Mercere's 3x5...The quest for a decent Squat

[Mercere]

Looking good bro! Just do everything you can to keep this run going.

On a side note, you may be getting to a point where more than 1 warm-up set will be beneficial to you.

Thanks a lot man! Are you saying only one set might not be enough to warm up or is there another reason to this?

 

[carlsuen]

well yea of cuz.. u'd want to warm up abit first.. try this

squats
8xbar
5x40
3x5x65kg

jsut so u get the blood flowing in those legs..

 

[anotherbutters]

It's a good idea. Not only to get the blood flowing, but to prepare you mentally and physically for the PR weights to come. It's a little bit of practise for your form and you get to find out if you have any aches or pains that might hinder you at the higher weight. It's better to find out about those at lower weights than when you're attempting your PR.

Glenn Pendlay wrote a good piece on warmups a while back:

http://www.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?t=436604

 

[Mercere]

07.08.06

Squat:
bar 1x8
45kg 1x5
66kg 2x5
66kg 1x4 Miss

Bench:
bar 1x8
55kg 3x5 PR

Deadlift:
bar 1x8
40kg 1x5
80kg 1x5 PR

I've joined the club of "spotter victims" and I'm pretty damn pissed. For safety's sake, I asked a guy to spot me on my last set of squats. I told him: "I want you to spot me for safety reasons only. I'm not gonna do any forced reps. Touch the bar only if I lose my balance or if I fail and start going down.Yet on the first sign of a sticking point, which was on the fourth rep of the last set, he was all over the bar like a high school kid doing it the first time after prom night. How else can I expain myself? Can I be any clearer? Next time I'll just dump the bar and demolish the equipment if there's a problem rather than making my effort a waste. I could have gotten that 66. I'm sure. I'll repeat the weight again the next workout. My hopes of adding 3kg to my squats this week went down the drain. But these things happen I guess, time to move on.

I was so pissed after squats I added 2kg to the bench instead of 1. This was a huge mistake on my part. I let the previous mishap affect the next lift. I should have been more disciplined. If I had missed a rep, I would be very demoralized. But I got it.

Deadlifts were the morale booster of the workout. I'm at 80 and they're still easy. Don't get me wrong they're taxing but I have very good speed throughout the lift. No sticking points at all.

I've tried to follow your advices on warmups, thanks guys! (well basically I did exactly as carlsuen posted)

 

[anotherbutters]

Spotters can ruin a perfectly good workout. Aren't there any squat racks you can squat in?

Congrats on the other PRs. Deadlifts are coming on nicely!

 

[carlsuen]

nice dude.. that's y i hate spotters and i spend like 5 mings explaining to them what i really want.. lol.. get it next time!

 

[Yips]

Keep up the good work!

I can't wait to start my 3x5 program.

 

[Mercere]

09.08.06

Squat:
bar 1x8
40kg 1x5
66kg 3x5 PR

Military Press:
bar 1x8
37kg 3x5 PR

Rows:
Did Not Attempt

Workout started very good, squats were hard as usual but managable. MPs were really challenging, on the last set I was a little out of groove and suffered an injury. After completeing the last set, right side of my neck and traps stiffened and started to hurt. I didn't want to push it any further so I skipped the rows for this workout.

--------------

14.08.06

Squat:
bar 1x8
40kg 1x5
67kg 3x5 PR

Bench:
bar 1x8
56kg 2x5
56kg 1x5 Miss

Deadlift:
bar 1x8
55kg 1x5
85kg 1x5 PR

After my injury last week, I was unable to look left for three days. It finally loosened up yesterday so I decided it was time to hit the gym. I'm 6 kg away from my goal of squatting my bodyweight. Every workout squats are my main struggle, but I manage to keep my progress up. After squats, I made my first real miss of the program. On the last rep of the last set, my triceps gave out and I couldn't lock it off. Maybe I was fatigued from squats, I don't know. I kept reminding myself this was all part of the game, and that I'll get it next time. After my frustration on the bench, I attacked deads with ferocity. The bar just "flew" off the ground. Next week, I'll be deadlifting two plates.

 

[Mercere]

Spotters can ruin a perfectly good workout. Aren't there any squat racks you can squat in?

Congrats on the other PRs. Deadlifts are coming on nicely!

Yup I have safety bars. My gym is very "noise sensitive" but I won't give a crap anymore. On deads, I don't know why but they feel very natural to me. Different bodies, different leverages I guess.

 

[Mercere]

Keep up the good work!

I can't wait to start my 3x5 program.

It's an excellent program that slaps your weaknesses right in your face. It's all true about compound lifts, my arms grew without a single set of curl/extension.