Who Says Powerlifters Have to Be Fat!

Sheiko Master of sport Prep #2 W1/D5 BW:202 Squats, CGBP & more squats!!!
I take back what I said Wednesday about it being the hardest workout I’ve ever done because today’s session earned itself the title. On paper it looked alright but in practice I was fighting for survival by the end… I am in love with this program!

Squats
225x3
315x1
325x5
380x4
440x3x2
500x2x4 (FINALLY A SESSION WHERE ALL MY WORK SETS WERE TO DEPTH)

Close grip Bench (same deal as usual flat footed, speed reps long pause the last rep)
135x5
160x5
190x4
225x3x2
255x2x6 (smoke-show every time!)

BW Dips
5+x5 (these were tough because my shoulder was tightening up from the squats and reaching back hopefully next time I can feel up to adding weight, but I made every rep disgustingly deep)

Squats round 2 (this is where my brain started to tell me to stop but I ignored it and listened to Boris instead)
295x5 (hardest set of 5 I have ever done)
350x4 ugh
410x3 (easier than the first 2 sets)
470x3x5 (alright Boris now you’r just being a douche!.. but thank you for pushing me, I would’ve shut it down at 295 if I was going by how I felt)

The amount of squatting today was so crazy that I actually wore the skin off of my back where the bar sits and literally bled through my shirt. I have had callouses there for a few years but I have never bled during a workout before… Scratch one more off the bucket list as I have now bled from squatting so much!

Posedown with Robbie Chicano

Couldn’t turn down the challenge! Robbie’s a friend and training partner who’s living the bodybuilder life, he had 40 lbs and skin color (a tan) on me, but I tried to keep up with him anyway haha He’s a beast and I can’t wait to see him compete in November) I’ll upload a video of our epic duel along with the training video from today…

Seated GMs
155x5x5 went light on these because I was already toast and tomorrow Boris want’s me to do partial dead lifts… (which will be a new experience for me since I always pull for reps from the floor or a deficit) and I wanted to save something in my back for that. Either way I’m sure I got plenty of work today

Take-aways

  1. If powerlifting meets were Squat, bench, squat again… I would probably die
  2. I am completely capable of burying any squat in this program provided I actually get loosened up first.
  3. I hate mono-lifts even when I’m just walking out the weight, as squatting free of safety racks is a new experience for me
  4. even when the benching is super easy it still throws off the squatting flow enough to make your body hate itself
  5. I continue to learn that my body is capable of much more than I give it credit for and a program like this that makes you continue to do sets even when you feel like you can’t is the kind of program that I need right now.
  6. I have an awesome group of lifters that I am privileged to train with and around. Even though I’m the only one running this program my training partner Benny Seath is constantly willing to stay after his session is done and help push me through mine, spotting my obscene number of squats and yelling at me the whole time Thanks to Ben, Robbie and Leland for sticking with me for the workout and pushing me today I appreciate it! Also to my Boy Cyal Christmas who has been helping me out the whole time as well

Tomorrow morning will be partial deads bench and more partial deads… I have no idea how I will feel but I’m predicting pretty sore and stiff. Good thing I’m learning that the way your body feels is a lie :wink: bring it!

Sheiko Master of sport Prep #2 W1/D6 BW:202 Partial Deads and CGBP
Today Boris and I had our first disagreement. Apparently Mr. Sheiko is a fan of heavy rack pulls a day after back bleeding squat sessions… seriously Boris how is that a good idea!?! haha well lovers quarrels aside the session was productive. I definitely think that I will be dubbing these Saturday lifts, the “strange sessions” because they all essentially bastardize my baby and make me deadlift all sorts of weirdness.

Half pulls (seriously a dead to the knees and then back down? alright I guess)
Using an axle
115x3
205x3
295x3
350x3
425x3
495x3x2
switch to a real bar
525x3x4

Close Grip Bench
135x6
160x6
190x6
205x6x5

Rack pulls (ouch time)
315x1
405x1
495x4
565x3x2
635x3x2
700x miss close but I probably would have been better off pulling from the ground on this haha
(rack pulls always seem to shred my hands terribly, I think it is that the bar hits the pins and shakes in my hands loosening my grip resulting in crazy callous tears)

Leg press SS w/ back extensions and Leg raises
light x6/BW x10/BW x10x 4 circuits and 2 extra leg press sets to make them a 6x6

My body is pretty darn beat up after a whole week of these sessions but I have definitely surprised myself with how well it has gone. I’m not too worried about the rack deads because they are based off a % of my full dead and I am not typical in the carryover that someone usually gets pulling from pins. Also I won’t change my floor dead max in the program to cater to the rack deads because lowering it would make my other deads feel like a joke because my deadlift rep abilities are also disproportionate to my single max. if that makes sense… anyway I’ll continue to run the program the same way throughout this block and keep the same mantras in mind.

  1. Your body is lying to you, you are not as tired as you think you are
  2. The two possible outcomes of these workouts are that I make it through successfully, or I make it through unsuccessfully, either way there is no quitting!

Right back into the fray again come Monday with Bench, Squat, Bench. Hopefully my back skin will have grown back by then haha

Strong is an understatement. Your log is very motivational.

[quote]spar4tee wrote:
Strong is an understatement. Your log is very motivational.[/quote]
Thank you very much for the extreme compliment. Motivational is a word I am honored and humbled to be labeled as, because I’m just doing what I love and sharing my efforts with my fellow brothers and sisters in iron.

Extremely motivating to see someone only a year older then me so ridiciliously strong AND keeping pretty lean! Always impressive.

[quote]jake_j_m wrote:
Extremely motivating to see someone only a year older then me so ridiciliously strong AND keeping pretty lean! Always impressive. [/quote]
Appreciate the compliment! I work hard to do the things I do well haha

Active recovery and shenanigans with Benny Seath and Robbie Chicano
Met up with Ben Seath and Robbie Chicano today to help Ben with his military press workout and do some active recover/form work on some olympic lifts and ended up having a lot of random fun in the proccess.
I ended up practicing some snatches (light weight because I’ve never actually done them)
115x1
125x1
135x1
145x1
155x1
165x1
175x1
135x2x5

Single arm barbell snatches (never tried these either)
45x3
95x2
115x1
125x miss (got it up there just couldn’t make the balance happen)

P.S. got home uploaded the video and then did some shopping around and finally found a real video editing software that I can use to make my videos better without the ridiculous restrictions of this stinking flipshare software today= WIN

Great log. I didn’t realize you are so young, I will definitely be following. Kind of pisses me off actually since our numbers are pretty close but you got around 4 years of youth on me.

What fed do you generally compete in?

Also, you having mentioned this in your original post, but I would keep sponsor talk to a minimum since this is Biotest’s site and they generally lay down the hammer when it comes to competing companies.

I love the videos. I need to do more of that in my own training.

Great videos, and insane lower body strength. Your arms are built and shaped very similar to mine, haha (sorry bro!).

will be following.

[quote]ajweins wrote:
Great log. I didn’t realize you are so young, I will definitely be following. Kind of pisses me off actually since our numbers are pretty close but you got around 4 years of youth on me.

What fed do you generally compete in?

Also, you having mentioned this in your original post, but I would keep sponsor talk to a minimum since this is Biotest’s site and they generally lay down the hammer when it comes to competing companies.

I love the videos. I need to do more of that in my own training.[/quote]
Thank you, for the kind words and also for the heads up, I won’t go flaunting the sponsorship but I will have to keep it in my vids, if they kick me off for it then I miss you all already haha.

As for the federations, I compete in the WABDL for my dead only meets and have done some USPF meets as well, I’ll be hitting my 198 RAW 1700+ total in the SPF (I promise that I’ll still sink my squats and make my bench and deads legit too)… I want to do a USAPL Meet, but there is a ban on all WABDL lifters in the USAPL right now so I’m not going to be able to do that anytime soon, I’m still looking around for a “home” federation so I plan on doing a UPA and a USPA sometime in the near future…I’ve also competed in the NAS for strongman, I think the crazy amounts of feds and rules differences are getting out of hand.

and finally as for the vids, IMO the best training decision I have ever made, I call it my lie detector, especially useful online where everyone doubts numbers until they see them themselves. Anyway glad to have you along for the ride

[quote]bugeishaAD wrote:
Great videos, and insane lower body strength. Your arms are built and shaped very similar to mine, haha (sorry bro!).

will be following.[/quote]
thanks man, and the whole arm thing is something I’m working on, but if you say that ours are similar I’m not very offended as much as I am flattered lol I don’t put much emphasis on building arm size since it doesn’t bring a lot of carryover to my training, but someday… who knows…

Impressive strength. I’ll be following.

What’s the carryover from all the volume you do for your big 3 max effort lifts?

[quote]Most Major wrote:
Impressive strength. I’ll be following.

What’s the carryover from all the volume you do for your big 3 max effort lifts?[/quote]
Not 100% sure yet I’m only just starting my 2nd week of running sheiko routines and it’s totally different than any program I’ve ever run. However, I feel very confident that My max effort strength for my big 3 is going to go up, I am hitting each lift multiple times a week and getting better and better at forms that I thought I had pretty much down. This program is specifically designed to increase those 3 lifts, and I’ve heard some really great reviews from a lot of people who have run sheiko blocks. My personal review thus far is that I absolutely love this program and it is incredibly difficult which I take to mean that it is forcing me to get stronger.

My boys Jason and Kyle just got back to me with this video that they made of my last deadlifting meet!!! Turned out epic/hilarious! love it guys thanks!

Sheiko Master of sport Prep #2 W2/D1 BW:203 CGBP
felt like poo today when I was heading to the gym but I couldn’t let Boris down and so I went in and ended up having a great session

Close grip Bench
45x8
135x5
160x5
190x4
225x3x2
255x3x6

Squats
225x3
295x5
350x4
410x3x2
475x2x5 (buried these today!)

Back to close grips
160x5
190x5
225x5x5 (still pausing every final rep)

Leg press
6x5 at about 700 lbs (kept it fairly light since my hips got worked so much on the squats

GMs
155x5x5
Took these easy too

Some random core work
All in all the session went much better than I felt it would. I was just tired when I came in but I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, your body lies to you! Tomorrow is an off day where I may do some light active recovery but I don’t think I’ll do much. Wednesday will be bench and deads, I’m still excited.

I spent about 6 hours figuring out my new video maker program and another hour getting the video to look the way I wanted it to.

Ben just wanted to hear your advice for a young guy who aspires for a similar build to you with your crazy friggin’ strength.

I’m currently running Westside For Skinny Bastards, 168 pounds at 6’0 and my Squat/Bench/Dead is 260/170/300

[quote]Charles8675 wrote:
Ben just wanted to hear your advice for a young guy who aspires for a similar build to you with your crazy friggin’ strength.

I’m currently running Westside For Skinny Bastards, 168 pounds at 6’0 and my Squat/Bench/Dead is 260/170/300[/quote]
First of all thank you, I’m flattered by that sentiment. I will give you the advice that I can and hopefully it will help. Most importantly you need to be patient, I made gains very slowly when I started lifting and put in a lot of time with very few results, but it was all laying groundwork and a few years later it’s like all the work I had been putting in sort of paid off out of know where and I was vindicated for all the sacrifices I had made, seemingly for nothing. Next I would advise you worry less about your build if strength is your main concern. My build is just the result of all the strength training I have done over the years and I’ve maintained my leanness through diet and what I call practical cardio, such as strongman events, box jumps, and athletic excercises, to keep my body from ballooning up too much. As for where you’re at currently I suggest sticking with whatever program you are running for awhile but eventually you are going to want to look closer at how your body reacts to the stimulus you’re subjecting it too. I have the utmost respect for Louie Simmons and the entire Westside training system but I disagree with some of the methodologies. In my experience westside is generally a training program that works best for, older, multi-ply lifters who may or may not be utilizing chemical assistance. If your goal isn’t to squat 1,000 lbs in multi-ply gear then I am less convinced by the systems effectiveness. Again mad respect for those guys, it’s just not my goal set. Also westside generally trains the deadlift indirectly, as in pulling a full dead from the floor is a rare occurrence and the deadlift numbers are usually brought up through increases in squat strength. I am a big proponent of High frequency of your core lifts I think you should squat, bench and deadlift every week, and I feel like the exercise rotation of westside is detrimental to a less experienced lifter who should be practicing the forms as often as possible to perfect them in a consistent manner. My strength training has always been based around the flat barbell bench, the free squat, the deadlift, the stiff legged deadlift, and pullups. I do other things but no matter what program I am running I do these 5 exercises every week.

As for diet, if you are training for strength you need to eat for it too. this means being conscious of everything that goes into your body, the stigma that powerlifters have to be fat to be strong is stupid and I am totally against that stereotype. this is more about your diet than anything eat large amounts of clean food to fuel your workouts and recovery and you can get strong without getting fat.

I view my powerlifting as a pyramid in terms of what it needs to be successful. there are 3 sides all equally important and without any one side the pyramid collapses. These sides are Diet, training and rest. make sure that you focus equally on all three of these aspects and you will see the progress you are hoping for. But remember it still may be a longer road than you realize. Just be patient and bust your butt in all three areas. f you have any more specific questions feel free to ask me more I love talking shop.

Good luck and lift hard!

Active recovery in the form of axle clean and presses
I have gotten in the habit of lifting on my off days… so far I feel great, I’m keeping the movements pretty light and focusing more on form and mobility, but I love it!

After a very long and thorough warm up…
Axle clean and push press
25x5
115x5
155x3
180x3
205x7 (had the strength for more but my core was getting wobbly)

Axle clean and Jerks
225x1
245xmiss (just getting lazy with my form)

Switch to a regular bar
135x2
225x1 (elbows were a little slow)

Hang cleans (focusing on elbow and drop speed)
135x5x5

Front squats
135x3
155x3
185x3

Did some light stretching and called it good. Left the gym feeling better than I did going in. mission accomplished! Bench and deads tomorrow! Bring it on Boris!

Damned impressive lifting dude. I’ll be following along, and best of luck with shieko.

Ben, thanks for your thoughts man. It means a lot that you’re taking the time to respond to a younger guy’s inquiries.

Westside For Skinny Bastards was designed mostly for athletes who were looking to gain strength while retaining explosive speed. While I’m mostly interested in improvement of the big four (+ overhead press), I feel like the variety in rep ranges on WS4SB as well as the volume will do a good job for me in terms of accomplishing my goal of a powerful physique coupled with strong lifts (although I only get to perform two “big” compounds a week, which I’m concerned will be detrimental to my progress).

I know, I know, I want to have my cake and eat it as well, but I just thought talking shop with a more experienced guy would clarify things for me a little. Do you think I should follow Westside til a 300 pound squat, then transition over to Wendler’s 5/3/1? I love the look of it but I’d like to think I have a way’s to go in terms of linear progression before I have to drop the progression to 5 pounds a month. (that looks SUPER advanced to me)

Furthermore, for diet, I’m getting in 3500 calories a day, over 200 grams in protein and over 300 in carbs at a body weight of 168 pounds and a height of 6’0. Do you think this is sufficient for muscle growth without turning me into the Pilsbury Doughboy?

Thanks again man