Christal's Log Book

1/19/15 BW: 165.0

Back Squats 4 x 4 @ 205 lbs
Bench Press 4 x 6 @ 135 lbs (volume PR!)
Wide Grip Cable Rows 5 x 10 @ 90, 100, 110, 110, 110 lbs
2-1 Eccentric Leg Curls 4 x 5 @ 60, 60, 70, 70 lbs
Planks 2 x 1 min @ 45 lbs
Band Chops 2 x 8 @ unknown resistance
1 mile run @ 6.6 pace
Bicep Curls 4 x 8 @ 30s
SL Calf Raises 2 x 30 @ BW
Lateral Raises 4 x 10 @ 10s, 12s, 15s, 15s

Got a lot of volume in today. Also, I got my bench reps!!! Yay! Finally!! It felt really solid on the first two sets. My husband thinks I have 9 in me for an all out set. It’s nice to know that I’m not regressing. I think I just needed the time off. Taking Sunday off and doing light pressing work on Saturday helped. My squats were slow, but it’s a Monday, and that’s pretty normal. All in all, it was a fantastic training day. :slight_smile:

[quote]Babypowerlifter wrote:
For the big movements, we pick a weight and stick with it until we’ve “mastered it.” For upper body, this is 4 sets of 12 reps. For lower body, this is 4 sets of 10 reps because the upper body seems to tolerate higher reps a little easier than the lower body. We start with sets of 3. Each time we repeat the workout, we try to get one more rep each set. If we don’t make it to 10 or 12 reps, we’ll repeat the process starting again with sets of 3 for the same weight. Once we’ve mastered a weight, we bump up the weight by 10-30 pounds depending on what exercise it is and where our strength levels are at. It’s kind of based on feel.
[/quote]

Thank you for all the detail. This is an interesting approach. Seems like a good way to keep progressing after you’ve used up your beginner gains on a 3x5 or 5x5 program.

[quote]LiftingStrumpet wrote:

[quote]Babypowerlifter wrote:
For the big movements, we pick a weight and stick with it until we’ve “mastered it.” For upper body, this is 4 sets of 12 reps. For lower body, this is 4 sets of 10 reps because the upper body seems to tolerate higher reps a little easier than the lower body. We start with sets of 3. Each time we repeat the workout, we try to get one more rep each set. If we don’t make it to 10 or 12 reps, we’ll repeat the process starting again with sets of 3 for the same weight. Once we’ve mastered a weight, we bump up the weight by 10-30 pounds depending on what exercise it is and where our strength levels are at. It’s kind of based on feel.
[/quote]

Thank you for all the detail. This is an interesting approach. Seems like a good way to keep progressing after you’ve used up your beginner gains on a 3x5 or 5x5 program.
[/quote]

Yeah, no problem. We like it a lot. :slight_smile:

1/20/15 BW: 163.8 lbs

Whip Snatches 4 x 3 @ 60, 80, 95, fail @ 105, 95 lbs

RDLS w/ 1 min rest 5 x 15 @ 155 lbs

Single Arm MP x 5 @ 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 45, 40, 40 lbs

Chest Supported Rows 4 x 8 @ 1 plate, 1 1/2 plates, 2 plates, 2 1/2 plates, 1 x 2 @ 3 plates, 2 x 8 @ 2 1/2 plates, 2 plates, 1 x 20 @ 1 1/2 plates

Roman Chair Leg Lifts 4 x 15 @ BW

Walking Lunges 3 x about 27 steps @ BW, 50 lbs, 24 lbs

Today was a difficult session and everything felt a little off. I wasn’t feeling the whip snatches. I was having a very hard time being fast under the bar. I technically got 105 lbs over my head and locked it out, but it was with such awful form that it doesn’t count. I pretty much push pressed the sucker. I decided to cut my losses and go back down in weight. RDLs made me feel like I wanted to vomit. My husband told me to go down further and almost touch the ground with each rep and that made the sets a lot more difficult. It’s kinda ridiculous because 155 is around 40% of my max deadlift, but done with limited rest and with good form is not an easy task. I also was planning to do DB incline today, but decided not to. I’m sore from yesterday’s bench press, so I decided to do overhead instead. I got a lot of row volume in today which makes me happy.

1/21/15 BW: 165.0

Back Squats 4 x 5 @ 205 lbs
DB Incline Press 4 x 10, 10, 10, 9.5 @ 50s (arghhhh!!!) (volume PR)
Weighted Chin-ups 5 x 3 @ 30 lbs (volume PR)

Squats felt good. They were a lot faster and less grindy than my sets of 4 last time. I missed the last freaking rep of my last set on DB Incline!! I was able to lock out my left arm, but my right wasn’t having it. I fought for that last rep for a good few seconds. Oh well, it’s still a volume PR. I got my weighted chin-ups. That’s been a goal for a while. It feels like I had a full session today, but just realized I only did 3 exercises. Maybe I’ll hit some abs later tonight.


I forgot to post this earlier. Here’s a pic of me from today. I’m really liking my back and traps. :smiley:

[quote]Babypowerlifter wrote:
Squats felt good. They were a lot faster and less grindy than my sets of 4 last time. I missed the last freaking rep of my last set on DB Incline!! I was able to lock out my left arm, but my right wasn’t having it. I fought for that last rep for a good few seconds. Oh well, it’s still a volume PR. [/quote]

I had that happen to me yesterday. After jerks, bench, presses, and curls, I was the incline bench with 40’s and half way, right arm locks and left arm just bails -__-

Looking good, and getting strong!

[quote]Seachel_25 wrote:

[quote]Babypowerlifter wrote:
Squats felt good. They were a lot faster and less grindy than my sets of 4 last time. I missed the last freaking rep of my last set on DB Incline!! I was able to lock out my left arm, but my right wasn’t having it. I fought for that last rep for a good few seconds. Oh well, it’s still a volume PR. [/quote]

I had that happen to me yesterday. After jerks, bench, presses, and curls, I was the incline bench with 40’s and half way, right arm locks and left arm just bails -__-

Looking good, and getting strong!

[/quote]

Haha, I hate that! Thanks! :smiley: You’re really strong yourself. I need to catch up to your back squat. :stuck_out_tongue: You kill it on legs.

1/22/15 BW: 165.8

High Step Ups (24" box) 5 x 10 @ BW, 30, 40, 50, 50 lbs

DB Bench 6 x 5, 10, 10, 9, 6, 9 @ 50s

Cable Rows 6 x 10 @ 120, 130, 140, 150, 120, 130 lbs

Decline Abs w/ BB OH 2 x 5 @ 40, 50, 1 x 2 @ 60, 1 x 5 @ 40 lbs

Single Arm Bar Hangs 2 x about 15 sec @ BW

Bicep Curls 3 x 8 @ 30s

Toes to bar 8, 7

Good session today. I got some DB bench in which really worked my pecs. I’m going to work on getting sets of 10 consistently with the 50s. I should get there fairly quickly. I think I’m just not used to the lift, but probably have the strength there. My rows were good today. I had a nice back pump going on and every rep felt smooth and fast. Decline abs could have been better, but I’ll get it next time. :slight_smile: I want to deadlift heavish this week. Maybe Friday or Saturday. We’ll see.

Howdy Babypowerlifter! Lurker checking in lol. Your doing great work keep it up dudette! Also if I may say so without offending you, you are a gorgeous woman, your husband is a lucky man!

[quote]FarmerOwen wrote:
Howdy Babypowerlifter! Lurker checking in lol. Your doing great work keep it up dudette! Also if I may say so without offending you, you are a gorgeous woman, your husband is a lucky man![/quote]

Thanks for the great compliment! Yes, he knows he’s lucky to have me lol. In all fairness, I’m really lucky to have him too. :smiley:

1/23/15

Deadlifts worked up to 355 (PR), 365 (PR!!)

SA DB OH Press 6 x 5 @ 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 45 lbs

Chest Supported Rows w/ handles 5 x 10 @ 45 lbs

Roman Chair Leg Lifts 5 x 10 @ BW

Fantastic session today!! My training partner and I both killed it. She got 315 which was a 12 lb PR for her and she hasn’t deadlifted heavy in quite a few months. So that was awesome. And I got up to 365 for a single. Both of our backs were still sore from rows yesterday so the fact that we both got PRs was really awesome. Also, yes, I know my form is ugly and looks scary, but my PRs have looked like this for the last 4 years and I’ve never hurt my back. I only deadlift heavy about every 6 weeks, so I’m not worried. My back has always been my strong point.

Holy freaking cow.

[quote]Babypowerlifter wrote:
Also, yes, I know my form is ugly and looks scary, but my PRs have looked like this for the last 4 years and I’ve never hurt my back. I only deadlift heavy about every 6 weeks, so I’m not worried. My back has always been my strong point.
[/quote]
Ahh, youth.

Huge pull!


Congratz on the pr’s!

Thanks, guys! :smiley: One step closer to 400 lbs. :slight_smile: And surprisingly, my back is not sore at all, just my hamstrings haha.

1/24/15

Incline Press (CAT) 4 x 5 @ 115 lbs
Bicep Curls 1 x 6 @ 30s, 1 x 5 @ 35s, 1 x 2 @ 40s

1/25/15

Rock Climbing - V0, V1, V1, V2, V2, V3
OH KB Walking Lunges 3 x about 18 steps @ 20 + 20 lbs
Chin up work

1/26/15 BW: 165.4

Back Squats 3 x 6, 6, 5 @ 205 lbs
Bench Press 4 x 7, 6, 6, 6 @ 135 lbs
TRX Rows 8, 7, 7, 8, 7
Cable Twists 4 x 10 @ 17.5, 22.5, 27.5, 32.5 lbs
L-Sit Chin Ups 5, 4
Lateral Raises 2 x 10 @ 10s, 15s

We went to the state Olympic lifting meet here in town on Saturday. It was fun to watch everyone compete. It’s probably not something I’ll get into, but it’s fun to see what other athletes are doing and get involved in the strength training community. In between watching people compete, we sneaked (snuck? not a word apparently) in the back and did some arm work. Sunday was supposed to be a rest day, but my husband and I ended up going rock climbing with some friends. That completely killed our finger tips and forearms. Good stuff.

Today’s session was a little off. I wasn’t feeling the squats. Mondays always feel off. Surprisingly, it didn’t carry over to my bench press. It was a volume PR for me. I’m getting more and more comfortable with 135. I’d like to eventually be able to do sets of 10 with that weight. My husband and I are trying to plan out the next 12 weeks leading up to my competition. We’re thinking that it may be useful to go back down in weight with my squats and to build back up. When I first hit 240, my average work weight was around 185 so we’re wondering if it’s actually benefiting me to go as heavy as I have been. Maybe the leap from 185 to 205 was too much.

1/27/15 BW: 166.0

High Step ups (24" box) 5 x 10 @ BW, 30, 40, 30, 30 lbs
Military Press (paused) 5 x 5 @ 45, 65, 75, 85, 95, 1 x 4 @ 105, 2 x 5 @ 85 lbs
SA High Row Pull Down machine (w/ handles for extra ROM) 5 x 10 @ 1 plate, 1 1/2 plates, 2 plates, 2 plates, 2 plates
Lying leg lifts 3 x 10 @ BW
Mile Run @ 6.7 pace (9:08 min)

My legs are still a little tired so I didn’t go super heavy on the step ups. My military press was good today. I don’t think I’ve ever hit 105 for 4 paused. The run today felt horrible haha. Cardio always makes me realize how fat I am and how much my conditioning needs work. I realize I’m not fat by most people’s standards, but if I want to consider myself an athlete, I need to be leaner. I have extra body fat that’s not helping me. I’m probably eating about 3000 calories a day right now. My metabolism is fast and I know I can lose weight pretty quickly if I actually start paying more attention to what I’m eating and how much. I have until the end of April to get down to 158 because that’s the weight class I want to compete in.

1/27/15 Extra work in the evening…

Bicep Curls 3 x 8 @ 30s
Side Bends 2 x 10 @ 45 lbs
Behind the neck press 2 x 10 @ 65
Toes to bar 5

1/28/15 BW: 166.2

AM workout
Back Squats 4 x 7 @ 205 lbs
DB Incline Press 4 x 10 @ 50s
CS Rows 7 x 10 @ 1 plate, 1.5, 2, 2, 2, 2, 1.5
SL Decline Abs 5 x 5 @ BW, 10, BW, BW, BW

PM workout
Booty Camp with my Husband

Got my squats and my DB inlcine!! Yay! My legs felt more recovered and I was able to bust out those squats. And I got the last rep on my DB Incline. That means I move on to sets of 11 reps next time. Oh joy. My husband taught a new class at our gym. It’s called “Booty Camp” and it focuses on glutes, legs and abs. My ass is probably going to be feeling it tomorrow. :slight_smile: I love butt work though. Who doesn’t want a nicer butt?

Just stumbled across this log over my morning coffee - VERY impressive work in here.

I liked your comment about being able to pick things up and carry them - “a useful skill as a human” - definitely a legitimate benefit to daily life. I’ve often laughed at warnings from concerned aunts/grandparents/in-laws warning me “careful, it’s heavy” if they ask me to lift a box of photo albums or something. I usually want to shoot them a quizzical look that says “you know I swing heavy balls of iron over my head for fun, right?..because this weighs like eight pounds, not eighty.”

My mother has long since given up the “it’s heavy” warnings.

In any case, super log and keep up the great work!

[quote]ActivitiesGuy wrote:
Just stumbled across this log over my morning coffee - VERY impressive work in here.

I liked your comment about being able to pick things up and carry them - “a useful skill as a human” - definitely a legitimate benefit to daily life. I’ve often laughed at warnings from concerned aunts/grandparents/in-laws warning me “careful, it’s heavy” if they ask me to lift a box of photo albums or something. I usually want to shoot them a quizzical look that says “you know I swing heavy balls of iron over my head for fun, right?..because this weighs like eight pounds, not eighty.”

My mother has long since given up the “it’s heavy” warnings.

In any case, super log and keep up the great work!

[/quote]

I know what you mean. I used to work in a law office for years and my coworkers would always be concerned about my safety when I would lift heavy boxes. The funny thing was that they would say how I could hurt my back, but some of them were so inflexible and weak that they could not bend down to pick something up off of the ground. I kid you not. And they were only in their early 50s. I couldn’t believe that they were concerned for my health and safety instead of their own.

Anyway, thanks for stopping by and for the compliment! :slight_smile:

1/29/15 BW: 165.8

RDLs (w/ 1 min rest) 5 x 15 @ 155 lbs
DB Bench Press 4 x 10 @ 50s
Cable Rows 4 x 10 @ 130, 140, 150, 140 lbs

Not a lot of work today. I may add in some grip work or ab work later tonight. Those freaking RDLs are brutal though on a timer. My glutes and hamstrings are on fire afterwards. Also, I’m getting better at DB bench, but it’s still exactly the same as my DB incline. Pretty sure that’s not supposed to be the case lol. Oh well. I’m working on it. My pecs are probably an underutilized muscle that I could be using more on my bench press. I have a feeling that this will really help my bench press go up quickly. Rows were good but felt heavy today. I’d like to eventually be able to get the whole stack (which is 200 lbs) for 10. That would be really sweet. It’ll probably take some time to get there though.

1/30/15 BW: 166.0

Back Squats 5 x 3 @ 205 lbs
Single Arm DB OH Press 9 x 5 @ 30, 35, 40, 45, 55 (PR!), 50, 45, 40, 35 lbs
Chin-ups 8, 8, 8, 7
Cable Tricep Pushdowns 2 x 10 @ 100 lbs
Cable Curls 2 x 10 @ 50 lbs

I restarted my squat cycle. I decided after much thought to stick with 205 and continue to build up reps with it. I wasn’t going to attempt sets of 8 because I don’t want to ingrain grindy form. I want the reps to be smooth, fast and under control. Sets of 3 felt good today. I added an extra set to get in a little more volume. I figure by the time I get up to sets of 10, I’ll have a 300 lb squat in me, or close to it. I’m guessing that my squat is about 270 right now. I haven’t tested my max in a while and I’m probably not going to until I get closer to competition time.

I got an overhead press PR! Yay! I’m pretty sure I’ve gotten 5 at 55 before, but never with both arms in the same day. I’m really happy with that, especially since my shoulders and triceps are still tired from yesterday’s DB bench.

Chin-ups wore me out today. My curls were pretty sad after my chins. We got a good arm pump going though and I measured my biceps and they are 13 3/8 inches around. I’ve gained almost 1/2 inch on my biceps since this summer. I used to have relatively smaller and weaker biceps and pecs, mainly because I didn’t focus on them or train them that hard. I’m changing that now though and am focusing on more bro lifting haha.