Lava2007 Training Log

17 August 2018 - OHP Emphasis + Bench Bodyweight: 216.0lbs
45sec side planks, 45sec front plank
OHP 6x3 145lbs (considered increasing the weight but chose not to. Easy)
Paused Bench 6x2 235lbs (RPE 1)
Standing DB OHP 4x12 55lbs
Lat Pulldowns 1x10 160lbs (some 60-something y/o jag stole my machine smh)
Tricep Cable Pushdowns 52.5lbs x20, 15, 10
~5 minutes of continuous ab work

18 August 2018 - Active Recovery Bodyweight: Probably slightly less than 216lbs
45sec side planks, front plank
1 mile on the treadmill ~11 minutes
Prone Reverse DB Flys 4x12 15lbs
Face Pulls 3x25 25lbs
2 rounds of: 10 leg raises, 10 sit ups, 10 bicycle kicks, 10 V-ups
3x20sec isometric glute bridge

Notes
Solid workout yesterday, solid workout today. I didn’t really feel like going to the gym today, but I know sometimes it’s smarter to ignore your body than to listen to it. Rarely, but sometimes. Took me a good while to get a mile done on the treadmill which was somewhat embarrassing, but then I realized I haven’t done any form of cardio except LISS for like 3 years. I’ll work on it.

OHP yesterday was legitimately too easy. I think I’ll up the weight to 155 just because. JMaier said it before; some people have certain muscle groups that are able to rep higher percentages of a 1RM than other muscle groups. My OHP is one of those. My 1RM is very low compared to my bench, but I can rep 80% of my max for about 10 reps. Weird…

Bench was easy. Paused it. Still easy. Good 6x2 day.

Sister got up to 6x4 bench with the bar. I need to get her on some goblet squats; most likely Monday. She’s still super sore from doing RDLs (probably because instead of resting between sets she just does any set right away) on Tuesday, so when she’s feeling fresh we’ll get her squatting. That’s when the real fun (soreness) begins for her :slight_smile:

5 Likes

19 August 2018 - Pure Rest
No gym today. My last friend left for college this morning, so he was over at my house until 3am last night and we were just shootin’ the shit. It was fun. We watched some Eddie Murphy standup, just some quality time.

So I woke up at 12:09pm and the gym closes at 2. Since it takes me a while to wake up mentally, I decided to skip the gym today. Going to the gym with my sister has been beneficial for me in the sense that she asks to go to the gym almost every day, so my training frequency has been where it should be for the last 6 days. Anyways, I decided to not hit the gym today because being pressed for time during a deadlift workout is never a good thing. I’m scheduled for 6x4 385, which in all honesty will probably take me at least 25-30 minutes to complete. So getting to the gym at 12:45 with nothing in my stomach and a tired mind would not be great. So I’ll deadlift tomorrow instead.

This week shouldn’t be too bad:
Monday: 6x4 deadlifts
Tuesday: 6x4 bench or rest
Wednesday: 6x4 bench or rest
Thursday: 6x4 squats
Friday: 6x4 ohp or rest
Saturday: work. 10 hour shift on my feet…not looking forward to it but I need the money (thanks college)
Sunday: 6x4 OHP

That’s the next week. No PR opportunities, just work time. Being in the thick of it like this is actually really fun IMO. No real pressure, just get in and do the reps.

The high protein, high carb diet starts today. Fats will fall where they may. At some point today I’ll need to go re-up on the chocolate milk (I’ve drank almost 3 gallons in a week lol). 526g carbs, 128g protein, and 200% DV potassium per gallon. It’s like 12% per serving. Since I only have class on T/W/Tr, I’ll have enough free time during those days where all I have to do is eat, study, eat, play video games, eat, study, eat, lift, eat, study. I’m really excited for this semester. I’m ready to start crushing on some cute girls again… summer was fun with the boys but dry with the ladies. Lol

4 Likes

20 August 2018 - Deadlifts
30 sec planks all ways
2x20 isometric glute bridge
Squat Stance Deadlifts 6x4 385lb
DB Rows 1x15 75lb
Pallof Press 2x15 ?lb

Notes
Solid sesh today. The deadlifts were easier today than they were last Saturday with the 6x3 surprisingly. Supercompensation FTW. I didn’t have any energy left for anything else really after the deadlifts though, which is pretty normal for me. I lifted 9,240lbs purely in the form of deadlifts. I think 10,000lbs is probably my limit for any lift.

Tomorrow is a big bench day with 6x4 255lbs. My chest and shoulder felt pretty good today so I’m hopeful for tomorrow. In my experience, the difficulty of the 6x4 workouts is a good indicator of how they 6x6 is going to go. 6x5 is hard, and so is 6x6, but if the 6x4 is easy (which it should be, it’s only 4 reps) then the 6x5 and 6x6 won’t be as rough as it could be. I don’t know. Next week is the “make or break” week for this cycle I suppose.

Right now, the whole overarching plan for this thing is to work down to a 3x3 at 91% and then deload and restart the cycle. That’ll be a 3x3 at 385 for squats and 280 for bench. Hitting 385 on squats would be an enormous PR, and being able to do 3 sets of 3 at 280 would be a huge volume PR. Numbers for next cycle will depend on the RPE of my 6x6 and 3x3. Ideally I will add ~25lbs for lower body lifts and ~10-15lbs for upper body. In reality, I’ll probably set my estimated 80%s at 355 for squats, 265 for bench, 405 for deadlifts, and 160lbs for OHP. I’m looking forward to it. I love it when the grind pays off :slight_smile:

As for my sister, today she hit her legs with high volume:
Trap Bar RDLs 5x15 65lbs
Leg Extensions 5x15 35lbs
Goblet Squats 3x10 15lbs
Lat Pulldowns 5x15 40lbs

I feel like she may have a secret life where she just goes to the gym without me, because she does every exercise right. It’s actually really impressive. I’ll give it a few more weeks and then start moving her into the real compound movements (Squat and deadlift). I’ll probably start her on trap bar deadlifts. I want her to be able to do 3x10 with a 30-40lb DB before we put a bar on her back though.

3 Likes

First day of classes went well. Cute girls in both classes that I had today, and both professors are Indian with heavy accents. They seem smart and the classes will be challenging. For anatomy, we have quizzes (10), lab exams (5), and lecture exams (5). The schedule is such that there is a quiz every week for the first 10 weeks; lab and lecture exams are staggered. So next week is a lab exam, the week after that is a lecture exam, so on and so forth. I prefer it when classes are front-loaded like that, so you can grind hard and learn the material and then cruise into the final studying however you want.

My World Religions class is going to be annoying yet interesting. I have to type a few decent length papers and attend a service of a religion that I’m not familiar with. Right now I’m thinking Islam or Buddhism. There aren’t a whole lot of Taoist or Confucianist religious centers around me that I’m aware of. So that’ll be interesting for sure.

Since I’m a numbers nerd (strictly when it comes to lifting numbers) I’m going to calculate what my next cycle will be after the deload. This is all tentative to say the least:

Deadlifts: 405lb 80%, E1RM = 505lbs
Squats: 355lb 80%, E1RM = 445lbs
Bench: 265lbs 80%, E1RM = 330lbs
OHP: 160lbs 80%, E1RM = 200lbs

If all goes according to plan, I won’t finish 6x6 with these weights until the last week of October/first week of November. I’ll stick with 83.5% 5x5, 87% 4x4, 91% 3x3, and 94% 2x2.

83.5% 5x5
Deadlift: 420lbs
Squat: 370lbs
Bench: 275lbs
OHP: 165lbs

87% 4x4
Deadlift: 440lbs
Squat: 385lbs
Bench: 285lbs
OHP: 175lbs

91% 3x3
Deadlift: 460lbs
Squat: 405lbs
Bench: 300lbs
OHP: 180lbs

94% 2x2
Deadlift: 475lbs
Squat: 415lbs
Bench: 310lbs
OHP: 190lbs

VERY tentative. This is a long way off, about 2.5 months. I might be asking too much from my bench press and OHP, and possibly deadlift, but I still believe that my legs have a lot of room for improvement and if I eat enough, I’ll be able to squat 415 for 2x2 in a few months. For the third time: this is tentative, only reason I’m writing this all out is so I have something to shoot for after this cycle.

After I finish the numbers I just typed (or whatever they end up being), I want to train in more submaximal weights for a few months. Possibly the one that Maier ran and saw good results from. I think going this heavy for this long will get the best results that I’m capable of getting, but it also carries a certain element of risk. As long as I continue with the direct core work I don’t think I’m at risk for reinjuring my SI joint, but knee and shoulder injuries become a concern if I go too heavy for too long. That is all (as if I didn’t just write a damn novel. Sorry guys). Going to the gym in a few hours with my sister; bench day and 6x2 OHP. Will report back later

3 Likes

This is the only lift that I’ll be close to you if you hit those numbers so I’ll ignore the rest.

I won’t quote the rest but the same thoughts apply. This looks ridiculously heavy! If you can do this then props to you. Also, if you’re able to hit these numbers then your max should be well above 505.

I’m in my 5s phase now and I hit 355 for 3x5 yesterday. I’ll do 365 for 5s next week. And I’ll finish with 375 for 5s the week after.

I pulled 545 in June. I don’t think it’s necessary to go that heavy. I don’t know if I could hit those reps. It could be another example of hitting certain percentages for reps that don’t make sense or follow the text book charts, but that looks pretty aggressive.

I hit 465 for an easy single in the final week of SGSS. A week later I hit 545.

Just some food for thought.

1 Like

Nice log! These are my upcoming target numbers too.

Hoping to get low to mid 4’s in my squat, 300 bench, and high 4s in deadlift by meet time in December. Ideally 455, 315, 500.

It is, but if I did the actual prescribed %s I’d be looking at around 480 for 2x2 and 430 for 5x5. That’s pretty fucking heavy, I agree, and that’s why I’m stressing (to myself as much as you guys) how absolutely tentative this is. That being said, I was able to deadlift 415 for 4x4 several months ago when my max was only 455, about 2 weeks before I hurt myself doing 455 for 2x2. Typing this out now, I kind of feel like an idiot. Maybe I’ll just do my 5x5, then deload and cruise for a while. I will be testing my maxes in late December just to see how close I got to my goals 445/335/495, but I think going that heavy for reps is infinitely more risky than lifting heavy for singles–and that’s not to say that singles aren’t risky, just that loading on 90% of your max for 3x3 is more so.

Edit: Another thing I forgot to mention, that you may have missed because my earlier post was too long, is that I’m going to base next cycle’s numbers on the RPE of my 6x6 and 3x3 @ 91%. If my 3x3 is damn near impossible and/or my 6x6 is almost impossible, then I’ll make very slight increases in my 80%s–maybe 5lbs for upper body and 10lbs for lower body. Looking back, realizing how much time I have left before the end of the year, it may have suited me better to do your SGS template instead of 2 rounds of Russian stuff. regardless, I plan on doing SGS either right before or right after my next hypertrophy phase. Hypertrophy is honestly one of the most boring things in the world to me, but it’s healthier than just trying to lift 80% every time I go to the gym. And that program increased your deadlift a metric shit ton, which is exactly what I’m going for. Deadlift is the coolest thing to be good at IMO. I’d love to pull 650-700 some day but we’ll see. One year at a time lol

It is, but that’s the idea. The Russian cycle is a peaking-esque program, not something to be run continuously–I think it’s risky for me to run it twice, but at this point, it’s a risk I’m willing to take for whatever reason. I can’t rationalize it now that you have chimed in lol.

Thanks man. It’s fun to be in the thick of it like this. We’re bordering on becoming advanced lifters and it’s really exciting! How much do you weigh, and can you link your log so I can follow it? Glad to have you here man

1 Like

Be a beast!

1 Like

22 August 2018 - Bench & OHP Bodyweight: 214.6lbs (should I be happy or sad?)
45sec side planks each way, arm circles, shoulder & lat stretches
Bench 6x4 255lbs (no missed reps, good stuff)
DB OHP 1x20 60lbs
Barbell OHP 6x2 145lbs (one set every 30 seconds)
DB Tricep Extensions 1x10 50lb, 1x10 70lb, 1x15 50lb
Lat Pulldown 1x20 140lbs

Notes
Quick workout tonight, all in all took about an hour. Bench felt surprisingly good, which I think can be credited to me working out at 7pm (seems to be my body’s favorite time to go hard). I did 4 of my last sets with no spotter, and I foolishly paused the 4th rep of my 5th set and almost missed it lol. I will end up dying in a gym someday.

My sister had to be home by 8 to go out with her friends so we were in at 6:50 and out at 7:45. I flew through my assistance work, just chased pumps pretty much. Not much else to talk about, other than tomorrow my schedule is a little wack. I have class from 8-10:50, and my sister doesn’t get out until 1:50. So right now the plan is to study for about 2 hours for my anatomy quiz on Thursday, then hit the gym for the last hour to do some abs and light cardio. Maybe some DB rows or something too. I need to get the blood moving through my legs so they can be at 100% for squats on Thursday; 6x4 340.

My sister:
Bench 6x5 45lbs

That’s all I got. She writes all her stuff down in her phone so we can reference it at the next workout. She’s steadily improving, and I’m giving her pointers with her bench and it’s looking pretty good. I’m forcing her to rest 90 seconds between each set–if I don’t, she does one set, checks her phone for notifications, and then does another set. And then misses reps. It hurts me as an aspiring powerlifter to see her take 10 seconds of rest between sets, but I read in an article here on T Nation that women have a tendency to take too little rest, while men have a tendency to take too much. For the most part, the vast majority of gym goers, that seems to hold true.

1 Like

Your bench is looking good!

And I want to clarify my point from earlier because I never actually stated it:

Those sets at those big weights might not be necessary to get the improvement you want. Why risk injury?

I also think it’s good to try new things. If you’ve done the same training in the past then you know how you respond. If it was good then go for it. If it wasn’t then what are you doing :laughing:?

If it’s new then have at it!

1 Like

Thanks big guy :slight_smile: and yeah, I see what you’re saying. My thought process with the whole ‘skipping the 2x2 and new 1rm’ part is where I’m trying to save myself. But it might be better to just reset as soon as I’m done with my 6x6. Idk yet. It really depends on how things feel; last time I did this cycle, my 6x6 workouts were very difficult and I went ahead and added too much weight for the 5x5s and beyond anyways. THAT was stupid of me. That is why I got hurt deadlifting and saw virtually no improvement in my front squat or bench. I try to never make the same mistake twice!!

Yup, gonna have to agree with you there. One of the reasons I want to try SGS is because you’ve done it, and now I know it works for strong people. Like I said before, I kind of wish I had just done SGS instead, but I know that the Russian cycle works if you play it on the conservative side. Whatever. I got a lot of training life left in me, I’ll get around to everything eventually :wink:

1 Like

I’m 185-190, doing my meet at 181

1 Like

First off for your sister let her to some rows in between or even a giant set of row/bench/AB. She will love it.
As long as she’s still new just do it and keep the rest short. When and if she stalls it’s another matter. You want her to be strong, I’ll bet you she just want to be fit and looking good.
.

If you’re in doubt whith the Russians, why not to the SGSS routine after this russian cycle?
I still think your Russians looks cool, and will probably do them after I’ve done SGSS.

2 Likes

Damn son those are some big numbers for a 181. If/when I compete I’ll probably go 220. If I can get all my diet shit figured out, I’ll go 198. Who knows though.

Thanks man! I’d compete at 198 but there are stronger guys from my gym, so I wouldn’t do well enough for team scoring. But I’m hoping to build up when I can get closer to their 400s bench or 600s deadlift.

1 Like

That’s where I’m at too right now. I don’t want to bother joining a PL gym or entering into meets until I’m able to deadlift well into the 5s, squat about 5, and bench in the mid to high 3s. It’s one of those things where some people say, “it’s about the experience!” but I’m going to have to disagree. It’s about winning. It’s a powerlifting competition, we compete to win. So I’d be wasting my own money, my own time, and other peoples’ time if I stepped on the platform. That’s how I look at it anyways. Obviously it’ll be good to get experience in meets in a few years when I’m at/closer to my goals, but I don’t plan on doing any meets for at least another 3-4 years. I’ll most likely wait until I am out of college to start devoting my weekends to powerlifting instead of working haha

I don’t blame you. I did my first meet a few years back and did 336/230ish/340ish at 165, which was cool because my objective was to learn how to train for a meet and what a meet was like.

I did another meet at 181 and went 365/250ish/391 and my objective was to learn how to program myself. This was over a year ago and I got what I needed out of these experiences, but I took time off because I didn’t want to compete without the possibility of placing or qualifying for something bigger - so I’m shooting for USPA Natty nats for 2019 and hopefully USAPL Raw Nationals.

I strongly suggest joining a PL gym near you. I know some gyms can be expensive, but if you have an economical option near you, def do it. You get to train with stronger people, have access to more knowledge, and have better/more specialized equipment.

I get putting off joining meets, but I don’t see that the same logic applies when it comes to putting off joining a PL gym?

Oh yeah… I sorta left that thought behind. What I was going to say before I got sidetracked is that PL gyms are hella expensive, especially compared to what I have access too right now. I’ve been lifting weights for a little over 6 years now, 4 years in high school and the first two years of college, and I’ve never had to pay for a gym membership until last week. I paid $50 for a semester, so like $12ish per month. That’s pretty cheap. I work part time at two gyms, and I have a barbell and some weights in my basement. Plus I’m broke as hell. Parents don’t have a ton of money so I’m paying for my own school, which you know in America is just absurdly expensive. I’m not in a position to be paying $50/month for a PL gym that I’ll only go to 4-5x/week when I can barely afford to get a burger on a special occasion with my buddies. Damn. I hate talking about this stuff hahaha fuck college

That’s what I’m going for. I want the experience of a legit PL meet, but I don’t want to show up and get outlifted by everyone in the weight class below me. I wouldn’t win a meet going 495/345/545 at 220, or even 198. But I wouldn’t get outlifted by every single person in the 198 if I did that at 220.

Honestly, most of the reason I’m holding off is because I can’t afford a coach plus I don’t want to embarrass myself. I can’t think of many better reasons than that.

I get it. I’m not an American, so I haven’t had to pay tuition, but I’ve been hella-broke nevertheless. That would make for a pretty good off-topic thread “What’s the most broke you’ve been”. I digress. Interesting that PL gyms are more expensive than normal ones where you are at. Here, the PL gym is probably the cheapest around.

3 Likes