[quote]csulli wrote:
Straps are a must buy for you I agree.
You might should try changing your training for the duration of your stay with this gym. Switch to a more bodybuilding style and stop worrying about chasing numbers in an environment not conducive to such endeavors. You will still build muscle and be strong.[/quote]
I have been considering purchasing a belt and chalk as well. I don’t want to deadlift with the straps, but I would like to be able to work on my traps and not have my grip limit my work.
Do you have any ways to improve grip for deadlift? I feel like you can never have enough grip.
I feel like I would have to ditch 5/3/1 to any more of a bodybuilding program than I am already doing. Do you think juggernaut might be better if I find a good bar? I read somewhere that all you really need is a good bar and a squat rack.
The first set felt difficult, I had some pain in my elbows. I haven’t done these in a while though, so that may explain it. Sets 2 and 3 felt strong. The last set was a grinder. I got sick in between sets 3 and 4 though. I may have eaten some bad food yesterday. I don’t know for sure though.
[quote]trivium wrote:
Do you have any ways to improve grip for deadlift? I feel like you can never have enough grip.
[/quote]
Grip various diameters and textures against some form of resistance. A simple grip trick is rolling your wrists prior to the lift.
Off day today. My hamstrings are sore as hell from the good mornings. My back healed up well, even though I ruined a shirt with blood stains. I may be in love. Especially if this helps my other lifts. I am just going to do it with moderation to keep my back safe. I have been considering a belt. What do you guys think?
[quote]trivium wrote:
Off day today. My hamstrings are sore as hell from the good mornings. My back healed up well, even though I ruined a shirt with blood stains. I may be in love. Especially if this helps my other lifts. I am just going to do it with moderation to keep my back safe.[/quote]
Nice. I’m glad you’re doing them with like 135 and not for a one rep max like those crazy guys at Westside used to do. I just don’t feel like goodmornings is an exercise meant to be done with 405 lol.
[quote]trivium wrote:
Off day today. My hamstrings are sore as hell from the good mornings. My back healed up well, even though I ruined a shirt with blood stains. I may be in love. Especially if this helps my other lifts. I am just going to do it with moderation to keep my back safe.[/quote]
Nice. I’m glad you’re doing them with like 135 and not for a one rep max like those crazy guys at Westside used to do. I just don’t feel like goodmornings is an exercise meant to be done with 405 lol.[/quote]
Yeah, I read about them doing that. It just doesn’t seem safe, plus I don’t think I have ever seen a good morning competition. I think if you can do 225 safely, it is a good lift. Your back should be plenty strong to keep you upright. Paul Carter says that he never does them above 275, and he squats 600+. I’ll follow his lead. He seems to know a thing or two.
Press
5x45
5x95
5x105
5x120
11x135 (Touch and go. This is a PR. I just wanted one badly, and I wasn’t feelin like lifting enough to do paused reps.)
7x135 (Paused. I felt guilty.)
5x120
15x105
5x105
Pull Up
9/6/5/5/5/3/4/3 (The bar was large and smooth. I had to re-grip on the first set even.)
Dips (SS with the last 4 sets of pull ups.)
10/10/10/7/5
(I lost count on the 7 set. I think I was on 8, so I just stopped and took a rep off, and added another easy set. These need loaded sometime soon.)
Hangs
I just went to the pull up bar and hung there until I couldn’t anymore for a few sets. I had a nice forearm pump going.
The weights kind of felt light today. I was fighting a bit of pain in my right wrist and between the 3rd and 5th metacarpals on my right hand/wrist area. I wanted to do better with my pull ups. I may just start doing weighted ones to try to get into different rep ranges, or I will just do them daily. Something needs to change because they aren’t moving at all. I don’t really have anything else to add. I may edit this post later if I remember anything.
Neutral Grip Chin Up
7/5/7/6 (This was done to pre-fatigue my biceps and give me some grip work.)
Standing Straight Bar Curl
75 lbs. for sets of 10/10/10/10
Face Pull
82.5 lbs on stack for 10/13/12/break/12/10
40 lbs on stack for sets of 30/20
Rear Lateral Raise
20 lb dumbbells for sets of 15/15/15/15
Pull ups killed my biceps and grip today. I like it. I am going to continue doing this kind of stuff to improve my grip whenever I can. I may have to skip tomorrow to get my work done. I have been slacking in order to not miss lifts.
Decided to take an off day. I want to really focus on my lifts tomorrow, and I didn’t feel like with the amount of work I did today and the lack of sleep last night and food today, that I would be able to do that. I did get a little work done today as well, so that is good. We will see what tomorrow has in store.
My back and biceps are really hit well. My lower chest and upper traps feel good too, but not as good as my lats haha. My evaluation went well today. I feel pretty good. Took a huge nap. I will be ready tomorrow. Hopefully the good mornings are helping me keep upright and I can make a few good reps. Possibly hit a PR. Who knows.
Squat
5xbw
5x45
5x135
5x225
5x275
7x305 (Spot said I got 8, and that he helped me on 9 a tad. I will take credit for 7. No PR’s today)
2x305 (Grabbed some water real quick and jumped back under the bar. Failed #3.)
10x225 (Grabbed a sip and got these.)
5x225 (Same story as before.)
Leg press
20x400
15x490
5x580
Leg curl
8x110 (Was feeling real beat up, and me and my spot just decided to bounce. I will add these to DL day.)
I was tired as hell today. Also, I only at chicken nuggets. I had to take a nap after I drove home from work. I don’t know. I just couldn’t get up for my sets. I felt like the left side of the bar was heavier than the right for some reason, and my set up was all wrong feeling. My form didn’t feel tight either. This was all I had to give today.
I’ve got a nice sore feeling going today. I have decided I am going to eat a giant plate of pasta at noon on the days where I lift, and I am going to drink a gallon of skim milk a day. I am also going to be in bed by midnight. I am going to do this soon, after I move again and get into my next rotation. Basically when life settles down a bit. I am just going to let my weight do what it wants to do as long as I am getting stronger. My strength is more important to me at the moment. I have to find a way to be more consistent with my food/sleep, and make it possible to maintain with a normal work schedule.
My mom just yelled at me, and asked what happened to my eye. I had no idea, but I looked. It appears that I broke some blood vessels. Add it to my list of other small ailments.
Bench Press
5x45
5x135
5x165
5x195
12x215 (TNG)
1x225
1x255
?x275 (I am not sure how many I got.)
5x195
10x165 (Hands didn’t leave bar from here on out. I just racked for a sec.)
5x165
4x165
Kroc Row
105 lb dumbbell for sets of 10/10/10/10
Dumbbell Bench Press
75 lb dumbbell for sets of 10/9/9
Skipped my last set of DB press. I didn’t feel right with them today. I felt like the weights were large in size, not weight, and that my back wasn’t centered on the bench well. Not a super great lift for assistance. I just didn’t have any discipline to pause my bench today either. Oh well. I am not sure what I weigh today. I am too lazy to check.
I am considering taking DB bench out and putting in incline bench press instead. I am not sure what the carryover for DB bench is. Control? My spotter claimed that I got 14 on the bench, but I counted 12.
I was using good equipment today as well. My legs and back are sore as hell today.
Chest Supported Row
3 plates for sets of 10/10/10/10 (Absolutely murdered sets 2 through 4.)
2 plates for sets of 15/15 (Pretty sure I did 2 sets here.)
Pendlay Row
160 lbs x 10/10/5/10 (Didn’t feel like I had good form here. May have something to do with my CS rowing.)
Skull Crusher
90 lbs x 6 (Lots of elbow and bicep pain.)
85 lbs x 2 (Just decided the pain wasn’t the good kind of pain. I need to work up better here.)
Rope Press Down
50 on stack x15
70 on stack x10
70 on stack x5
70 on stack x? (Cant remember if I did 5 or 10.)
One Arm Tricep Pressdown
25 lbs on stack x 10/10/10/20 (There may have been one more set of 10 here.)
I was in a bit of a hurry today, so my notes weren’t good. Sorry about that. I was battling a bit of bicep/elbow pain. My left felt a bit funky compared to my right today. That is the only way I can think to describe it. I will do shrugs when I do deadlifts.
I am getting real busy here moving home and starting my next internship. I have to go back to college for 2 days to do a presentation and take two tests in between. I am not sure I am prepared how I want to be. Oh well…even if I fail at least my T-Nation friends won’t disown me…right?
Couldn’t log for a few days due to school, but I did manage to lift yesterday. Here are my numbers for yesterday.
Deadlift
5x135
5x225
5x275
5x315
10x350 (stopped a bit ahead of failure. I may have been able to squeeze one or two more here.)
2x408 (No failing here.)
5x315
10x275
(Normally I would do another set, but I wanted to leave, so I didn’t.)
Good Morning
4x10 @ 135
Leg Curl
100 lbs for sets of 10/9/6/6
I am not sure how to feel about my form at this moment. I am not used to having good equipment like I do at school. I am happy with this lift. My hamstrings were fried at the end of this. I actually had a pump going in them. I felt like one leg got a bit better of a pump than the other though. This morning I weighed in at 199.2 lbs. Hopefully I can be more consistent for a while now. I still have to do shrugs sometime soon. Maybe tomorrow. I don’t know though. I have to move back into my house, I usually take two days after leg day, and all of the gyms close early tomorrow because none of them take their clients seriously.