dpc Posted April 17, 2016 Author Share Posted April 17, 2016 4/16/16 Upper Wide grip bench (fingers one inch outside of the outside ring) barx6x2 65x6 85x6 100x6 115x6 125x6 could have gone up in weight but this was my limit wihout a spotter. I noticed that this wide grip really helps me feel the feeling of shoving my upper back into the bench. I felt much more stable with this super illegal wide grip. Might do them more often just to teach that tightness int he upperback. Flat bench DB press 30x10 35x10 40x10 45x11 (I don't drop weights like a tool and I mistimed when to sit up with the weights above me so I had to do an extra rep to reset Wide grip pulldown 85x10 100x10 115x10 120x10 This is the heaviest I've ever done on a pulldown without feeling any tension in my biceps. I was able to fully contract my lats without feeling I was working the biceps at all. Face pull 80x15x4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted April 19, 2016 Author Share Posted April 19, 2016 4/18/16 Lower Rack pull from about 18" (that is an estimate with my eye. Going to bring a tape measure there next time) 115x5x2 135x3 160x3 185x3 add belt 205x2 (pinched my groin between my belt and legs and then proceeded to slam the bar into it on the weigh up. Awesome) 225x2 240x2 255x1275x1 Obviously happy about that. I actually realized during the workout that I had just done a max effort squat on Friday and usually allow more time in between. But the weights I do aren't crazy so my CNS was fine. I won't do another max effort day now for a bit. Box squats with body weight 5 sets of 15 reps I was really trying to work on form here. I notice that I'm kind of falling onto the box during the last few inches of the descent and feel a lot of tightness in my hamstrings. This means two things. 1) I am doing the movement correctly (to the best of my knowledge). The fact that my hamstrings are giving out and my quads aren't taking over means that I'm putting my hamstrings and glutes in the strongest position, which is good. It also means 2) my hamstrings are weaker than Erik Bommersbach. Back extension bodyweightx8 15x8 25x8x2 No matter how I add weight it's always uncomfortable. This gym has those premade bars with weight on them so I might try and throw those on my back like a squat while I do it. Pulldown abs with cable stack 90x10 100x10 80x12 Now the 100 wasn't too heavy, but I've found that the heavier I go on these the less I can feel it in my abs. MATT Do you think I should just keep progressing heavier if I feel I'm not overcompensating with another muscle group or should I stay with a lighter weight where I can feel the abs working more? QUESTION FOR YOU MATT: This new gym is the first gym I've been to with chains. Now they don't have an extension for the chains so squats and bench press movements are out. But I could do them with rack pulls and deadlift variations. Thoughts? Anything to consider? I guess all I know about them from reading is that there should always be chains on the floor no matter what. If at anytime the chains are completely off the floor, it's bad. Second question: I love floor presses but the two racks we have for them aren't hte greatest. The first one doensn't have pin holes low enough for me. It's about a half an inch to tall so I have to kind of press it out of the rack and lose my tightness. The second one has j-hooks that are like 5 inches deep, so I'd have to push it out and then over all of the j-hook.. anything you can think of I could do? Maybe throw a few exercise mats under me for the first rack? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattM Posted April 19, 2016 Share Posted April 19, 2016 16 hours ago, dpc said: 4/18/16 Lower Rack pull from about 18" (that is an estimate with my eye. Going to bring a tape measure there next time) 115x5x2 135x3 160x3 185x3 add belt 205x2 (pinched my groin between my belt and legs and then proceeded to slam the bar into it on the weigh up. Awesome) 225x2 240x2 255x1275x1 Obviously happy about that. I actually realized during the workout that I had just done a max effort squat on Friday and usually allow more time in between. But the weights I do aren't crazy so my CNS was fine. I won't do another max effort day now for a bit. Box squats with body weight 5 sets of 15 reps I was really trying to work on form here. I notice that I'm kind of falling onto the box during the last few inches of the descent and feel a lot of tightness in my hamstrings. This means two things. 1) I am doing the movement correctly (to the best of my knowledge). The fact that my hamstrings are giving out and my quads aren't taking over means that I'm putting my hamstrings and glutes in the strongest position, which is good. It also means 2) my hamstrings are weaker than Erik Bommersbach. Back extension bodyweightx8 15x8 25x8x2 No matter how I add weight it's always uncomfortable. This gym has those premade bars with weight on them so I might try and throw those on my back like a squat while I do it. Pulldown abs with cable stack 90x10 100x10 80x12 Now the 100 wasn't too heavy, but I've found that the heavier I go on these the less I can feel it in my abs. MATT Do you think I should just keep progressing heavier if I feel I'm not overcompensating with another muscle group or should I stay with a lighter weight where I can feel the abs working more? QUESTION FOR YOU MATT: This new gym is the first gym I've been to with chains. Now they don't have an extension for the chains so squats and bench press movements are out. But I could do them with rack pulls and deadlift variations. Thoughts? Anything to consider? I guess all I know about them from reading is that there should always be chains on the floor no matter what. If at anytime the chains are completely off the floor, it's bad. Second question: I love floor presses but the two racks we have for them aren't hte greatest. The first one doensn't have pin holes low enough for me. It's about a half an inch to tall so I have to kind of press it out of the rack and lose my tightness. The second one has j-hooks that are like 5 inches deep, so I'd have to push it out and then over all of the j-hook.. anything you can think of I could do? Maybe throw a few exercise mats under me for the first rack? First off congrats on the PR, I would agree and keep focusing on building your strength base before getting too close to max weights again. For the box squat bit, I would have to see a video to really put in my opinion on that but sounds about right to me. Does Erik check your log? Haha I prefer to load the back extension by holding a barbell in my hands, and treating it like a fixed position deadlift (pete rubbish does these alot and these are probably why my deadlift was a strong lift for me in high school), or you can loop a band around the base of the stand and then loop the other end either around your neck or in a top curl position With the ab machine I would probably switch the exercise to something that always has the abs fail before another group takes over. For me this is banded incline situps, I absolutely love that exercise. I also like high rep hanging knee raises (put your elbows in those sleeves that can hang from a bar). If you buy a carabiner clip or can find one you can make a loop with the chain and put the loop on the loadable part of the bar between two plates for bench or squat movements. By extension do you mean the chains are short? I watch some of the best guys at ehop do chained deadlifts where the chains come off the floor, so I don't think it would be terrible. I would add them on days where you are not feeling your best and use them to build a little extra strength at the top end. For the floor presses I would try to find something as solid as possible to put under me, you want to make sure it doesn't have too much give so mats may not cut it. Plates might be a good thing to try to put under you, maybe one under each elbow and one under the mid back for support and a mat over that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted April 24, 2016 Author Share Posted April 24, 2016 On 4/19/2016 at 0:42 PM, MattM said: First off congrats on the PR, I would agree and keep focusing on building your strength base before getting too close to max weights again. For the box squat bit, I would have to see a video to really put in my opinion on that but sounds about right to me. Does Erik check your log? Haha I prefer to load the back extension by holding a barbell in my hands, and treating it like a fixed position deadlift (pete rubbish does these alot and these are probably why my deadlift was a strong lift for me in high school), or you can loop a band around the base of the stand and then loop the other end either around your neck or in a top curl position With the ab machine I would probably switch the exercise to something that always has the abs fail before another group takes over. For me this is banded incline situps, I absolutely love that exercise. I also like high rep hanging knee raises (put your elbows in those sleeves that can hang from a bar). If you buy a carabiner clip or can find one you can make a loop with the chain and put the loop on the loadable part of the bar between two plates for bench or squat movements. By extension do you mean the chains are short? I watch some of the best guys at ehop do chained deadlifts where the chains come off the floor, so I don't think it would be terrible. I would add them on days where you are not feeling your best and use them to build a little extra strength at the top end. For the floor presses I would try to find something as solid as possible to put under me, you want to make sure it doesn't have too much give so mats may not cut it. Plates might be a good thing to try to put under you, maybe one under each elbow and one under the mid back for support and a mat over that I never thought of that for the back extension. I can't wait to try it. Thanks Situps and knee raises for some reason tend to make my legs really sore, the top of my thighs where they meet my abs. I need to learn to lift my legs with my abs. I have never used chains so when researching them a few places said to always have some chain on the floor otherwise the bar can start to sway from the chains being able to sway. This isn't first hand experience, just stuff I read. But yeah i might look into getting an extension for the chains and just bring them anytime I need to use them. Maybe I can put a fitness box under me? Only issue would be my elbows might break parallel and that would then kind of turn into a legless bench. Thanks for all your advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted April 24, 2016 Author Share Posted April 24, 2016 4/21/16 Upper Standing Pin Press with bar at mouth level barx5 60x5 80x3 100x3 115x2 Add belt 130x1140x1 150x1 This was my absolute one rep max on this. I couldn't have lifted 151 if I wanted to. Felt good, but I could feel the effects of this single rep for the rest of the workout. DB Incline press 30x10 40x10 50x8 I've done 45x20 but the pin press really killed me. Medium neutral grip seated row 70x10x2 85x10 100x10 Seated DB power clean 15x10x2 20x10 First time doing these. Liked them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted April 24, 2016 Author Share Posted April 24, 2016 4/23/16 Extra upper body workout Did this at my gym in the apartment complex. Did 5 sets of lying rolling db extensions Did 5 sets of face pulls Did 5 sets of incline DB flys Did some cable stack abs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted April 25, 2016 Author Share Posted April 25, 2016 4/25/16 Lower Sumo pull (stance had the middle of my shins where the ring is) 95x5 115x3 135x3 155x2 175x2 add belt 195x2 215x1 230x1 240x1 Bodyweight box squat 4 sets of 15 Back extension x8 30x8x3 So I tried setting the weight bar on the ground and basically holding it like a deadlift and lifting up with my back. THe only issue is my arms are way too long.... I had to basically half curl the bar and hold it there throughout the movement. Side bend away from cable stack (held weight on low setting and then bent away from the stack) 60x10x3 Not sure if this worked well or not. We will see if I have any soreness in my obliques. My lower back was so pumped and sore that everything I did was effecting it so that may have been hiding the stress on the obliques. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattM Posted April 25, 2016 Share Posted April 25, 2016 Try widening your grip and using a snatch grip with straps if it is hard to hold Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted April 28, 2016 Author Share Posted April 28, 2016 4/27/16 Upper Bench Press barx5 65x3 85x3 100x3 120x3 135x3 150x1 160x1175x1 My goal today was to hit 170, a PR tie. But after the 160, I felt I could do 175. Came off well and didn't really struggle through it. 25 pounds more than what I did about 5 weeks back. Flat bench DB fly 20x10x2 25x10x2 Wide grip pulldown 100x10x2 115x10 Seated DB power clean 15x10x3 Side bends with a plate 3 sets of 12 on each side Obviously a good day. Public gym moment of the day: There is this older lady who comes in to work out a few times a week. She just wears her office clothes and comes in. Whenever she gets to the pulldown machine (not the cable stack but with actual handles) she does something odd.... she basically grabs the handles, sits down, then keeps her arms perfectly straight and lets her head hang off the back of her neck as if her neck was broken. She then just hinges at the waist and brings the weight down with her arms totally straight, all while her head is hanging off of her neck like a loose tooth. Hilarious looking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted May 5, 2016 Author Share Posted May 5, 2016 So I woke up a few days ago and my back was killing me. It wasn't any back pain I've ever experienced and it was probably about a week after my last lower body day. I didn't even do anything. I was walking around at walmart and it just hit. For 3 days I was pretty much stuck in bed. Yesterday I felt decent and today I felt almost 100%. Not sure what happened. 5/5/16 Lower 12 inch (estimate) pin pull with chains. Weight is bar weight barx5 115x3 135x3 155x3 175x3 Add belt 195x3 215x2 230x1 250x1 (Had more in me but didn't want to hurt my back) Not sure how to judge the chain weight. I had it doubled up by connecting the bottom of the chain back to the top with a carabiner. I had about 26 links on each side in the air at the top of the lift. Need to remember to go and weigh the chains. Side bends with plate 3 sets of 15 I didn't want to hurt my back so I called it there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canthar Posted May 6, 2016 Share Posted May 6, 2016 Check you hip mobility. Sound like you might have some issues there. Those out of the blue issue as the body is recovering can be a sign of something too tight and out of whack. Hip flexors and especially glutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted May 7, 2016 Author Share Posted May 7, 2016 On 5/6/2016 at 7:10 PM, canthar said: Check you hip mobility. Sound like you might have some issues there. Those out of the blue issue as the body is recovering can be a sign of something too tight and out of whack. Hip flexors and especially glutes. Thanks a lot for the advice. I was born with a spine issue in the lumbar region that is kind of unheard of so it could be a number of things. But I never felt pain like that so I'm leaning towards it being one of your ideas. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted May 7, 2016 Author Share Posted May 7, 2016 5/6/16 Upper Floor Press with bench grip barx5 65x5 85x3 105x3 125x3 140x2150x1 160x1 I know that I probably had 10 more pounds in me, but didn't have a spotter so didn't want to tempt it. Seated db press 25x10 35x10 40x10 Freemotion one handed row (weight per arm) 50x10 70x10 90x10 Planks 2 sets of 30 seconds Back is pretty much normal now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattM Posted May 8, 2016 Share Posted May 8, 2016 Rack Pulls and pressing are going through the roof! I love it, good work man Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted May 11, 2016 Author Share Posted May 11, 2016 On 5/8/2016 at 4:28 PM, MattM said: Rack Pulls and pressing are going through the roof! I love it, good work man Thank you sir Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted May 11, 2016 Author Share Posted May 11, 2016 5/11/16 Lower Pulldown abs with cable stack warm up 70x10x2 Box Squat barx5 95x3 115x3 135x3 155x3 add belt 185x3 205x2 225x1235x1 Still feel like my midsection is my weakest point Speed sumo deadlifts 95x3 115x1 135x1 155x1x6 Back extension bodyweightx8 20x8 30x8x2 Pulldown abs with cable stack 90x10 100x10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted May 15, 2016 Author Share Posted May 15, 2016 5/14/16 Upper Close grip bench press barx5 70x3x2 95x3 115x3 135x2 150x1160x1 Free motion chest fly 35x12x3 Mid length neutral grip pulldown 85x10 100x10 115x10x2 Tricep extension with rope 60x12x4 Side bends with plate 3 sets of 12 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted May 16, 2016 Author Share Posted May 16, 2016 Extra workout today that involved 5 sets of dB extensions 4 sets of side raises 5 sets of wenning shrugs (not sure what else to call these. They are bent forward sitting down and shrugging with the lower trap and rhomboids) 3 sets of cable stack abs 3 sets of cable stack side bends Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted May 19, 2016 Author Share Posted May 19, 2016 5/17/16 12 inch pull pin (I think 12 inches. Need to measure next time I'm there) 95x3 125x3 155x3 Add belt 185x3 205x2 225240 Did this at 8 am and didn't have time to do anything after Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted May 21, 2016 Author Share Posted May 21, 2016 5/20/16 Upper Wide grip bench press Barx6 65x6 85x6 105x6 120x6 135x6 Close neutral grip pull down 85x10x2 100x10 Face pull 60x12x2 70x12x2 Tri extension with straight barbell 60x12 70x12x3 Lots of family here for a wedding so haven't been eating the best. Felt drained the whole day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted May 30, 2016 Author Share Posted May 30, 2016 5/28/16 Lower Front Squat barx3x3 75x3 95x3 115x3 135x1 This is the first time I've ever done a front squat. It took me a while to learn the hand placement and I'm still not happy with it. I think next week I'll try wrapping straps around the bars and holding them. Either way, I liked the front squat. Really had to use my midsection to hold myself up. Box jumps to a height about 2 inches above my knees 4 sets of 5 jumps Back extension bodyx8 30x8 40x8x2 Leg raises out of the chair thing 4 sets of 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted May 30, 2016 Author Share Posted May 30, 2016 5/29/16 Upper Pin press at mouth level barx3 75x3 95x3 115x2 130x1 Add belt 145x1155x1 DB bench 35x20 35x15 Lying rolling tri extension 15x10x5 Freemotion cable pulldown 70x15 80x15x2 Face pull 60x15x3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted June 3, 2016 Author Share Posted June 3, 2016 6/3/16 Lower Front Squat barx3x2 70x3 95x3 115x3 add belt 135x2150x1 165x1 A 30 pound PR from last week, but obivously not 30 pounds stronger. This was the second time I did this lift and felt much more comfortable with it. I also wrapped straps around the bar and held them and that felt more comfortable than holding the bar steady with my hands. 25" Box jump 4 sets of 5 jumps Pullthrough 60x10 70x10x2 Side bend with plate 3 sets of 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted June 4, 2016 Author Share Posted June 4, 2016 6/4/16 Upper Close grip 45 degree incline bench barx5 65x3 85x3 105x3 125x2 135 145155 First time doing this lift. Did much more than what I thought I could do so happy with that. Flat DB bench 35x20x2 Cable stack extension with rope 70x10x2 60x10x2 Seated cable stack row with neutral V-grip 85x10x2 100x10x3 DB seated power clean 15x10x3 Leg raises 2 sets of 8 Torso is sore from yesterday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted June 13, 2016 Author Share Posted June 13, 2016 6/13/16 Lower So today I went with the intention of doing rack pulls. There is only one rack with guards on the side to do rack pulls with and a guy was squatting in the rack. He likes to max out so I knew it would be awhile so I changed it up. Ab warm up Sumo deadlift with shins at the power rings 135x3x2 155x3 175x3 195x2 Add belt 215x1 230x1245x1 box squat with body weight 4 sets of 20 Adduction machine (never used this) 30x12 50x12x3 My ankle has been bothering me and I'm taking action on it finally. Long story short but my tibia isn't fitting into my foot correctly. It may be from the compound fracture I had, or it could actually be from the two cases of staph infection I had in the area. Regardless, my two options are to have surgery to break my leg and put it back in place (this might not fix anything thougih) or get a special brace made that holds my leg in place. I'm going for the latter. The brace won't heal or fix anything, but it'll hold my leg in place when I wear it. This way if I walk aorund for 8 hours it will be held correctly, and then when I put on shoes to squat in I won't have the daily wear and tear of the ankle. Should have it in about 3 weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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