I Lift Things Up and Put Them Down

Max Lower Body again today, and it is of course my favorite day.

  1. Reverse band squats

They said that the band assistance was like 15 lbs at the top and 50-60 at the bottom. I have no idea how accurate this is, they were just thin red bands looped around twice. I’m still super unfamiliar with bands.

1 x 5 x 135lb - this felt like nothing, which is why I question what the tension in the bands was.
1 x 3 x 185lb
1 x 1 x 225 - this actually felt pretty heavy on my back and as I was walking it out, but was a relatively easy lift.
1 x 1 x 255 - failed.
1 x 1 x 235 w/ belt - easy
1 x 1 x 245 w/ belt - difficult, but didn’t feel like 100% I think I could have definitely gotten 255 if I had used the belt. I’m not sure why belts make me feel so much stronger, but they do!

Another reason I doubt their estimate on band tension is because if it was 50-60lbs, that means I theoretically should be able to squat 185-195 without them, and I could barely get 185 off a box 2-3 weeks ago.

  1. 3 x 12 x ~50lb band tension Good Morning superset with 3 x 12 GHR

Oh god, my lower back. It didn’t hurt…I could just really feel it, like there was a brick on the curve of my back. I’m taking it as a good thing.

  1. 3 x 8 each side x 40lb Bulgarian Split Squat

Have I ever mentioned I HATE these? owwww

  1. 2 x 10s sprints on TredSled. Yes we have one of these. Yes it’s awesome, though takes a few tries before you don’t feel like you’re going to run right off of it.

Alas no deadlifts :frowning:

Nadia - I know I feel the same way! Have you ever tried ammonia? The guys I lift with keep telling me it helps with the mental component. Though I have never tried so I’m not sure how that works. I hope my finances work too, keeping my fingers crossed for finding a better job.

MiMD - Thank you! I know plenty of guys who don’t think it’s too much soooo…usually the negative comments come from women. Strange! I’ve never really been lean in my life so I figure I may try and see what that’s like sometime haha.

Kris - I think the depth of my squat came from that fear too. When I was starting out with weightlifting I always read Ass to Grass as a really good thing to strive for - or at least that’s how I interpreted it. Probably also comes from the little bit of Oly lifting I dabble in for fun sometimes. In my head, a deeper squat = a hotter squat!

Cbear - when I lift for heavy singles I never get the near black-out feeling. That happens only when I do 5+ reps on something. I’m not sure why? Maybe I am not pushing as hard as I could!

Alexus - I’ve thought about that too. I figure it’s better to be too warmed up than under though. When I warm up my squat I usually do the bar → 65lb → 95lb x 3 → 135lb x 1. I also warm up with box squats on lower body days and when I warm up I try to really focus recruiting my glutes since if I don’t think about them they tend to just hang out during a lift.

Ammonia?! No, I’ve never tried that. I also hate bulgarian split squats. But yours are pretty damn strong. I’m impressed.

“A belt reduces low back stress by compressing the contents of the abdominal cavity. This increases the intra-abdominal pressure (IAP), providing more support in front of the bones of the lower back. This allows the spinal erector muscles, which would normally provide this support of the lower back, to produce less force during the lift”

also…

"Wearing a belt also causes the lifter to be more aware of the position of his or her back. This is because the physical sensation of a belt against the skin provides additional information prompting the lifter to consider his or her back position and what muscles must be activated to maintain good posture. "

I use my belt as something to push against, and to remind me to brace myself.

Thanks for the links mainy and cbear, good to know why something helpful is helpful.

On a side note, I woke up this morning and basically my entire lower body, most notably my hamstrings are destroyed. They’re so sore and tight, I can feel the tension in them. I don’t think I’ve ever had my hamstrings feel so sore, it’s a little painful just to lay them straight! I’ve used GHR many times before without feeling like this. Maybe it’s the reverse band squats, since I’ve never done those before.

Not a bad thing though, I always missed feeling sore. It just doesn’t tend to happen very much anymore.

or maybe the GHRs paired with GMs, not to mention those bulgarians…OUCHIE! I’d be sore for days! :slight_smile:

never meant to ignore alexus-

i find the power rack to be a bit different than having real spotters, because my team mates are spotting me and theyre screaming at me and they want it for me as much as (sometimes more) than i do.

and a little bit of me knows that if they have to grab me, i ‘failed’ in a way. i know they dont mind it, and i know i beat myself up for missing too much, but having people you care about there is a different kind of drive.

Thanks Cbear. I think I understand, though I’ve never had that. Hopefully some day.

So I am still stupidly sore from Wednesday. My hamstrings still don’t want to straighten out but it’s a bit better than yesterday. Random assistance work today:

  1. DB Bench Press (trying to work a bit on speed still, went lighter than I needed to)
    5 x 10 x 30lb db’s

  2. 3 x 10 x 10lb db’s Tricep rollbacks superset w/ 3 x 25 tricep band pulldowns

One thing I have noticed at this gym…they really like tricep work. I never really did much tricep work when I was on my own, we’ll see if it pays off.

  1. 3 x 10 Lat pulldown superset w/ 3 x 10 band pull-aparts

Started off with 90lbs on the pulldown, but had to go down to 70lb for the last 2 sets. I really suck at these. It’s been my goal for years to just do a single damn pull up, but I’ve never even come close. It’s really depressing if I can barely even pulldown 90lbs, I have a long way to go to do my bodyweight.

  1. 2 x Prowler w/ 90lbs down and back 20 yds each superset w/ 2 x 95lb sled pull for 40yd, sprint back

I was about to throw up after this one. It was hot outside!

So no deadlifts this week makes me sad, but considering how beat up I feel that’s probably a good thing.

I’m glad I’m not the only one who can’t do unassisted pull-ups. I can do pulldowns with over 120lbs but then I weight over 150. Quite a way to go. I tend to think band pull-ups are more helpful in working towards pull-up goals than pulldowns, though.

I feel ya on the pull ups!

what Cal said.

get some bands and stash them in your bag. I’m using 2 at the moment to haul my body up.

Mainy, I love you avatar. Like a lot.

Max Effort Upper today.

  1. Reverse Band Bench, no idea how much assistance unfortunately
    1 x 5 x 95lb
    1 x 3 x 125lb
    1 x 1 x 145lb - fail
    2 x 3 x 125lb
    1 x 1 x 145lb

Guess I just wasn’t ready for 145 the first time around because I failed hard on it.

  1. Incline DB bench press 3 x 8 x 30lb db’s

So I say 30lb db’s, but I had to get someone to help me on the last 3-4 reps every set. The gym unfortunately doesn’t have db’s going up by 5’s and 20lbs was a cakewalk. Would have been nice to have 25lbs.

  1. Seated overhead press (3 x 8 x the bar) superset with 3 x 12 x 5lb lateral raises

Ahhh my deltoids

  1. I don’t know what the name of this exercise is. You have an incline bench and you face it so your chest is laying on it with 2 db’s and do a row. I guess it’s just another row variation. Well 3 x 12 x 30lb of that. (I really needed to go down in weight on that though) superset with 3 x 8 face pulls.

  2. 3 x 10s sprints on TredSled

I probably should have skipped out on the sprinting - I forgot to take my inhaler and I was feeling rather dizzy and faint afterwards. I’m ready for North Carolina summer to be over!

I need to get more workouts in so that I can do my own thing a day or two a week for things like pull ups and the like. Unfortunately this gym is a decent drive from where I am and it’d probably be cheaper for me to just get a cheap gym membership nearby. However a gym I applied at told me that they would ‘probably’ hire me in October so I would just be able to use their facility. Unfortunately ‘probably’ isn’t ‘definitely’ and I’m a bit of a nervous wreck about it. Silly employers.

Is it still hot there? I was there last year (US coaster trip - we started at Carowinds) in June. Pretty hot then. It’s definitely autumnal over here in England.

[quote]Solarisol wrote:
4) I don’t know what the name of this exercise is. You have an incline bench and you face it so your chest is laying on it with 2 db’s and do a row. I guess it’s just another row variation. [/quote]

Chest supported incline DB row.

congrats on coming back like a boss after failing your 145 Sol. Shows sign of some true mental toughness.

Going to start out this post with something adorable. Cute dogs are my bane.

Lower Body:

  1. Box squats with (supposedly) ~120lb band tension and Yoke Bar

1 x 4 x the bar (I’m assuming it weighs about 45lbs too)
1 x 3 x 55lb
1 x 2 x 65lb
2 x 1 x 75lb
1 x 1 x 85lb - fail
1 x 3 x 75lb

Yoke bar is very strange. Took me a few sets to really get used to it and place it properly on my back. Very very different feel from a normal bar. Constantly trying to keep your back straight + band instability is killer. My rhomboids feel like they got worked, which is certainly something different.

  1. Deadlifts w/ bands. I think at the top they said something like 120lb tension. They were the orange Pro Short Light band from EFS. One day I’ll get this down.

3 x 1 x 135lbs
1 x 1 x 145lbs
1 x 1 x 155lbs w/ belt
1 x 1 x 165lbs w/ belt

They were all pretty doable until the last single. I’ve never been able to understand how anyone misses a deadlift on the lockout before - I do now!

  1. 3 x 12 banded Good Mornings

  2. 3 x 12 x GHR

My hamstrings didn’t cramp for the first time on these. Hooray!

  1. 2 x 40yd x 90lbs Prowler pushes, high bars up low bars back.

I felt pretty good after the workout today. I don’t think I’ll be crippled sore like I was last week for whatever reason.

[quote]i find the power rack to be a bit different than having real spotters, because my team mates are spotting me and theyre screaming at me and they want it for me as much as (sometimes more) than i do.

and a little bit of me knows that if they have to grab me, i ‘failed’ in a way. i know they dont mind it, and i know i beat myself up for missing too much, but having people you care about there is a different kind of drive. [/quote]

I feel the same way. Hearing the ‘awwwww’ after I miss something when two seconds before it was all screams and cheering is so much more disappointing than just missing something on my own. However I would never choose lifting solo over with a group - it’s just too much more motivating. When one of the guys misses his lift, I feel a little disappointed too, but I know he’ll get it next time and I’ll still be cheering for him.

Cal - That sounds like an awesome vacation idea! You probably have been to more amusement parks now than I have. Did you go to Busch Gardens or Disney World? I’ve been going to Carowinds since I was about 2 years old, I think my favorite ride there as of now is Vortex, though they recently renamed all the rides. Though summer is fading but it can still get over 90 degrees in the little warehouse as it has no A/C. Markedly improved from the 100+ days we were having June / July though!

Nlmain - Thanks! :smiley: I rolled my eyes when my spotter put the weight on there and didn’t think I’d get it, but I did, although it probably was really ugly. When I max effort on bench press my head naturally turns to the right instead of staying straight. I wonder if that’s improper form.

sounds like you had a great workout:) About the head thing: I’m thinking it could cause some neck injury in the long run… Anybody with true credentials willing to pipe up?

Here’s my workout from yesterday:

  1. Swiss Bar Bench Press

7 x 3 x 75lb

I’m so slow!

  1. Incline Dumbbell Press

3 x 10 x 20lb

  1. 3 x 10 x 10lb tricep rollbacks superset with 3 x 25 tricep pulldowns

  2. 3 x 10 x 30lb 1-arm rows superset with 3 x 10 x 5lb lateral raises

  3. 3 x 10s sprints on TredSled

It was 68 degrees yesterday. The day before it was in the upper 80’s. Autumn, yay!