5’9", ~190lbs.
best lifts:
SQ: 565x1 (wraps)
BP: 315x1
DL: 605x1
2011 goals: 545/315/585 and a 475 SSB squat (wraps, gym or comp lifts).
mon 6/1
box squat
135x10, 185x7, 225x5, 255x5, 275x5, 295x7, 225x16
DB swing
95x10, 105x10, 115x10
SSB box squat (assuming a 45lb bar, which i know is wrong)
155x3x10, 155x15, 175x12
wheelbarrow shrugs
+400x15, +490x15, +600x10, +690x8, +600x20
box squats are improving. the set of 225 at the end just to see if i could beat the last training week’s reps (last week was deload). i did.
the ssb box squats i’ve been doing 155x5x10, but i wanted to push it a little to see if i was ready for more weight. i think next week i’ll up it to 185 and shoot for 185x5x8 with the goal of 185x5x10 before upping the weight again.
wheelbarrow shrugs i figure is a more descriptive name than “raging bull” shrugs. basically shrugs with wheelbarrow handles, effectively.
no cardio monday morning because my alarm was set for “pm” instead of “am”. what a rookie mistake. it’s been fixed.
sat 5/30 cardio
avg hr 124
time 30:21
sun 5/31 cardio
avg hr 127
time 30:03
tues 6/2
morning cardio
time@avg hr: 30:06@126
BP
135x10, 155x7, 185x5, 215x5, 230x5, 250x5, 225x5
BB row
135x10, 185x10, 225x10, 235x8, 255x3 (got pissed off and stopped)
BP
195x5x10
OAR - weight and reps per arm
100x10, 110x10, 120x10, 130x10, 140x10 (straps)
my bench blows. i went for 6 on the 250 set and failed, then got really pissed off. i don’t usually loose my cool, shouldn’t have done that. oh well. i’ll stick with the 5 sets of 10 after the 531 sets just so i learn the form (it works for mil press, dunno why i deviated. maybe because i wanted to do some db work.).
the 130x10 db rows without straps made me happy though.
i really should have made the time to lift during deload week, because my legs are hurting bad from squatting. took an epsom salt bath at night and rolled my legs again. focus rich, focus.
wed 6/3
i felt dead on wednesday. my body hurt and i had no energy in the morning. wtf happened? it was a scheduled day off from lifting, but i didn’t do any cardio either.
i did eat according to plan though, so there was some success to the day.
thurs 6/4
morning cardio
30:15@125
sumo dl - all reps were dead-stopped on the floor. i’m trying not to touch and go because i’m weakest off the floor.
225x10, 275x7, 315x5, 365x5 (all sets double overhand), 385x5, 415x8
dumbell walking lunge - weight per hand, reps total
70x10, 85x10, 100x10, 100x7,3 (grip failed)
RDL
225x10, (straps) 275x10, 315x10, 365x10, 315x15
my grip was shot after deads and the lunges. i could barely hold onto the first RDL set of 225 double overhand. hence the straps. after the 365 set my throat started to close up or something because it got disconcertingly difficult to breathe. that has never happened before and i was a little worried, so i dropped the weight down for the last set. it happened again, but not as bad. weird.
usually i do shrugs too, but my traps were pretty worked from the other lifts. no big deal, they seem to be growing anyway.
also did a bunch of one-leg box squats throughout the day with my weak leg. kind of like a pistol squat, but to a box so i don’t fall over. i’ll work my way down in depth until things are good.
also i ate all my food today, again. it’s hard! but if it were easy i guess everyone would do it. i may start setting alarms during the day to remind me to eat. if left to my own devices, i typically won’t eat until the hunger hurts too much. i hate eating.
i just weighed myself: 179lbs wearing my birthday suit and socks. so it is.
fri 6/5
cardio
30:20@126, resting heart rate: 58
mil press
95x10, 105x7, 115x5, 120x5, 130x5, 140x7
pull up
bwx10, +25x7, +35x5, +45x5, +55x5, +70x7
mil press
115x5x8
chin up
+55x3x8, +55x10, +55x9
reverse curl/overhead extension
+70x3x8
curl/reverse grip mil press
+70x6, +70x8, +70x6,2
not too bad. my hands split open in three places, which made things interesting lol. i also rode my trials bike for an hour or so. i’m getting better! i’m able to put together some decent lines instead of just doing various hops and shit. and my balance, while it still sucks, is improving.
the weekend
rode my trials bike on saturday. ate and spent time with my woman. she’s good for the soul.
mon 6/8
no cardio, but resting heart rate was 51 (i fell back asleep shortly after measuring this. curses!)
hiked a small mountain with my brother (mt watatic if anyone else is in MA) ~ a couple hours
box squat
135x10, 185x7, 225x5, 245x3, 275x3, 295x3, 315x8
DB swings
95x10, 105x10, 115x10, 125x10
SSB box squat (assume 45lb bar)
185x8,10,10,12,15
bb shrugs (some sort of cambered bar so i don’t crush the junk)
225x10, 315x15, 405x15, 455x15, 495x10
ok, so i was very careful squatting today. my right hip was a little stiff from the hike and some older, stronger guys were telling me to just take it easy due to the stiffness. well i’m headstrong so i squatted anyway, but i did do a lot of extra stretching and an extra warm up set. hopped on the ab-adductor machines and that helped pop my hip too.
the 315x8 set was great! dead stop and pause on the box. compared to 315x5 last cycle… well this is an improvement! also it was about 1.5" lower box! lower, longer pause, and i still made a big PR.
then the ssb box squats went very well too. i bumped the weight up from last week, did the first set and was like “oh that was easy”. then just cranked it up from there. i will step up the weight next week and see what happens. this was also to a lower box than before. i brought my stance in to just outside shoulder width. dunno why the big improvement… i think maybe due to a form tweak? i’m gonna run with it.
i missed one meal, but i also ate a lot of strawberries at the farm, so maybe that offsets it? lol no big deal.
tues 6/9
cardio 30:05@125bpm
bench
135x10, 185x5, 205x3, 230x3, 245x3, 260x3
bb row
185x10, 225x10, 275x10, 295x4
bench
195x3x10, 195x11, 195x4,10 (my leg cramped up)
OAR - weights and reps per hand
110x10, 120x10, 130x10, 140x10, 150x15 - straps, hard as fuck
after missing a lift last week i did not feel like pushing it this week on the bench. i probably left one in the tank.
after reading the bb row thread i decided to try to put a little leg drive back into the bb rows. then one of the much bigger, stronger guys suggested i put even more because my hips were hardly moving. so there it is. 275x10 was pretty straightforward, but i ran out of pop for the 295 set.
the 140x10 set of one arm rows was strapless, and is a PR. so is the 150x15, but with straps. actually, so is the straight sets of 195 on the bench. and the 295x4. haha PR’s all over the place 
also i took some body comp pics. seems like the left side of my body rides a little higher than the right. and you can see that my right calf is still slightly smaller than my left calf. hmmm. and excuse the chalk.
comments are welcome, but go easy please - it’s my first time posting body comp pics. my goals are strength with a few vanity considerations. how can i drop the left side of my body?
wed 6/10
rode my trials bike for a while. practiced being explosive when jumping forward. actually pulled off some decent lines on a pile of granite slabs.
thurs 6/11
cardio
30:05@125bpm
sumo dl
225x10, 275x7, 315x5, 365x3 (all DOH), 385x3, 415x3, 435x5 (should have done 6 for a PR)
walking lunge - weight per hand, reps total
70x10, 85x10, 100x7,3 (grip failed), (straps) 110x10, 110x10
wheelbarrow RDL
+400x10, (straps) +400x15, +490x10, +600x10, +600x10
ab/adductor machines
3 sets of 10
i’m going to have to find some other way to do the cardio because riding the bike trainer is making my hips and knees unhappy. had to warm up a lot today because my hips were very tight and my knees ached. i hopped on the ab/adductor machines a little more at the end to try and loosen up the hips a little more. that and i stretched a little more and a little harder. i will try the cardio just before lifting, and using an elliptical (no running for a while due to my ankle - doctor’s orders).
also i figured out why my left side rides a little high: in my office my chair is right next to a drain in the floor, and the floor tilts toward the drain, leaving my left side higher than the right. i guess 8hrs a day cocked to the right will make your left side ride higher… i put some boards under my chair to level things out a little.
fri 6/12
cardio (elliptical)
30:08@127bpm
mil press
95x10, 115x5, 125x3, 135x3, 140x3, 145x6
pull up
bwx10, +25x7, +35x5, +45x3, +50x3, +70x3, +80x6
mil press
155x5x9
chin up
+55x4x9, +55x10
cardio was good. mil pressing was ok. for the 5 lighter sets i’m gunning for 155x5x10 and then 12 or so on the last set. then i’ll bump up the weight again. same with the chins.
actually i think i’m going to have to bring a shake to the gym. this week i’ve been struggling to stay with it while lifting. i’m thinking some extra liquid energy might help.
mon 6/15
box squat
135x10, 185x7, 225x5, 265x5, 295x3, 335x5, 225x17
db swing
95x10, 110x10, 130x10
ssb bx sq - assuming 45lb bar
225x3 (way too heavy), 195x5x10
the ssb box squats gave me a headache. it was very hard to get 5x10. maybe drinking this weekend weakened me? it only happens once and a while, so i guess i can deal.
also i think glutamine messes with my guts. i was taking it just because i had some, but i stopped taking it. if the discomfort goes away i will probably just pitch the stuff so i don’t forget and try it again.
still trying to figure out the cardio thing.
tues 6/16
bench
135x10, 185x7, 205x5, 225x5, 250x3, 275x3 nice
bb row from the floor
185x10, 225x10, 275x6, 275x5, 275x6
bench
205x5x8
OAR
110x10, 125x10, 140x10, (straps) 155x10, 155x10
i’m pretty happy with the 275x3. after last week i was a little worried, but there were no problems. it was actually pretty easy. i took a hand off for the 250 and 275 set. man that makes a huge difference!
i’m going to work at the bb rows some more next cycle. gotta come up with a plan to push the reps up with the higher weight so they don’t drop off so fast.
140x10 again with the one arm rows, no straps. i was feeling pretty good about the 155x2x10 until i checked last week and saw 155x15. how the hell did i do that??? at least i got more total reps at 155 this time…
thurs 6/18
cardio
30:05@125bpm
sumo dl
225x10, 275x7, 315x5, 365x5 (all DOH), 415x3, 465x5 oh yeah!
walking lunge - weight per hand, reps total
75x10, 90x10, 105x10, (straps) 120x10
RDL
225x10, 315x10, (straps) 365x10, 405x6, 405x6
wheelbarrow shrug
+400x10, +490x10, +600x15, +600x15
i’m stoked about the 465x5! all re-set on the ground too. 415 felt downright light and the reps flew up. i think good things are in store for my dead. 500lbs, here i come!
walking lunges hurt my right foot/ankle quite a bit. idk why today and not last week, other than it’s been raining for the entire month of june. what is this, monsoon season?
going to shoot for doing cardio at my school gym around noon. hopefully i can get a seated bike so i can read at the same time.
fri 6/19
mil press
95x10, 105x7, 115x5, 140x3, 155x3
pull up
bwx2x10, +45x5, +70x3, +95x3
mil press
135x3, 135x4, 135x5, 135x6, 135x6
chin up
+70x5, +70x6, +70x7, +70x8, +70x6
DB hammer curl to OH press - weights and reps per side
45x5, 50x5, 55x5, 60x3,1,1 (grip failed)
i think i’ve already mentally begun deloading. i did not feel like doing a lot of reps at all today, hence the accessory stuff. it’s a nice night, i’m going to go ride my bike.
alright, some interesting developments. first: i was sick of my diet. if i had to eat another chicken breast i was going to, uh, well i wasn’t going to like it.
then: i read the old protein cycling article and the questions/rebuttals. i liked the idea and thought “hey i could try that”.
then: i tried putting together a menu, cycling carbs over a week, and cycling protein intake over several weeks. i was not very successful in putting together that menu. way too much work, and i wasn’t very close to the macro goals.
then i realized it was just a linear programming problem. so i wrote some MATLAB functions to generate a daily meal plan for me based on the macro goals for the day, and my relative dislike for certain foods. the menu for each day is optimized for minimum disgust (lol). i have 17 foods to select from so far:
banannas, eggs, oats, orange juice, peanut butter, raisins, mass gainer (malodextrin, whey protein, other good stuff), cottage cheese, chicken breast, chicken thigh, light cream, olive oil, mandarin oranges, whey, pineapple, whole milk, potato.
today (monday) was the first day with the generated meal plan. no fucking chicken! and lots of milk! much better :). shooting for 4500 cals today. if i continue to stay the same weight, i’ll bump the cals up.
