Advanced 5/3/1
Overhead Press Day (5x5)
Band Pull Aparts: 3x15 (during warm ups)
1A) Oh Press: 170 - 5x5
1B) Weighted Pull Ups: 50 - 5x3
2A) Close Grip Bench Press: 235 - 3x5
2B) Rock Grip Pull Ups: BW - 5x8
2C) Ab Wheel: 5x10
Oh Presses were moving very fast today as well as the weighted pull ups. On the 2nd section of the workout I think I got off my rotation a bit. I think I ended up doing Pull Ups, Ab Wheel and then CG Bench which made the close grip work a bit harder than normal. Overall I was very pleased with this workout but I was also pretty tired after it was all said and done!
Advanced 5/3/1
Deadlift Day (5x5)
Deadlift: 405 - 5x5
Walking DB Lunges: 35 - 3x10 (each leg)
Back Extensions: 25 - 3x10
Weird schedule this week so I had to move my Deadlift day today as opposed to Thursday. Had to help a friend move furniture out of his house last night so I wasn’t too enthusiastic about Deadlifts today but all sets and reps moved very well. Instead of Squats I decided on walking lunges and back extensions. Good session but just sort of “blah” mentally through the whole thing!
Not the best of days but my entire morning was spent dealing with car trouble. Got to the gym later than normal without a lot of food up to that point and no caffeine so I was kind of on autopilot through the whole thing. Cut the CG Bench and Pendlay Rows after 2 work sets since I was just sort of mentally done at this point. Also I have to help someone else move out of a 3rd floor condo tomorrow so not sure what or if I’ll get any type of conditioning work done tomorrow.
Advanced 5/3/1
Front Squat Day (5x3)
Front Squat: 280 - 5x3
Stiff Leg Deadlift: 305 - 3x5 (~30 seconds rest between sets)
Happy to get through this workout hitting all the reps and sets on Front Squat. Having to move heavy furniture, washer and dryer on Saturday from a 3rd floor condo with no elevator did not set me up well at all for this day! Keeping upper back tightness and holding the rack position became an issue on the last 2 sets of Front Squats but managed to not dump the bar.
Very good session overall today. Set a volume PR on the weighted pull ups with 55 pounds for triples. Considered keeping this same weight through the 2 section but figure I need volume in this portion of the workout. Other than that, a pretty straightforward day!
The upper back gets pretty fried from the squats in the rack position. For me it’s not the conditioning. I get panic when first the grip starts going, then the upper back, Doing these with a 55s, my suggestion would be start with just doing 10 sets of 5 reps, do the snatches first. Rest for as long as needed. Then maybe do it for 20 seconds.
I’ve found that I can’t do heavy complexes with 55’s if it includes double snatches because if you don’t do them first, fatigue in the upper back and grip set in. Leads to decapitating.
Conditioning
EMOM - 10 minutes
5 x 80# KB Swings
5 x Push Ups
5 x Split Squats (Left)
5 x Split Squats (Right)
Had to combine my Incline Press and Conditioning Days which made for one very fun workout since I didn’t have a lot of time to spend. Got this done in about 45 minutes including warm ups. Need to get in the habit of lugging my 80# KB to the gym again so I can sneak in some conditioning like this after my main work.
Right now my heaviest singles at this point are:
Front Squat: 325
Strict Overhead Press: 220
Deadlift: 550
Bench Press: 315 (set a year ago)
Back Squat (Olympic Style): 365 (March of year)
I feel like I haven’t hit a true 1 rep max lately but the Front Squat, Deadlift and Oh Press are the heaviest singles I hit last month and feel like I had gas left in the tank. I put the back squat on the shelf as a main movement over the summer since front squats feel more natural for me as a taller lifter at 6’4". The back squat will most likely become a main movement again pretty soon since I’ve gotten much stronger on the Front Squat and am kind of ready to get my Squat above 400. Certainly don’t consider myself a strong guy but just glad I can move some decent weight while still being able to stay mobile with a pretty good cardio capacity
Very happy to hit 315 for 5 singles on Front Squats today especially since it wasn’t too long ago I got 2 hard singles with this weight a cycle or two ago. With that said, I think I am past due for a reset on my front squat training max. I think I’ve gone 6 or 7 cycles without a reset on these and bar speed on the last 2 sets were not the greatest. I’ve considered upping my TM 10 pounds like normal and doing 5 x triples, doubles and singles for each week instead of 5 x 5, 3, and 1 or just switching to Back Squats and plug along like normal. Realistically I’m looking at just going 3 cycles back and build myself back up again. Brought my kettlebell back to the gym today so I could do this super-set. If my legs weren’t already feeling like jello, I would have done my split squats with the bell in the goblet position but this was good enough for this day!
Felt a bit sluggish when I first got the gym. The first 2 sets of Oh Press felt a bit heavy than normal. Thankfully I found my groove on the last 3 sets and the weight moved very smooth with pretty good speed. Since I left my kettlebell at the gym yesterday I figured I would do some Clean & Jerks at the end of the workout instead of Close Grip Bench. Also my elbows weren’t feeling great so the CG Bench wasn’t going to do me any favors today. Good session today and happy for a rest day tomorrow!
Deadlifts were on point today!! After the first single I was considering another maximal effort, possibly 565, but with no deload next week I will save it for another day. Very happy with how all singles felt today. Decided on some slightly higher reps on Squats instead of paused work. Felt good but nice to know this felt a little too light for the day. Great session and feeling pretty confident with my deadlift right now!
Went back to the ol flat bench today. Picked up where I left off as far as training max was concerned. The first rep of 290 felt heavy in my hands but the press itself felt very smooth. Can tell it’s been a while snatching my 80# bell. Got into a groove after a few reps. Nice to hit this as a part of a giant set with that bell. Pleased to get 10 reps of 225 on the 5th set of my down set on bench today. Good session today despite sore legs and glutes from deadlifts and squats yesterday!
Kettlebell Practice
Double 55’s
Front Squat: 2x5
Clean and Jerk: 2x5
Snatch: 2x5
EMOM - 10 minutes
5 x 55# Swings
5 x Push Ups
5 x Split Squat (R)
5 x Split Squat (L)
Decided to work on some double kettlebell movements before starting some conditioning. Took about 30 seconds rest between sets and movements. Legs were burning by the end of the EMOM work with the Split Squats.
Noticed over the past 2 years I’ve been using kettlebells it has done a lot as far as increasing my conditioning as well as strengthening my glutes and hamstrings which I think has contributed to a pretty decent deadlift. However it hasn’t done anything in terms of increasing quad strength which is probably why my squat is so far behind my deadlift. Yeah I have super long femurs that go up to my arm pits but not going to use that as an excuse. Hopefully now that I’ve included more direct quad work with Split Squats, Front Squats as well as better mobility I can bring up my baby Squat in the coming months.
Back to making the High Bar Back Squat my main squat movement for a while. All rep and sets felt very crisp. Decided to hit 10 reps on the 5th set of 255 just because it was feeling easy enough and even this wasn’t very stressful. Instead of making a new training max I just kept my Front Squat TM and upped it 10 pounds just to keep things moving along. I noticed a while back when my Back Squat increased so did my Front Squat. Nice to know these two play off one another like they do. More swinging and split squats today just to get a little more volume to the legs. Straightforward session today.
According to my spreadsheet and the way my TM and percentages are set up I was supposed to do 170 for 5x5 again. Of course I ignored that and went for 175 which moved very well!!! I think this is a volume PR in terms of Oh Press but not 100 percent sure yet. Went a little lighter on the weighted pull ups today just as a change of pace but kept the same weight/set/rep scheme for the 2) section for some extra volume. Like yesterday, pretty straightforward session!
Advanced 5/3/1
Deadlift Day (5x5)
Deadlift: 415 - 5x5 (belt-less volume PR)
Squat: 255 - 3x5
Planks: 30 seconds - between sets of Squats
Decided on not going with the belt today for no particular reason. Turned out to be a beltless PR in terms of volume if that really means anything. I can tell this sort of affected my performance on Squats today but nothing too bad. Decided on planks between Squat sets as a little built in rest as well as some ab work. Doing this helped get stretched out since I was feeling stiff during the warm up sets. Decent session today.