Developing The Crushing And Healing Hand

[DoctorOfCrush]

Just now, John Knowlton said:

supper cool 

nice work

Thanks, John!

[DoctorOfCrush]

Workout 3/19/24:
Deadlift (double overhand w/ straps): 162.5kg / 358lb x 4 singles | AMRAP set of 10

This is all I did last night. In-and-out in about a half hour. I decided to keep it short so I could play/read/etc. with my girls. Tonight I may do some rolling handle work that I was supposed to do last night. 

I'm into the last 3 weeks of this long 19-week program I've been doing, so it is down to singles followed by an AMRAP for all the movements. Next week's weight will be 177.5kg / 391lb.  I would love to hit it for 8 because that would set me up for a jump to 190kg the following week, but 8 reps may be a stretch.  I'm certainly going to push for it. I previously hit 170 for 9, so I think it could be close.

[DoctorOfCrush]

 

[sid_arnes]

Solid set of 10 there. 8 next week.

[DoctorOfCrush]

5 hours ago, sid_arnes said:

Solid set of 10 there. 8 next week.

Thanks! I hope you're right!

[DoctorOfCrush]

Workout 3/20/24:
Rolling Thunder: 52.5kg x 3 sets of 8*/side  | 47.5 x 3 sets of 8/side  | 42.5 x 3 sets of 8/side 

I had a tiny window after work where my wife and the girls ran some errands, so I capitalized and immediately got out to the gym when I got home from work to knock out the rolling handle I didn't do last night. I only got 7 on the third set of 8 @ 52.5 on the right. 

[John Knowlton]

NICE WORK ON THE DEADLIFTS

[DoctorOfCrush]

20 minutes ago, John Knowlton said:

NICE WORK ON THE DEADLIFTS

Thanks, John! A little bit stronger everyday. 

[DoctorOfCrush]

Workout 3/21/24:
Overhead press: 62.5kg / 138lb x 4 singles | 1 set of 8
Dumbbell 1.5 bench press: 70lb x 4, 4, 4, 4 (+4 straight reps)
Face Pulls: 20kg x 10, 12, 12
Tricep extension, cable, straight bar: 30kg x 12, 12, 10

My forearms are really feeling the volume work from last night, so I gave them a break and didn't do the Fat Gripz curls today. Kept it short because I woke up at 4:10 this AM so I was tired, and I also had to take my oldest to gymnastics.

I'm really hoping that adding a  bit more volume next cycle as well as incorporating bench press will help my overhead press. It feels really stagnant right now. It's like I can reliably predict how many reps I will get at a particular weight by just reverse engineering from an estimated 77-78kg 1RM, and it's been that way for weeks now. The plan next cycle is to make my gripper day the day that I do bench press as well as overhead press accessory work. 

[DoctorOfCrush]

Workout 3/23/24:
Squat: 122.5kg / 270lb x 4 singles | set of 4

Today was weird. My positioning felt great in my squats. I felt like I was really able to maintain my back position really well and open up my hips in the bottom. It was 'clicking.' But the top end strength just wasn't there. I was hoping to at least match my previous of 6 at this weight, but it wasn't happening. I think this week has wiped me out because I've been slammed at work which has meant going in early and staying late and having short, restless sleep at night. I'm off service next week, so I hope to catch up on both work and sleep/recovery. 

I was planning on doing quite a bit more, but as soon as I finished my top set, my 2 1/2 year old woke up crying from her nap, and my wife was out running errands. I couldn't get her back to sleep, so that was the workout ender unfortunately. 

Grippers tomorrow. My forearms are actually still sore from rolling handle volume all the way back on Wednesday, so I'm slightly worried about how it will go. . . 

Edited March 23 by DoctorOfCrush

[DoctorOfCrush]

Workout 3/24/24:
A. Grippers: All PK reps
     Right: 132 S. Fe x 3 singles | 126 GHP6 x 3 doubles | 121 IM2.5 x 4, 4, 3 | 109 GHP5 x10
     Left: 121 IM2.5 x 3 singles; 117 S. Pt x 3 doubles; 109 GHP5 x 3, 3, 4 | 96 S. Au x10 

B1. Bench Press: 68.5kg / 151lb x 4 sets of 6 | 1 set of 17
B2. Tempo Overhead Press: 45kg x 4, 47kg x 3 sets of 4

Wrist Curls (cable, straight bar): 30kg x 25, 21
Reverse Wrist Formulator: 3.75kg x 30, 26, 26
stretching

As expected, my top-end strength wasn't quite there on grippers (I was still a little sore from Rolling Thunder volume from Wednesday!), but I was closer to full power than I thought I would be. Right hand felt pretty good. I didn't expect to hit sets of 4 at 121, but the triple felt strong, so I just added the rep and hit it. I may not have quite hit the second reps at 117 on the left. There may have been a paper thin gap, but it was hard to tell. 

I decided not to wait until the next cycle to start up bench press. I had a feeling that I'm going to hit some big AMRAPs starting out, and I was right. The estimated 1RM from that last set is 123kg (yeah right!). It's a pretty big jump up to 80kg next week because of that top set. We'll see how that goes. 

I also added the tempo OHP for more pressing volume. Hopefully both of these movements will shake the cobwebs off of my stagnant OHP. I did roughly 2-3 seconds up, pause at the top, 2-3 seconds down, pause at the bottom. Pretty tough even with light weight!

I'm still experimenting with my wrist curl setup.  That's why I only did 2 sets: just got annoyed.  I have to revert back to the EZ bar curls. 

[DoctorOfCrush]

Workout 3/26/24:
Deadlift (double overhand w/ straps): 177.5kg / 391lb x 1, 1, 7
A. Tempo Squats (no sleeves, no belt): 60kg x 4, 4 | 70kg x 4, 4
B. Rolling Thunder: 53.75kg x 7/hand | 52.5kg x 8/hand | 50kg x 3 sets of 8/hand | 45kg x 3 sets of 8/hand

Top deadlift set means 187.5kg / 413lb x 1+ for next week. 

Today I was testing the waters with the tempo squats, and I kept it super light. Basically keeping a constant slow speed down and back up. These are harder to me than pause squats because even though I'm not using the stretch reflex in either one, at least I can drive hard and fast out of the hole on the pause squats to get past the sticking point.  That's not the case with these. I have to consciously go slow out of the hole and through the sticking point, and it's actually really tough even at these low weights. 

My plan going forward with the RT is to bump the weight up modestly for the top set of 8 (on the order of 1-1.5kg) then do the same for the 6 (3/3) drop sets. Today it didn't quite pan out as I couldn't get the last rep, but we'll see how it goes next week. I'll go for 53.5. If that doesn't work, then I'll have to re-assess. 

 

 

[John Knowlton]

NICE WORKOUT, KILLER DEADLIFTS, 413LB Deadlift no worries you got it.

we were watching your video and us here at my gym think you should get 3 to 5 reps with 413. 

[DoctorOfCrush]

1 hour ago, John Knowlton said:

NICE WORKOUT, KILLER DEADLIFTS, 413LB Deadlift no worries you got it.

we were watching your video and us here at my gym think you should get 3 to 5 reps with 413. 

Thanks, John. I hope you’re right. Seeing as I hit 402 for 5, I was hoping to hit 413 for 4-5 like you said. 
 

Also, I don’t really think about people actually watching my videos (they’re mostly a way for me to track my progress), let alone multiple people watching and discussing haha. 

[DoctorOfCrush]

Workout 3/29/24:
Overhead press: 67.5kg x 1, 1, 6
A. Dumbbell 1.5 Bench Press: 75lb/hand x 4, 4, 4 (+4 straight reps)
B. Fat Gripz Dumbbell Curls: 3 sets of 10/side
A. Seated overhead press: 40kg x 5 | 45kg x 5, 5
B. Face pull (cable): 20kg x 3 sets of 12
Tricep pushdown (cable, straight bar): 30kg x 3 sets of 12

Another press workout, another identical top set. Like I've said previously, I look forward to increasing pressing volume next cycle and seeing some progress. 

 

[DoctorOfCrush]

Workout 3/30/24:
Squat: 127.5kg / 281lb x 3 singles
SLDL: 135kg / 298lb x 3 sets of 4

Squat wasn't happening on this day. The weight just felt heavy on my back. That's 2 meh weeks in a row. Not sure how much my upper back fatigue from the previous day played a role. I look forward to mixing things up next cycle, which I plan on writing about in my post-mesocycle debrief. 

I was supposed to do grippers today (3/31/24), but between having a bruised right palm from last week and Easter festivities, it didn't really work out. I may try again tomorrow or just take the week as an off week. 

[DoctorOfCrush]

Mesocycle Debrief

I'm not technically done, but I wanted to document some things that I learned from this mesocycle for posterity. I don't really expect anyone to read this, so congrats if you make it through ha!

For this mesocycle, I did a bastardized/derivative form of Alex Bromley's Bullmastiff, which is a 19-week, 4 day/week program. I didn't do the bench press because I didn't have safeties until recently. On the fourth day, I did grippers and forearm work instead. This was the longest mesocycle I have ever attempted, and while I did not follow it to a T, I at least saw it through to the end. In fact, because I was de-conditioned coming off of boards, I ran the first 3-week sub cycle/wave twice for a total of 22 weeks. 

Things I feel I did well:
- For the most part (I think apart from 2-3 workouts across the entire cycle), I completed the main lift prescribed work, which included the squat, deadlift, and overhead press work. I never missed a prescribed rep and typically put legit effort into the AMRAP sets.  

- I followed and completed the accessory work on the press day as well as the developmental deadlift work, which I chose as stiff legged deadlift. Again, apart from max a handful of workouts, I completed this work appropriately. 

Things I feel I did not do well:
- I did not do a great job with leg or back accessory work. I started out strong with doing belt squats, but the cumbersome setup led me to eventually drop it. I was never consistent with some of the other work, like Bulgarian split squats or dumbbell rows. While not doing the back accessory work had less of an effect on my overall progress, I think that skimping on the leg accessories was one of the biggest things that held me back. I simply did not make it a priority, and it shows in the outcomes. 

Things I learned:
- My deadlift is greatly assisted by doing SLDL. One thing that would make me uncomfortable with heavy deadlifts was when my hips would go up first. I would feel like my hips would shoot up and throw me way out of position, but in watching videos, it was not as drastic as I thought. Doing SLDL and purposely putting myself into this disadvantaged position not only made me stronger but also helped me mentally and proprioceptively understand where I was in my positioning and make me more comfortable with what turn out to be very slight differences at higher weights. 

- I need more squatting and pressing volume to make a difference, and I need it to be more deliberately programmed. I need to do both at least twice a week, and if it is listed as just suggested accessory work with suggested RPE/RIR and rep ranges, I will likely be inconsistent or find a reason to not do it. That's on me. 

- My body and schedule thrive on 4 days/week. It seems to be the right mix of stress and recovery for me. 

Progress (prior to the final week):
- Deadlift saw the biggest jump. My training max that I used for the cycle was 180kg / 397lb, but my true max ever was 175kg x2. As of now, I hit 182.5kg x 5, and I hope to hit 187.5kg / 413lb x4 this coming week. That would change my estimated 1RM from 180kg --> 205kg (397lb --> 452lb) and the actual heaviest weight I have ever picked up for any set from 175kg / 386lb --> 187.5kg / 413lb. 

- Squat did not change much at all. I have to keep in mind that when I started back in November there is simply no way that I was even close to the training max of 135kg / 298lb that I used as an input between de-conditioning and right knee pain/issues. So I feel that I definitely made progress, but I just have no way at actually tracking it. I don't blame the program on this one. I truly believe that I could have made a lot more progress if I had focused on doing my leg accessories and developmental squat stuff, but I just didn't prioritize it. I ended up favoring/focusing on the things I am inclined to be good at, which is deadlift/back strength, and it shows. 

- Press also did not change much. Again, I blame a lack of volume on this front because I actually did the accessory work pretty closely (mostly because it's the fun body-building arm work). This is also my fault, though, because I didn't add the second press day volume into my gripping day which I probably could have done. 

- With grippers, I went from a deep set max of 144 to a deep set max of 150, so that's progress. The only problem is that I changed things up enough to where I cannot confidently point to the reason I made the progress. 

Plans moving forward:
- I really liked the Bullmastiff program, and I think it could have served me even better if I could have followed it more closely, especially in the realm of leg/squat accessory. I thought about running it again and adding in the bench press day to my gripper day (now that I have safeties), but I wouldn't want to have to commit myself to another 19 weeks while running the risk of falling off the wagon here or there and finding myself in the same place down the line. 

- I think I will run the 6-week Candito plan I ran previously, but with added bench press and overhead press work. This program forces me to focus more on my squat work with prescribed work twice per week. I feel like I made really good progress on it previously, and the shorter cycle allows me to reassess on a more frequent basis. I plan on keeping the press accessory work from Bullmastiff in some fashion on the OHP day while I incorporate bench press and developmental OHP on my gripper day.

- I think the schedule will look something like this:
     - Sunday: Grippers, Bench press, OHP developmental work, forearms
     - Tuesday: Squat and deadlift, Rolling Thunder, leg accessory work
     - Thursday: OHP, bench press developmental work
     - Saturday: Squat and deadlift, back accessory work (SLDL)

- Goals:
     - I still want a 300lb, ATG squat. I can definitely get that and then some. I just have to prioritize it. 
     - I am fine with keeping my deadlift where it is if it means boosting my squat by prioritizing it, but increasing the deadlift, even marginally so, as well would be nice. I could see myself pushing for 5 hundo later on. 
     - I am pushing for a legit MMS set at 160 for the eventual Mash Monster certification, so my focus will be on what I call PK reps from now on to dominate the MMS set. I think I'll try to periodize and peak the grippers with the rest of the program. Still TBD on how that will work. 
     - For the sake of simplicity, I am going to prioritize Rolling Thunder for the time being (as opposed to alternating weeks with Flask work as I had been doing). I'll set up a scheme to periodize this as week with the six week program. My current max is 62.5kg, so that is still way off of 90kg for CTD. I may retest before my next cycle. 
     - I don't have a specific goal for bench or overhead press, but I am interested to see what happens to both as i begin to actually incorporate bench press in a serious way for the first time ever. 

[TrenGrip]

6 minutes ago, DoctorOfCrush said:

Mesocycle Debrief

I'm not technically done, but I wanted to document some things that I learned from this mesocycle for posterity. I don't really expect anyone to read this, so congrats if you make it through ha!

For this mesocycle, I did a bastardized/derivative form of Alex Bromley's Bullmastiff, which is a 19-week, 4 day/week program. I didn't do the bench press because I didn't have safeties until recently. On the fourth day, I did grippers and forearm work instead. This was the longest mesocycle I have ever attempted, and while I did not follow it to a T, I at least saw it through to the end. In fact, because I was de-conditioned coming off of boards, I ran the first 3-week sub cycle/wave twice for a total of 22 weeks. 

Things I feel I did well:
- For the most part (I think apart from 2-3 workouts across the entire cycle), I completed the main lift prescribed work, which included the squat, deadlift, and overhead press work. I never missed a prescribed rep and typically put legit effort into the AMRAP sets.  

- I followed and completed the accessory work on the press day as well as the developmental deadlift work, which I chose as stiff legged deadlift. Again, apart from max a handful of workouts, I completed this work appropriately. 

Things I feel I did not do well:
- I did not do a great job with leg or back accessory work. I started out strong with doing belt squats, but the cumbersome setup led me to eventually drop it. I was never consistent with some of the other work, like Bulgarian split squats or dumbbell rows. While not doing the back accessory work had less of an effect on my overall progress, I think that skimping on the leg accessories was one of the biggest things that held me back. I simply did not make it a priority, and it shows in the outcomes. 

Things I learned:
- My deadlift is greatly assisted by doing SLDL. One thing that would make me uncomfortable with heavy deadlifts was when my hips would go up first. I would feel like my hips would shoot up and throw me way out of position, but in watching videos, it was not as drastic as I thought. Doing SLDL and purposely putting myself into this disadvantaged position not only made me stronger but also helped me mentally and proprioceptively understand where I was in my positioning and make me more comfortable with what turn out to be very slight differences at higher weights. 

- I need more squatting and pressing volume to make a difference, and I need it to be more deliberately programmed. I need to do both at least twice a week, and if it is listed as just suggested accessory work with suggested RPE/RIR and rep ranges, I will likely be inconsistent or find a reason to not do it. That's on me. 

- My body and schedule thrive on 4 days/week. It seems to be the right mix of stress and recovery for me. 

Progress (prior to the final week):
- Deadlift saw the biggest jump. My training max that I used for the cycle was 180kg / 397lb, but my true max ever was 175kg x2. As of now, I hit 182.5kg x 5, and I hope to hit 187.5kg / 413lb x4 this coming week. That would change my estimated 1RM from 180kg --> 205kg (397lb --> 452lb) and the actual heaviest weight I have ever picked up for any set from 175kg / 386lb --> 187.5kg / 413lb. 

- Squat did not change much at all. I have to keep in mind that when I started back in November there is simply no way that I was even close to the training max of 135kg / 298lb that I used as an input between de-conditioning and right knee pain/issues. So I feel that I definitely made progress, but I just have no way at actually tracking it. I don't blame the program on this one. I truly believe that I could have made a lot more progress if I had focused on doing my leg accessories and developmental squat stuff, but I just didn't prioritize it. I ended up favoring/focusing on the things I am inclined to be good at, which is deadlift/back strength, and it shows. 

- Press also did not change much. Again, I blame a lack of volume on this front because I actually did the accessory work pretty closely (mostly because it's the fun body-building arm work). This is also my fault, though, because I didn't add the second press day volume into my gripping day which I probably could have done. 

- With grippers, I went from a deep set max of 144 to a deep set max of 150, so that's progress. The only problem is that I changed things up enough to where I cannot confidently point to the reason I made the progress. 

Plans moving forward:
- I really liked the Bullmastiff program, and I think it could have served me even better if I could have followed it more closely, especially in the realm of leg/squat accessory. I thought about running it again and adding in the bench press day to my gripper day (now that I have safeties), but I wouldn't want to have to commit myself to another 19 weeks while running the risk of falling off the wagon here or there and finding myself in the same place down the line. 

- I think I will run the 6-week Candito plan I ran previously, but with added bench press and overhead press work. This program forces me to focus more on my squat work with prescribed work twice per week. I feel like I made really good progress on it previously, and the shorter cycle allows me to reassess on a more frequent basis. I plan on keeping the press accessory work from Bullmastiff in some fashion on the OHP day while I incorporate bench press and developmental OHP on my gripper day.

- I think the schedule will look something like this:
     - Sunday: Grippers, Bench press, OHP developmental work, forearms
     - Tuesday: Squat and deadlift, Rolling Thunder, leg accessory work
     - Thursday: OHP, bench press developmental work
     - Saturday: Squat and deadlift, back accessory work (SLDL)

- Goals:
     - I still want a 300lb, ATG squat. I can definitely get that and then some. I just have to prioritize it. 
     - I am fine with keeping my deadlift where it is if it means boosting my squat by prioritizing it, but increasing the deadlift, even marginally so, as well would be nice. I could see myself pushing for 5 hundo later on. 
     - I am pushing for a legit MMS set at 160 for the eventual Mash Monster certification, so my focus will be on what I call PK reps from now on to dominate the MMS set. I think I'll try to periodize and peak the grippers with the rest of the program. Still TBD on how that will work. 
     - For the sake of simplicity, I am going to prioritize Rolling Thunder for the time being (as opposed to alternating weeks with Flask work as I had been doing). I'll set up a scheme to periodize this as week with the six week program. My current max is 62.5kg, so that is still way off of 90kg for CTD. I may retest before my next cycle. 
     - I don't have a specific goal for bench or overhead press, but I am interested to see what happens to both as i begin to actually incorporate bench press in a serious way for the first time ever. 

hey!! im a powerlifter and coach. I have a program i wrote recently that i think you would enjoy and be able to work around with your grip training. If ur interested shoot a dm (this is all free, not tryna charge you for anything)

[DoctorOfCrush]

Workout 4/2/24:
Deadlift (double overhand w/ straps): 
60kg x10
100 x5
140 x3
150
160
170
180
187.5kg / 413lb x5

Bar unload: 1 single at 187.5kg 

Booyah! I hit my first ever double BW deadlift (I was ~205lb this AM). I did not think that I would hit 5 considering I did 5 at 182.5kg, but I was pleasantly surprised. The estimated 1RM from that set is 211 / 465, though I don't think I would be all that close to that considering I don't do dead stop reps. 

I legit bruised my right palm, probably on grippers, so I didn't do Rolling Thunder afterwards. I tried even a super light gripper reps (like RGC 60), and it hurt. It's going to take some rest and rehab work. Maybe some contrast baths. 

 

[John Knowlton]

KILLER DEADLIFTS

[DoctorOfCrush]

23 minutes ago, John Knowlton said:

KILLER DEADLIFTS

Thanks, John! Looks like y’all were right about 5 reps. 

[DoctorOfCrush]

Just an update. I probably won't be working out the next few days.  I got some kind of febrile illness yesterday that knocked me out. Fever, chills, sweats, cough, sore throat, the whole shabang. I was flu and COVID negative though. Probably just a random virus.  My Oura ring that monitors things like HRV, resting HR, and body temp dropped my overall "readiness" from 87 to 38, which is the lowest it has been since October of last year (I had the flu then and it was 43). Going to take a couple days off of the gym to recover. Already feeling a bit better with some OTC stuff. I was just glad it didn't strike before I got my deadlifts out of the way for the week. 

[John Knowlton]

Get well soon 

[DoctorOfCrush]

1 hour ago, John Knowlton said:

Get well soon 

Thanks, John. Thankfully it was pretty short-lived, and only the congestion is lingering. Still trying to take it bit easier. 

[DoctorOfCrush]

Feeling better. 

Back to my roots for my de-load week before I start my next mesocycle. 

Workout 4/8/24:

Simple and Sinister: 
Workout: 100 x 1-arm KB swings (50/arm) then 10 Turkish get-ups (5/arm)
Weight: 32kg / 70lb / 2 pood 
Time: 23:17
stretching

Felt good to get back to this for the first time in a long time. Just like riding a bike. My favorite way to do this workout and similar training is to gauge my rests by heart rate recovery. For the swings, I wait until my HR gets back down to 120 bpm or lower then it's time for the next set. For the TGU, I use 130 bpm for the threshold. I do the swings in sets of 20 (10/10) and the TGUs in sets of 2 (1/1). TGUs notoriously flare up my medial elbow, so I made sure to do some stretching afterward. 

I'll try to do this or something similar every day this week.