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Week of June 24th

Last week was Max Effort week. This was the first time I've attempted 1 rep maxes for each lift in the same week. On top of that training the last few weeks has been off since I've been going back and forth between singles and threes. Enough excuses! Not the best week for me, but overall I still think I'm in a good place. Here are the workouts

6/24

Seated OH Press
Bar x 8
65 x 5
85 x 3
105 x 5
115 x 5 x 2

Squat
Bar x 8
135 x 5
185 x 3
225 x 1
265 x 1
290 x 1
310 x f
305 x 1
310 x 1 (5# PR)

Pause Squat
205 x 3
225 x 3

Coach wanted me to call it 314 because of the collars, which they will do at the meet, but it's still 310 in my eyes. PR is a PR though

6/26

Bench
Bar x 8
95 x 5
115 x 3
135 x 1
155 x 1
175 x 1
165 x 1
170 x 1
175 x 1
180 x 1

This was the first time I did actual competition style bench. So it's up and then wait for the command to go down, then down and pause at the bottom and wait for the command to press, then up and wait for the rack command. The pause at the bottom I think is what got me so I wasn't able to get up to my prior 185 max.

6/28

Deadlift
Bar x 8
135 x 5
225 x 3
275 x 2
335 x 1
385 x 1
405 x f x 2

Deficit Deadlift
275 x 3
305 x 3
325 x 3

This was really disappointing. First attempt at 405 and I got it just above my knees, but not fast enough for lockout. Second attempt, I couldn't even get it off the ground. I think it was a combination of max outs all week and only two weeks between my last max attempt, but with the meet only a few weeks away that's the way it goes.

I'll try to get my workouts for this week up early next week. This week is a bit of a down week and then next week I'll be working on openers for the meet.

Updates! Updates! Updates!

Somehow I got sidetracked again and haven't been updating. Well, I have some legitimate reasons. Two weeks ago my wife graduated from University and then we spent the weekend with her folks. This last week I had an exam for work (which unfortunately I didn't pass) and then we went away for the weekend for our anniversary to a vegan bed and breakfast on Whidbey Island (Someday Farm Vegan Bed & Breakfast). We've been married 5 years already and time sure does fly! Here are some pictures of our adventure:


My wife showcasing the cabin we stayed in.


The view along a hike we took.


Yours truly, showing my approval.

WARNING: Gratuitous food shots ahead!


Breakfast #1


Breakfast #2


The lady who runs the farm even baked us a cake!


Seriously, such a great place!

So while all this has been going on I still have been dedicated to my lifting. Especially with the meet only 4 weeks away. I've still been stuck at 185 on bench press. I almost had 190, but couldn't quite get there. I test again this Wednesday though, so hopefully I'll have some good news to share. I added another 5 lbs to my squat yesterday bringing it up to 310 lbs (314 with the collars)! Last, and certainly not least, I got 4 plates (405 lbs) on my deadlift! I even managed to get a video of it. So stoked! I'm testing again on Friday so hopefully I can add another 10 lbs to that and I'll be way ahead for the meet!

June 7th Workout

This was squat day and testing 1 rep max again after a very short cycle. We went straight from testing a few weeks ago into a 3 rep week which I got up to 285 and then back to a 1 rep test. The competition coming up is kind of throwing things off a bit. The workout progressed like this:

Seated Shoulder Press
Bar x 8
65 x 5
85 x 3
105 x 1
115 x 3
120 x 3
125 x 3

Squat
Bar x 8
135 x 5
185 x 3
225 x 2
265 x 1
285 x 1
305 x 1
315 x fail x 2

The first attempt I ended up leaning just a bit too far forward and got myself stuck out of position. The second attempt I was just burned out. I was really disappointed with not getting 315 as I should have had it on that first attempt. The strength was there, but positioning screwed me up. Next time I'll nail it!

Road to competition

I've been neglecting this for a while, but that doesn't mean I've stopped training! I'm going as hard as ever toward my first powerlifting meet in July. I'm really excited to get out there and show what I can do. My wife got me a t-shirt with this on it:



that I will be wearing under my singlet so at least the "Vegan" portion should be showing. It combines two of my favorite things: being vegan and Star Wars! I'm hoping this will just be the start for me with more meets to come as I become stronger and more competitive. I'd like to be a representation of the vegan community for strength in demonstrating how this way of life has no hindrances despite what people tend to think.

Training has been going well and my coach has been tremendous in helping me make some serious gains. I finally managed to blow past my bench press 1RM and make some gains there where I had been stuck for 2 months since starting with my coach. My current totals are:

Squat: 305
Bench: 185
Deadlift: 375 x 2

The deadlift has always been my strongest lift and it's been progressing really nicely. I put the x 2 number in there because I've made significant gains since I last tested my 1RM. Last time I tested, I was at 365 and failed on a 375 attempt. This was about 5-6 weeks ago. After a down week where I focused on back work and didn't pull we started another long cycle. My 5RM jumped 25 lbs and when I got to 3s, the first week I was able to get 365 for 3. Then last week I hit 365 for 3 again and tried 375. I nailed the first 2 reps (though the second was a struggle), but got stuck on the third rep with the bar just above my knees. I know I can get it though. Next week is another 1RM test, so we'll see where it ends up, but I'm hoping for close to 400!

Squat has also been making great gains. I finally broke the 300 lb barrier two weeks ago which was my goal to hit before the meet! We're on a short cycle there so I'm back to testing my 1RM later today, I'm hoping for 315. My coach said he wants my squat up to 330 or 340 by the meet.

Bench progress came as a sudden breakthrough. I had been stuck at 175 for 2 months (I was stuck at 170 for 6 months or so before that). We stuck with the program and mixed up the accessory work. I had been hitting a wall at 180 with bar about 3 inches off my chest. Then, all of a sudden, it happened. 180 flew up. Cheers all around and my coach said, "Let's wait 5 minutes and try 185." I was like heck yes! So we waited and then 185 went up, not as easily but still up! So finally a 10 lb jump in my bench. Since then I feel like progress has been coming on the bench. This last Wednesday I was able to hit 175 for 3 reps. This puts me on track for my goal of 200 by the meet.

That is what's been going on with the lifting. I need to make an effort to update this more often, so I may end up making a workout log out of this along with my other posts just to keep it moving and so there is something to see. Stay tuned!

Progress

We ran through some one rep max testing over the last few weeks. The bad news is that my bench press didn't move up at all. We worked our way up to 170 lbs for one and then made the jump to 180. I had the same issue as last time where I got stuck a few inches off my chest. Since then we've gone back and worked on a few different assistance lifts to try and break through the sticking point. Things like 2 and 3 board bench press, floor press and pause benches. I just wrapped up a second week of 5 rep benches so it will be a while before I'm back to testing again.

On to the good news. Testing on squat went very well. The lift progression went something like:

Warm-Up to 255 or so
275 x 1 (5 lb PR)
285 x 1 (15 lb PR)

I was really happy with this and I think I might have been able to get more out of it. The biggest change we made was that I started using a belt, which I felt definitely helped on the lift. The increase in thoracic pressure definitely helps when you're coming up and helps push more. My goal is to get this lift over 300 lbs by the meet I'm doing in July.

Another boost happened earlier this week on deadlift. My prior one rep max was 350 the last time we tested 5-6 weeks ago. Well, last week we were working sets of 3 and trying to break where I had been stuck the week before at 340. So last week's progression went:

Warm-up
320 x 3
340 x 3
350 x 3

Not only did I break the sticking point, but also did my previous one rep max 3 times! I was stoked! So this week we tested. We started at 345 just as an in-between from the warm-ups and then jumped to 365 which was my goal. I nailed that lift and still felt pretty good about it, so we increased to 375 and I went again. The first attempt I threw myself off during set up and could barely get it off the ground. So I took a break to regroup and came back for a second attempt. I got the bar up to about knee level, but couldn't make it all the way. I think I was just exhausted myself from the previous work, but a 15 lb gain is still nice! This puts me 35 lbs away from my goal for the meet, so I still have a ways to go, but I'm determined to make it happen!

The Workouts

I thought it would be good to give kind of an overview of my workouts. My coach does a 5/3/1 type program customized to fit what the lifter needs. Despite the Jim Wendler namesake for the design, this type of programming has been around for decades. That doesn't diminish Wendler at all though as his methods are proven.

My current main lift split is Monday - Deadlift, Wednesday - Bench, Friday - Squat. Tuesdays and Thursdays are assistance days with lighter weights and focus on volume. For example, on a Tuesday I might do Lat pull-downs, Reverse Leg Curls, Stiff Leg Deadlifts, dumbbell rows or Glute-Ham Developer in some combination. Basically focusing more on lower to mid-back stuff. Doing a lot of upper-back exercises would impede bench day. Thursday then is a shoulder/upper back with overhead presses (standing or sitting), some front/side raises, upright rows or t-bar rows, shrugs and maybe some hammer curls at the end.

For the main lifts, my coach's mantra is that there is never enough warm-up. Always start with the bar and leave your ego at the door. Even if you can squat (or bro squat) 800lbs, you still start with the bar. The basic idea is to do decreasing sets as you add the weight and once you exceed 50% of your 1 rep max (1RM), only do 1-2 reps. This maximizes energy conservation while getting to your work sets and helps to adapt to the heavier weights.

Here's an example from Monday's deadlift. We were working up to doing 5 reps at 85% or so of my 1RM.

Weight x Reps x Sets
Bar (45lbs) x 8 x 2
135 x 5 x 1
185 x 3 x 1
225 x 1 x 1
Work Sets:
275 x 5 x 1
295 x 5 x 1
305 x 5 x 1

I could have used another single between 225 and 275, but you get the idea.

After the main lift, we switch it up to assistance exercises. Common things include:

Squat with chains
Reverse Band Squats
Pause Squats (3 seconds)
Box Squats

Banded Bench
Bench with boards (between 1 and 3 boards depending on the situation)

Rack pulls
Deficit Deadlifts

These exercises can really strengthen aspects of the lift where you are struggling. I know for me lock out on bench and deadlifts can be a real struggle so these are great.