TCam's Log - The Road to Elite

Training Logs
561

Friday - Transition/Deload - Day 3

Beltless Box Squat - Flat Shoes:
3x315
3x365
3x3x405 @ RPE 7 - Most reps I’ve done above 315 in a long time now. No knee pain.
10x315 @ RPE 7

Beltless Snatch Grip Deadlift - Straps:
3x315
3x405
3x455 - PR. 4x425 is closest PR I’m aware of.
3x7x405 - Bigger PR. RPE 7, 8, 9

Hanging Leg Raise:
3x10

Cable Fly:
2x20x20s

I’m happy with how this went, especially the snatch grip pulls. Last time I did snatch grip, I think I was doing like 365 for sets of 4 and they were hard. All that deadlift training leading up to the meet paid off on these I guess.

Squats felt good on my back, but my glute-ham tie-ins were getting fucked at the box height around parallel or slightly below. I’m used to going deeper and I’m also not used to squatting 405 anymore, so I’m very weak right there. I’m still happy with what I got though and no knee pain the day after or Sunday.

Saturday - Day 4

Incline Bench - TnG:
2x8x225
2x6x225

SlingShot Dips:
2x20 @ BW

Cable Low Row - FatGripz - Neutral:
4x8x180

Cable Pullover - Rope:
4x12x65

Machine Incline Bench:
20x120
2x20x150

Band Pull-Apart:
2x50 @ Mini

Pecs have been getting better, I think. I’m still going to be using mostly different variations so that I don’t put too much stress on one angle of pressing. Incline pressing is definitely something I want to get better at, mostly because I suck at it and I want to see if it helps my comp bench.

I just did the SS dips to work that decline angle a bit. Could have probably done 20 reps without the SS, but just blood flow work basically. Same with the machine incline.

Going to do one more week of transition/deload work. It’s just a fuck around couple weeks while I wait for my coach to give me my next block of training.

562

Transition - Week 2 - Day 1

Beltless Paused Squat - Oly Shoes:
5x5x315 - First set not paused. Was planning on regular squats, but my glute-ham issue was bothering me, so I went with the variation that gave me more control and time to feel it out on each rep. Overall the speed was still great.

Wide Grip Paused Bench - IPF Style:
5x8x225 - Working up slowly. No pec issues at all so far.

Beltless Paused Deadlift - Straps:
5x3x405

Bulgarian Split Squat:
3x15/15 @ BW+40 in chains

Band Ab Crunch:
3x12 @ Avg.

Band Facepull:
2x25 @ Avg.

This was a pretty high volume workout relative to anything I’ve done in a couple of months, so I was feeling it by the end. Squats went pretty well, I just hope this glute thing isn’t a real problem. I’ll work on it this week and probably take off squatting until next week just to make sure. Knees felt good during it though, so that’s great. VMOs are already sore and I’ll see how it all feels tomorrow.

Bench felt good, though heavy in my hands at first. I’m not surprised obviously, with the lack of benching before the meet and the change in grip width (edit: forgot to mention, I was using the only very bent bar accidentally and didn’t realize it until after. Definitely would have noticed with a more narrow grip). All of the reps moved like nothing, but some grooved better than others. Last set was practically flawless. Very short pause on these though, just to note it. Like Chris Duffin’s type of training pause.

Deadlift was easy until I decided to superset the BSS with it for the last few sets. Lower back pump achieved.

563

Transition - Week 2 - Day 2

Standing OHP:
3x8x155
16x155 - PR. Previous PRs were 135x15 and 165x10.

Incline DB Bench:
3x10x75s - First two sets were neutral grip, but it was irritating my pec at the top.

HS High Row w/ Bands:
4x10x180+2 Doubled Minis - Tried to control the eccentric to feel the lats

Deficit Push-Ups:
3x20 @ BW

Barbell Curls - Blood Flow Restriction:
30,15,15x45 - 30 seconds between sets. Couldn’t get to the 3rd set of 15 because it was hurting my right biceps the wrong way.

Band Lateral Raise:
3x12 @ Mini

I was having some shoulder/delt pain during pretty much all of this workout, so I kept everything pretty light. The OHP AMRAP went very well obviously, regardless of that.

BFR curls are annoying me. This is the second time I tried it and I got the same pain that I got last time on my right side. No sure if it’s pressing too hard on a vein or if it’s just tied too tightly. I bought a pair of 42" SlingShot multi-purpose wraps and used it for this training. Hopefully I can figure it out.

564

Transition - Week 2 - Day 3

Beltless Squat w/ SlingShot Multi-purpose Wraps - Flat Shoes:
2x315
2x365
2x405 @ RPE 5-7 - Very easy. More below.

Beltless Squat:
3x5x315 - Very easy as well

Beltless RDL - Straps:
3x8x315

Lat Pulldown:
4x8x200

Lying Leg Curl:
2x10x110
8, 8, 8 x 110, 80, 50 - Dropset

“Free Motion” Machine Ab Pulldown:
3x20x100

First time using these Slingshot multi-purpose wraps on my knees and they worked wonderfully. I get about 2-2.5 revolutions out of the ones I got, which are 42". I just wore them over my knee sleeves instead of moving the sleeves down. The squats themselves felt awesome, lots of control and no form breakdown at all. I have previously tried actual wraps, but they are exhausting to put on and I probably didn’t even do it correctly, and they hurt like a bitch. These take about 10-15 seconds per wrap to put on. Obviously it’s less support and rebound, but I’m just trying to get back into squatting heavier weights and these are definitely going to assist with that. Slingshot is to a bench shirt as multi-purpose wraps are to knee knee wraps.

When I took off the wraps and did the normal squats, I was expecting to feel like shit at the bottom, but I actually felt great. The first set at 315 felt like I had about 7-10 reps in the tank. Very excited about getting back into squatting and very excited that I have a coach to keep me from blowing my load and getting hurt again. We’ll be starting my next block this upcoming week.

565

Totally Forgot to Track This - Saturday - Transition - Week 2 - Day 4

Wide Grip Paused Bench:
6x5x275 - Pinkies on rings. Wider grip is feeling good so far. RPEs around 3-5 on this.

Floor Dumbbell Triceps Extension:
2x12x40s - Elbows say no. Moving to EZ bar.

Floor EZ Bar Triceps Extension:
3x12x90 - Assuming 20 lb. bar. These felt better than DBs

Cable Low Row:
10x180
2x10x220
10x180

Cable Fly:
2x20x25s

Lateral Raise:
3x12x35s

Hammer Curl:
3x10/10x55s

This is the first time handling 275 since well before the meet. I was on the next to last day of the Bill Starr rehab program when I mini-strained my pec with 260 and since then I’ve basically not gone above 225. Today 275 felt great and I’m starting to like the wide grip a lot. I want to get it out another inch probably to actually reduce the ROM, but I need to ease into it. Hopefully it will allow me to use my pecs more, which means they will get stronger and used to being used rather than just straining every few months.

My elbows have always hurt with skullcrusher and overhead triceps movements. I wore my cuffs for both the DB and EZ bar things I did. EZ bar is the way to go for that I guess. Just not sure I get enough out of it to warrant the discomfort.

566

Tuesday - New Cycle Begins - Cornerstone Training - Week 1 - Day 1

Deadlift w/ Belt - Stiff Bar:
2x405
2x455
2x495 - Add belt
2x505
3x4x475

Box Squat - Beltless:
5x2x365 - Zero rocking back. Just held my normal torso angle as if the box wasn’t there.

Front Squats - Beltless:
3x10x210

Chest-Supported T-Bar Row:
5x10x115

A1 | Calf Raise on Leg Press:
4x15x180

A2 | EZ Bar Curl:
5x10x90

Planks on Balance Board:
3x1 @ 0:45

Alright, new cycle has begun! This workout was pretty rough, I’ll just go through the main points.

Deadlift with a stiff bar now feels like shit, since I’ve been training exclusively with the Okie bar for like 6 weeks. I used to be much better the other way around. Obviously I just need to get used to it again, but basically my hips were shooting up. It got better once I did the 3x4x475 back down sets, it just took a while to figure it out.

Box squats were all pretty fast, but my knee tracking was slightly different on each rep, it seemed. The knees felt okay, with just a couple instances of low pain that I could fix on the subsequent reps. It was only happening if the tracking was off. I think this was more of an issue of squatting to a box feeling weird than it was my squat form going to shit. Regardless, the weight moved well and went from feeling very heavy on my back to light by the 4th set. Also, not rocking back at all makes these significantly harder.

I hate front squats. But when I talked to my coach about some things I wanted to be included, they were in there because I know that it’s a good way to get volume in without a ton of weight on my knees. They actually went well and the reps went 7, 10, and 8 without locking out and stopping at the top before completing the set. Lots of upper and thoracic back soreness the next day and my quads actually got a workout for the first time in about 5 months.

One of the other things I told him I wanted in the program was calf, biceps, and forearm work. This is to protect the elbows and knees. Calves are something I pretty much never train, as they are genetically pretty big, so basically the 2nd rep of set 1 is when they started feeling like cramping.

Good workout overall. Ready to buckle down for the long grind. Goal continues to be 1700. We’ll see how realistic that is.

567

Cornerstone Training - Week 1 - Day 2

Wide Grip Paused Bench:
3x10x245 @ RPE 6ish - Feeling great on these

Paused DB Bench:
3x10x100s

Standing OHP:
3x10x135 - My thoracic extensor soreness was getting in the way, so I kept it light.

Seated DB OHP:
3x10x75s

Lat Pulldown:
5x10x160

Cable Fly:
3x15x30s

One-Arm Triceps Pushdown:
15/15x20
15/15x25
15/15x30

Well I’d say 12x10 on pressing movements is high volume. I felt pretty good though. This was the first time I did moderately difficult sets with my wide grip, but I’m barely feeling any actual muscles being used during the sets. Not sure how to describe it, it’s just feeling super mechanical.

DB bench felt better than it has in the previous few times I’ve tried it. Zero pec pain there. Woo progress.

The rest was good too, but I’m sore as shit from yesterday. Damn front squats killing my extensors. Also, pitifully, my calves are super sore from the light 4x15 raises I did. Knees are feeling alright though, so that’s very good. Hopefully the pain stays away.

568

Friday - Cornerstone Training - Week 1 - Day 3

Squat w/ Belt:
2x315
2x365
2x405
2x435 - Most I’ve had on my back in a while. Felt pretty easy, but had some right knee pain.
4x390 - Same pain, below right patella.
2x4x390 - Removed belt, added multi-purpose wraps. Wasn’t any better.

Beltless 2 Ct. Paused Deadlift - Below Knee:
3x6x405 - Fucking horribly difficult.

Beltless Snatch Grip RDL - Straps:
2x10x315 - Lower back pump is killing me at this point.

HS Iso-Row - Single Arm:
4x8/8 @ 160

DB Hammer Curl:
4x8x70s

Hanging Leg Raise:
3x10

Calf Raise - Single Leg:
4x10/10 @ BW

First off, on Thursday, my god damn calves were so sore from the DOMS that I could barely stand up or walk. Pretty cool. This is why I only did BW calf raises today.

The knee pain mentioned above wasn’t the same pain as my quad tendon stuff, it was below the patella and more acute. Since then, I have not felt any pain when I do BW squats, so I’m not that worried about it. It was just annoying during the workout itself and I was stressing a bit about whether or not to continue squatting. I obviously decided to work through it and I think I’m alright.

The deadlifts absolutely killed me on this day. I got very good at pausing right off the floor in the last cycle, but I’ve never paused around the knee because it’s not my weak point. Well I fucking suck at it and it made me shake and want to die. The snatch grip RDL didn’t make it any better. But I got through it all anyway.

Saturday - Week 1 - Day 4

Wide Grip Paused Bench:
2x275
2x315
2x335 - Pretty easy, but did feel somewhat heavy with this grip.
3x4x290 - Easy

Wide Grip Spoto Press:
3x10x230

Seated OHP:
2x8x185 - Was supposed to be RPE 7, closer to 9, dropped the weight for last set
8x165

HS Shoulder Press:
3x10x230

Neutral Grip Pull-Ups:
4x8 @ BW

Cable Pec Fly:
3x10x30s

Triceps Pushdown:
3x10x87.5

Pretty pleased with this workout and how I’m adjusting to the wide grip so far. The 335 felt heavy like I said, but it could be a mix of not holding that weight for the past 6 weeks or so and the new grip just creating different pressure in my arms/hands. Regardless, I think I’m just in need of more time under tension and volume to get used to it and allow my pecs to strengthen up in this position.

I was worried Spoto press would put too much tension on the pecs, but it felt like nothing and practically floated up.

Roll Tide!

569

Cornerstone Training - Week 2 - Day 1

Deadlift w/ Belt - Okie Bar:
2x405
2x455
2x485
2x515 - Easy. Much better with the Okie bar relative to last week.
3x4x485 - 90 seconds rest between sets = death

Beltless Box Squat:
5x2x375 - Having some right knee pain on the descent. Below the patella.

Beltless Front Squat:
3x10x215 - Gaining more control on these, but they still suck. Less knee pain with the lighter load.

HS Low Row:
5x10x230

A1 | Calf Raise on Leg Press:
4x15x180

A2 | EZ Bar Curl:
5x10x90

Planks on Balance Board:
3x1 @ 0:45

Repeat of last week’s workout plus some more weight. I used the Okie bar this time instead of the stiff bar, since I wanted to have a good workout. I’ll use the stiff bar for other variations. I was able to use much better form and I’m learning how to sit down and back best for my leverages. Bar path was great.

Box squats were frustrating because of my knee, but it didn’t necessarily feel heavy. Trying to help with the same techniques that seemed to help the quad tendinosis. Hopefully I can stay ahead of this, I’m very much ready to be done with knee issues.

570

Cornerstone Training - Week 2 - Day 2

Wide Grip Paused Bench:
3x10x255 - All pretty fast and stable. Read below for more.

Paused DB Bench:
3x10x110s - Still feeling good

Standing OHP:
3x10x155 - Felt better this week, 20 lbs up and similar effort.

Seated DB OHP:
3x10x75s

Pull-Ups:
4x10 - Bad choice on my part for a 5x10 vertical row. Tried neutral, semi-neutral, and pronated, and they were all feeling bad.
1x8 - Could have done a couple more shitty reps to finish it out, but wouldn’t help anything.

Cable Pec Fly:
3x15x25s - 3 different angles

Triceps Pushdown - Rope:
15x50
15x57.5
15x65

I did a good amount of warming up today since I had a little extra time, so I figured I would feel good benching. On my first set handling the bar for 20 reps, my left pec jumped on one of the reps like it was straining and it scared the shit out of me. Nothing else like it happened after that, but I was hyper-aware of what they felt like, so it took away from my focus a bit. Not sure exactly what to think of it, but hopefully nothing will come of it if I keep recovering well.

Anyway, the workout went well after that, other than pull-ups. Bench was solid and I’m grooving well with that. I just will have to be technically perfect if I want to bench big numbers with this grip. I can’t rely on brute strength.

571

Cornerstone Training - Week 2 - Day 3

Squat w/ Belt - Med/Wide Stance:
2x315
2x365
2x405
2x425
2x440 - Bar weight PR for the past 6 months.
3x4x405

Beltless 2 Ct. Paused Deadlift - Below Knee:
3x6x415 - 10 lbs over last week. Still very tough.

Beltless Snatch Grip RDL - Straps:
2x10x320 - 5 lbs over last week. Felt better this time.

DB Incline Row:
4x8x130s

DB Hammer Curls:
4x8x75s

Hanging Leg Raise:
2x10 - Skipped 3rd set because people kept talking to me and I needed to leave. lol

I’m happy with how this went. I had some minor knee pain on a couple of the reps but not nearly the same level or frequency of last week. I moved my stance out a few inches to what I would consider wide, but I’m sure most would say it’s moderate. I was very, very deliberate in my setup, getting my breath, and initiating the movement. If I went too quickly, I would mistime the joints and I would lean over too much or let my knees travel too far forward. I had some decent power out of the hole surprisingly, usually when I go wider I lose all control above 365. The double at 440 was probably an RPE 7.

The backdown sets went well too. I was worried about doing 4s with the new stance, like I wouldn’t be able to hold the positions long enough. It was all good though. This stance does require more of my back and hips, so it may affect deadlift training, but I’ll adjust I’m sure if this is what I have to do to squat and be healthy.

572

Cornerstone Training - Week 2 - Day 4 - Saturday

Wide Grip Paused Bench:
2x275
2x315
2x340 - Easy reps, still feels heavy before starting the rep.
3x4x295 - Easy

Wide Grip Spoto Press:
3x8x235

Seated OHP:
3x8x165

HS High Row:
2x8x270
2x8x320

Machine Incline Press:
3x20x195

Cable Pec Fly:
3x10x30s

One-Arm Triceps Pushdown:
3x10/10x30

Still being very cautious about my pecs while benching, but I think it’s going to be okay. It’s kind of been scaring me to bench the heavier weights because the new grip makes it feel so heavy at the top, I think because the joints aren’t as staked as they used to be. The good thing is that it feels good at the bottom because the joints are stacked, unlike they were previously. My forearms are perpendicular to the floor too. So, hopefully I can keep building that volume and stay healthy.

Week 2 - Day 5 - Sunday

This is an optional day where I go in and get extra work in on whatever I feel like doing.

Cable Low Row - Density AMSAP of 10 in 5 minutes:
5x10x200 - Straps/Neutral Grip

Lat Pulldown - Density AMSAP of 12 in 5 minutes:
4x12x165 - Straps

A1 | Band Triceps Pushdown:
3x20 @ 1 Doubled Mini

A2 | EZ Bar Spider Curl:
20x50
15x50
10-5-5-5x50 - Myoreps, 15 seconds between sets

B1 | Band Pull-Apart:
3x25 @ Mini

B2 | Band Facepull:
3x10 @ Doubled Mini

C1 | Lying Straight Leg Raise:
3x20

C2 | Single Leg Calf Raise:
3x10/10 @ BW

I don’t think I’ll be able to get to this workout in the next couple of weeks due to some out of town plans and Thanksgiving, but I did enjoy this. We were in and out in about an hour tops and it wasn’t stressful at all due to the lack of a main exercise. I have no idea how I used to get out of the gym in under an hour for my first several years of lifting. Every session I do is 2 hours now, so it was nice to go get a pump and leave. Should help with recovery and some hypertrophy.

573

Cornerstone Training - Week 3 - Day 1

Deadlift w/ Belt - Okie Bar:
2x405
2x455
2x495
2x535
3x4x495 - 90-120 seconds rest

Beltless Box Squat:
5x2x385 - Another 10 lbs up. No change in difficulty with weight added. Focusing on minimal forward knee travel helps any knee pain. Still the one issue with the right side, otherwise feeling pretty good.

Beltless Front Squat:
3x10x225 - I was right that these wouldn’t hurt my knees at all despite the knee travel and wearing Oly shoes. They just suck otherwise.

Chest Supported T-Bar Row:
5x10x135

A1 | Seated Calf Raise:
3x15x90 - Wanted 4 sets, cramping started on 3rd though.

A2 | Cable Rope Curl:
5x10x65

Lying Leg Curl:
2x20x80 - Plus 5 minutes of being bent over to keep hamstrings from cramping. Boom, mobility done.

Just went in and got it done. This phase isn’t particularly interesting because we’re just adding some weight each week to the same workout. But it’s still taking a good amount of physical and mental effort to get through everything, so I’m sure it’s helping get me stronger.

Happy with squats, just want this right knee thing to go away soon so I can move on. It’s not debilitating, I just have to think about it during every single rep. Maybe it’s being useful though, teaching me how to keep my shins more upright.

574

Cornerstone Training - Week 3 - Day 2

Wide Grip Paused Bench:
3x10x265 @ RPE 7ish - Happy with this for sure. No pec pain and did each set without stopping at the top to rest.

Paused DB Bench:
3x10x115s - 5 lbs/side up from last week.

Standing OHP:
2x10x155
13x155 - PR

Seated DB OHP:
3x10x75s

Lat Pulldown - Wide Neutral:
10x160
10x180
10x200
10x180
10x160

A1 | Cable Pec Fly:
3x15x30s - 3 angles

A2 | Band Pull-Apart:
3x30 @ Mini

Triceps Pushdown - Dual Handles:
3x10x25s

I’m pretty happy about this workout, since I wasn’t sure if I would be able to go up another 10 lbs on bench for these high reps. They were all really fast and smooth, other than some leaning to the left on the last set. My closest PR for bench is 275x12 for a single set, so I feel good about getting 10s with 265 with several reps in the tank.

Only pec issue I felt was during the 2nd set of DB bench and I was careful not to push through too much weirdness. I got much tighter on the 3rd set and the weird feeling was completely gone. All about that tightness.

575

Saturday - Cornerstone Training - Week 3 - Day 3

Squat w/ Belt:
2x315
2x365
2x405
2x425
2x445
2x455 - Very happy with this. Video below.
3x4x420

Beltless 2 Ct. Paused Deadlift - Below Knee:
2x6x420 - Just a bit too much for my lower back I think.
1x4x420 - Straps on this one. I got the 5th rep about an inch off the ground and could feel myself about to snap my shit up, so I dropped it moved on.

Beltless Snatch Grip RDL - Straps:
2x10x315

HS Iso-Row - Paused:
4x8x270

A1 | Calf Raise on Leg Press:
4x10x270

A2 | Barbell Curl:
4x8x125

“Free Motion” Ab Pulldown:
3x10x130

455 was the last heavy weight that I squatted before my knee issue flared up for the past 6 god damn months, so it feels very good to have gotten back up to it for a pretty easy set. I’m not writing much because I need to get to sleep, but I’m thrilled with it. The rest of the workout was very tough and awful.

Sunday - Cornerstone Training - Week 3 - Day 4

Wide Grip Paused Bench:
2x275
2x315
2x335
2x345
2x355 @ RPE 7 - Starting to feel more confident with the heavier weights. This was stupidly easy.
3x4x315

Wide Grip Spoto Press:
3x8x240

Seated OHP:
3x8x175

A1 | HS High Row w/ Bands:
4x8x230+2 doubled minis

A2 | HS Shoulder Press:
3x10x180

Cable Pec Fly:
10x25s
10x30s
10x35s

Triceps Pushdown:
3x10x95

The RPE 7 on the top set of bench is pretty conservative, it could have been a 6 possibly. Really happy about how my pecs are doing with this new grip and extra direct work. Hopefully I can keep riding this momentum.

576

Monday - Cornerstone Training - Week 4 - Day 1 - Deload

Deadlift w/ Belt - Stiff Bar:
1x405
1x455
1x505 - Probably the most technically perfect rep I’ve ever pulled
3x2x495 - 90-120 seconds rest

Beltless Box Squat:
5x2x365 - These feel a lot better with a slight high-bar position.

Beltless Box Front Squat:
3x7x210 - Forgot my Oly shoes, so I did these for the first time. Not bad.

Cable Low Row:
5x10x180

KB Curl:
5x10/10x45

Plank:
3x0:45 - Elbows further out in front to make it harder

Hip Airplane:
3x5/5 - Did these because my right hip has been feeling weird every once in a while.

Not much to talk about for this workout since it’s a deload. My stomach has been acting up a lot recently and I literally had to focus on not shitting myself during the squats, so that’s a thing. Thankfully my asshole has a high Wilks score and held it in.

577

Cornerstone Training - Week 4 - Day 2 - Deload

Wide Grip Paused Bench:
3x7x245

Paused DB Floor Press:
3x10x90s

Standing OHP:
3x7x155

Skipped DB OHP

Lat Pulldown - Wide Pronated:
10x140, 160, 180, 160, 140

Cable Fly:
3x20x20s - 3 angles

Machine Dips:
3x15x170

This is the first time in a while that most of my joints just felt like shit. I kept everything very easy as a result. Good news is that my pecs were sore, but not hurt or pulling, which means I’ve actually been using my pecs and hopefully making them more resilient.

Won’t be back in the gym til after Thanksgiving, so Happy Thanksgiving/Bloatsgiving!

578

Cornerstone Training - Week 4 - Day 3 - Deload

Beltless Squats:
1x365
1x405
1x425
5x1x405
6x405 - Belted

2 Ct. Beltless Paused Deadlift - Mid Shin:
3x4x405

Beltless Snatch Grip Deadlift - Straps:
2x10x315

Cable Low Row:
4x8x200

EZ Bar Curl - Myo Reps:
20+8+8+8+8+8+8+8x80 - 15-30 secs between sets

X-Band Walks:
2x10 @ Mini - Laterally
2x10 @ Mini - Fwd/Bkwd

I ate plenty for Thanksgiving but I also felt plenty like shit at the gym today. I think the not moving for 3 days straight killed my hip strength for squats. They felt wonky starting with 135, so I can’t complain about the heavy weights being the issue. I decided to go beltless and do mostly singles to make it more challenging and get more practice for my setup. I’ve been relying on the belt for this squat work and I definitely need to get my hips stronger for this new stance.

579

Sunday - Cornerstone Training - Week 4 - Day 4 - Deload

Paused Bench - No Hand-Off / Spotter:
2x275
2x295
2x315 - Easy, no pec pain whatsoever, was worried about it during lift offs.
3x2x295 - Long pauses.

Floor Press:
2x5x275 - This was a failure on all levels of trying to lift off from this particular rack (J-hooks make it slide back) and staying tight. Moved to pins instead. But there is potential for this to be possible with this grip. My closer grip hit the rack before my elbows could touch.

0.5" Pin Press:
2x5x275
12x275 - Benchmark PR. Unexpectedly matches my comp bench PR. Pecs were getting used a lot by the end and still zero pain.

Lat Pulldown - Myo-Reps - Straps:
15+5+5+5+5 x 200 - 5 breaths between sets (~15 seconds)

Cable Triceps Pushdown - Myo-Reps:
15+5+5+5+5+5+5+5+5 x 65 - 5 breaths rest

Machine Neutral Grip Shoulder Press - Myo-Reps:
15+5+5+5+5+5+5+5+5 x 100 - 5 breaths rest

Machine Underhand Row:
3x10x170

I think I found my new way of doing accessory work quickly. These Myo-Reps were rough, but I can tell that it’s really hitting the intended muscles. Good stuff.

The benching was great considering I didn’t have a hand-off. Previously I had a hand off for everything above 225 with this wider grip, so I was very nervous about my pec not liking it. Very happy with how it went and lack of pec pulling/pain, even though 315 feels like a ton while unracking. Need to practice without the hand-off more often.

Pin presses need to be in my programming with this new grip, I think. They felt great.

580

Cornerstone Training - Week 5 - Day 1

1.5" Block Pull - Beltless:
3x405
3x455
3x495 @ 8ish - Conservative 8. Smooth bar killed my grip strength
4x5x425

3 Ct. Eccentric Squat - Beltless:
4x6x315 - Damn these suck

RDL w/ Hips Banded - Straps:
3x10x315 - Mini band pulling hips back

Banded Leg Press:
3x12x360+2 Doubled Minis - Piston style: Not fully locked out and no stopping at the top

Lat Pulldown - Myo Reps:
12+3+3+3+5+5x200 - Messed up this time. I used a narrow neutral grip and my biceps/brachialis took over too much and ended up cramping. The 2 sets of 5 were after 45 seconds rest from switching to a wide pronated grip. Live and learn.

I talked to my friend/coach about the training and I’ve decided to do more of the writing of the programming with guidance from him instead of having him write everything. Basically to allow me some freedom to add variations and try new things like myo reps. I just want to keep it fresh and interesting.

This workout was very tough on me for some reason. I was sweating like crazy. Anyway, I chose block pulls because I suck at them and it was pretty rough on my lower back and hips. Not being able to get the movement started with my quads is the reason I suck at them.

Turns out I also suck at slow eccentric squats. These showcased a lot of issues with my new stance and my (lack of) hip strength. I was shaky as hell trying to find the right position about halfway down. Need to strengthen the hips a lot.