200, 300, 400, 500 - A quest for greatness

I'm on week 5 of the new program, just for reference...

Strength Indicators Day

Squats

Warmed up to 275, back down to 255 for 5 sets of 5 reps.  Ugh...tiring.

The last couple sets were actually better than the first few.  My infrequency of squatting is probably affecting my ability to find a good groove.

Also had some hip shifting and GM tendencies, but what else is new.  This represents another all time PR, though.

Dips

Me + 95 lbs for 5 sets of 5 reps.

Chins

Me + 75 lbs for 5 sets of 5 reps.  Probably also an all time PR in terms of sets of 5 across.
 
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(Dan Moore @ Oct. 27 2008,8:28)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">Nice log Mikey</div>
Danke, Dan.

How are you doing sir, and how's your own training going?
 
Shoulders/Traps/Arms

Press - oly shoes + belt

Warmed up to 140 for 5 sets of 3 reps. Tough.

Seated DB Curls

40s for 2 sets of 12

Skullcrushers - behind neck on incline bench

Saw some guy doing this on an incline bench, gave it a shot, and sure enough, I'm a huge fan.

70 for 2 sets of 12 reps.

Nautilus Nitro Preacher Curl

75 for 2 sets of 12 reps.

Nautilus Nitro Triceps Extension

120 for 2 sets of 12 reps.

Shrug Variations

Hammer Shrug Machine - 2 sets of 1 plate + 35 lbs per side for 12 reps.

Tried doing a set or two of 12 on a chest supported row, scap retractions. Felt awkward, the one at the gym I work at has really weirdly placed foot rests.

Then I tried doing scap depression/retraction/shoulder extension shrug...things on a chinup bar. One of the shrug variations in kelso's shrug book.

I liked this better, actually gave me wicked lat pumps.
 
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(mikeynov @ Oct. 28 2008,7:24)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">Skullcrushers - behind neck on incline bench

Saw some guy doing this on an incline bench, gave it a shot, and sure enough, I'm a huge fan.</div>
Would you give a bit more detail, please, how you do this? Is your head up on the bench, with arms behind your head, off the bench?
Or is your head down and the bar behind your head, nearly on the floor?
 
If it's anything like I used to do, it's a variation of overhead tri extensions with the 'advantage' that you aren't worrying about balancing with a pile of weight above your head. I used quite a steep incline; the bench takes your weight and you can focus on getting a great stretch in the tris. I used a db that was passed to me by my training partner. Now that I train alone and don't have fixed dbs I haven't figured out a way of doing these without getting in a pickle, so I'm doing the flat bench version with my EZ-bar.
 
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(TunnelRat @ Oct. 28 2008,8:56)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE"><div>
(mikeynov @ Oct. 28 2008,7:24)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">Skullcrushers - behind neck on incline bench

Saw some guy doing this on an incline bench, gave it a shot, and sure enough, I'm a huge fan.</div>
Would you give a bit more detail, please, how you do this? Is your head up on the bench, with arms behind your head, off the bench?
Or is your head down and the bar behind your head, nearly on the floor?</div>
Sure. Something like a standard 45 degree incline, using an EZ bar with a close-ish grip.

Path of the bar is such that it goes right behind my head into a decent stretch (actually touches the top of the bench), with upper arms in a fixed position (to avoid extending at the shoulder to have the lats help, as it were).

Make sense?
 
Pretty good day, today.

Legs

Deadlifts - oly shoes + loose belt on work set

Warmed all the way up to 355 for a set of 6.  Why six?  Because I felt like it! I also think that makes this an all time PR with the combo of oly shoes and a conventional stance.

Today I embraced the position that felt the most &quot;natural&quot; instead of trying to force my *** lower and back a little straighter.

Honestly, I feel a hell of a glute contraction going to my 'natural' position, so I take this as a good sign.

Hammer Linear Leg Press

Back on this thing, good times.

First set was 4 plates + 25 lbs per side for a set of 12.  Tiring.

Afterwards, I did 1/2 leg presses pausing momentarily at the bottom and halfway up.  This obviously requires quite a reduction in weight, but instead of feeling it more systemically as in heavy leg presses, my legs feel like they're on fire.

3 plates per side for these last two sets for 12 reps a piece.

Leg Curls

95 x 12,12,8.

Leg Extensions

85 x 12,12,12

Calf Raises on the Hammer Linear Leg Press

2 plates + 5 lbs per side for a set of 12/12, then a second set of 8/16.  Calves smoked.
 
Chest/Back

Barbell Bench

160 for 3 sets of 12.

Nautilus Nitro Pulldown

125 for 3 sets of 12.

Dumbbell Incline Bench

60s for 3 sets of 12. Very tough by the end.

Nautilus Nitro Row

105 for a set of 12 on the selectorized version, then 1 plate + 25 + 5 lbs per side for 2 sets of 12 reps on the plate loaded version.

Nautilus Nitro Fly

55 for 3 sets of 12.

Nautilus Nitro Pullover (elbows off pad)

1 set of 140 for 12, 1 set of 140 for 10, then backed down to 130 for the final set of 12.
 
Hard day, squats in particular were quite a grind.

Strength Indicators Day

Squats - oly shoes + loose belt

Warmups actually felt quite good, went all the way up to 285 for a single, then back down to 260 for 3 sets of 5.

All three of these sets were a bear, with the last one in particular being REALLY hard. Last rep of last set was totally GM'd and I lost extension. The usual hip shifting.

However, I did technically make all three sets of 5, which would represent an all time PR for 3 sets of 5 across.

Dips

These went alright, 3 sets of 5 @ me + 100 lbs.

Chins

These also went well enough, 3 sets of 5 @ me + 80 lbs.

High Rep Cooldown

Included these again as I only did 3 sets of 5 instead of 5 sets of 5 across.

Wide Stance Bottom Half Squats - me + bar (45 lbs) for a set of 35 reps. All the way down, momentary pause, half way up, momentary pause, repeat until crying.

Bottom Half Pushups - same logic as above, though in this case I only managed 25 reps with bodyweight.

Lat Pulldowns - 75 on the home station (tons of friction makes this way different than &quot;real&quot; lat pulldowns) for a set of 30 reps.
 
Looks like things are working well, based on the recent strength days. Especially the one on the 26th when you set PRs on multiple excercises for 5 sets of 5. It's a lot of hard work to do something like that.
 
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(Lifting N Tx @ Nov. 04 2008,1:26)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">Looks like things are working well, based on the recent strength days. Especially the one on the 26th when you set PRs on multiple excercises for 5 sets of 5. It's a lot of hard work to do something like that.</div>
Danke, sir.

I am digging the routine so far, but I am going to have to figure out ways to formally periodize things. Any suggestions by anyone would obviously be appreciated.
 
Shoulders/Traps/Arms

Press - oly shoes + belt

Warmed up to 155 for a single, back down to 142.5 for 5 sets of 3.  Getting pretty tough.

Hammer Shrugs + Midback Shrugs

Hammer Shrugs - 2 sets of 1 plate + 25 + 5 + 2.5 lbs per side for 12.

Nautilus Nitro Mid Row - 1 set of 80 x 12 just doing scap retractions, then a set of 80 x 20 doing just the top half (pull and scap retraction) of a chest supported row.

EZ Bar Curls

90 x 12, 10

Incline Skullcrushers Behind Head

80 x 9.5, 70 x 15

Nautilus Nitro Preacher Curl

80 x 12, 12

Nautilus Nitro Triceps

125 x 12,12
 
Lower Body

Deadlifts - oly shoes + loose belt

Warmed all the way up to 365 for a set of 5.  In oly shoes, this is an all time PR, and it ties an all time PR in flat shoes.  Probably stricter form, at that.

Hammer Linear Leg Press

1 set of 4 plates + 35 lbs per side for 12 reps.  2 followup sets of 3 plates + 10 lbs per side for 12 bottom half reps (pause at the very bottom, half way up, pause, repeat).

Leg Curls

10 x 12,12,~7

Leg Extensions

90 x 12,12,12

Calf Raises

Calf Raises on Hammer Linear Leg Press - 2 plates + 10 lbs per side for a set of 12/15.

Calf Raises on some Life Fitness Machine - 170 x 10/13.
 
Chest/Back

Bench

I warmed all the way up to 245 for a paused single because I notice this felt oddly light.

I tried repping out 225, just because, and managed 5 reps. Last rep was hard, but not a &quot;failure&quot; rep.

Cool, this puts my ability to rep out bench pretty close to as good as it's ever been, and I haven't even practiced heavy bench lately.

2 sets of 165 for 12 afterwards.

Wide Grip Lat Pulldowns

125 x 12,12,12.

Dumbbell Incline Bench

Regular bench had fatigued me pretty good at this point, so I only managed 12, 10, and ~almost 11 (failed the 11th) with 65's afterwards.

Seated Cable Rows

110 x 12,12,12

Paramount Fly Machine

60 x 12, 50 x 12,12

Life Fitness Pulldown

Lats were pretty fried by this point, so chose only 90 for 3 sets of 12. Concentrated on depressing and retracting my scapulae on every rep, got nice lat pumps.
 
I am 29 years young today...

I think I may deload next week as I hit some pretty good numbers the past week and have completed 6 full weeks of the new program.
 
Happy Birthday, Mike.

Just curious ... How come you aren't experimenting with any of the RP/Cluster rep stuff that we discussed at such great length on Lyle's site?
 
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(leegee38 @ Nov. 07 2008,6:18)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">Happy Birthday, Mike.

Just curious ... How come you aren't experimenting with any of the RP/Cluster rep stuff that we discussed at such great length on Lyle's site?</div>
I think the modified rest pause stuff is extremely promising, but I have wanted to take a crack at &quot;conventional&quot; bodybuilding methods at some point for a very long time, hence what I'm doing now.
 
Hmm...I seem to have found a way to incorporate enough strength work into my bodybuffing template to make me happy. Bodybuffing it is!
 
Day 1 of a new cycle of my bodybuffing routine. The only real change is that there is a bit more strength focus. Deadlifts have also been put on the full body day (formerly called strength indicators day, but since I have indicators two days per week, full body seems a better description).

Full Body

Bench

Warmed up to 3 sets of 5 @ 200, first reps paused.

Squats - oly shoes + loose belt on work sets

Warmed up to 245 for a single, back down to 225 for 3 sets of 5. I felt my glutes really working today, which I take as a good sign.

Deadlifts

I warmed up to 280 for a set of 8 in oly shoes, then did another set of 8 in flat shoes. I actually prefer the flat shoes.

Also worth noting that I ditched the straps and alternated grips between sets. It didn't take me long to get used to this again.

Chins

Warmed up to me + 55 for a set of 5, then me + 60 for 2 more sets of 5. I realized my intended weight was 60, not 55, hence upping it slightly for the latter two sets
tounge.gif


Leg Extensions

90 x 12/15, 12/15

I.e. 12 full reps, 15 half reps afterwards. I get a much, much better burn in my quads doing it this way, as the strength curve of this exercise limits you from doing full reps way before ~75% of the ROM is particularly fatigued.

Calf Raises

Calf Raises in Nautilus Nitro Leg Press - 220 x 12/15

Seated Calf Raises - 70 x 10/12. Too heavy, I didn't realize how long the lever was between the knee pads and where the weights were.
 
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