono: serious :blink:


 what do you mean? i dont wear gloves and i thought the belt would probably be a bobybuilding belt which aint really any good to me. i thought that was a good swap


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> yeah ive read that they can be a drama, hopefully not though its been bad enough already, my bank got some fraud protection scheme and cancelled my card when i tried to pay the fcukers
> 
> what do you mean? i dont wear gloves and i thought the belt would probably be a bobybuilding belt which aint really any good to me. i thought that was a good swap


lol i read it wrong  thought you swapped the dip attachment for belt and gloves :lol:


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

You get the cables ?


----------



## robc1985 (Jan 28, 2010)

bongon95 said:


> yeah ive read that they can be a drama, hopefully not though its been bad enough already, my bank got some fraud protection scheme and cancelled my card when i tried to pay the fcukers
> 
> what do you mean? i dont wear gloves and i thought the belt would probably be a bobybuilding belt which aint really any good to me. i thought that was a good swap


Hope it goes ok. The cnuts fcuked me over TWICE with that package


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

I actually ended up with more than I ordered. Haha


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Tassotti said:


> I actually ended up with more than I ordered. Haha


just shows you money goes to money :whistling:


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Money ...pfft. I wish!


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Tassotti said:


> Money ...pfft. I wish!


lol you got 5 mill in assets ya cnut :lol:

ok you owe 5 mill aswell :lol:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> You get the cables ?


yeah i think so



robc1985 said:


> Hope it goes ok. The cnuts fcuked me over TWICE with that package


did you get sorted in the end?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

29-07-12

bench press

87.5kg x 4 6sets

flat dumbell press

50lbs x 5

70lbs x 5

80lbs x 5 3sets

dips

bw x 5

25lbs x 5

30lbs x 5

40lbs x 5 2sets

deadlifts

60kg x 5

80kg x 5

100kg x 3

decent sesh today, wasnt easy on the bench but ok, will be intesting to see how i manage 6sets of 5 reps next week. did some light deadlifts just to work on form, i got a vid of it.

set up with the bat about 2 inches off my shins which felt alot better tbh, bar seemed to go up straighter but my a$$ still coming up early i think. have a look see what you think

100kg x 3


----------



## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

looking great buddy well done


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

looks alot better mate , try keeping your neck curve more natural as it looks like your looking at yourself in a mirror :gun_bandana:


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Your shins should be touching the bar. If your legs aren't bleeding, you're too far away


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

tbh mate i probably am looking in the mirror there but thats my last session in that gym, il be training at home from now on and ther wont any mirrors to look in


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Your shins should be touching the bar. If your legs aren't bleeding, you're too far away


yeah mate im standing with it about 2 inches off then when i drops my hips, its touching. ive got bruises and bald patches for my efforts:lol:


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Long socks and tracksuit pants my young friend.


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Bar path still looks curved. I think when you are putting it down you are going out around your knees and placing it further away. You need to 'lat it back' to your shins every rep


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Bar path still looks curved. I think when you are putting it down you are going out around your knees and placing it further away. You need to 'lat it back' to your shins every rep


 i see what you mean, i could have done with pulling the bar back in before the last rep ?


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

yeah, pull it back in with your lats. Reset before each rep


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

31-07-12

deadlift

127.5kg x 4 6sets

chins

bw x 5

17lb x 5

10kg x 5 3sets

some ab work

pushed for time so i had to just do a short session,


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

got all my gear from powerhouse fitness today, havnt been through it all yet but it looks like its all there after a quick look. didnt see the dip bars which were free anyway unless there in one of the boxes but i doubt bthey will be


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Assembling it is a workout in itself !


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

im gonna leave that til tomorrow, thats when il find out that half of it is missing:lol:


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Little tip. If there is stuff missing, call the local store AND the head office :whistling:


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

Tassotti said:


> Little tip. If there is stuff missing, call the local store AND the head office :whistling:


*And kick the **** off!!*


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

put it together and its all there except for the dip bars as i thought so not to bad. ive emailed them and they emailed me back and theyre sorting it apparantly.

im storing in my garage my stepfathers kit car so as you can imagine its tight as fcuk in there, so im trying to sort out somewher for that to go then it will be fine, anyone want to buy a kitcar?

doing my first sesh in the garage later so il see how it goes


----------



## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

Not too bad, Mike, glad your stuff has arrived, when you going to try it out, with a good session. If ya don't mind me asking what was the price?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

strongmanmatt said:


> Not too bad, Mike, glad your stuff has arrived, when you going to try it out, with a good session. If ya don't mind me asking what was the price?


it cost 750 to start with, but they had 10% if you buy online and i added 30kg so it came out at 715 in the end


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

04-08-12

squats

97.5kg x 4 6sets

fronties

40kg x5 3sets

sld l

50kg x5

60kg x 5 4sets

first sesh in the garage, warm as hell in there im gonna need a fan in there me thinks.

couldnt do lunges cos space is tight so did fronties instead, kept them light cos im trying to switchto a clean grip


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

heres a vid of my second set, its the first time ive squatted where i havent been able to see myself in the mirror, felt weird as hell.

97.5kg x 4






what do you think of my form?


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Link doesn't work Mike. You've linked to your own upload page by the looks of it


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

i think thats right now, what a mong


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

you`ve got a bit of a shane mcgowan look about you 

looks like your bent forward too much but your getting there depth was alright but wtf music was on :lol:


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Form is pretty good mate.

Only thing I noticed was that you don't stand up straight with it. You're bent over a bit at the start of the lift.

Stay erect man !

Good otherwise. Nice depth, keeping knees shoved out. Back stays flat. Good mate. Well done !


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> you`ve got a bit of a shane mcgowan look about you
> 
> looks like your bent forward too much but your getting there depth was alright but wtf music was on :lol:


cheeky cnut, hes got teeth like sugar puffs. music is the black keys


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Form is pretty good mate.
> 
> Only thing I noticed was that you don't stand up straight with it. You're bent over a bit at the start of the lift.
> 
> ...


 i know i need to stand up straighter but find the bar slips down if i do


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> i know i need to stand up straighter but find the bar slips down if i do


Thought that might be why.

Shove your elbows up to create a ledge for the bar.

Once you get some muscle on your back it will help :whistling: :lol:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Thought that might be why.
> 
> Shove your elbows up to create a ledge for the bar.
> 
> Once you get some muscle on your back it will help :whistling: :lol:


walked straight into that one didnt i


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

You wanna sort that out now, coz when you put some weight on the bar, it will just crush you


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

yeah il try what you suggested and get another vid up and see if thats any better


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

You'll probably find the bar will come slightly lower than it is now.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

06-08-12

bench press

87.5kg x 5 6sets

didnt train til 830 and was knackered so just did my pressing and left it at that


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

just had an email from powerhouse fitness and they said the dip bars are out of stock for 2 weeks and they will be posted to me as soon as they come in


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

08-08-12

deadlifts

127.5kg x 5 6sets

chins

bw x 8 3 sets

bodyweight squats

2 x 10

had to rush my sesh again so just got in what i could, got a vid of my deadlift il post that tommorrow. did some squats to practise keeping upper body more upright.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

127.5kg x 5






trying my best to sort my form out but dont feel like im getting there, when im doing them it feels good then i watch the vid and it still looks like my a$$ is comin up too quick.

i watched a couple of martin brown's deadlifting vids and noticed he had he feet closer together than i do, so i tried it and it felt good tbh.

not the best angle really. any comments/advice welcome


----------



## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

Good vid, Only thing I'd say is to try and kept that **** lower dude, try and imagine your sitting down, dig your heals into the floor.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

yeah i know thats what i need to to but just cant seem to do it:cursing:


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

put your head down into a natural curve if you look at your neck curve its putting strain in the lift could be affecting the movement .


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

At the start of the lift, push your feet through the floor. Concentrate on your quads lifting it.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> At the start of the lift, push your feet through the floor. Concentrate on your quads lifting it.


tbh mate that exactly how it feels,when ive finished its my legs feel that theyve done the work if that makes sense.i definately need to work on head placement though as ewen said, i noticed this as i was doing them. im deadlifting about a foot away from the wall and found mself looking at different places on it when i reset after each rep.

too nosey for my own good

il keep tryingfor another couple of weeks, if i dont improve i may need to start thinking about finding a strength coach(preferrably a powerlifter or ex) and getting them to sort me out.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

10-08-12

squats

97.5kg x 5 6sets

fronties

40kg x 5 2sets

5okg x 5

sldl

50kg x 5

60kg x 5 2sets

hanging hip

raise

3 x 12

decided to drop the volume on assistance to make sure i can recover in time. still working on technique, some of the reps felt right and others didnt be i feel im slowly getting it. ordered another 20kg worth of plates only got 175kg at the moment and im determined to pull all of that at the end of this cycle.


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

good stuff mate


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

13-08-12

bench press

87.5kg x 6 4sets

87.5kg x 5 failed 6th rep, had to roll the bar down to my legs

87.5kg x 4

cgbp

60kg x 5

70kg x 5 2sets

decline situps

bw x 10

10kg x 10 2sets

after the amount of alcohol ive drunk this weekend im not at all disappointed at mising a few reps, i felt like $hit all day and only reason i trained is because im away next weekend and wanted to get 3 sessions in this week.

and as i said at the start of this cycle i may have over estimated my true 1rm, but im still hopeful of going past 110kg at the end.

heres a vid of my first set, 87.5kg x 6


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Hows things Mike? I see you've got yourself a nice set up! Everyone has a home gym I'm so tempted to invest myself  How high is the cage? Not sure my garage would be high enough...

You doing Wendys still?


----------



## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

Looking good Mike.

Nice home gym, and looking strong mate.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Hows things Mike? I see you've got yourself a nice set up! Everyone has a home gym I'm so tempted to invest myself  How high is the cage? Not sure my garage would be high enough...
> 
> You doing Wendys still?


everythings good mate, its 2.1m high,same as a standard door height so it should fit. no not on wendy,s mate i think you got me mixed with mike mull, hes on wendys.

ewen helped me out with a basic programme, same method as what he is using. i have had to modify it slightly since i started training at home


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> everythings good mate, its 2.1m high,same as a standard door height so it should fit. no not on wendy,s mate i think you got me mixed with mike mull, hes on wendys.
> 
> ewen helped me out with a basic programme, same method as what he is using. i have had to modify it slightly since i started training at home


Ahh cool that should actualy fit in my garage then, it looked a lot bigger in the vid! Must be nice to be able to pop in the garage and do everything you need I'm definitely swaying towards the idea especially as there are so many cocks down my gym haha

Ahh sweet still looking to do a comp? I'm hopefully still going to do my comp in Bournemouth in Nov though my preparation couldn't have been worse lol... Any pbs to shout about lately?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

yes mate, im still planning to do a comp this year,hopefully. tbh my training hasnt been the best lately but im just starting to get some consistancy again.

will be maxing out in 4-5 weeks so hoping for pb,s all round.

once you get backing into mate it wont take long for you to get back where u was,strengthwise.


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> yes mate, im still planning to do a comp this year,hopefully. tbh my training hasnt been the best lately but im just starting to get some consistancy again.
> 
> will be maxing out in 4-5 weeks so hoping for pb,s all round.
> 
> once you get backing into mate it wont take long for you to get back where u was,strengthwise.


Cool man well lets hope we both progress nicely through Autumn!

Yeah I will hopefully be matching a few pbs in 5-6 weeks time and I hope you're right mate lets see if this muscle memory thing people talk about is true :lol:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

15-08-12

deadlift

127.5kg x 6 6sets

chins

bw x 5 3sets

hanging hip raise

3 x 12

got to b honest, deadlift was alot harder than i imagined it would be, i was fcuked after it, made a consious effort to keep my head more neutral but my a$$ is still rising too fast i think.

im pretty much filming every set at the moment, when imdoing them it feels right but then i watch the vid straight after and can see that its not. any way heres the vid of first set

127.5kg x 6


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

It looks to me like the lift is good :thumb: but when lowering the bar you have to move it around your knees.

If you stick your ar5e out more when lowering the bar it will pull your knees back and allow you to lower the bar in a straight line


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

why are you lifting from a height ?


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Tassotti said:


> why are you lifting from a height ?


hes not the plates are 15`s .

i could be wrong :whistling:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> why are you lifting from a height ?


the discs ive got are smaller than olympics, so ive raised it up a abit, but im still pulling from a slight deficit



ewen said:


> hes not the plates are 15`s .
> 
> i could be wrong :whistling:


i bought rubber tens off ebay thinking they would be olympic size but they were smaller, so i had 10,s 20,s 15,s a 5 a 2.5 and 1.25


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

6 sets of 6 fack!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> 6 sets of 6 fack!


 yeah i must admit i didnt enjoy thatat all, but next week the volume starts to drop and the weight goes up.

so hopefully star to see some progression:thumb:


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

It gets harder lol


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> It gets harder lol


well thats something for me to look forward to,cheers ewen


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> the discs ive got are smaller than olympics, so ive raised it up a abit, but im still pulling from a slight deficit
> 
> i bought rubber tens off ebay thinking they would be olympic size but they were smaller, so i had 10,s 20,s 15,s a 5 a 2.5 and 1.25


Yeah, that is a problem. I struggled with that too.

I ended buying bumper plates from strengthshop. They are the correct size.

Since I have found some full sized iron plates at a good price as well.

http://www.sshealthfoods.com/pages.php?page=lt.gymequipment&details=1477


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Yeah, that is a problem. I struggled with that too.
> 
> I ended buying bumper plates from strengthshop. They are the correct size.
> 
> ...


cheers,

did you get your gear from powerhouse?


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> cheers,
> 
> did you get your gear from powerhouse?


Yeah I did. The bench was torn and there was about 150Kg of weights missing !!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Yeah I did. The bench was torn and there was about 150Kg of weights missing !!


nightmare did you get it sorted tho?

my bench doesnt lie flat, i have to wedge something in it to get it flat, did yours?


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> nightmare did you get it sorted tho?
> 
> my bench doesnt lie flat, i have to wedge something in it to get it flat, did yours?


Yeah. Actually ended up with about an extra 50K for free due to their incompetence.

Bench I think I had to adjust a couple of times to get it right


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Yeah. Actually ended up with about an extra 50K for free due to their incompetence.
> 
> Bench I think I had to adjust a couple of times to get it right


extra weight,happy days. i must have adifferent bench to you cos i dont think mine can be adjusted, its not the best for benching but il have to make do i suppose


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

stick up some pics of the problem


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

will do


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

18-08-12

squats

97.5kg x 6 6sets

glad thats done, time to start add ing some weight now!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

20-08-12

bench press

92.5kg x 5 2sets

92.5kg x 4 3ets

cgbp

70kg x 5

75kg x 5

80kg x 5

hanging hip raise

3 x 12

missed a few reps again, not making excuses but i was fcuked from weekend pi$$up. and i seemed to struggle with setup today, im going to reading festival thurs day so il be reapeating this week anyway just to get back into it.


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Enjoy the fest man


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Enjoy the fest man


will do


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

welsh single lifts, december 2nd in swansea. right , thats what im setting my sights on, iv spoke to one of the organisers and he said that its possible to do the three lifts as normal. so as soon as i get back from reading its time to work my bollox off and star lifting some decent numbers


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

good to hear mate , its always good to have a set goal .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

22-08-12

deadlift

135kg x 5 5sets

chins

5x5

not too difficult but i think i need a differant belt for deadlifting, the fcuker digging in so im gonna try a neoprane belt.

135kg x 5


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

not bad , hips come up a little soon and bar speed needs upping but all round not bad at all .

as for the belt i use a neoprene under the lever belt but to keep the lower back warm .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> not bad , hips come up a little soon and bar speed needs upping but all round not bad at all .
> 
> as for the belt i use a neoprene under the lever belt but to keep the lower back warm .


ive always had trouble with the hips rising, i am working on it and it seems its fine during warm ups but as i add weight i seem to revert back, maybe just a bad habit.

do you think i could benefit from using my rest days as speed days, say 50% of 1rm, 10 x 1 ?


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

do you engage hip flexors and stretch them first ?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> do you engage hip flexors and stretch them first ?


i dont think so, i do a few sets of bodyweight squats to warm up, im not sure what you mean


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

i do these ...


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

thanks for that ewen, il give them a try before next sesh. cant hurt to do that before squatting either i suppose.


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

i always do them before using my legs in the gym like doing push pressing , i do facepulls pre pressing too .


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:


> 22-08-12
> 
> deadlift
> 
> ...


Nice :thumbup1:

Just out of interest was that the 1st or the 5th set of 5 you recorded?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

cant remember if it was second or third, i think third


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

:lol: if I'm videoing I always record the 1st set just in case that's the only set I get


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> welsh single lifts, december 2nd in swansea. right , thats what im setting my sights on, iv spoke to one of the organisers and he said that its possible to do the three lifts as normal. so as soon as i get back from reading its time to work my bollox off and star lifting some decent numbers


Awesome mate is that the bdfpa? Ask if you can qualify for the full power (all 3 lifts) British for next year thats what I'm gunning for!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Awesome mate is that the bdfpa? Ask if you can qualify for the full power (all 3 lifts) British for next year thats what I'm gunning for!


 its the wsa, but they are affilliated to the gbpf i think


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

28-08-12

squats

102.5kg x 5 5sets

sldl

60kg x5 3sets

hanging hip raise

3 x 12

after a drinking from 8 in the morning all weekend at the festival im amazed i went to work never mind trained afterwards,felt like $hit but thought i needed to get it out of the way.

did some stretching before i started, not sure if they made a differnt but iv only done them once,so we,ll see.

squats, ive been trying to keep more upright for the last few weeks, but to do this ive had to widen my stance. by doing this it feels like im more upright but also feels like im not getting depth, now as im squatting if i feel like im not getting depth ive noticed that ive started to lean forward which is basically putting me back where i started. not sure what to do to correct this tbh, anyway ive videod my first 2 sets see if you can see what i mean


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

Leaning forward slightly but depth is good. I'm thinking that your headv****ing yourself a bit, I've been doing it with my squats and deads, been concentrating on perfect form which has made my form worse than it already was. You can only change little slight things at once ie foot width etc. when I trained the other day I put my iPod on to distract me and just squatted the session and for felt lots better.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

mikemull said:


> Leaning forward slightly but depth is good. I'm thinking that your headv****ing yourself a bit, I've been doing it with my squats and deads, been concentrating on perfect form which has made my form worse than it already was. You can only change little slight things at once ie foot width etc. when I trained the other day I put my iPod on to distract me and just squatted the session and for felt lots better.


yeah mate, i do tend to overthink everthing, im border line mental tbf, drives my wife nuts too:lol:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

30-08-12

bench press

92.5kg x5 3 sets

92.5kg x 4 2sets

cgbp

80kg x 5 3sets

missed a couple of reps on bench press, next cycle im gonna lower my 1rm and pause every rep.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

1-09-12

deadlift

145kg x 4 4sets

chins

bw x 5 3sets

rows

40kg x 5

60kg x 5 2sets

had to dig in on the last set of deadlifts, but got them done. got a vid of my first set

145kg x 4


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Still lifting from the back mate. Try and imagine lifting it with your traps. See if it evens it out.

What's that old motor ?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Still lifting from the back mate. Try and imagine lifting it with your traps. See if it evens it out.
> 
> What's that old motor ?


 i know mate, i am trying to rectify it, i can keep form at a lighter weight which probably means that the weight is too heavy.

ideally i should drop down weight and work up but ive commited to this comp so im gonna just have to try to sort it as i go. do you think that i could injure myself deadlifting this way?.

the car is an ng, its got a rover v8 engine and it feels like a roller coaster its that quick, my mums partner built it. i built him a bigger garage so he could get it out of my garage and the fcuker went and bought himself a westfield, so im stuck with it in my fcuking way for now. this is one of them http://www.ngcars.co.uk/default.asp?PageID=1 the one without the roof


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

03-09-12

squats

107.5kg x 4 4sets

fronties

60kg x 5

sldl

60kg x 5 3sets

squats went up surprisingly easy so i was well happy with that, could not get the bar to sit comfortable at all for the fronties so i left it at 1 set(dint have time to pi$$ about).

cant seem to go heavier than 60kg on sldl because i just dont feel it in the hammies when i do.

did some light deadlifts just trying to sort form out, got a vid which il post tomorrow


----------



## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

Hi Mike,

Lovely car..very like a Morgan. I'd be tempted to take it for a spin. 

I lift with my back and do a hitch too at the moment.. am going to try and lower my weights till I get the form though. Tricky isn't it.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

heres a vid of last nights deadlifts. kept it light just working on form


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

I know the feeling about constantly second guessing squat/deads form :lol:

Squats don't look that bad pretty similar to how I squat though not saying my form is great lol!

Deads the lighter set did look better but thats always the way. You do kinda backlift a bit by looks of it (think I do too) try and pull with traps like Tass says and keep chest up as much as you can. Get ass low and engage hamstrings from the off....easier said than done mind


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

05-09-12

bench press

97.5kg x 4 2sets

97.5kg x 3 2sets

cgbp

80kg x 5 3sets

hanging hip raise

2 x 15

happy with my effort on bench press even though i missed a rep on the last 2 sets.


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bench press

97.5kg x 4 2sets

97.5kg x 3 2sets

:thumb:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

07-09-12

deadlifts

152.5kg x 3 3sets pb

chins

bw x 5 3ests

rows

40kg x 5

60kg x 5

70kg x 5

got my first treble at 152.5 so i was well happy with that, first two sets went up easy enough but had to dig in on the last set.


----------



## robc1985 (Jan 28, 2010)

bongon95 said:


> 07-09-12
> 
> deadlifts
> 
> ...


Very well done with the deads. Can't wait to smash 150. Finally have enough weights in garage to do it now


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> 07-09-12
> 
> deadlifts
> 
> ...


first triple on 152.5 and you got 3 of em cant be bad mate great sesh!


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

NEW PB :bounce:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

got vids of my 1st and 2nd sets from last nights sesh, form not perfect i know but i am working to try and sort it.

1st set 152.5kg x 3






2nd set 152.5kg x 3


----------



## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

Congrats on the PB! :bounce: Can't view the vids just now.. streaming (hubby likely stealing the bandwidth), but I'm sure they're great!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

9-9-12

squats

115kg x 3 3sets PB

fronties

40kg x 5

50kg x 5 2sets

sldl

60kg x 5 3sets

first treble @ 115kg and honestly feel that i had plenty more in the bank. heres the vid of my first set

115kg x 3


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

made that look easy. :thumb:

IOU reps (it wont let me rep you now)


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

You need to sort that leaning forward out bruvvvvvvver.

When you put some weight on the bar, it is gonna crush you


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> You need to sort that leaning forward out bruvvvvvvver.
> 
> When you put some weight on the bar, it is gonna crush you


yeah i know mate, im working at 95% of my last 1rm there so i do need to lean a bit to keep the weight on my back(cos im a skinny cnut:lol.

ive got 2 weeks left on this training cycle then the weight drops back down, then im gonna really concentrate on form for squats and deads


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

I reckon it's all in your head. The bar won't go anywhere. Just make sure you shove your elbows up and create that ledge.

Either that or do high bar ?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> I reckon it's all in your head. The bar won't go anywhere. Just make sure you shove your elbows up and create that ledge.
> 
> Either that or do high bar ?


yeah thats what i need to to do cos i cant ever see myself having the bar high


----------



## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

Well done Mike! :thumb: Got me wondering now how much I lean forwards.. gonna have to get some footage from the side.

What's your plans once you've done a de-load? will you up it again before the comp? just being nosey.. lol


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

JaneN40 said:


> Well done Mike! :thumb: Got me wondering now how much I lean forwards.. gonna have to get some footage from the side.
> 
> What's your plans once you've done a de-load? will you up it again before the comp? just being nosey.. lol


yeah im gonna do a weeks deload then another 10 week training cycle, to which il peak at the comp.(hopefully)


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Hey Mike instead of actually leaning as such try to consciously push your hips and ass back as you descend and at the same time push your abs into the belt real hard. At the mo it does look like your core is struggling with the lean as you get out of the hole and you look to be folding under the weight a bit if that makes sense :confused1:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Hey Mike instead of actually leaning as such try to consciously push your hips and ass back as you descend and at the same time push your abs into the belt real hard. At the mo it does look like your core is struggling with the lean as you get out of the hole and you look to be folding under the weight a bit if that makes sense :confused1:


will do mate thanks


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

tonights sesh

bench press

105kg x 3 2sets PB

105kg x 2

cgbp

82.5kg x 5 3sets

hangin hip raise

3 x 12

well please with tonights bench, went for the 3rd rep on last set but didnt quite get it(and got pinned lol).

105kg x 3


----------



## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

Well done on another PB! :beer: Had to smile at your smile at the end of that vid! Fair play to ya!


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

big grin on your face as you got up from those 105kg bench presses - well done mate :bounce:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

JaneN40 said:


> Well done on another PB! :beer: Had to smile at your smile at the end of that vid! Fair play to ya!





BestBefore1989 said:


> big grin on your face as you got up from those 105kg bench presses - well done mate :bounce:


when i got up from the bench, a funny little growl came out and made me laugh:lol:


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

mate if I was benching 105kg for reps Id be smiling as well.

I hope you don't have any collars on that bar so you could ditch the weight if you ran into problems as you clearly hadn't bothered to set the stops on the power cage.

OK nagging over


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

yeah mate i had the collars on, and i had to do the roll of shame on the last set:lol:.

the catchers are no good for benching cos i cant sets them at the right height


----------



## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

oh be careful! I did think as you did the last push on that vid that I'd be worried I'd fail..


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

:lol: that cheeky little smile after the 3rd rep said it all! Nice benching bro I'd be well happy with 3 on 105 too congrats on another pb


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

Routine obviously working well mate as the PBS are getting smashed in here! Good benching, mate very good!

Where's the vid of the pin tho? :beer:

If your on your own ditch the collars so you can dump the weight also mate!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> :lol: that cheeky little smile after the 3rd rep said it all! Nice benching bro I'd be well happy with 3 on 105 too congrats on another pb


thanks mate



mikemull said:


> Routine obviously working well mate as the PBS are getting smashed in here! Good benching, mate very good!
> 
> Where's the vid of the pin tho? :beer:
> 
> If your on your own ditch the collars so you can dump the weight also mate!


tbh mate i think its more to do with the method than my routine, i definately think i was trying to do too much per session though.

sent that vid off to you,ve been framed, its gotta be worth£250

another 2 weeks left on this cycle so hopefully a few more pb,s to come


----------



## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

:lol: on the £250! fingers x'd it pays for some of your equipment. lol


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

13-09-12

deadlifts

160kg x 2 2sets PB

100kg x 3 3sets (speed deads)

chins

bw x 5 3sets

160 was quite comfortable, form still ropey but dont think theres much point in changing things til after i max out next week. didnt get 170 off the floor last time i attempted it so hopefully it,l go up this time!

- - - Updated - - -

13-09-12

deadlifts

160kg x 2 2sets PB

100kg x 3 3sets (speed deads)

chins

bw x 5 3sets

160 was quite comfortable, form still ropey but dont think theres much point in changing things til after i max out next week. didnt get 170 off the floor last time i attempted it so hopefully it,l go up this time!


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

170 will fly up this time around matey nice pb again


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Looking solid in here matey , impressive .


----------



## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

Another great session.  Well done Mike!


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

reps sent for the PB mate :thumb:


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

170 is yours mate!!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

16-09-12

squats

120kg x 2 2sets PB

fronties

50kg x 5

60kg x 5 2sets

sldl

60kg x 5

70kg x 5 2sets

squats went up pretty easy definately had a few more reps in me, tried to concentrate on keeping form. im maxin out next week so im looking forward to that.

had a chat with matt griff about how to sort my deadlift form out, and he basically told me that my legs are not strong enough, which is why im pulling with my back(thanks matt).

so im gonna start squatting twice a week after this training cycle and hopefully get my legs up to scratch.

anyway heres avid of tonights squats


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

nice deep squat well done on your PB

reps sent


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Nice squats matey , griff knows his stuff .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> nice deep squat well done on your PB
> 
> reps sent


cheers mate


----------



## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

Great vid  Well done Mike. :thumbup1:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

18-09-12

bench press

110kg x 2 2sets PB

95kg x 3 2sets

cgbp

82.5kg x 5 3sets

got 2 reps with my previous 1rm so im well happy with that. heres the vid, its not pretty but it went up. wasnt really comfortable when i setup


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Good work mate well done on the pbs!


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

Awesome work mate!!


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

well done on the PB's IOU reps


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

20-09-12

deadlift

warm ups

170kg x 1 PB

175kg x 1 went up but form was awful and hitched a bit at the top, so i wont count it as a pb.

145kg x 3 2sets

rows

60kg x 5

70kg x 5 2sets

chins

bw x 5 3sets

happy with a pb but the thats the last time i deadlift for a while. im gonna take the advice of mattgriff and drop deadlifts, for a while and replace them with an extra squat sesh.

2 more sessions then im gonna deload, cant come quick enough tbh:lol:


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

well done on the PB :thumb:

what is the thought process behind dropping the deads for more squats?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

well basically, my legs are not strong enough to deadlift heavy with correct form which is why im pulling mainly with my back. so im gonna concentrate on squats to strengthen my legs, but il do speed deads(with correct form) after squats


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:


> well basically, my legs are not strong enough to deadlift heavy with correct form which is why im pulling mainly with my back. so im gonna concentrate on squats to strengthen my legs, but il do speed deads(with correct form) after squats


 :confused1: you have a 120kg squat. will you be doing more reps at lower weights or increasing your max squat weight before you return to dead lifts?

I am sure that mattgriff knows his stuff but I must be honest this does not make sense so me, I would think that if you want a better dead lift, dead lift more often, still I'm the first to admit that I know nothing .


----------



## biglbs (Jan 26, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> :confused1: you have a 120kg squat. will you be doing more reps at lower weights or increasing your max squat weight before you return to dead lifts?
> 
> I am sure that mattgriff knows his stuff but I must be honest this does not make sense so me, I would think that if you want a better dead lift, dead lift more often, still I'm the first to admit that I know nothing .


work the weak link mate,elementry my dear BB4.


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

But if the legs are the weak part of the dead lift would that not be hamstrings? so a stiff lift dead lift perhaps?

I'm not saying additional squatting is wrong I'm just saying to me it does not make sense so I don't understand.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

as i understand it, at the start of the lift, you,re supposed to explode up with yout legs. but my ar$e pops up first which is due to weak legs.

i do stiff legs anyway, but like i said , ive been told that week legs is the problem by matt and he said to deadlift only with proper form. and squat twice a week

i agree with you that i need to deadlift more to get better, but obviousy i need to be deadlifting with correct form.


----------



## biglbs (Jan 26, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> But if the legs are the weak part of the dead lift would that not be hamstrings? so a stiff lift dead lift perhaps?
> 
> I'm not saying additional squatting is wrong I'm just saying to me it does not make sense so I don't understand.


Balance of power is the problem i feel,squats will do it,Matt is seldom wrong,for good reason.


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

so long as it works for you mate, then I guess who cares?

I don't truly understand the laws of aviation but I'm happy to get on a plane


----------



## biglbs (Jan 26, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> so long as it works for you mate, then I guess who cares?
> 
> I don't truly understand the laws of aviation but I'm happy to get on a plane


Bee's should not fly.

Concord neither...


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

What you saying?

you calling Mike Yellow? an insect? with a big nose? :nono:

:lol:


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Like Matt says deep heavy squats will bring up deads but seldom vice versa , stick with it and see what happens .


----------



## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

bongon95 said:


> as i understand it, at the start of the lift, you,re supposed to explode up with yout legs. but my ar$e pops up first which is due to weak legs.
> 
> i do stiff legs anyway, but like i said , ive been told that week legs is the problem by matt and he said to deadlift only with proper form. and squat twice a week
> 
> i agree with you that i need to deadlift more to get better, but obviousy i need to be deadlifting with correct form.


Have you been doing your working sets at a level where you can hold correct form? just an idea.. as I'm no expert, but that's what I'm having to do with mine. I'm still lifting with my back a bit but it's coming together better, and I'm repping higher numbers, and can rep higher weights more now too (but not as strong form yet).


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

JaneN40 said:


> Have you been doing your working sets at a level where you can hold correct form? just an idea.. as I'm no expert, but that's what I'm having to do with mine. I'm still lifting with my back a bit but it's coming together better, and I'm repping higher numbers, and can rep higher weights more now too (but not as strong form yet).


not really no, tbh im not sure at what weight my form breaks down and the method of training that i use has me gradually working up to a 1rm. so il deadlift after squats, a light weight concentrating on form and speed, then il gradually up the weight.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> What you saying?
> 
> you calling Mike Yellow? an insect? with a big nose? :nono:
> 
> :lol:


well i cant argue with the big nose thats for sure


----------



## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

bongon95 said:


> not really no, tbh im not sure at what weight my form breaks down and the method of training that i use has me gradually working up to a 1rm. so il deadlift after squats, a light weight concentrating on form and speed, then il gradually up the weight.


I do go to my max for 1 rep but then step straight back down to working sets.  I do find my form maintains and figure the repetition will help my head get it ingrained and also the right muscle groups work (hammys).  I've had some great advice from Matt Griff on my journal (shift through the banter) recently too. :thumbup1: Also someone recommended some You tube vids called 'so you think you can squat' not sure if they would help strengthen your hammy's as you squat well already. But just an idea that there may be something similar out there for deadlifts. 

Good luck, hope it comes together and we'll be smiling in December!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

yeah thanks jane ive seen the vids, ive pretty much seen all the deadlift vids on you tube, the thing is i know how to deadlift and i could see in my vids exactly what iwas doing wrong, but i just didnt know why i was doin it.

i now know where i was going wrong so hopefully in a couple of months il get it sorted.and you right! repetition is key, but make sure your form is correct first.


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Is your form okay at lower weights Mike ?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Is your form okay at lower weights Mike ?


yes mate, but not sure at what weight it starts fall apart


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

22-09-12

squat

warmup

120kg x 1

130kg x 1 PB

140kg x 1 new PB

145kg x 1 new PB

110kg x 3 2sets

sldl

60kg x 5

70kg x 5 2sets

well happy with todays effort, would have gone for 150kg if i had had a spotter. got a couple of vids which il post a bit later


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

3 new PB's on the squat? that's just plain greedy.

145Kg :bounce:

you know Id rep you if I could.

Well done mate


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> 22-09-12
> 
> squat
> 
> ...


awesome stuff , is that week 10 of the Russian routine ?

Don't you have safety bars in your squat cage ?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> awesome stuff , is that week 10 of the Russian routine ?
> 
> Don't you have safety bars in your squat cage ?


 yeah thats week 10 mate. yeah i had the catchers on but i dont ever want to use them tbh. id rather leave a bit in the tank than fail.

ive loved this style of training, i reckon its really effective. id like to run another cycle but i need to be squatting twice a week instead of deadlifting, and i cant really see how it could work. any ideas?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> 3 new PB's on the squat? that's just plain greedy.
> 
> 145Kg :bounce:
> 
> ...


 cheers mate, i cant rep you either yet


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> yeah thats week 10 mate. yeah i had the catchers on but i dont ever want to use them tbh. id rather leave a bit in the tank than fail.
> 
> ive loved this style of training, i reckon its really effective. id like to run another cycle but i need to be squatting twice a week instead of deadlifting, and i cant really see how it could work. any ideas?


good to hear , I really like the layout very simple and very effective .

I've been toying with ideas in what to do next as running this cycle full time would reduce its effect I think plus its no good for me in comps for repping so I'm going to run the smolov squat routine then the 10 week method and repeat and I reckon you should give it a go , on my phone so can't link but Google it or ask griff he's running it .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> good to hear , I really like the layout very simple and very effective .
> 
> I've been toying with ideas in what to do next as running this cycle full time would reduce its effect I think plus its no good for me in comps for repping so I'm going to run the smolov squat routine then the 10 week method and repeat and I reckon you should give it a go , on my phone so can't link but Google it or ask griff he's running it .


ive seen the smolov template before, its looks brutal tbh. id like to have a go at it some point but from what i remember of it, i wouldnt be able to fit a bench sesh in, on it which would cause me problems if im gonna do this comp in december. il have another look now cos im going from memory and thats not the best tbf


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Haha yeah it does say limit exercises if you can lol


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

here is some vids of my squatting earlier. please excuse the grunting:lol:

130kg x 1






140kg x 1






145kg x 1


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Good vids matey .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

24-09-12

bench press

110kg x 1

115kg x 1 PB

117.5kg x 1 NEW PB

95kg x 3 2sets all reps paused

cgbp

85kg x 5 3sets

maybe could have gotten 120kg but decided to leave it for another day. anyway couple of days off now:thumb:


----------



## cub (Jul 14, 2011)

Well done the PB. Heavy benching mate!


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

117.5kg x 1 NEW PB :bounce:

awesome !


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

cub said:


> Well done the PB. Heavy benching mate!





BestBefore1989 said:


> 117.5kg x 1 NEW PB :bounce:
> 
> awesome !


cheers lads


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

That's a GREAT pb welldone mate I'm very jealous!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

double post:confused1:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

29-09-12

squats

115kg x 2 6sets

speed deads

90kg x 2 6sets

rows

60kg x 5

70kg x 5

75kg x 5

chins

bw x 8 3sets

squats felt harder than i was expecting, but i did feel tired before i starfted and its my first sesh back after a break so im not too worried about that.

gonna post some vids in a bit, really need to concentrate on sorting out deadlift form.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

heres some vids from last night

9okg x 2






hows the form?

and id never seen myself doing rows before so i videod these aswell, they look ok to me but if you think otherwise,please say

70kg x 5


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

IMO

Deadlift - Good. Nice and explosive. Slightly leading with back on first rep but nothing really to worry about there.

Row - Bend you knees a bit more and get the back flat. You are leaning down a bit. Otherwise good !!!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> IMO
> 
> Deadlift - Good. Nice and explosive. Slightly leading with back on first rep but nothing really to worry about there.
> 
> Row - Bend you knees a bit more and get the back flat. You are leaning down a bit. Otherwise good !!!


cheers, thats exactly what im trying to eliminate from my pull. thinks it just a bad habit, but where ive did it thisway for so long now it just happens natural


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> cheers, thats exactly what im trying to eliminate from my pull. thinks it just a bad habit, but where ive did it thisway for so long now it just happens natural


It's much much better than before.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> It's much much better than before.


thanks, but i need to keep that form when i start upping the weight, gonna keep it light for a while, while i get used it it


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

I think for you, you need to think about pulling it from the floor with your arms (usually you'd think about initiating with quads and pushing your feet awayh from you)


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

01-10-12

squats

115kg x 3 6sets

sldl

60kg x 5 3sets

had to skip fronties tonight,didnt have enough time


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:


> 01-10-12
> 
> squats
> 
> ...


we all have days like that mate, sadly some of have them more often than others :lol:


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

Tassotti said:


> IMO
> 
> Deadlift - Good. Nice and explosive. Slightly leading with back on first rep but nothing really to worry about there.
> 
> Row - Bend you knees a bit more and get the back flat. You are leaning down a bit. Otherwise good !!!


This!!!!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

04-10-12

bench press

90kg x 2 6 sets all reps paused

cgbp

80kg x 5 3 sets

hanging hip raise

x 15 3 sets


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

06-10-12

squats

115kg x 4 6sets

speed deads

100kg x 2 6sets

rows

60kg x5

70kg x 5

8okg x 5

pull ups

bw x5 2sets

squats were hard work, honestly dont know how i got through them, looking forward to monday 6sets of 5reps.

deads wasnt that explosive due to my legs being fcuked, but form looked ok


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Good squattage matey .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

heres my deads from last night. form looks ok(to me anyway),

100kg x 2


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Good form there matey nice lifting .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

08-10-12

squats

115kg x 5 6sets

sldl

60kg x 5 3sets

ouch, squats hurt like hell, had to dig in very deep. 6x6 on saturday then after that time to start adding weight.

im gonna work up to a double then repeat the cycle and hopefully peak at the comp. not gonna do the deadlift now so just the 2 lifts to concentrate on. aiming for 170kg squat and 120kg bench. might seem a bit optimistic on the squat but im squatting twice a week now and i believe it is achievable if i work hard enough


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

failure is not an option mike .

your getting some good workouts and numbers so keep slogging away buddy .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> failure is not an option mike .
> 
> your getting some good workouts and numbers so keep slogging away buddy .


cheers mate


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

11-10-12

bench press

90kg x 3 6sets all reps paused

cgbp

85kg x 5 3sets

did a couple of sets of speed deads also.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

14-10-12

squats

115kg x 6 6sets

sldl

60kg x 5 2sets

been dreading this session and put it off yesterday, all il say is, that it hurt! got [email protected] in the week so i think its gonna be another tough sesh.

2nd set 115kg x 6






6th set 115kg x 6


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

well done :thumb:


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Nice squatting :thumb:


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

6 x 6 !! nice squatting mate looking at 2nd set you musta really dug in to get another 4 sets fair play to ya!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> 6 x 6 !! nice squatting mate looking at 2nd set you musta really dug in to get another 4 sets fair play to ya!


yeah i did mate it was a right slog tbh


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

16-10-12

bench press

90kg x 4 6sets all reps paused

cgbp

80kg x 5

85kg x 4 2sets

should have been squatting tonight but i still feel a bit tender from sundays sesh so i opted to bench, and il squat thurs now.

90kg x 4


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

nice :thumb:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

18-10-12

squats

122.5kg x 5 5sets

rows

60kg x 5

70kg x 5

75kg x 5

absolute agony, i did not enjoy that one bit, my shoulder and both my wrists are sore as hell now. im considering getting some wrist wraps to use only when doing more than 3 reps, any thoughts on that idea?

i attempted some chins and then shrugs but shoulder was too sore, so i left it there to make sure i didnt get injured.

ive been neglecting core work lately so i need to get back on top of that, because although the weight felt like a block of flats on my back today, i felt like my legs could manage it.

heres some vids(excuse the grunting)

1st set 122.5kg x 5






3rd set 122.5kg x 5


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Heavy 5 x 5 is horrible well done for getting through it! Hitting good depth when the reps are getting tough that's the sign of a real man 

I've got a pair of wrist wraps myself and wearing them for squats is a great idea I just have forgotten to do so for months now so thanks for the reminder  My wrists hurt too sometimes


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

got my singlet yesterday. bought it from ebay 27squid made to measure. bit too snug around legs and b0ll0cks but they said they would alter it if needs be


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> got my singlet yesterday. bought it from ebay 27squid made to measure. bit too snug around legs and b0ll0cks but they said they would alter it if needs be


 :lol: they are supposed to be snug in those areas mate  what they gonna do cut a circle in the front of it forya? lol


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> :lol: they are supposed to be snug in those areas mate  what they gonna do cut a circle in the front of it forya? lol


 :lol: im not sure they should be snug enough to put ur balls in your stomach tho


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

22-10-12

squats

130kg x 4 4sets

sldl

60kg x 5 3sets

speed deads

100kg x 2 4sets

hanging hip raise

2 x 12

another good slog in the squat rack tonight, i had an extra day off from training after injuring my wrist in my last session. ive moved my hands in closer now which seems to have releived some of the pressure off my wrists and the weight felt much more comfortable on my back.

speed deads were not so speedy tbh, no power left in my legs after squatting but i had a go anyway

first set 130kg x 4






100kg x 2


----------



## -dionysus- (May 29, 2011)

Good work mate, keep plugging away.

I posted this one after seeing some chaps form check video yesterday and think that it might help you too.

I love squatting and am trying for 200kg and getting very close, my last sessions included 150kg for 9 ( could have got more but my breathing technique needs works at heavy high reps) then another 5 at 150kg -I work up (60kgx10 80kgx8 100kgx5 120kg x3 140kg x5)

It's always good to see someone else getting stuck into squats.

Anyway here goes mate - 6 and 11 will help you massively -driving you head and traps into the bar keeps you chest up and back tight.

It's from twitter last night Dave Tate from elitefts - if you want to get strong well worth a visit if you've not done so before.

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #1 - thinking its not technical and simple #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #2 - not setting up TIGHT from head to toe. #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #3 - not arching the bar out of the rack. #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #4 - not starting with a arch and ass back #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #5 - pulling air into your chest and not belly #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #6 - looking up instead of driving head and traps into the bar #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #7 - not spreading the floor and pushing knees out. #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #8 - sitting down instead of back #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #9 - moving hips first out of the hole. The head and chest must move back first #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #10 - not using compensatory acceleration on the concentric phase. #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #11 - looking down when the lift gets hard. When it gets hard drive head into the bar. #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #12 - not using a box squat in one form or another. #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #13 - not squatting with people stronger than you. #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #14 - thinking there is a huge difference between squat training for raw vs geared. #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #15 - not having an honest person watching your depth #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #16 - slacking on training your core. #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #17 - being a pussy that is scared of big weights. #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #18 - not rotating bars - this can allow for same volume and intensity with a reduction in workload #Eliteftschat

Dave (CEO elitefts) [email protected]

Squat Mistake #19 - thinking you know it all when you don't know "squat" #Eliteftschat


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

-dionysus- said:


> Good work mate, keep plugging away.
> 
> I posted this one after seeing some chaps form check video yesterday and think that it might help you too.
> 
> ...


cheers mate, good post.ive read before about driving head and traps into the bar but its on of those things that i know is supposed to happen but not really sure how to do it, if that makes sense


----------



## -dionysus- (May 29, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> cheers mate, good post.ive read before about driving head and traps into the bar but its on of those things that i know is supposed to happen but not really sure how to do it, if that makes sense


Keep your head neutral, then push it backwards (like when you tilt your head to look upwards but don't tilt), pushing your elbows under the bar helps keep you tight and help you feel the drive back.

For me it's one of the most important cues before I squat.

Practice makes perfect, when you nail it you'll be like -wow why did I not do it before.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

-dionysus- said:


> Keep your head neutral, then push it backwards (like when you tilt your head to look upwards but don't tilt), pushing your elbows under the bar helps keep you tight and help you feel the drive back.
> 
> For me it's one of the most important cues before I squat.
> 
> Practice makes perfect, when you nail it you'll be like -wow why did I not do it before.


thanks mate,im squatting friday so il give it a go then


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

24-10-12

bench press

90kg x 5 5sets paused reps

90kg x 4 paused reps

cgbp

80kg x 4

some rear delt and core work

didnt have quite enough in the tank to get the last rep out, but not too disappointed tbh.

attempted some close grip but just didnt have anything left.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

27-10-12

squats

137.5kg x 3 3sets

deadlifts

worked up in doubles to 150kg, just to see how my form held up as i put some weight on the bar

chins

bw x 5 3sets

rows

60kg x 5

70kg x 5

squats were hard from start to finish tbh, camera cocked up on the 1st and 2nd sets but managed to video the 3rd set,which il post in a bit.

not really happy with deadlift form, up to 130kg was fine, but 150 was the same old problem as before(bum rising first).

gonna drop weight back down and carry on working on technique for the time being.

5 weeks tomorrow til my comp, squat cycle finishes monday,well im supposed to max out wednesday but cant see the point so monday will be my last day.

im not really sure what to do for the next 5 weeks so if anyone has got any ideas id be happy to hear them.

ive had a think about what im gonna do after my comp and im torn between plodding along doin wendlers and slowly bringing all my lifts up, or running smolov and putting some serious poundage on my squat. what dya think?


----------



## robc1985 (Jan 28, 2010)

bongon95 said:


> 27-10-12
> 
> squats
> 
> ...


Well done with squats fella. I see you're going below parallel. I did 160 today to parallel and a powerlifter pulled me aside. Told me to go lighter and get ass to the floor. Widen up stance and get toes out. Couldn't believe the difference it made in terms of glutes and hammies. Well done though on getting down far. Good to see fella


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

robc1985 said:


> Well done with squats fella. I see you're going below parallel. I did 160 today to parallel and a powerlifter pulled me aside. Told me to go lighter and get ass to the floor. Widen up stance and get toes out. Couldn't believe the difference it made in terms of glutes and hammies. Well done though on getting down far. Good to see fella


cheers mate, and well done on squatting 160kg


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Nice squatting Mike. Is that a rep pb for you?

Re deadlift form it took me ages to sort mine out but its now a lot better than it was. Mind after heavy squats might not be the best time for you to try and load up weights and test your form!

Ive not tried smolov but my lil bro tried it and gave in after about 3 weeks. He reckon its virtually impossible to do naturally as you cant recover in time. Having saud that he probably set his numbers too high :lol:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Nice squatting Mike. Is that a rep pb for you?
> 
> Re deadlift form it took me ages to sort mine out but its now a lot better than it was. Mind after heavy squats might not be the best time for you to try and load up weights and test your form!
> 
> Ive not tried smolov but my lil bro tried it and gave in after about 3 weeks. He reckon its virtually impossible to do naturally as you cant recover in time. Having saud that he probably set his numbers too high :lol:


yeah it was a rep pb mate. ur right about deadlifting after squats, not the best idea, thats why im not too disheartened by it tbh.

ive done a bit of research and they say to use 90% of your max if natty and eat dirty as you like, i know it aint gonna be easy but no pain no gain ay


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

here are my squats from earlier.1st 2 reps look a bit ropey for depth now ive watched it back. difficult set but cant say the first 2 were any easier!

137.5kg x 3


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

29-10-12

squats

145kg x 2

145kg x 1

120kg x 3

didnt feel like training,tonight but did anyway and kinda wish i never bothered now. should have been 2 x 2 @145kg but i pussied out of the last rep.

anyway im gonna deload on squats for the rest of the week and start fresh next week.

145kg x 2


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

same boat mike its a gash feeling , eat rest eat and smash it .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

got a cold at the moment and feel like sh*t, was gonna deload this week anyway so il just rest instead.

just over 4 weeks til my comp, im gonna run jr smolov for 3 weeks and have near enough a week off before, and with bench press im gonna carry on as i am and hopefully peak at the comp.

finally got my dip bars from powerhouse fitness after ordering in july, and the dopey cnuts sent me 2 sets. anyway if any of you got a powercage from them theres a free set of dip bars going


----------



## cub (Jul 14, 2011)

Good luck at your comp mate :beer:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

cub said:


> Good luck at your comp mate :beer:


thanks mate


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

3 11 12

bench press

90kg x 6 4sets

90kg x 4 2sets

rear delt fly thingies

5kg each hand x 15 3sets

wasnt at my strongest today but understandable as iv been ill, so i kept it short and sweet to ease me back in. did paused reps on my first set and realised i wouldnt be getting anywhere near 6x6 if i carried on doing them, so i did the rest touch and go just to get some reps under my belt.

anyway im doing the base mesocycle of smolov as of monday. im using a conservative max of 140kg. from what ive read its seems better to go a bit lighter than to not get all your reps in. tbh the first week is looking pretty gruelling.

monday 97.5kg x 9 4sets

wednesday 105kg x 7 5sets

friday 112.5kg x 5 7sets

saturday 120kg x 3 10sets


----------



## Jim78 (Aug 20, 2010)

subbed to yours too matey


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

05-11-12

smolov base mesocycle

week 1 day 1

squats

97.5kg x 9 4sets

found out tonight exactly how unfit i am, went into these thinking it would be easy.obviously im not used to such high reps and really struggled with my breathing, gotta start thinking about doing some conditioning work.


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> 05-11-12
> 
> smolov base mesocycle
> 
> ...


Me too big time. After my comp I'm definitely adding some in!


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Send the dip bars to me mate. I ordered from powerwhores. They said will be 2 months so cancelled. Then I ordered through someone else and the fukcin ordder goes to powerwhores anyway :cursing:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

sorry tass theyve gone mate, i posted on here first and had no takers. so i put them in the classifieds on here and they went straight away. i was sure you already had a set.


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

They just landed today (how weird)


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

07-11-12

bench press

95kg x 5 paused reps

95kg x 5 2sets

95kg x 4 2sets

smolov, week 1 day 2

squats

105kg x 7 2sets

105kg x 5

105kg x 7 2sets

dont know wtf happend on my 3rd set of squats, i squatted down a bit too quick,hit the catchers and the next thing i know the weight wasnt on my back anymoreops:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

09-11-12

smolov, week 1 day 3

squats

112.5kg x 5 7sets

seated cable row

3 x 12

tonight was the easiest sesh so far but was still very tough, got 10 sets of 3 tomorrow and i must admit that i really could do with a deload week.

elbows,knees and lower back all fcuked.

just washed it down with 2 pies,chips and curry sauce mmmm


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

09-11-12

smolov, week 1 day 3

squats

112.5kg x 5 7sets

seated cable row

3 x 12

tonight was the easiest sesh so far but was still very tough, got 10 sets of 3 tomorrow and i must admit that i really could do with a deload week.

elbows,knees and lower back all fcuked.

just washed it down with 2 pies,chips and curry sauce mmmm


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Week 1 and you need a deload.

Fcuk that. Do proper Smolov. You will be crying like a little lost girl at the end of it


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Week 1 and you need a deload.
> 
> Fcuk that. Do proper Smolov. You will be crying like a little lost girl at the end of it


ur up early!

this proper smolov, well its the base cycle anyway. havent decided weather to do the intense cyle yet tho. and tbh i have had a couple of tears already


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> ur up early!
> 
> this proper smolov, well its the base cycle anyway. havent decided weather to do the intense cyle yet tho. and tbh i have had a couple of tears already


coming to end of nightshift. I reckon if I did smolov, it would put me off squats for a long time.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> coming to end of nightshift. I reckon if I did smolov, it would put me off squats for a long time.


not a bad job you got there.

well im coming to the end of my first week and ive learnt a few things which i reckon would make the next time alot more manageable. obviously ive get through this attempt first!

ive read on other forums of other people adding 40lbs to their squat just from the 3 week base cycle, so to add that type of poundage it was never gonna be easy


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> not a bad job you got there.
> 
> well im coming to the end of my first week and ive learnt a few things which i reckon would make the next time alot more manageable. obviously ive get through this attempt first!
> 
> ive read on other forums of other people adding 40lbs to their squat just from the 3 week base cycle, so to add that type of poundage it was never gonna be easy


Sh1t Job - night shifts

Whats your 1RM


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Sh1t Job - night shifts
> 
> Whats your 1RM


havnt maxed in a while tbh and im not going to until my comp in december, but i did 145kg x 2 a few weeks ago and i used 140kg for my max to base this smolov cycle off


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

10-11-12

smolov week1 day 4

squats

120kg x 3 10sets

well thats the first week done and my elbows,wrists,knees and shoulders are hurting like hell.

im not just whinging for the sake of it, i wanted to have somthing to read back on in case i was stupid enough to think about having another go at it, hopefully il read this and think fcuk that again.


----------



## robc1985 (Jan 28, 2010)

bongon95 said:


> 10-11-12
> 
> smolov week1 day 4
> 
> ...


What about getting a load of glucosamine down you?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

robc1985 said:


> What about getting a load of glucosamine down you?


tbh mate im already taking cod liver oil and from what ive read about glucosamine,theres no benefit of taking more than the recommended dose. i think with the amount of squatting im doing at the moment im gonna get sore.just need to grow a set and get on with it i think


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

12-11-12

bench press

100kg x 4 2sets paused

100kg x 4 touch n go

100kg x 3 touch n go

smolov base cycle

week 2 day 1

105kg x 9 4sets

bench is moving along nicely so im happy enough with that at the moment. squats were difficult but i found them easier than last weeks 4 set of 9 and it was 7.5kg heavier this week, i think it was just the initial shock of so many reps.

my legs are the most pumped theyve ever been though(but still like tooth picks lmfao)


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Decent session Mike! When is your comp again mate?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Decent session Mike! When is your comp again mate?


cheers mate, its december 2nd, its a single lifts comp so im only doing the squat and bench.


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> cheers mate, its december 2nd, its a single lifts comp so im only doing the squat and bench.


boooo go for a pull as well matey!

Day after mine too


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

i was originally, but my deadlift is cack and its 25pound per lift, plus i had to pay membership so it was turning out to be an expensive day. so i decided to drop the deadlift in the end.

what total do you need to qualify for next years british? is that what your aiming for?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

14-11-12

smolove base cycle

week 2 day 2

squats

112.5kg x 7 5sets

done

hurt like hell start to finish. gotta start getting more food down me!


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> i was originally, but my deadlift is cack and its 25pound per lift, plus i had to pay membership so it was turning out to be an expensive day. so i decided to drop the deadlift in the end.
> 
> what total do you need to qualify for next years british? is that what your aiming for?


Ouch nasty looking squat session right there mate! Do you not think you should be concentrating on some lower reps as you are getting close to your comp now?

25 notes a lift jeeez expensive old Fed that GBPF aint it :lol: £18 for all 3 in my comp 

Yeah I need 467.5kg to qualify for next years Junior British in 90kg class so that's my target. I want 160, 115 and then my deadlift opener will be 192.5 giving me bang on 467.5 leaving me two lifts to go for broke and see if I can hit some pbs and get close to 500 total. That's assuming I get the 160 115 ofcourse and if I only manage say 155, 110 I'll need 202.5 deadlift to qualify which is by no means a given for me lol...

You aiming for qualification too?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Ouch nasty looking squat session right there mate! Do you not think you should be concentrating on some lower reps as you are getting close to your comp now?
> 
> 25 notes a lift jeeez expensive old Fed that GBPF aint it :lol: £18 for all 3 in my comp
> 
> ...


tbh honest mate i think you would have to have a very bad day to only manage 155, i know you cant take nothing for granted but you have looked strong on squats recently.

no not looking to qualify, not gonna get a total anyway. i would need 512 to qualify and im not quite there yet, next year though hopefully.

if it was a full power comp it would be 25 pound which aint to bad tbf, its just that it a single lifts. i wanted to get a comp under my belt this year though rather than wait.

this smolov base cycle is supposed to be a peaking programme, so i thought id run it up til a week before my comp, have a feww days off then work up to a heavy triple which il use as my opener. but if it all goes pete tong not to worry, il know not to try it again:lol:


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> tbh honest mate i think you would have to have a very bad day to only manage 155, i know you cant take nothing for granted but you have looked strong on squats recently.
> 
> no not looking to qualify, not gonna get a total anyway. i would need 512 to qualify and im not quite there yet, next year though hopefully.
> 
> ...


Fair enough mate and its only your first comp like you say anyway. That 512 is that Junior or Open/Senior? and presume that's @83kg?

Yeah general rule of thumb if you can triple you can open on it.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Fair enough mate and its only your first comp like you say anyway. That 512 is that Junior or Open/Senior? and presume that's @83kg?
> 
> Yeah general rule of thumb if you can triple you can open on it.


yeah mate,512 is open 83kg category, im 29 so i got a couple of years til im in the seniors :lol:


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> yeah mate,512 is open 83kg category, im *29* so i got a couple of years til im in the seniors :lol:


fcuk off 29


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> fcuk off 29


come on, i can still pass for 21 cant i? :lol:


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> come on, i can still pass for 21 cant i? :lol:


no .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> no .


cnut


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

aaaargh!

just had anightmare sesh.

its been coming for a while tbf. since ive been doing this smolov routine i havnt once felt like ive recovered enough for another squat sesh, but ive stuck to the programme and squatted anyway.

my core has just been feeling weaker and weaker each sesh, and tonight ot finally gave up on me. ive never really had any problems with my lower back after training, until this smolov routine!

anyway was supposed to do 7 sets of 5reps @ 120kg, all warmups felt heavy, went down for the first rep and nearly never came back up. decided that was that. dont want to get injured and i think sometimes you just got to listen to your body.

it is advised not to do anything that is taxing on the lower back whilst doing it, which is me fcuked from the start seeing as im a bricklayer.

i feel like a complete w4nker now tbh but im gonna have to take a few days off now and see where i go from there:cursing:


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

eat more , ice cream gold top milk etc get the cals in to recover .

besides if smolov was easy id be doing it .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> eat more , ice cream gold top milk etc get the cals in to recover .
> 
> besides if smolov was easy id be doing it .


lol, your right mate i should have been eating more, the problem is im 83kg at the moment and dont want to put weight on cos i wanna compete at that weight fir this comp. in the future i definately think id be better suited in a heavier division because im 5"11 wich equals skinny cnut at 83kg.

i thinkwhat ive done as well , during this smolv cycle which hasnt helped,is rushed reps and compromised form. just rushing in a bid to get the weight off my back quiker. never mind, live and learn, hopefully ive got enough time now to rest and get a good bit of training in to hopefully get a decnt squat in on the day.

how your cold? you back training yet?


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

fcuking ruskis

drink more vodka


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

18-11-12

bench press

105kg x 3 2sets paused

105kg x 3 tng

cgbp

60kg x 5

80kg x 5

90kg x 4

some bodyweight dips

back still feels weak, so im gonna leave off squatting til at least wednesday.

heres avid of my first set.

105kg x 3


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> lol, your right mate i should have been eating more, the problem is im 83kg at the moment and dont want to put weight on cos i wanna compete at that weight fir this comp. in the future i definately think id be better suited in a heavier division because im 5"11 wich equals skinny cnut at 83kg.
> 
> i thinkwhat ive done as well , during this smolv cycle which hasnt helped,is rushed reps and compromised form. just rushing in a bid to get the weight off my back quiker. never mind, live and learn, hopefully ive got enough time now to rest and get a good bit of training in to hopefully get a decnt squat in on the day.
> 
> how your cold? you back training yet?


Carb cycle mate it will help with power and keeping at your weight .

Cold is going and training tomorrow will see what happens not sure I'm in pb mode .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

il have a read up on that, ive never really payed muched attention to diet, i just usually shove anything down me,mmm.

prob best to get ease your way back for a couple of sessions(thats the advice everybody gives out, but never follows it themselves and i doubt you will either:lol


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

bongon95 said:


> il have a read up on that, ive never really payed muched attention to diet, i just usually shove anything down me,mmm.
> 
> prob best to get ease your way back for a couple of sessions(thats the advice everybody gives out, but never follows it themselves and i doubt you will either:lol


fcuk following good advice lol


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

20-11-12

squats

warm up

140kg x 3 2sets

couple of sets of chins

was in a bit of a rush so thats all i could fit in, tbh just happy to get through my squats without any back problems.

got a couple of sessions left before my comp, im hoping to treble 145kg and use that as my opener. not sure whether to open bench with 100 or 110, il decide after my last bench sesh next week.

form wasnt the best tbh, i need to learn to squat more upright. i got a couple of vids which il post up in a bit


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

heres my squats from earlier. do you think depth is ok? be honest cos i dont want to look like an idiot next sunday

1st set 140kg x 3






2nd set 140kg x 3


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

hip looks lower than knee id say defo deep enough but your doing a good morning halfway matey it will fcuk you up if you dont sort it , course too late before comp but more core strength needed , lots of front squats should sort it over time .

nice squatting btw .

openers set an easy lift first then go for it but get numbers up on board first lift .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

cheers, yeah i noticed that mate. havent done any core work for a few weeks due to not being able to during smolov. probably not the best timing for me to have a go at it really, but hey ho, live and learn


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

You'll get there mate and the fact your posting videos means you want improvement and it takes time but well done so far .


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

:thumb: plenty deep enough mate.

you going to rest this week to be strong for next weekend?


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Yep hip below knee on all of those mate. Sink your opener nice and deep cause last thing you want is to fail your opening squat in first comp lol. I'd open 105 on bench if I were you, we are pretty similar on bench and I'm opening 105. Apparently the most common lift to bomb out (fail all 3 lifts and get no score) on used to be the squat but is now actually the bench because people open too high on reps they've grinded out in the gym thinking well bench is an easy lift, then they get a long pause in comp and fck emselves over!

You are folding a lot on your squats but that can be sorted after comp. I did the same and only quite recently sorted it really. For me dropping weight down and building back up whilst learning to really push core into belt and push ass right back during negative helped me but I still don't really have a strong core so extra core work is probably a good idea actually :lol:


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

I think the ref will pull you up on your foward lean

"stand up straight !"

If you can't do it, then do high bar skwatz


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Bit late now to be messing about though


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> :thumb: plenty deep enough mate.
> 
> you going to rest this week to be strong for next weekend?


cheers mate, im probably gonna do my last heavy sesh tuesday and then maybe a very light sesh later on in the week.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> I think the ref will pull you up on your foward lean
> 
> "stand up straight !"
> 
> If you can't do it, then do high bar skwatz


really?

im not gonna start high bar ,im gonna perservere. ive still got a couple of sessions left to try and tweak a few things so hopefully i can improve a little.

im gonna really concentrate on form and il vid each sesh and hopefully some improvement


----------



## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

Good depth mate! Good luck in comp!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

mikemull said:


> Good depth mate! Good luck in comp!


thanks mike


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

22-11-12

squats

140kg x 2

140kg x 3 2sets

had to stop training early due to a torrential downpour,flooding my garageops:

on my first set, i stumbled forward when locking my knees after 2nd rep which is why i only did 2 reps.

ive noticed that the weight is coming on to the front of my feet now which aint a good, so im gonna re-watch the vids from elite fitness tonight and see what i can pick up from them.

trained in my singlet tonight, definately too small for me,ive got marks on my legs where its so tight.too late now tho.


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

The weather is ridiculous I was getting blown from lane to lane on the yamaha today ****ing dangerous actually lol...Whens your last session gonna be?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

tuesday will probably be last heavy sesh mate, i wanted to get in 2 more squat sessions but i gotta start using my head, i trained last nite and realised straight away that i hadnt recovered from tuesday. so what i think il do is bench on sunday and squat on tuesday, and then maybe some light stuff later on in the week.

after this comp, im gonna get back to squatting once per week(cant wait). dont know whats happened really, but ithink its down to trying too hard to get my squat up, and ive just ended up squatting way too often. that smolov was the worst thing i ever did really! but live and learn.

what about you?


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> tuesday will probably be last heavy sesh mate, i wanted to get in 2 more squat sessions but i gotta start using my head, i trained last nite and realised straight away that i hadnt recovered from tuesday. so what i think il do is bench on sunday and squat on tuesday, and then maybe some light stuff later on in the week.
> 
> after this comp, im gonna get back to squatting once per week(cant wait). dont know whats happened really, but ithink its down to trying too hard to get my squat up, and ive just ended up squatting way too often. that smolov was the worst thing i ever did really! but live and learn.
> 
> what about you?


I don't think smolov works for natties I'm not even sure if a raging roidhead like @ewen would get through it tbh (well he aint got the minerals so I guess he doesn't count)

Yeah your plan sounds good...I might do my last session tomorrow which will be bench and squats if not Monday.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> I don't think smolov works for natties I'm not even sure if a raging roidhead like @ewen would get through it tbh (well he aint got the minerals so I guess he doesn't count)
> 
> Yeah your plan sounds good...I might do my last session tomorrow which will be bench and squats if not Monday.


lol.id like to think it doesnt work for natties mate, just so i feel less of a pussay, but i read of plenty of people who have done it and made good gains from it.

i definately think it can be done and i will have another crack in the future,once ive mastered the squat technique! also id spend a couple of weeks getting myself in condition to squat so often!

imo its all about how quick you can recover,i never ate nearly enough calories to get through it.

i read some of your brothers log on sugdens mate,hes a lunatic! if i remember correctly he was doing heavy rack pulls after squatting. :lol:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

25-11-12

bench press

110kg x 2 2sets paused

90kg x 5 paused

cgbp

60kg x 5

80kg x 5

90kg x 5

rear delt fly thingies

3 x 10

some core work

thats was my last heavy bench sesh before my comp, i got the reps i wanted so im pretty happy with that.

what a knobber, i drove to caerphilly today(about 20miles) to watch the 4 nations powerlifting! and it turned out that it was yesterdayops:


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

they made a jnr smolov for you natty pussies


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> they made a jnr smolov for you natty pussies


well i wish they would make it a bit easier


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

heres my first set from earlier

110kg x 2


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Nice - Use spotters !


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Nice - Use spotters !


i cant get them to the right height mate, ive taken off the collars though just in case!


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

You are very brave the way you go for tough reps alone better man than me! Just be aware pause could be longer in comp so warm up with longer pauses on comp day - all depends how much of a cnut center ref is!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> You are very brave the way you go for tough reps alone better man than me! Just be aware pause could be longer in comp so warm up with longer pauses on comp day - all depends how much of a cnut center ref is!


when you say brave, do you mean stupid:lol:

yeah i know what you mean mate, when i pause the rep, it feels like an age, but then i watch it back and ive paused for barely a second


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

5th hole up, arch back


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> 5th hole up, arch back


ive tried mate, holes are too far apart, either end up hitting the catchers before chest or they are too low. dont forget ive got a chest like a 12 year old girl


----------



## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Get a bigger chest


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

27-11-12

squats

140kg x 3 3sets

fcuking about with my form this sesh,didnt really help tbh. anyway thats my last sesh before my comp on sunday, which im not really confindent about now.

think i peaked about 5-6 weeks ago tbh, never mind il just give it my best shot and see what happens


----------



## Jim78 (Aug 20, 2010)

bongon95 said:


> 27-11-12
> 
> squats
> 
> ...


You'll be fine mate, take a break for the last few days beforehand and get some motivation, watch some vids to get some adrenalin going, visualise lifting what you've planned and more, be confident, no doubt at all or no point going!

You'll do well!


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> 27-11-12
> 
> squats
> 
> ...


Mate I think your underestimating how strong you are right now. I did 3 x 3 140 3 or 4 weeks back and managed a good 3 on 150 so you'll be close to that. Ultimately break some personal PBs and you've had a blinding day. I reckon you should be aiming for 155 squat (not to pressure you or anything :lol: )Let the adrenaline give you a boost on the day mate. You'll be rested full of food and raring to go. Goodluck to us both!


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Jim78 said:


> You'll be fine mate, take a break for the last few days beforehand and get some motivation, watch some vids to get some adrenalin going, visualise lifting what you've planned and more, be confident, no doubt at all or no point going!
> 
> You'll do well!


yeah your right mate! you know what its like when you have a sesh that dont go to plan though, im resting til the weekend now so hopefully recharge the batteries and hit some pb,s


----------



## Jim78 (Aug 20, 2010)

bongon95 said:


> yeah your right mate! you know what its like when you have a sesh that dont go to plan though, im resting til the weekend now so hopefully recharge the batteries and hit some pb,s


The odds are mate it weren't so bad,or you've probably peaked just right and the few days will do a world of good, I was knackered after 10 weeks, a week off and motivation is really good again, you know what you can lift mate, and getting up there takes some balls to put some official figures up, we all know gym figures don't mean much tbh, on sunday you can start fresh, just make sure your prepped well, lots of food! lol


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Mate I think your underestimating how strong you are right now. I did 3 x 3 140 3 or 4 weeks back and managed a good 3 on 150 so you'll be close to that. Ultimately break some personal PBs and you've had a blinding day. I reckon you should be aiming for 155 squat (not to pressure you or anything :lol: )Let the adrenaline give you a boost on the day mate. You'll be rested full of food and raring to go. Goodluck to us both!


cheers mate, ive got a bit greedy i have and had all sorts of numbers in my head that i wanted to hit.

ive got to remember that progress is progress, the most ive squatted is 145kg so as long as i improve on that, then ive had a good day.

good luck for saturday mate


----------



## strongmanmatt (Sep 30, 2011)

Hello fella, Looking like your making good progress mate keep up the hard work fella, Your doing grand.

Eat big, grow big, most importantly LIFT BIG>


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Jim78 said:


> The odds are mate it weren't so bad,or you've probably peaked just right and the few days will do a world of good, I was knackered after 10 weeks, a week off and motivation is really good again, you know what you can lift mate, and getting up there takes some balls to put some official figures up, we all know gym figures don't mean much tbh, on sunday you can start fresh, just make sure your prepped well, lots of food! lol


hopefully.

im gonna watch the power unlimited dvd again on you tube, that always get me motivated. if you havent seen it, i highly recomend it


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

strongmanmatt said:


> Hello fella, Looking like your making good progress mate keep up the hard work fella, Your doing grand.
> 
> Eat big, grow big, most importantly LIFT BIG>


hows it going mukker, good to see you back! well done on your last comp


----------



## Jim78 (Aug 20, 2010)

bongon95 said:


> hopefully.
> 
> im gonna watch the power unlimited dvd again on you tube, that always get me motivated. if you havent seen it, i highly recomend it


Il look into it Mike mate, i like watching the super training vids with Efferding and co, westside etc, love the gym footage, no glamourous ****, just hard graft type ****.


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

right, just weighed myself(first time in a while) and i was 85.5kg! was planning to compete in the 83kg category but it dont look like il be getting in that category now. i could starve myself but i think il end up weak as fcuk on the day, so i think im just gonna stuff my face and if i en up in the 90kgs, then so be it


----------



## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> right, just weighed myself(first time in a while) and i was 85.5kg! was planning to compete in the 83kg category but it dont look like il be getting in that category now. i could starve myself but i think il end up weak as fcuk on the day, so i think im just gonna stuff my face and if i en up in the 90kgs, then so be it


so much for being 79kg or so :lol: that'll be your legs, my weight is all legs (well lets face it aint my 15i gunz) - welcome to the 90kg class


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:
 

> right, just weighed myself(first time in a while) and i was 85.5kg! was planning to compete in the 83kg category but it dont look like il be getting in that category now. i could starve myself but i think il end up weak as fcuk on the day, so i think im just gonna stuff my face and if i en up in the 90kgs, then so be it


you'll lift better with some fuel in your tank :thumb:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> you'll lift better with some fuel in your tank :thumb:


yeah that was my thinking mate! and im 5"11 so i think in the long run, il be better suited to 90kg or more


----------



## Jim78 (Aug 20, 2010)

good luck mate


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

all the best mike .


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Good luck mate, looking forward to seeing the results and perhaps a PB?


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Jim78 said:


> good luck mate





ewen said:


> all the best mike .





BestBefore1989 said:


> Good luck mate, looking forward to seeing the results and perhaps a PB?


yeah cheers lads , having a massive chinese now, prob have it for brekky too


----------



## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Haha fat knacker .


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

right,just got back!

bit of a mixed bag really, but enjoyed it none the less

got on the scales,fully clothed as i thought i was overweight, 82.9kg! so that was a nice surprise, scales i weighed on on friday must have been out.

had a nightmare warming up, it was a bit of a free for all really.60kg x5 then 80kg x 3 and then they called my name as next lifter. looked at the other bar, it had what i thought was 12okg on it, so i jumped on that squeezed aout a rep and thought fcuk me that was heavy. looked again it had 140kg on ,so that was a bit of a relief.

1st lift 140kg flew up

2nd lift 150kg was a bit of a grinder but was confident of gettin 155

3rd lift 155kg went down, dont know why but closed my eyes and lost ballance and failed the lift. was a bit ****ed cos i was sure i could getit.

so got 150kg which was a pb so pleased overall, next up bench

all warmups felt heavy and was getting hip cramps.

1st lift 105kg not as easy as usual but was ok, the pause was much longer than id been training for

2nd lift 112.5kg had to grind this one, but got it,

3rd lift 115kg not far off but didnt get it, the length of the pause killed me.

bit disappointed with my bench as ive done more, but tbf ive never done heavy bench after heavy squats.

met some nice people and had some goodadvice about bench technique for me to work on. theres another comp in february so if i can make a bit of progress by then,ilb give it a go


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Nice one mate

you must be happy with the PB :thumb:


----------



## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

BestBefore1989 said:


> Nice one mate
> 
> you must be happy with the PB :thumb:


yeah but i should have got the 155 as well


----------



## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

bongon95 said:


> yeah but i should have got the 155 as well


next time, my friend


----------



## Jim78 (Aug 20, 2010)

well done mate, good to get up there and experience it eh?


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## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

Hey Mike *WAVES* bit late I know but I saw you today! lol (I had a pink hoodie on with Prifysgol Morgannwg in the side / front row).

Dunno if you realised it was me, but by the time I realised it was you you were gone! lol I was trying to catch sight of you for the deads but didn't see you. Given the above I know why now 

Really glad you got a PB - it was a nightmare in the warm up room eh!  I got a good few tips for February, was itching to lift today in the end, and in fairness no one else was in my weight bracket. So hope to see you then - and realise in time to say hello!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Jim78 said:


> well done mate, good to get up there and experience it eh?


yeah definately mate


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

JaneN40 said:


> Hey Mike *WAVES* bit late I know but I saw you today! lol (I had a pink hoodie on with Prifysgol Morgannwg in the side / front row).
> 
> Dunno if you realised it was me, but by the time I realised it was you you were gone! lol I was trying to catch sight of you for the deads but didn't see you. Given the above I know why now
> 
> Really glad you got a PB - it was a nightmare in the warm up room eh!  I got a good few tips for February, was itching to lift today in the end, and in fairness no one else was in my weight bracket. So hope to see you then - and realise in time to say hello!


bloody hell! i must have walked past you about 5 times! i remember reading that jumper and thinking,my welsh is coming along lol. i wasnt looking out for you tbh, i know you,ve been really busy cos you have hardly been on here and just assumed that you wasnt gonna be there. you going in february?


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

Well done buddy .


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

ewen said:


> Well done buddy .


cheers mate


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## mikemull (Oct 23, 2011)

Well done mate!


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## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

bongon95 said:


> bloody hell! i must have walked past you about 5 times! i remember reading that jumper and thinking,my welsh is coming along lol. i wasnt looking out for you tbh, i know you,ve been really busy cos you have hardly been on here and just assumed that you wasnt gonna be there. you going in february?


Well done with your Welsh! lol and yeah you likely did!

I kept thinking I thought I knew you.. then on your final bench it twigged.. but when I looked around for you when I got the chance couldn't see you! hehe what we like!

I wasn't positive I'd be there till this morning - hence the lack of notice.  My training is picking up again but really gotta drive in the holidays to keep it going  I've promised whatever my numbers are I'll do February though so see you there! Just don't laugh if I can't deadlift triple figures! lol

You doing February? The female ref is my training partner / buddy.. she's just won her class in the worlds so didn't compete this time - she is doing February as well as my friend (blonde short hair) who competed today so three of us will be there. lol anyway Lisa is trying to talk me into strongest women in June I think it is.. eeek! lol will see how that goes though as that could be a crash and burn for me.

Great to see you and you did well! Hope you enjoyed!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

JaneN40 said:


> Well done with your Welsh! lol and yeah you likely did!
> 
> I kept thinking I thought I knew you.. then on your final bench it twigged.. but when I looked around for you when I got the chance couldn't see you! hehe what we like!
> 
> ...


never mind il catch in february, not sure if im gonna compete but il go and watch either way.did you see the blonde girl in the 90,s class. she was strong as fcuk, she trains at my old gym, very impressive.

glad training is going well, dont worry about what you can lift, just get your technique spot on, as you could see people were full of encouragement whatever was being lifted


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## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

bongon95 said:


> never mind il catch in february, not sure if im gonna compete but il go and watch either way.did you see the blonde girl in the 90,s class. she was strong as fcuk, she trains at my old gym, very impressive.
> 
> glad training is going well, dont worry about what you can lift, just get your technique spot on, as you could see people were full of encouragement whatever was being lifted


Yeah quite a few were failed on technique, and tough judgement of it, it did surprise me a bit.

yeah Jes her name is the blonde, she's amazing - if I don't lose any weight I'll be in her class so.. am going to lose weight! lol no way can I match her figures but she is lovely and was saying it's her 10th comp.  she's not a natural lifter from what I heard though so out of my reach. lol I'd be happy to deadlift triple figures at the moment. 

See you then - enjoy your training and hope you compete even if it's just to re-record your personal stats.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

JaneN40 said:


> Yeah quite a few were failed on technique, and tough judgement of it, it did surprise me a bit.
> 
> yeah Jes her name is the blonde, she's amazing - if I don't lose any weight I'll be in her class so.. am going to lose weight! lol no way can I match her figures but she is lovely and was saying it's her 10th comp.  she's not a natural lifter from what I heard though so out of my reach. lol I'd be happy to deadlift triple figures at the moment.
> 
> See you then - enjoy your training and hope you compete even if it's just to re-record your personal stats.


lol, my mate filmed my second squat, just watched it now and guess who made a cameo appearance in it


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Well done Mike

Upload the vid


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> Well done Mike
> 
> Upload the vid


vids a bit $hit mate, to far away


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## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

bongon95 said:


> lol, my mate filmed my second squat, just watched it now and guess who made a cameo appearance in it


Oh christ!! lol



bongon95 said:


> vids a bit $hit mate, to far away


PHEW!!


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

So how was your first comp Mike? Looks like you're ready to do your next so you must of enjoyed it! I was the same in my last comp didn't do any paused benching and fcked it up abit but atleast ya know for next time.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> So how was your first comp Mike? Looks like you're ready to do your next so you must of enjoyed it! I was the same in my last comp didn't do any paused benching and fcked it up abit but atleast ya know for next time.


yeah mate, i really enjoyed it. dont look like im gonna do the next one tbh, they have moved it to jan 19th so i think its too soon so il give it a miss.

definately learned a few things aswell, i was a bit disapointed with bench but tbf ive never really benched after a heavy squat and it took quite a bit out of me. also learnt that what you can lift in the gym means fcuk all come meet day


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

07-12-12

first day back in training and decided im gonna do bill starr,s 5x5. was originally gonna do wendlers but i wanted to squat more than once a week!

so ive started with lower weights and will aim to hit my current 5rm in 4-5 weeks progressing 2.5kg per week.

squats

60kg x 5

75kg x 5

90kg x 5

100kg x 5

110kg x 5

bench press

40kg x 5

60kg x 5

70kg x 5

80kg x 5

85kg x 5

rows

bar x 5

40kg x 5

50kg x 5

60kg x 5

65kg x 5

fronties

40kg x5 3sets

all lighter sets leading up to top set i will be concentrating on speed, also iwas given some tips on how to improve my arch for bench setup, so will also be working on that


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

Nice


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## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

Sounds like a great plan Mike.  have been weighing it up myself too and settled on stronglifts 5x5 - after talking it over with Ewen. 

Are you doing the WSA lift in January? they've moved it from February so it is in a different venue (pontadawe) and with the BPO so same refs as theirs by all accounts. I'm hoping to do it, I'm off uni till 7th Jan so should be able to train properly  best chance till summer anyhow. lol

Hope to see you there.. you'll have to give me the nod mind!

Good luck with your training.


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

JaneN40 said:


> Sounds like a great plan Mike.  have been weighing it up myself too and settled on stronglifts 5x5 - after talking it over with Ewen.
> 
> Are you doing the WSA lift in January? they've moved it from February so it is in a different venue (pontadawe) and with the BPO so same refs as theirs by all accounts. I'm hoping to do it, I'm off uni till 7th Jan so should be able to train properly  best chance till summer anyhow. lol
> 
> ...


good to see you doing stronglifts,imo at our level you need to be going into the gym with a plan,rather than just doing a bit of this and that.i definately wont be competing,theres just not enough time for me to make any decent progress. but il come cheer you on if i can.


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## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

Look forward to seeing you there but if you can't make it no sweat either.  we'll meet up soon I'm sure!

I've been going along with Lisa on her training but in honesty she trains with her coach (Nigel) for the major lifts so when I train with her she does what she wants really. It's my key times though to need to keep my head in gear a bit more. 

anyway.. speak to you soon! have a great weekend.


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Yeah man Jan's abit soon I might be doing the British in April and that feels soon :lol:


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Yeah man Jan's abit soon I might be doing the British in April and that feels soon :lol:


what, your not definately doing it?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

10-12-12

squats

60kg x 5

75kg x 5

90kg x 5 2sets

strict press

bar x 5

30kg x 5

40kg x 5

45kg x 5

deadlifts

60kg x 5

90kg x 5

110kg x 5

130kg x 5

some poor attempts at ghr,s

first time deadlifting in months, nothing to strenuous but felt good to be doing it again


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

ghr,s :confused1:


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## MRSTRONG (Apr 18, 2009)

BestBefore1989 said:


> ghr,s :confused1:


glute ham raise .


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## BestBefore1989 (Oct 21, 2008)

ewen said:


> glute ham raise .


D'oh!


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

12-12-12

squats

6okg x 5

75kg x 5

90kg x5

100kg x 5

112.5kg x 3

9okg x 8

bench press

40kg x 5

60kg x5

70kg x5

80kg x5

87.5kg x 3

70kg x 8

rows

bar x5

40kg x5

50kg x5

60kg x5

67.5kg x3

50kg x8

dips

bw x 8 3sets

hanging hip raise

3 x 15


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## JaneN40 (Aug 18, 2012)

Nice workout Mike!  I still can't do any full body weight exercises (dips / pull ups) - can't wait for the day I can! lol


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

14-12-12

squats

60kg x 5

75kg x 5

90kg x 5

100kg x 5

112.5kg x5

bench press

40kg x5

60kg x 5

70kg x 5

80kg x 5

87kg x 5

rows

60kg x 5 3sets

didnt have enough time to be changing the weights to do my rows, so i just did 3sets, everything felt heavy today, probably didnt help lying on the settee all day:lol:

heres a vid

112.5kg x 5


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

Looked like there was a bit of slack in the mid section Mike you could try descending slightly slower?


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Wardy21 said:


> Looked like there was a bit of slack in the mid section Mike you could try descending slightly slower?


yeay ive got into the habbit of just blasting through the sets when they are not close to my heaviest sets, cant seem to motivate myself for these lighter sessions, just wanna get thru em tbh


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## Wardy211436114751 (Jan 24, 2011)

bongon95 said:


> yeay ive got into the habbit of just blasting through the sets when they are not close to my heaviest sets, cant seem to motivate myself for these lighter sessions, just wanna get thru em tbh


Yeah I know the feeling. I try to think of every rep as a 1rm attempt and treat it like that which helps me.


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## DigIt (Jun 20, 2012)

just seen this, ello mate  subbed


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

I find myself shouting "STAND UP STRAIGHT" whilst watching your vids :wacko:


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

DigIt said:


> just seen this, ello mate  subbed


cheers pal


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

Tassotti said:


> I find myself shouting "STAND UP STRAIGHT" whilst watching your vids :wacko:


yeah i think you,ve mentioned it once or twice before. but i dont know whhy, but that is as upright as i can get.

tbh though tass, in my comp they failed a load of people for folding and all my lights were white, but that said im alot better a singles than i am reps,


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## Tassotti (Feb 27, 2011)

Its improved, but not quite there. You've disguised it so that it looks like your just looking down. STAND UP STRAIGHT SOLDIER .


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## Jim78 (Aug 20, 2010)

Mike, that vid, bloody head up at all times mate and chest out, shoulders pushing that fukin bar back dude!

Im same, sit around all day and i always have a sh1te session :-(


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## mikeod (Jan 20, 2012)

thanks to everyone who has supported me in this journal, i wont be updating this anymore, may start a new one in the new year. @Milky can you lock this for me please.

oh, and merry christmas


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## Milky (Nov 30, 2008)

As requested mate,

Merry christmas.


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