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AB's Happy Smiley Thoughts journal

anotherbutters

anotherbutters

New member
Ok, no more depressing posts from me about my leg/back being injured. I'm officially fixed and these are now officially happy times :D

This is a 6 week HST journal that I'm going to use to take me from practically just the bar, back up to as close to my PRs as I can get. This week will be minimal weights, since I haven't squatted, deadlifted, OHP'd or rowed for about 4 months and I want to be 100% sure I'm good to go. I'll be following the 5x5 exercise selection, but with HST reps:

Mon: squat, row, bench
Wed: front squat, dead, OHP, chins
Fri: squat, row, bench

I'm trying rows before bench to see if I can pull them up a bit (pun intended :)). I'll increase weights from workout to workout and increase reps from week to week. Reps: 15, 12, 10, 8, 5, 3. I'll do back-off sets with the 3's. I'm not sure how the 5x5 and HST combination will work, so comments and suggestions are welcome. I'll be doing core stability work throughout.

I could do with cutting a little, but I'm not going to starve myself, so if my bodyweight stays the same and I recomp a little, then that's fine by me. Whatever, once I'm back up to PRs, I'm bulking.

Today's workout:

Week 1, Monday: 15's

Bodyweight: 79kg/174lb

1. Squat (kg) - yay, squats!
(warmup: bar x 2 x 10)
30 x 15
30 x 15

2. Row (kg)
bar x 15
bar x 15

3. Bench (kg)
(warmup: bar x 10)
35 x 15
35 x 15

Negligible weights, I know, but this is a test. My back feels 110%. This is it, I'm back! I'll post the core work once I've done it.
 
I'm thinking this may be way too easy - you could probably drop the fronts and deads and do everything M/W/F, 'cause as it is, that ain't a lot of work.

You could do more sets to compensate. Just my thoughts though.
 
I was wondering about the volume too. I hadn't put a great deal of thought into it to be honest. I wanted to use the 5x5 exercises to get me used to them prior to running another SF 5x5, and I wanted to use HST because it's a know quantity in terms of ramping weights up from low to high.

I'd really like to keep the deads, although they do kind of feel in the way. Maybe I should drop them and not try to do everything at once, even though I'm starting light.

Maybe squat, OHP, row, bench would be better, with chins as accessory.
 
So glad to see you getting back into lifting 110%. I hope your back stays strong so you can have a really good run and make up for the lost time.
 
I've always found that GMs go nicely with fronts. The combination seemed to strengthen up my back and core quite a bit when I was doing them just after the Korte last year.

Congrats. It's great to see you back on the road.
 
Thanks asdf.

G5, thinking about it, I'm not sure what to do now. One of the reasons for the very light weight is to re-learn the groove, so very light 15's and 10's for deads might be beneficial for that purpose. Kind of like accessory deads :)

Hmm, I've just seen BW's post. I forgot about GMs. Excellent idea, thanks! I'm like a kid in a candy store :)

I was going to go to 3x12 next week on my original plan, so volume wasn't necessarily going to be low. I'll have to have a think.

Edit: An A-B-A (week 1), B-A-B (week 2) routine will keep the frequency of each exercise up. I could use GMs instead of deads and worry about re-learning deads later.

A: squat, row, bench
B: front squat, GM, OHP, chins

With enough sets/reps to give me decent volume. Yes?
 
Congratulations on the healing AB, hope you do well in this "warmup" and then it's on to bigger and better things (SF 5x5). I am having a little injury trouble, mostly with my knees being a bit achy, but I hope to get back into things in a couple of weeks. I look forward to seeing how this workout goes for you so that when I'm finally ready to go I might try the same thing. Good luck!
 
After the false starts in the old journal, I'd decided to reserve congratulations for your progress on the core work until I saw "squats" in a workout entry, so now I can say it. Congrats!

Nice title. Like I've said before, you're approaching Guinness in terms of wordplay, and now you can get started catching him on squats as well. ;)
 
Good to see you're all healed up. I'll add my 2 cents on high rep deads. I think unless you're training for a big 15-rep dead or 20-rep dead or unless you've got a strongman contest with dead for reps, then you're better with 5's.....the high reps won't hammer in a groove, because you'll get winded and then just get sloppy and pick up bad habbits. PLUS, training reps like that builds endurance on the lift, but has no carryover to a strength range.

Like Guiness said, I'd rather increase my sets with light weight to get the work in rather than do 12-15 rep sets.

What are your long-term goals?.......SF 5x5 is as basic as basic gets, in my opinion, you don't need a prep phase. As long as you're not injured, why not do the MWF version and add sets and weight every workout, then when you slow down, do the common "SF 5x5". I think you'll get where you want to get a lot faster and with a lot less worrying and thinking.
 
Indeed, crazy high reps with deads are probably of low benefit. You might consider dimels or pullthroughs, either of which could reasonably be done for highish reps and make good assistance exercises to the GMs.
 
BiggT said:
Good to see you're all healed up. I'll add my 2 cents on high rep deads. I think unless you're training for a big 15-rep dead or 20-rep dead or unless you've got a strongman contest with dead for reps, then you're better with 5's.....the high reps won't hammer in a groove, because you'll get winded and then just get sloppy and pick up bad habbits. PLUS, training reps like that builds endurance on the lift, but has no carryover to a strength range.

Like Guiness said, I'd rather increase my sets with light weight to get the work in rather than do 12-15 rep sets.

What are your long-term goals?.......SF 5x5 is as basic as basic gets, in my opinion, you don't need a prep phase. As long as you're not injured, why not do the MWF version and add sets and weight every workout, then when you slow down, do the common "SF 5x5". I think you'll get where you want to get a lot faster and with a lot less worrying and thinking.
Click to expand...
like he (& G5) said about high rep deads.... i actually use low weight high rep deads as a cardio workout. it just gets you too winded to be able to DL even close to medium weights and have strength gains.
 
Thanks everyone.

biggt - long term goals are strength and size. Nothing complicated. I thought about Rippetoe's beginner program too, but I thought it might be best to get back to my PR weights slowly. Maybe not. The injury was a pinched nerve caused (directly or indirectly) by a weak core and a knot in my glute. That caused pain in my back at certain angles, and in one of my hamstrings. So basically, it wasn't actually a bad back/hamstring and I have no remaining symptoms.

To be honest, I can't wait to ramp the weights up and I'm sure I'll be bored in the next 3-4 weeks of HST. I'm taking this first week easy, whatever I do.

I'm going with front squats, GMs, OHP and chins tomorrow. Who wants to see the Rippetoe program from next week? ;)
 
blut wump's idea of Dimmels is a good thought- it's seems to satisfy your need for high reps with a useful focus. Also, it's helpful for both your squats and your deadlift.
 
Thanks. I don't really have a need for high reps, I was just trying to keep the intensity down whilst I made sure I've healed, before working back up to PR weights. HST seemed to be a good match. I'm leaning towards the Rippetoe beginner program now.

I got home and realised I still have an appointment with the chiro tonight, booked 3 weeks ago when I was still hobbling round. I didn't want to be a git and cancel it at the last minute, so I went along and went through the motions. I told him I'll call him when I need him next - no more chiro and no more physio for me!

But now that I've been, I want to let the joints settle rather than work out on them, so I'll do tonight's workout tomorrow.

I had a quick read on the Dimels this morning and couldn't distinguish them from RDLs. I'll have another read tonight. Thanks BW.
 
They are very similar to RDL except that they are meant to be done for high reps. As you come up you strongly thrust your hips into the bar akin to a deadlift. Going down you break at the hips rather than bending over. Run them for 15-20 reps at a goodly pace.
 
Explosive is the key word. You're only using at or near 30% of your deadlift max. so you get to show the bar who's boss. As blut said, lead with your glutes as you would with a GM and keep everything tight to keep tension on your working muscle.
 
Ugh, glute/ham/back problems are the bane of my existence so you have my condolences.. good to see the problem's healed and you'll be back to full strength in a month or so at most
 
Tweakle said:
...and you'll be back to full strength in a month or so at most
Click to expand...

That's only 'cause he was weak as shit to begin with.

Much love AB, that's just meant as motivation. Pansy.
 
Oh no, my first non-Happy Smiley Thought! :FRlol: I might lack in strength, but not in motivation.

I'll give the Dimels a go when I work out tonight.

Thanks for stopping by Tweakle!
 
Speaking of Dimels, I too can't figure out the diff between these and RDL's, except for the speed and the reps.

What, so now on WSB DE bench day you should be doing Dimel bench press? ;)

Anyway, let us know how you like them. I'm sure you will. :biggrin:
 
Week 1, Thursday

Bodyweight: 78.5kg/173lb

1. Front squat (kg)
(warmup: bar x 10)
30 x 15
35 x 15
35 x 15

Absolutely knackering - did someone say 'conditioning'? I hate such high reps.

2. Dimels (kg)
35 x 15
45 x 10

I was sitting back with these and getting the bar to the bottom of the knee, but they just felt awkward. I was trying to use the glutes and do them with some speed, but I just didn't 'get' them. I thought I'd try some GMs instead...

3. GMs
bar x 15

...but I didn't like these either. When you get near parallel, how do you stop the bar rolling up your neck? I could definitely feel my hammies after doing these though! I figured I'd try some SLDLs...

4. SLDL (kg)
40 x 5
50 x 5
60 x 5
70 x 5
80 x 5

This just clicked and I felt at home - 5x5 :)

5. Military Press (kg)
bar x 5
25 x 5
30 x 5
35 x 5
37 x 5

Moderately hard at the end, but I'll soon get better (5RM is 47kg).

6. Chins
BW x 5
BW x 5
BW x 5
BW x 4
BW x 3

I've always been bad at chins, but I had a suspicion I'd do ok since I've lost a little weight - the above is practically a PR, lol. When I get my conditioning back, I might even enjoy doing these.

I finished off with some core work and stretches.

I've come to realise I really don't like the 15 rep start from HST. I think I'll scrap the HST idea and just take the weights as they come, pushing on on the Rippetone beginner program for a while. It's a good job I didn't name my journal 'AB's HST journal' ;)
 
anotherbutters said:
Week 1, Thursday

Bodyweight: 78.5kg/173lb

1. Front squat (kg)
(warmup: bar x 10)
30 x 15
35 x 15
35 x 15

Absolutely knackering - did someone say 'conditioning'? I hate such high reps.

2. Dimels (kg)
35 x 15
45 x 10

I was sitting back with these and getting the bar to the bottom of the knee, but they just felt awkward. I was trying to use the glutes and do them with some speed, but I just didn't 'get' them. I thought I'd try some GMs instead...

3. GMs
bar x 15

...but I didn't like these either. When you get near parallel, how do you stop the bar rolling up your neck? I could definitely feel my hammies after doing these though! I figured I'd try some SLDLs...

4. SLDL (kg)
40 x 5
50 x 5
60 x 5
70 x 5
80 x 5

This just clicked and I felt at home - 5x5 :)

5. Military Press (kg)
bar x 5
25 x 5
30 x 5
35 x 5
37 x 5

Moderately hard at the end, but I'll soon get better (5RM is 47kg).

6. Chins
BW x 5
BW x 5
BW x 5
BW x 4
BW x 3

I've always been bad at chins, but I had a suspicion I'd do ok since I've lost a little weight - the above is practically a PR, lol. When I get my conditioning back, I might even enjoy doing these.

I finished off with some core work and stretches.

I've come to realise I really don't like the 15 rep start from HST. I think I'll scrap the HST idea and just take the weights as they come, pushing on on the Rippetone beginner program for a while. It's a good job I didn't name my journal 'AB's HST journal' ;)
Click to expand...

Ahh, you bitched out, huh?

That's cool, lower reps boost my ego too. :p
 
And you all get down around parallel? It just seems to me that the bar wants to roll down the slope from my back to my neck once I'm parallel. I don't think I'm going down too far. This is where a vid would be useful but I don't have a camera.

I tried the bar lower down my back, but it didn't seem to make enough of a different. No matter, I'll start regular deads next week.
 
How are you gripping the bar? Are you just setting it on your back, or do you grip hard with your hands, and pull the bar onto yourself? It might be considered cheating by some, but if I pull hard with my upperbody, while doing squats or anything, the weight feels lighter.
 
I was gripping it as I do in a squat, pushing reasonably hard into my back, with elbows pushed back. Maybe I just need to focus more on pulling the bar down my back a bit more. I'll give them another go some time next week, but I'm not going to fret over it.
 
Week 1, Saturday

Bodyweight: 78.5kg/173lb

1. OH Pause Squats (5 secs)
mop handle x 5, lol
bar x 3
bar x 5

With so much oly talk on the boards these days, I thought I'd try OH squats again. I tried them last night with a mop handle but found that my hands and upper back kept coming forward when I started to descend. I'm guessing that's upper back inflexibility, since my shoulders are fairly flexible (I pass the shoulder flexibility tests mentioned in coolcolj's journal easily). I kept trying and finally got there, so I tried with the bar today, pausing in the hole to get used to the position. These kill my wrists because of the angle from the snatch hold.

2. Squats (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
40 x 5
50 x 5
60 x 5
70 x 5
80 x 2 - fail, wow!

I just couldn't get out of the hole. I haven't squatted for months, so these will rise quickly.

3. Powercleans (kg)
bar x 5
30 x 5
35 x 3
40 x 3
45 x 3

I tried these to see how my back would feel. Pfft! No problem. I want to get good at these so I have an alternative to rows that I can switch between on different training cycles. Oh, and because they're fun!

4. Bench (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
40 x 5
50 x 5
60 x 5 (oops, should've been 55)
60 x 5

Disappointing that I found one plate so hard. I've done too much messing around with higher reps (oh yes, and I'm weak :)).

5. Core work
Just did a few single-leg lower & raises, lying, keeping my back flat on the floor and stomach held in.


Comments

Thursday's workout generated some seriously 'nice' DOMS. I'd say I ache in every muscle in my body, but I can still wiggle my ears without any soreness :FRlol:.

Thursday's workout also caused a mild 'twinging' pain very close to the sharp nerve type pain from my back injury. I now recognise this and know that core work will stop it, so I'm not worried in the least. It only lasted about a day. I've been doing core work in the evenings, even though I haven't listed it here. I did some double leg lowers on Thursday (from lying down, feet in the air), lowering them over about 10 seconds, keeping my stomach held in, the tension on my abs and then raising them to vertical again, trying to keep my back flat to the floor and not use my hips. I also did some stomach vacuums, after reading up on them again. My TVA has some serious DOMS going on right now!

I have a question on recruiting your abs for squats. I used to just contract the rectus abs (and probably obliques), but I've now been trying to suck my stomach in (TVA) before recruiting the outer abs and breathing into my stomach. It feels completely different - completely solid. Is this what everyone else has been doing all along? Sucking the stomach in first?

I had some fun today. This was my best workout in months, even though the weights were crappy! Bring on more DOMS! :chomp:
 
I don't suck my stomach in on squats. I fill myself with air and then hold everything tight.

It sucks to lose strength after breaks and layoffs. It comes back quickly enough, as you know, but it always takes longer than you'd like it to.
 
Heh, don't go overboard trying to apply your new core tricks to squats. Like blut wump said, just taking a breath and concentrating on keeping your torso erect is all you need to do. The change now that you're a core work fiend is that you'll have the strength to do it.
 
I still have a lung full of air. What I meant was that I tried recruiting the transverse abs first, then the outer abs, then a big lung/stomach full of air. I don't mean the whole hog stomach vacuum type of recruitment. It just seemed to be a LOT more solid to me.
 
If your using a belt, a stomach full of air is more important than raw. With a belt, you need the air to help you to push hard against the belt. When squatting raw, just fill your lungs as the first priority and then clamp everything down.
 
I'm probably making this sound like a bigger deal than it is. I know it's not complicated :)

That said... wouldn't you want to clamp everything down first, then breathe in to 'fill the gaps', rather than trying to clamp down as best you can after breathing in?

As a side note, the SLDLs, chins and core work have given me the biggest DOMS I've ever had! Traps, upper and lower back, shoulders and abs are all asking me what I've done to them.
 
You want as much air in as you can get. It'll move itself around as your body sees fit once it's in. You're going to be tight under the wieght anyway and trying to squeeze before pulling air will mean less air inside you.

Fill yourself with air, tighten yourself and arch the weight out and take a step back as needed. Try to suck some more in or go straight down to the first rep. If you're doing reps then you're going to have to breath but try to go down on full. The more weight you're loaded with, the harder it is to suck and stay tight.

Re the doms, that just tells you that you've overdone the restart.
 
I feel like I'm flogging the subject a bit, but I want to add that they teach the same breath technique in yoga as well. When you breath in air, do it through your diaphram, not your chest. Your stomach should naturally expand to hold the air. That's when you tighten up. You've created a wider base on which to carry the weight instead of a smaller one. This will help you stabilize and distribute the load.
Breathing technique is something you can easily practice any time of day and you get the hang of in just a few minutes.
 
Don't worry, the horse isn't quite dead yet.

I mentioned breathing into my stomach to the physio girl and she gave me a stern look and started talking about the diaphram not being supported unless you contract the core muscles to start with. But then again, when I mentioned the deadlift, she started asking about overhead lifting :worried:
 
Glad to see you doing 'normal' exercises now ;)

BTW, if you get Facts and Fallicies by Siff, he has a little ditty on the 'pull the belly button towards your spine' thing.
 
anotherbutters said:
Don't worry, the horse isn't quite dead yet.

I mentioned breathing into my stomach to the physio girl and she gave me a stern look and started talking about the diaphram not being supported unless you contract the core muscles to start with. But then again, when I mentioned the deadlift, she started asking about overhead lifting :worried:
Click to expand...

I was fine with your physio until this one... :D
 
nelmsjer said:
I was fine with your physio until this one... :D
Click to expand...

Actually, think twice buddy. I agree with her on this due to what I've read from Dr. McGill. You should be forming an abdominal brace to support your back during heavy lifting. Basically, do what you do during those exercises, AB. Flex the abdominals without them distending. Also, try standing upright, proper posture. Put your finger tips on your lower back, just over your erectors. Hunch forward slightly. They should flex and stick out against your fingers. Now resume the upright position. Form an abdominal brace with your fingers against the erectors. They should be flexing if you're doing it correctly, just as when you bent forward...'cept you should still be upright. ;)

That was a mouthful. Either way, I believe she's right. Give it a shot.
 
Jim Ouini said:
Glad to see you doing 'normal' exercises now ;)

BTW, if you get Facts and Fallicies by Siff, he has a little ditty on the 'pull the belly button towards your spine' thing.
Click to expand...

And I'd say he's correct in being that way.

Siff & McGill in a cage match. Word.
 
Sorry...referring to deadlift = overhead lifting. :) oops! I'll be sure to bold next time...

Otherwise, I agree with the whole abdominal bracing thing. There's no freaking way I would squat without keeping the core tight.

Preach on. ;)
 
5x5 Week 1, Monday

Having gotten last week's exploratory work out of the way, I can safely say I'm back. I'm going to follow a slightly modified SF 5x5 workout, in which I'll increase the weights every workout for as long as I can, then I'll drop back to the standard SF 5x5. The reason for SF 5x5 is just that it's very effective and I enjoy it!

1. Paused OH Squats (5 secs)
bar x 4
bar x 3

The weight is no problem here, but I'm struggling with upper back flexibility. My arms and upper back just want to come forward. I held the position in the hole for 5 seconds again, to see if that helps, although I could probably do with some specific stretches. Any ideas?

2. Squats (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
40 x 5
50 x 5
60 x 5
70 x 5
80 x 5

The final rep was a bit of a grind, but at least I got the reps in today.

3. Powercleans (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
30 x 5
35 x 5
40 x 5
45 x 3
46 x 3

Up 1kg from Saturday. I don't like doing these for reps, which is why I dropped down to 3 reps at the end.

4. Bench (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
40 x 5
45 x 5
50 x 5
55 x 5
61 x 5

Up 1kg from Saturday, and easier.

5. Reverse hypers
BW x 15
BW x 15
BW x 15

6. Core work
Some single and double leg lowers. I'll do more core work tonight as I couldn't focus on it at the end of the workout.


Comments

I think I'll squat 'heavy' :rolleyes: 3 times per week until things slow down. My squat 5RM is 105kg, so I've a lot of slack to take up. I'll try to add 1-2kg to my squat each workout, so that's 3-6kg per week. For bench and powercleans, I'll try to add 1kg each workout (2kg each week).
 
From my own brief dalliance with OH squats, I'd say that just doing them, at this stage, is the best prep work for them. You need to find the groove and then start to add weight to the bar. If the bar feels like a significant weight then, maybe, return to your broom handle and try for some high-rep sets.

It's great to read that you're feeling chipper again. I'm looking forwards to some Huge Squat Training.
 
Jim Ouini said:
BTW, if you get Facts and Fallicies by Siff, he has a little ditty on the 'pull the belly button towards your spine' thing.
Click to expand...
I went a bit overboard. Since I was ordering from the States (elitefts) and paying airmail, I figured I'd stock up and ordered the following:
  • Siff, Facts and Fallacies
  • Zatsiorsky, Science and Practice of Strength Training
  • Siff, Supertraining 2003 6th Edition
  • Dreschler,The Weightlifting Encyclopedia
  • Bompa,Theory and Methodology of Training
  • Medvedyev, A System of Multi Year Training
And from the uk (out of stock at elitefts):
  • McGill, Ultimate Back Fitness & Performance, 2nd ed
That should keep me busy :)
 
HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!

Always trying to help me out and selflessly seeking my best interests, AB. I truly appreciate that. You're a true friend. ;)

:FRlol:
 
blut wump said:
It's great to read that you're feeling chipper again. I'm looking forwards to some Huge Squat Training.
Click to expand...

That's not what the acronym HST stands for, numbnuts.
 
Anthrax Invasion said:
That's not what the acronym HST stands for, numbnuts.
Click to expand...

But it could be, and, more importantly, has the advantage of immmediate name recognition. I suggest blut use anotherbutters as his human crash test dummy to refine this new HST (Huge Squat Training) and then market his treatise to the pre-conditioned public. It looks like a win-win situation for both blut and AB.
 
anotherbutters said:
I don't know Nelms, you always sound so busy out there in Iraq. Wouldn't it be better for IP to come over and read them on your behalf? ;)
Click to expand...

AB, I'm not sure if you want me to come over. I'll keep you up ALL night... :qt:

























with all the lights on as I'm reading and taking notes for Nelmsjer. Now, where was your mind...geez! :rolleyes: :lmao:
 
Last edited:
iceprincess said:
AB, I'm not sure if you want me to come over. I'll will keep you up ALL night... :qt:

























with all the lights on as I'm reading and taking notes for Nelmsjer. Now, where was your mind...geez! :rolleyes: :lmao:
Click to expand...

AB - From flaccid to iron-clad and back again in just seconds. Poor guy. :FRlol:
 
5x5 Week 1, Wednesday

Ok, where has my conditioning gone?

1. Paused OH Squats - flexibility work
bar x 3, 10 secs each
bar x 4, 5 secs each

I was much more stable and solid with these today and a 10 second hold in the hole seemed quite easy, but then my wrists gave out with a bit of a crunch. I dropped the pause down to 5 seconds, but my wrists gave out again. I'm definitely getting better at these, so I'll keep working on them. Still working on flexibility for now.

2. Squats (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
40 x 5
50 x 5
60 x 5
70 x 5
82 x 5, up 2kg from Monday

I actually stalled on the final rep! I couldn't fail at this and managed to push it through with everything I had. This is humbling.

3. Deads (kg) - yay!
(warmup: 40 x 5)
50 x 5
60 x 5
75 x 5
90 x 5
100 x 5

I had sweat pouring off me by 90kg :( but I wanted 2 plates. It was knackering and I had to switch to mixed grip, but I got it ok. Not as bad as I thought actually, although I think I need to check my form. I always seem to have to stand up a lot to get the bar past my knees, before I can start pulling back. It seems like I'm using way too much legs. I'm probably starting too low and need to stiff leg them some more.

4. Military Press (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
25 x 5
30 x 5
35 x 5
38 x 5, up 1kg on last week

A bit too much of an arch in my back for my liking, so I'm going to have to start some 'ordinary' ab work, not just the ponsey TVA stability work I've been doing.

5. Chins
BW x 6
BW x 6
BW x 5
BW x 4
BW x 4


Comments

I know I ought to take it easy since I'm coming back after a lay-off and this is only week 1, but my enthusiasm won out over being sensible. I've been looking forward to deads for a few days! But jeez, this workout was a killer, even though the weights were well within my past PRs.

I'm just hoping that my conditioning and strength comes back fast enough that I can ride the wave and keep bumping up the weights without stalling.
 
Congrats on starting 5x5, (I know you started on monday but i only just noticed) :coffee:
Where did you learn to do overhead squats ?
good luck with the progression, you will be kicking ass and chewing bubble gum in no time :qt:
 
I'm just practising the OH squat position before I start to add weight. I started by grabbing a broom, lifting it high and back over my head, then trying to squat down. I couldn't do it at first because my upper back and arms just wanted to come forwards, so I'm working on the flexibility to keep my arms back and, well, overhead.

Chewing gum? Er, that's a new one on me. Is that a good sign of progress? :)
 
I had the same problem with flexibility when trying to full snatch, i couldnt hold the low squat position whilst keeping my arms back.

Chewing gum is a good sign of progress, when you can squat 1kg or more over your current pr whilst blowing bubbles
 
anotherbutters said:
I'm just practising the OH squat position before I start to add weight. I started by grabbing a broom, lifting it high and back over my head, then trying to squat down. I couldn't do it at first because my upper back and arms just wanted to come forwards, so I'm working on the flexibility to keep my arms back and, well, overhead.

Chewing gum? Er, that's a new one on me. Is that a good sign of progress? :)
Click to expand...


Just focus on opening your shoulders out and stretching out the bar between your hands. Once you master the positioning of the bar, the squats are simple :-D. "Its time to kick some ass, and chew bubble gum, and I'm all outta bubble gum". I lived in the UK for awhile too, you don't get the same games over there I guess just like some movies. Its a quote from "Duke Nukem" (sp), funny little shooter game similar to Doom.

Keep up the good work AB!

PS: I'm curious about your deads also, get us a vid!
 
Opening my shoulders out? 'Out' is about the only direction they don't move in :p

I tried 'stretching the bar', but the angle of my wrists feels awkward. I've started to develop a hard lump on the outside of my left wrist again. It doesn't feel painful at all, but that's what stopped me benching about 3 weeks ago, when it was worse. I don't think my wrists are inflexible, but it's a bit of a concern.

I'll have to get a cheap camera from somewhere.
 
anotherbutters said:
Opening my shoulders out? 'Out' is about the only direction they don't move in :p

I tried 'stretching the bar', but the angle of my wrists feels awkward. I've started to develop a hard lump on the outside of my left wrist again. It doesn't feel painful at all, but that's what stopped me benching about 3 weeks ago, when it was worse. I don't think my wrists are inflexible, but it's a bit of a concern.

I'll have to get a cheap camera from somewhere.
Click to expand...

AB, I'm sorry...you have wrist cancer. :(
 
5x5 Week 1, Friday

I've blown it already.

1. Paused OH Squats - flexibility work
bar x 3, 5 secs each
bar x 3, 5 secs each

I just couldn't do it today, my back felt too tight. I looked up at my arms and noticed they were still too far forward, then I lost my balance and trapped one of my fingers between the rack and the bar :rolleyes:

2. Squats (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
40 x 5
50 x 5
60 x 5
70 x 5
83 x 2, up 1kg from Wednesday, but I just couldn't get out of the hole. Annoyed, so...
60 x 10
60 x 10
60 x 9
60 x 10

Grow legs, grow!

3. Powercleans (kg)
I could barely stand, so I had to skip these.

4. Bench (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
40 x 5
45 x 5
50 x 5
55 x 5
62 x 5, up 1kg on Monday, hard :(


Comments

Arse!
 
It's a marathon not a snickers.

Seriously, take it steadily. You can't rush rehab. It's good to blow off steam in the squat, though.
 
I know, my squat's what I'm mainly concerned with. At least I feel like I've worked my legs now. 1x5 just doesn't feel like enough work at the weights I'm down to now.
 
SF 5x5 Week 2, Monday

Ok, I'm going to reset the squats and follow the standard SF 5x5 from now on. I guess having had a better squat than I have now doesn't give me any right of passage to get it back quickly. I'm just going to have to work at it. I think it was Jim who posted in my original journal "You didn't think this would be easy did you?". How prophetic :)

1. OH Squats - flexibility work
bar x 5
bar x 5

I did a few pauses in there too, but I just don't like how my wrists feel after these. I want to get better at them, but I feel like they're destroying my wrists and they're affecting my benching. I can't snatch the bar up because I'll take out the light above me, so I have to take the bar from the rack, but then my little fingers are right next to the supports and I bashed one of them last week. I'll move them to the end of the workouts and see how it goes.

2. Squats (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
40 x 5
50 x 5
60 x 5
65 x 5
70 x 5, down from 82

I'll ramp these 4kg per week, putting me back on 82kg 3 weeks from now. I'm sure my strength will come back and these will go up quicker, but I'm not going to count on it. I'm just going to have to be patient and take it as it comes.

3. Squat cleans (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
30 x 5
35 x 5
40 x 5
45 x 3
50 x 3

I thought I'd try full squat cleans, since that's something else that people have been talking about on the board. These felt pretty good, but I powercleaned the final two reps by mistake.

4. Bench (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
40 x 5
45 x 5
50 x 5
55 x 5
63 x 5, up 1kg on Friday


Comments

I really need to work on my conditioning, so I'm going to throw in some cardio on Tue and Thu. I was huffing and puffing after the cleans :(
 
What will you be doing for cardio? Something like the squat complex that asdfzxcv did? You might even try incorporating the OH squats into them instead of trying to do the squats before/after your main exercises on MWF.
 
It's funny, I had exactly the same idea. I was just going to jump on the rowing machine, but then I remembered asdf's bar complex and thought about moving OH squats too!

I was also wondering about whether cleans or rows are better for hypertrophy. On the one hand, cleans are a very dynamic movement for developing explosive strength, but on the other hand, you can get the reps in with rows without your form breaking down.
 
I really need to work on my conditioning, so I'm going to throw in some cardio on Tue and Thu. I was huffing and puffing after the cleans :(
Click to expand...

Don't make me come down there and whip your butt into shape...because I will!! Be afraid, be VERY afraid. :mix:
 
anotherbutters said:
It's funny, I had exactly the same idea. I was just going to jump on the rowing machine, but then I remembered asdf's bar complex and thought about moving OH squats too!

I was also wondering about whether cleans or rows are better for hypertrophy. On the one hand, cleans are a very dynamic movement for developing explosive strength, but on the other hand, you can get the reps in with rows without your form breaking down.
Click to expand...

Rows are likely better than cleans, but both are good. Use one exercise one cycle, another the next.
 
AB, I agree with AI.

From a pure hypertrophy perspective, I believe that rows are going to slightly induce greater hypertrophy. Having said that, the gains that you can experience in athleticism from performing cleans will override the negligent differences in overall hypertrophy. In addition, the cleans will have a greater overall impact on a larger number of mucles in the body.

However, athleticism and "functionality" may not be your goal.

Or...do the cleans for a reduced volume, specifically focusing on the technique and explosion, and add the rows for hypertrophy. :D
 
SF 5x5 Week 2, Wednesday

Bodyweight: 80kg (176lb) - been steady for a few weeks

1. Front Squats (kg)
(warmup: bar x 10)
30 x 5
40 x 5
50 x 5
60 x 5

I've never pushed front squats and I think this is the most I've had on the bar. It's barely worthy of being called a PR though. This wasn't too difficult.

2. Deads (kg)
60 x 5
70 x 5
80 x 5
90 x 5
100 x 5
110 x 5 ...... up 10kg on last week

After my comments last week on feeling like I'm starting off too low, I checked my position today and definitely think I am. I tried starting off with slightly straighter legs and it felt much better, like I could pull the weight back, rather than having to stand up with it first.

However, since I haven't done deads in months, I've forgotten all the little cues of which muscles to pull with and in which order. I'm going to have to give Starting Strength another read. These were fairly hard today, but I'm sure I could have added anoter 5kg.

3. Military press (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
25 x 5
30 x 5
35 x 5
39 x 5 ...... up 1kg

Still a big arch in my back on the final set, but I think it was better than last week. I need to get used to doing these again too. I caught the bar whilst warming up, trying to push my head forward under it, leaving me with a knurled forehead :)

4. Chins
BW x 7
BW x 6
BW x 5
BW x 5
BW x 5

Up 2 reps on last week, and the first time I've managed 7 reps, not that they were pretty.

5. Core work

Leg lowers: 10x, 6x

These are lying down with feet pointing to the sky, TVA recruited, then feet lowered and raised again very slowly, keeping the lower back flat to the floor. They're getting much easier, although I only managed 6 reps before I couldn't keep my back flat on the floor on the 2nd set. Well, I couldn't keep my back completely flat on any of them, but it was damned close.

Then I did some bridging work, on my back with only my shoulders and one leg supporting me, the other leg pointing straight out and not letting the unsupported side of my hip drop. 10 seconds each leg for several reps.


Comments

In terms of conditioning, I felt much better in this workout, even compared with Monday (sorry IP, you're not needed ;)). Last week was absolutely knackering, but I was ok today, taking everything in my stride. Cool!

Good workout. I'm looking forward to finding my form on deads and starting to push them.
 
Hey AB, ever see the movie Layer Cake? Some good stuff there. Reminded me of you when I saw it last night - it's based in London.
 
anotherbutters said:
SF 5x5 Week 2, Monday
1. OH Squats - flexibility work
bar x 5
bar x 5

I did a few pauses in there too, but I just don't like how my wrists feel after these. I want to get better at them, but I feel like they're destroying my wrists and they're affecting my benching. I can't snatch the bar up because I'll take out the light above me, so I have to take the bar from the rack, but then my little fingers are right next to the supports and I bashed one of them last week. I'll move them to the end of the workouts and see how it goes.
Click to expand...


Have you tried a drop snatch?
Set the bar on your back, and grip in snatch position. Drop down and drive your arms up into the full lockout, then just stand up. Easier for me this way, than trying to full snatch high weights. Should keep the bar roughly shoulder height if you drop low enough, so you won't hit the lights.
 
It looks like we're suffering together on deads AB.

I have high hopes that I found my setup yesterday. Good luck with yours. I've also found it preferable to straighten my legs more than starting down near parallel somewhere. The largest factor is keeping my head up.

You mention pulling back. I've decided to work with just pulling up for now and have move myself in closer to the bar.

Anyway, the real technique that occured to me was to take careful note of my position on lowering the bar and to check where all my angles were as the bar returned to the floor and where the bar came down with respect to my feet. I reasoned that if my drop is the reverse of the lift then that should be my setup position or close to it.

With regard to lifting clues, I just concentrate on extending at the knees and keeping my head up.
 
anotherbutters said:
Opening my shoulders out? 'Out' is about the only direction they don't move in :p

I tried 'stretching the bar', but the angle of my wrists feels awkward. I've started to develop a hard lump on the outside of my left wrist again. It doesn't feel painful at all, but that's what stopped me benching about 3 weeks ago, when it was worse. I don't think my wrists are inflexible, but it's a bit of a concern.

I'll have to get a cheap camera from somewhere.
Click to expand...

Ok, easiest way for me to describe it is basically a stretch. Stand up and stretch your arms up as hard as possible, palms facing in towards each other. Now, slowly rotate your palms until they are facing forward, or a little past that. Your armpits will rotate to face forward instead of towards your body, and your shoulders should feel a good stretch. I still get pains in my wrists also, though I believe its from white knuckle gripping the bar. I've noticed if my grip is even slightly off for some of these movements, I'll get a shooting pain from gripping incorrectly.
 
My library has just arrived: Bompa, Dreschler, Siff, Medvedyev and Zatsiorsky. Woohoo! I saw a pic in one of them recommending a stretch with a pole held in a wide grip behind the head, as far back as possible. The notes by the side were suggesting moving the grip in closer on each rep. This was as a specific stretching exercise for the snatch. I'll be damned if I can remember which book though!

BW, I noticed in my downward movement in the dead, I was running my forearms down my thighs to slow the descent. I must be conscious of making loads of noise, since I work out at home. It's something I need to stop.
 
Sweet on the library! :)

Keep working on the overhead squats, bud. Even if it is just the bar for a while, get your arms out wide and work on that flexibility.
 
anotherbutters said:
In terms of conditioning, I felt much better in this workout, even compared with Monday (sorry IP, you're not needed ;)). Last week was absolutely knackering, but I was ok today, taking everything in my stride. Cool!
Click to expand...

I see how it is! Just throw me out like last nights trash!! :evil:
 
SF 5x5 Week 2, Friday

I'm starting to enjoy myself again...

1. Squats (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
40 x 5
50 x 5
60 x 5
68 x 5
74 x 3 ... up 4kg from Monday
70 x 8 ... backoff (a little too close to the triple, but easy anyway)

These were easy because I reset squats.

2. Full squat cleans (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
30 x 5
35 x 5
40 x 5
45 x 5
50 x 5 .... 2 more reps than Monday, same weight

I really enjoyed these today. On Monday, I reverted to powercleans without meaning to, but the full squat cleans felt good today. Every rep felt good, with no oddballs in there and they weren't as knackering as Monday. I'm really pleased with these. Just got to add some decent weight to the bar.

3. Bench (kg)
(warmup: bar x 5)
40 x 5
45 x 5
50 x 5
58 x 5
64 x 3 ..... up 1kg From Monday
60 x 7 ..... backoff

I accidentally benched too close to the rack on the backoff set and kept hitting the underside of the hooks, but whatever, it was hard anyway.

Comments

All my lifts suck, but at least they're going up. I think it's going to take a fair few weeks just to get back to where I was before I hurt myself in December.

I have a little bit of DOMS today from deads on Wednesday, which I didn't expect. The initial DOMS from 2 weeks ago were quite bad, but only lasted a week.
 
iceprincess said:
I see how it is! Just throw me out like last nights trash!! :evil:
Click to expand...
What was I thinking? Well I did bash the bar against my head on Wednesday :insane:

You're free to come and read my first copy of MILO, which arrived today. Man, I'm such a smooth operator ;)
 
Good stuff with the squat cleans, this a PR ? Lets see some squat pr's in the next month :)



:Edit: I squated 170 for a single today and benched 115 for a single :p
 
Well the first time I ever did squat cleans was Monday and I did more reps yesterday, so if you're allowed to call anything with less than one plate a PR, it's a PR ;)

Before I tried the SF 5x5 last year, my 5RM smith machine squat was 90kg, then I switched to freeweights, ramped up the weight and got to 105kg quite easily, which is where my 5RM stands. After not squatting for about 4 months, I failed on a paltry 83kgx5 last week, so I think it's going to take more than a month to get back to where I was. I've reset to 70kg and I'm going to increase by 4kg per week and see how it goes. It's frustrating, but what can you do?

I'm doing this on a maintenance diet for now.
 
Anything is a PR in my eyes. even if it's 1kg. when i first started squating, 60kg felt heavey. A few months later i have to look behind me just to make sure i actually have the bar on my back, and that i didn't accidently use the broomstick. ;)
Your going about adding weight the right way, i would probably get annoyed and try rushing towards the old pr's and hurt myself.

Maintenance diets make me hungry :chomp:
 
nelmsjer said:
Keep working on the overhead squats, bud. Even if it is just the bar for a while, get your arms out wide and work on that flexibility.
Click to expand...
Well I went out and bought a broom handle just to work my flexibility, but it appears that I'm flexible enough. With a snatch grip, I can raise the broom above my head and keep going all the way over until it's behind me. I can even do it with my hands brought in a bit. That was standing, so I tried it when I'm squatting and it's the same deal - I can easily move the bar in an arc from in front of me, overhead, to touching my arse. As another indication of shoulder flexibility, I can touch beyond my wrists when I try to touch my hands behind my back (one hand reaching down, the other reaching up).

So I just tried OH squats with the bar again and after finding a bit of a groove, I can now stay in the hole without the tightness that I had in the middle of my back before, which is a big improvement. However, I feel a lot of the weight on my thumbs. I thought it was my wrists before, but it's actually my thumbs.

So I have a question. Where do you place the bar in your hand for OH squats? Is it directly over the forearm, as in the bench press, or do you have it further back in the palm of the hand with the wrist back a bit? If I have the bar so that it looks and feels like it's over my forearm, it feels like it's too far forward and there's more pressure on my thumbs, since they're stopping the bar falling forward.

And now that I know I can rotate my arms all the way back, I'm a little scared of the bar going too far back and dislocating my shoulders.
 
One of the advantages of working out at home is that I can practise whenever I like, so I'm going to throw in a few of these every day. I've done a lot tonight already! Do you take the bar from a rack when you do these? My rack's hooks are right where I want to put my hands.
 
Ahhh... Now I know what my OH squat problem is. My grip's been too wide on the bar, so it hasn't been sitting squarely in my hands. Imagine grabbing the bar and moving your hands wider and wider apart. I've been at the point where my hands are so wide that the bar's out of my palms and only supported by my thumbs.

I tried it with a narrower grip (middle finger on the rings) and there was no wrist or thumb pain - problem solved! Although moving my hands closer has brought the tight upper back problem back, but it's already better than it was before and quite manageable, and I know it'll get better quickly because I can now practise without wrist/thumb pain. I'll be practising a few of these with the bar every night and hopefully I'll integrate them into my normal workouts soon. Thanks for the inspiration for doing these Nelms!

I've also been practising 'popping' under the bar from the hang for doing squat cleans. Did about 50 reps earlier. These oly lifts are fun! Although I'm still scared of the snatch :worried:
 
Uh oh, now it sounds like my grip is wrong! Thanks for being the Guinnea pig AB :-D! I've got OH squats in a few hours, i'm going to try your grip with middle finger on the rings, and see how it works for me! Thanks! Keep up the good work.
 
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