back in the saddle

[Jake Galgon]

Update: Current plan is to just lift the heaviest weights I feel comfortable with, go home, then do the same thing the next time I'm in the gym. We'll see how it goes.

PR tracker:
Squat: 435x1, 395x5(+1), 275x20
Bench: 290x1, 245x5(+1)
Deadlift: 565x1, 485x5
Front Squat: 325
Press: 205x1, 175x5
Push Press: 225
Snatch: 210
C&J: 260

Old Intro :

Four months ago I was a strong enough guy, but then I went ahead and went on a trip to India and Nepal, hiking 6-12 hours a day for weeks at a time, constant diarrhea, rice-based diet, etc.

Old numbers:
Squat: 365x1, 325x5
Bench: 250x1, 225x5
Deadlift: 500x1, 440x5 (?)
Front Squat: 275
Press: 170x1
Snatch: 185x1
C&J: 230x1 (?)

Upon to my return I'm down to 190 (from 220) at 6'2" and, as you might expect, my strength (along with the rest of my fitness) has gone to shit. But hey, it's a chance to stuff my face and get on a linear progression.

The plan's not classic SS (modified basically to work on weak points and let me do exercises that I like) but hopefully it's close enough that I'll get big and strong.

Mon -
OL warmup to heavyish snatch and front squat OR c&j and overhead squat (alternating)
Power Clean: 3x4
Press: 4x5
Squat: 3x5
Pull-up: 2x5 (weighted)
Plank: 2x20sec (weighted)

Weds -
OL warmup to heavyish snatch and front squat OR c&j and overhead squat (alternating)
Front Squat: 5x4
Bench: 3x5
Deadlift: 1x5
Pendlay Row: 2x5
Plank: 2x20sec (weighted)

Fri:
OL warmup to heavyish snatch and front squat OR c&j and overhead squat (alternating)
Power Snatch: 3x4
Squat: 3x5
Push Press: 3x5
Pull-up: 2x5 (weighted)
Plank: 2x20sec (weighted)

I'm hoping to get back up to a 500lb deadlift single after a few months, and maybe I'll even be able to ride the linear gains past where I was before the trip.

[Jake Galgon]

Sun 11/22/09:

OL warmup, snatch & power snatch singles @ 135
Squat: 3x5 @ (205,185,185) (overestimated my strength for the first set)
Press: 4x5 @ 95
Power Clean: 3x5 @ 135
Pullup: 2x5@ +30 (assuming belt is ~5)
Plank: 2x20sec @ +90

Tues 11/24/09:

Truncated warmup (lifting with my brother, time-constrained)
Front Squat: 5x4 @ 125
Bench: 3x5 @ 115
Deadlift: 1x5 @ 225
Pendlay Row: 2x5 @ 115
Plank: 2x25sec @ +90

Thu 11/26/09:

Ran the family's annual Thanksgiving mile race. 6:30--pretty embarrassing, and a minute off of my time last year. At least I had jet lag and malnutrition to blame though. Thought I was starting slow with the lifting, but I was basically sore from Tuesday through Friday.

Sat 11/28/09:

squat: 3x5 @ 205
push press: 3x5 @ 115
power snatch: 3x4 @ 115
pullup: (5,4) @ +40
plank: 2x30sec @ +90

Mon 11/30/09:

AM:
snatch singles to 135 plus 2 misses at 155
front squat singles to 205
power clean: 3x4 @ 155
PM:
Squat: 3x5 @ 225
Press: 4x5@115
Pullup: 3x5 @ +40
-missed the planks, had to go to the airport

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch singles to 135
C&J singles to 185
Overhead Squat singles to 165

Front Squat: 5x4 @ 175
Bench: 3x5 @ 165 (depressingly heavy)
Deadlift: 1x5 @ 315
Pendlay Row: 2x5 @ 155

[Jake Galgon]

Actually, quick question about the program I'm doing:

the volume of the slow lifts in this routine, particularly as far as big lower body lifts go, is less than in classic SS. I'm hoping that this will make room for the heavy c&j+ohs or snatch+fs singles in my warmup. Anybody with experience care to correct me?

I'm planning, if the volume gets too high, to switch to squatting only once a week, front squatting twice, deadlifting once, and keeping everything else largely the same. I suppose maybe I should drop the pullups/rows first but I like them too much.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch singles to 145
C&J singles to 165
Front Squat singles to 225

Power Snatch: 3x4 @ 125
Squat: 3x5 @ 245
Push Press: 3x5 @ 135
Pull-Up: 2x5 @ + 47.5 (downgrading my estimate of the belt's weight to 2.5 lbs)
Plank: 2x20sec @ 115

Shit got heavy this workout, particularly the squats and the planks. I'm probably only going to jump 10 lbs on the squat next time, and really focus on form--I was going back to my old problems of shooting the hips and bringing the knees in. I hope that front squats will help with at least the former problem--the knees probably just need discipline.

[Jake Galgon]

gym was crowded and i was pressed for time so I skipped the OL warmup except for snatches up to 135

Squat: 3x5 @ 255
Press: 4x5 @ (125, 125**, 120, 120*)
Power Clean: 3x4 @ 185
Pull-Up: 2x5 @ +50
Plank: 2x20sec @ +120

* = missed rep

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch singles to 155 plus two misses at 165
Front Squat singles to 235 (one miss then one successful)

Front Squat: 5x4 @ 195
Bench: 3x5 @ 185
Deadlift: 1x5 @ 365 (felt like a true max)
Pendlay Row: 2x5 @ 185

[Jake Galgon]

Snatches to 135
C&J to 205
OHS to 175

Power Snatch: 3x4 @ 135
Squat: 3x5 @ 265 (starting to have trouble keeping the knees out)
Push Press: 3x5 @ 155
Pull-Up: 2x5 @ 52.5

Cooled down with 10-8-6 of {135lb front squat, bodyweight dip} at a brisk (but not sprint) pace.

[Jake Galgon]

Power Clean: 3x4 @ 195
Squat: 3x5 @ 275
Press: 4x5 @ 125
Pull-Up: 2x5 @ 55

Cooled down with a brisk 10-7-4 reps of {135lb front squats, bodyweight dips}

[Jake Galgon]

Some hill sprints today, generally between 25 and 75 meters. Nothing too wild.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatches to 165

Front Squat: 5x4 @ (205, 210, 210, 210, 210)
Bench: 3x5 @ 195
Deadlift: 1x5 @ 385
Pendlay Row: 2x5 @ 185 (was sloppy last week so I kept it at the same weight)

Here's the snatch, sideways unfortunately:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukdgNch7lOI

[Jake Galgon]

C&J singles to attempted 210 (made clean failed jerk)

Power Snatch: 3x4 @ 140
Squat: 3x5 @ 285
Push Press: 3x5 @ (165, 170, 170)
Pull-Up: 2x5 @ +60

Rack pull singles to 455--grip was the limiting factor with no chalk

[Jake Galgon]

Pressed for time today.

Squat: 3x5 @ 300
Press: 4x5 @ 130
Power Clean: 2x4 @ 215 (gym closed before last set)

3rd squat set: <!-- m -->http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0vMX1BUn1g<!-- m -->
2nd power clean set: <!-- m -->http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xt56Ao-0elA<!-- m -->

I wanted a video to check depth on the squat and was happy to see that I'm getting pretty well below parallel. Seems to me anyway. The backwards jump on the power cleans is a new development since india, I think. Thoughts on fixing it?

[Jake Galgon]

Snatches to 175
Front Squat: 5x4 @ 225
Bench: 3x5 @ (205, 205*, 205*)
Deadlift: 1x5 @ 405

* = missed rep

Shame about the bench. I think that I'm going to switch bench and push press so that I'm benching friday and push pressing wednesday, possibly upping volume in bench press and press (say 4x5 and 5x5 respectively). Won't be in the gym for about a week or more anyway though so I'll probably be repeating some workouts.

[Jake Galgon]

Been out of the gym for a while with holiday stuff, and had to work out at a Bally's today.

Squat: 3x5 @ 315
Press: 5x5 @ (135, 135, 135*, 135*, 135**)
Power Clean: 3x4 @ (225*, 225*, 225***)
some pullups

The bar was real slick and had no spin, so I'll blame that for the shitty cleans for now. Knees came in on the squat and now my right knee is bothering me a bit. I'll probably do the same weight next time (probably can't lift again till monday) but I'll focus on keeping the knees out. 2nd squat set, unfortunately from a bad angle:<!-- m --> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k18I6KVXZIQ

[Mr.City]

Commercial gyms usually have shitty bars. The angle is tricky, but are your knees coming in on the way up or the way down?

[Jake Galgon]

Commercial gyms usually have shitty bars. The angle is tricky, but are your knees coming in on the way up or the way down?

Through the sticking point on the way up, so the knee tips trace out an hourglass shape. It's the same basic thing you'll see with some olympic lifters on heavy clean recoveries. It's been a problem for I don't know how long, and I think the thing to do is drop the weight on friday--when the weight gets heavy, I have to consciously choose whether to bring the knees in or drop the bar. I feel like I should spend most of my time lifting weights that don't put me in that dilemma.

Today:

Squat: 3x5 @ 315
Press: 5x5 @ 135
Power Clean: 3x4 @ (225, 225, 225**)

*=missed rep

The cleans and the squats were SUPER fucking sloppy. As I say, probably need to bring the weights down a bit after the week+ off and ease back in. Probably squat like 305 friday. Happy with the presses though.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatches to 185 (tied pr) and two misses at 190
Front Squat: 5x4 @ (225, 230, 235, 240, 245)
Push Press: 3x5 @ (175*, 175**, 175*)
Deadlift: 1x5 @ 425
Pullup: 2x5 @ (70, 70*)
plus some unweighted dips and pullups

* = missed rep

Felt like a big boy on everything except the push press today. Didn't even mean to ramp the front squat up, but I kept saying "fuck it" and finding that I could do 5 more lbs. The 185 lb snatch is the first time I've tied a pre-India pr. I'm back in the game I guess.

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: 3x5 @ (325, 325, 330 (pr?))
Power Snatch: 3x4 @ (155, 155, 155*)
Bench: 3x5 @ 210

Would have liked to do another set on the bench (and pull-ups) but didn't have time. Did the first and third set of squats with a big 6 or so inch velcro belt that the gym had--my first time squatting heavy with one. Definitely helped out at the bottom, so much that I felt like I was cheating. That's why I dropped the belt for the second set, which was the hardest of the three.

Knees came in a lot on the second set but were way better on the first and third than they have been recently. Watching the video of the third set, I notice I'm barely hitting parallel, even though I usually get 2 or 3 inches below. The belt will take some getting used to I guess.

I think that 330 is a pr, but now that I've done it I have a sneaking suspicion I'd done 335 before. Who knows.

3rd squat set: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbLVlBUYlmc

[Jake Galgon]

Put some pop punk on the shuffle and went for a 45 minute or hour walk around town, sprinting the hills I came to. Ended up doing 5 hard hill runs. Harder workout than it might sound.

Also gonna do a bunch of diamond pushups throughout the day.

[Jake Galgon]

Think I pulled my hamstring on those hill sprints. That'll teach me to start running all out in 30 degree weather with like 5 walking lunges as a warmup.

[Jake Galgon]

Clean attempts to 235 (four missed attempts)

Squat: 3x5 @ 340 (pr) (w/ belt)
Press: 5x5 @ (140 (pr?), 140, 140, 140**, 140***)
Clean: 3x4 @ (225****, 205, 200)

Dunno why the c&j and power cleans were so awful even though I hit a squat PR. Could just be the belt. I'm not gonna feel properly strong until I'm beating my old numbers WITHOUT it. The three sets of squats are among the ugliest I have ever done.

[Jake Galgon]

Yesterday:
had some steam to blow off, so I did an unscheduled workout

lh bent press to 85
rh bent press to 95
deadlift warmup to 455 and three misses at 505 (first one got through the sticking point, but my grip gave out. might have made it with chalk)

4 rounds for time of: 800m stationary bike, 10 pullups, 10 dips

I'm pretty hungover right now, so I might miss today's workout. Guh.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatches to 155 and then 3 misses at 185. These felt really weak today.

Power Snatch: 3x4 @ (160*, 160**, 160*)
Bench: 4x5 @ 215
Squat: 3x5 @ (345**, 345*, 345**)
some pull-ups

* = missed rep

Recovery sucked this week, but regardless I think it's time for a reset on the squats and pulls. Plus a calorie bump. Hopefully if I get the recovery dialed in I can ride the squats up to a belted 3x5 at 350+ before switching over to the texas method or 5-3-1 or something.

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: 3x5 @ 350
Press: 5x5 @ (145, 145**, 145**, 145**, 145**)
Power Clean: 3x4 @ (205, 215*, 205)
Some pull-ups and dips

* = missed rep

Feel great about those squats. Found a new belt at the gym. Skinnier, especially in the front, but it gets tighter and so I figured I'd try and bump the squats again. The cleans did need that reset though. I think part of it is I'm more cautious about catching the bar low on my chest, since my right wrist has been bothering me a bit.

[Jake Galgon]

Just ordered a large inzer economy belt, medium TK knee sleeves, some chalk, and, just for kicks, some nose tork. We'll see how that goes when they get here, although I hear Inzer can be slow to ship.

[Jake Galgon]

Didn't sleep today, and the workout was awful. Even adjusting volume down it was a total shit show.

Snatches to 155 plus two misses at 165
Front Squat: 4x4 @ (250, 250, 250, 250*)
Push Press: 2x4 @ (185**, 175**)
Deadlift: Attempted 1 on the minute at 445lbs for 5 minutes, but only made two of the singles
Bunch of pull-ups, dips, and 40lb dumbbell press

Might front squat again Friday instead of back squats. Think I should put some 2.5lb weights under my heels next time I front squat (still haven't bought proper shoes)--I think it will take some stress off my right wrist, which has been bothering me.

[Jake Galgon]

Got a a benzo for sleep, and after 14 hours of some extremely vivid dreams I figured the time was ripe:

Squatted 405, a new PR:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-VJX8UZANo

[Jake Galgon]

Starting a new intermediate routine, aped a bit from both 5-3-1 and the texas method. It is thus:

Lift Schemes:
L1: 2 sets power clean, 4 sets front squat; frontsquatty assistance lifts
L2: 2 sets power snatch, 3 sets squat; squatty assistance lifts
L3: 2 sets split jerk, 2 sets deadlift; deadlifty assistance lifts
U1: 4 sets bench, 3 sets pendlay row; benchy/rowey assistance lifts
U2: 5 sets press, 3 sets weighted pull-up; pressy/pully assistance lifts

Rep schemes:
A: sets of 5
B: sets of 3
C: 1rm + sets of 2 at 80-90%

Monday: light o-lift warmup; A with [L1, L3, L2](cycling)
Wednesday: o-lift warmup with optional heavyish c&j; [A, B, A, C] with U1
Friday: light o-lift warmup; [B,C] with [L2, L1, L3]
Saturday: o-lift warmup with optional heavyish snatch; [A, B, A, C] with U2

Rep schemes are for core lifts, not assistance lifts. Any metcon will be on tuesdays, wednesdays, or saturdays. On 1rm lower body days, I'll do one or both of the full o-lifts rather than power variants or jerks as usual.

eg:
M - - - W - - - F - - - S
AxL1 - AxU1 - BxL2 - AxU2
AxL3 - BxU1 - CxL1 - BxU2
AxL2 - AxU1 - BxL3 - AxU2
AxL1 - CxU1 - CxL2 - CxU2
etc.

[Jake Galgon]

So today, on the new program:

OL warmup

Core lifts--
Power Clean: 2x5 @ 205
Front Squat: 4x5 @ (255*, 245, 245, 245)

Assistance--
weighted calf raises, 95-115lb overhead squats, planks, all for sets of ~15 (or however long for the planks)

[Jake Galgon]

Just got my new Inzer economy belt. I probably should have gotten a medium instead of a large. The smallest hole is probably workable, but I'd like to be able to take it down another inch or so, especially as the belt breaks in. It shouldn't be a big deal to just put another two pairs of holes into it, though. I wonder if I can find someone with a leather puncher.

[Jake Galgon]

Did five or six 15-stroke sprints on the erg and then two 25-stroke sprints. The last two were pretty devastating. Time for some sardines.

edit: it's an old model A with a broken speedometer, so I can't give split times

[Jake Galgon]

Got my Tommy Kono knee bands in the mail today, and lifting with them was an absolute joy. So much more of a difference than I expected, and I feel like an idiot for lifting so long without them. Absolutely essential, and everyone should get a pair of these or rehbands or vulcans or convicts or elitefts heavy sleeves or hell even probably the drug store things.

OL Warmup
Snatches to 135
Clean & Jerk to 225

Core Lifts--
Bench Press: 4x5 @ (225*, 220, 220*, 215**)
Pendlay Row: 3x5 @ 205

Accessory Lifts--
Bunch of pull-ups, dumbbell press, tate press, underhand bob cheat rows

[Jake Galgon]

Knee's fucking with me. Cut the workout short.

OL Warmup
Power Snatch: 2x3 @ 165
Squat: 3x3 @ (365*, X, X)

ugh...

[Jake Galgon]

OL warmup
Snatches to 175, 3 misses at 190

Core Lifts:
Press: 5x5 @ (145, 145, 145***, 135, 135++)
Pull-Up: 3x5 @ (70, 70*, 45+)

Assistance:
Dips, crucifix hold (20lb dbs), underhand BOB rows

* = missed rep, + = add'l rep

[Jake Galgon]

Core Lifts--
Jerk: 2x5 @ (195, 205)
Deadlift: 5@455, 7@425

Assistance--
135lb good mornings, 185lb snatch grip deadlifts, +25lb back extensions, all for sets of 15-20

[Jake Galgon]

OL warmup--
Snatch: Singles to 135
C&J: Singles to 225, 3 misses at 235, 235 (pr)

Core Lifts--
Bench: 4x3 @ (225, 225, 225, 225++)
Pendlay Row: 3x3 @ (225, 225, 225+)

Assistance--
60 pull-ups, 60 dips, 3 30sec crucifix holds (overhand 10sec, neutral 10sec, underhand 10sec) with 15-20lb dbs

Third c&j attempt, bad angle:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2i_em5cIp8

successful c&J:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smAKXgY0jgU

Came a bit closer than I'd like to passing out at the top of both of those

[Jake Galgon]

Core Lifts--
Power Clean: Singles to a sloppy 235
Clean: 4 misses at 245 (I hate that my power clean is as high as my full clean)
Power Clean: 2x2 @ 215
Front Squat: 275, 295 (pr), 305*, 4x2 @ 265

Assistance--
Overhead Squat: 3x10 @ 115
Complex: 2x(10 front squats -> 10 back squats) @ 155

[Jake Galgon]

Gym was closed over the weekend on account of snow, so I moved Saturday's presses today and skipped the assistance work and saturday's pull-ups (out of time)

Squat: 3x5 @ (355 (pr), 365 (pr), 365)
Power Snatch: 2x5 @ (165**, 160)
Press: 5x3 @ (155 (pr), 155*, 155**, 150, 150+)

* = missed rep, + = add'l rep
Some of the squats were probably borderline-legal but I'm still very pleased. Not a bad workout overall. Could have used more rest on the presses.

[Mr.City]

Man, that's a nice squat

[Jake Galgon]

Man, that's a nice squat

Thank you kindly. It has been a while in the making. Still plenty of kinks to work out.

[Jake Galgon]

Gym was closed yesterday, so the workout moved to today. Got cut short too, unfortunately, but skipping the pulls might be for the best anyway since i've got deadlifts scheduled for tomorrow. Not too strong on the OL warmup but the bench was acceptable I guess

OL--
Snatches to 175, 3 misses at 185 (shit)

Core Lifts--
Bench: 4x5 @ (220, 220, 220, 220+)
Pendlay Rows: (missed)

Accessory Lifts--
a couple pullups and dips

+ = add'l rep

[Jake Galgon]

OL--
C&J singles to 215

Core Lifts--
Jerk: 2x3 @ (215, 215*)
Deadlift: 2x3 @ (475*, 455+)

Accessory Lifts--
225lb snatch grip deadlifts and pull-ups (totaling probably 30-40 of each)

* = missed rep, + = add'l rep

[Jake Galgon]

and yes, I write sets x reps. That's how I say it (e.g. "three sets of five" vs. "fives for three sets") so that's how I write it.

[Jake Galgon]

OL--
Snatches to 155, where I started to miss them (wtf). I blame the fact that my lower back was still real sore from Friday.

Core Lifts--
Press: 5x5 @ 145
Pull-Up: 3x5 @ (60, 60, 60*)

Assistance--
Pull-ups and 60-70 lb no-squat bent presses. probably around 7-8 sets of 5 on the pull-ups and 5x5 for each arm on the bent press. Done with minimal rest.

[Jake Galgon]

by no-squat bent press I mean to stay that I stand up between each rep (unlike what I understand a side press to be) but don't squat down to do it, which doesn't help me anyway since I don't have the best technique.

[Jake Galgon]

OL--
Snatches to 175, two misses at 190. Felt much better than yesterday, though I feel I was coming up in my toes a bit at the bottom of the catch. Focused on keeping the elbows out and staying over the bar.

Core Lifts--
Power Clean: 2x5 @ 220
Front Squat: 4x5 @ (245, 255, 255, 255)

Assistance--
2x10 'thrusters'--is there a less stupid name for this lift? Squat presses or something?

[Jake Galgon]

Foolishly did today's workout on a long-empty stomach. Going to have to wait another month for a decent bench pr I guess. Let this be a lesson.

OL--
Snatches to 165, c&j to 215. Both felt heavier than they should have.

Core Lifts--
Bench: 1 @ 250 (pr?), 1 @ 260*, 2 @ 235*, 2 @ 230
Hang Clean: 1 @ 225, 1 @ 235*, 2x2 @ 215

Assistance--none
* = missed rep

[Jake Galgon]

OL--
Snatches to 165, 3 misses at 185

Core Lifts--
Squat: singles to 395, 415*, 3x2 @ 375
No assistance

Dunno why I've been so weak recently. Probably recovery. Don't know if I want to say I'm overworked or underworked at the gym, but for now I'm cutting back on the assistance stuff.

[Jake Galgon]

OL--
C&J singles to 235, one miss at 245 (clean pr)

Core Lifts--
Clean and Press: Singles to 180 (pr), 5x2 @ 160
Pull-ups: Singles to +80, +100*, +90, 3x2 @ +75

Assistance--
No time at gym, doing some narrow-grip pushups through the course of the evening.

Weak spell seems to be ending. Thanks macdo dollar menu!

[Jake Galgon]

OL--
Snatches to 135
C&J to 210

Core Lifts--
Jerk: 2x5 @ 210
Deadlit: 3x5 @ (425, 445, 415+)

Accessory--
Some pull-ups and air squats (~1:3 ratio) at a brisk enough pace to keep the heart going

Deadlifts weren't super duper heavy today but I have a sore throat and something told me not to push it too hard. Threw in an extra set for good measure though.

[Jake Galgon]

OL--
Snatches to 185, 190*

Core Lifts--
Bench: 4x5 @ (225, 225, 225, 225*)
Hang Clean: 3x5 @ (210, 215, 220) <-- dropped bar b/w reps. Cleans and bench superset to save time, gym was closing

Accessory--
some non-hook-gripped 135lb hang clean + push press, brisk enough to get the heart moving

[Jake Galgon]

OL--
C&J to 240 (pr) (actual judges might have called it a pressed lockout though)

Core Lifts:
Power Clean: 2x3 @ 225
Front Squat: 4x3 @ (265, 270, 270, 270+)
no assistance lifts

[Mr.City]

Nice numbers

[Jake Galgon]

Thanks.

Gonna relax my schedule to a more flexible Mon = volume lower body+light-mid ol, wed = volume upper body+med-heavy ol, fri = heavy/speed lower body+light-med ol, sat/sun = heavy/speed upper body+med-heavy ol

OL--
Snatches to 175, press-grip muscle snatches to 175

Core Lifts--
Power Clean & Press: 25 singles-on-the-minute @ 155, 5 min rest, 8 presses @ 135
Pull-Ups: 10 doubles-on-the-minute @+60

Accessory--
75 dips, 75 pullups (superset doubles and triples) and a bit of crucifix hold

I honestly had never really heard of many people doing press-grip muscle snatches, but I decided to give them a go, and wow, great exercise. A full-power pull combined with full-power press, what's not to like? Probably a good move to do Tabatas or other conditioning work with too.

[Jake Galgon]

Thinking on it a bit, I suspect that press-grip muscle snatches are a serious contender for the if-you-could-only-do-one-lift prize. Not that this automatically makes them a good lift given that you can do more than just the one lift, but yeah I like 'em I think.

[Jake Galgon]

shitty day today
OL-- Snatches to 170

Core Lifts--
Power snatch: 2x(three doubles-on-the-minute) @ 170
Squat: 3x(three doubles on the minute) @ (355, 370***, 370***)

Assistance--
Front squats: 2x10 @ 185, plus some back extensions and weighted planks.

[Jake Galgon]

OL--
Snatches to 155

Core Lifts--
Dip: Singles to +100, 3x(4 doubles otm) @ (+80, +85, +85)
Pendlay Row: 2x(4 doubles otm) @ 215

Conditioining--
20 (press grip muscle snatch, front squat) complexes @ 135 for quickness. Got the heart moving for sure.

[Jake Galgon]

otm = on the minute from here onward

[Jake Galgon]

Missed a couple workouts (out of town then the gym was closed yesterday) but I think the rest did me some good:

OL--
(snatch + ohs) to 175, snatch @ 190 (pr), 200*, 200 (pr)(!!!)

Core Lifts:
Squat: Singles to 385; heavy walkouts to 455; 3x5 @ (345, 355, 345++)
Press: 5x3 @ (165*, 155, 155, 155+, 155)

no assistance/conditioning

[Jake Galgon]

Tues: couple mile bike ride
Weds: Bit of a chest cold, so took it easyish and didn't do any conditioning. By now the thing's turned into a major shit show so I'll probably not be in the gym till sunday at least.
OL--
(Clean+fs+jerk) to 205, C&J @ 225, 255**, 255* (clean pr)
Core Lifts--
Bench: 3x5 @ (225, 230 (pr?), 230)
Assistance--
Narrow grip bench 15 @ 165

the second c&j attempt:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBtCJ1wBUdI

[Jake Galgon]

Wednesday:
OHS to 185*
Press: 4x5 @ (135, 135, 140, 140)
Power Clean: 4x3 @ (195, 205, 210, 210)

Today:
Clean+fs+press to 165, clean+fs+push press to 205, clean+fs+jerk to 225
Front Squat: singles to 295, 3x2 @ 275
Snatch High Pulls: 4x2 @ (185, 205, 215, 215)
a few zercher lifts and squats with 185. Motherfuckers hurt.

went easy on both workouts since I'm not really over this flu/pneumonia/whatever yet

[Jake Galgon]

Back from miami and over the pneumonia, starting back slow:

Warmup/OL--
clean & press to 170, c&j to 225
Main Lifts--
Squat: 3x5 @ 315
Assistance--
Wide-stance squat: 2x10 @ 185

[Jake Galgon]

Intended to bench today but my elbow started aching during warmup, presumably from what I thought was a mild tweak yesterday.

Snatches and C&P to 155 each, some narrow-grip bench, and a 10 minute fartlek on the bike. If there's such a thing as bike fartleks anyway.

[Jake Galgon]

Front Squat: 4x4 @ 255
Wide Stance Squat: 2x10 @ 225

some pushups and pullups to try and rehab the elbow a bit. Think the pullups hurt more than they helped. I'll do some pushups throughout the day tomorrow to keep things moving.

[Jake Galgon]

C&P to 165, Snatch to 165
Squat: 3x5 @ 335, 345, 365*
Wide-stance squat: 2x12 @ 225
some pull-ups and dips

arm's feeling a bit better but not 100%

[Jake Galgon]

Went to the Hyde Park gym in Austin today, which is fabulous and cheap, and anyone nearby should absolutely go there. Only thing I wish is that they had platforms that weren't attached to squat stands or power racks, because I'll often take a few steps forward on snatch recovery. Aside from that, though, it's great; chalk bucket, public belts, 6 or so squat racks/stands, one of those strongman logs...Good stuff.

Snatches to 186
C&J to 240, 250*, 250*
Front Squat: 4x4 @ 220, 240, 250, 250 (beltless)
Deadlift: Singles to 475, 505*, 505*, 7@405
a couple bent presses with 75 lbs for fun

Elbow bothered a touch after the OLs--still a bit awkward catching cleans, which I'll blame the missed 250s on--I think they were 250s, it might be that I only got up to 230 and then missed two at 240. Metric bumpers fuckin my memory up.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatches to 175
Superset:
-Standing Press: 10x3 @ (135-160) (mostly 155)
-Front Squat: 10x2 @ (225-275) (mostly 265)
10 minutes of pull-ups and dips

edit: Friday did a workout with some presses and some squats, not super-heavy.

[Jake Galgon]

Moved some logs and ran some hills today

[Jake Galgon]

Snatches and C&P to 165 and then oh SHIT my elbow god damn it

I need to learn to take injuries more seriously. Gonna rice that shit.

[Jake Galgon]

Got my shoes today, Pendlays. Could have gone down half a size but they feel pretty good.
Snatches to 175
Front squats to 285, 295*
Squat: 4x5 @ (315, 335, 335, 335)
Wide stance squat: 15 @ 225

[Jake Galgon]

Cleans to 245
Front Squat: 3 triples-on-the-minute @ 245
5 doubles-on-the-minute @ 255
Zercher Lunges: 10 each leg @ 135 (then ran out of time)

[Jake Galgon]

Power Clean: 5x3 @ (225, 225, 225, 225, 225*)
Squat: 5x2 @ 365
Wide stance squat: 3x10 @ 225

Even the power cleans bother the elbow a bit. Guess it's just gonna be nothing but squats for the next week or two.

[Jake Galgon]

Front Squat: 50 doubles on the minute @ 225

disgusting workout, but probably not nearly as bad as trying something similar with squats or deadlifts. 225 is around 75% of my 1rm, so I feel like 100 reps around that weight is pretty healthy volume.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatches to 175, 185* (Pulls felt strong but elbow felt a twinge at the bottom of the 185 so i bailed it and quit)
Squat: 3x(4 triples on the minute) @ (335, 335, 335++). So, 38 reps total
Bench: 8,8,4,5,5 @ 185 . Decided I'm going to begin using a narrower grip--~1" inside the first rings--so between that and the elbow I went light

plus some calf raises, pullups, and 135lb narrow-grip bench

[Jake Galgon]

Press (cleaned):
---5 @ 135
---4x(3 triples on the minute) @ (155*, 145, 145, 145) (so 35 reps total)
Deadlift:
---3 triples on the minute @ 425
---4 fours on the minute @ 385

Elbow didn't feel perfect but it wasn't too bad. Think it should be completely back in a week or so.

[Jake Galgon]

Yesterday:
Some jerks at 225, some pc&j at 205, a few pull-ups and dips (just stopped by the gym, no workout clothes, didn't go that hard)

Today:
Snatches to 175
Press: 5@135, 2x2 @ 165
Front Squat: 1x2 @ 275
Bench: 5x3 @ (205,225,225,225,225)
Accessory: 115lb press, pull-ups, some dumbbell upper back stuff

Bench is still a bit low with the new grip and the elbow, plus all the time off presumably, but it seems to be getting back there.

[Jake Galgon]

C&J: Singles to 235, 245*
Squat: Singles to 415 (pr)
Press: Singles to 185 (pr)
wide stance squat: 1x10 @ 225

The squat miiiiight have been a little high, but the dude I asked to look out for the depth thought it was ok. Crazy leanback on the press, I need to work on that. Need stronger shoulders, I guess?

[Mr.City]

Nice job on the lifts

[Jake Galgon]

Thanks. Progress has been really slow recently, which I blame on travel and sickness mostly, but that only goes so far. I hope I can really get shit dialed in for the rest of the summer and go into grad school strong

[Jake Galgon]

Superset {
Press: 16x2 @ 155 (first rep of each set cleaned
Pull-up: 8x2 @ +70
Quarter front squat (from pins): 8x2 @ 335
}

pc&pp: 20 reps for quickness @ 155
some tricep/upper back/shoulder dumbbell accessory stuff

[Jake Galgon]

Snatches to 205 (pr)
Squat: 2x5@325, 5@345, 6@370 (pr)
High-bar squat: 2x10 @ 225

I think I like high bar squats as accessories, since front squats suck at higher reps. 370 is a pr even for 5 reps.

[Jake Galgon]

Crappy quality and framing, but yesterday's snatch PR:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNh3jrCDZAs

[Jake Galgon]

Bench: 10x3 @ (225, 230, 230, 230, 230, 230, 230, 230, 230, 230*)
~15 minutes handstand practice

Could feel that the right arm is still weak from the elbow injury, which is probably actually good news cause as it gets back up to speed the bench should keep going (back) up. Still, I need to get my head in the game with my presses in general.

[kittenSmash]

Damn, nice snatch man...that sounds horrible

[Jake Galgon]

Thanks.

Power clean & push press: Singles to 225 (pr?)
Deadlift: Singles to 510 (pr), 525 (pr)

<object height="344" width="425">


<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/liLbvZtWXeA&rel=en&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0xd4d4d4" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></object>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liLbvZtWXeA

Press-grip muscle snatch: 15-20 or so singles @ 175
couple front squats
Good-morning: 2x10 @225 (dunno what the criterion for depth etc. is here, my back wasn't hitting parallel most reps, legs bent some...)

Dunno if the deadlift would be legal in competition--there was some back rounding and a bit of a hitch. Someone who knows more about these things than I do may be able to tell me.

[Jake Galgon]

Sunday:
Bench: Singles to 260 (pr), 270 (pr)
Press-grip muscle snatch: 5x4 @ 155

pretty easy workout. Out of town Monday and today but should be able to get to the gym for something squat-related tomorrow. Bench is still anemic but at least it's moving in the right direction. I think squatting a lot has given me a decent foundation for building other lifts up when I focus on them more (as I've been doing with the bench and the press lately).

[Jake Galgon]

snatch singles to 155
c&pp singles to 205
c&j singles to 255 (pr), 265**, 265**
Squat: singles to 325, 20 @ 275 (pr)

Happy about the C&J. It was the only lift I hadn't PR'd in in the past week or two. The 20 rep squat wasn't as bad as it could've been, since it was actually my grip (wtf) that was giving out towards the end. Will probably have to do a few more heavy sets of 20 before I get a to a true(r) max. Still, better than my old best of 225 from way back when.

[Jake Galgon]

Bent press: rh and lh singles to 100, rh miss at 110
snatch: singles to 185
superset {
-press: 7x3 @ 160
-pull-up: 7x3 @ +25 (bar-to-chest)
}
some semi-upright bob rows and pull-up 'lock ins' as accessory stuff at the end

[Jake Galgon]

Front Squat: Singles to 300 (pr), 315 (pr), 335*
Superset{
Bench: 5x3 @ (240, 240, 245, 240, 240)
Power Clean: 8x1 @ 235 (6th attempt missed)
}
some db ohp and handstand practice

the 20 lb jump attempt on the front squat was retarded, but I figured I might burn out with too many intermediate steps, plus I'd already set 2 PRs in a row. I actually got pretty close.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatches to 185
Superset {
(squat) clean & push press: ~20 singles @ 195
pull-ups (to chest): ~20x3 @ bw
}
some close-grip incline presses

[Jake Galgon]

OHS: Singles to 215
Front Squat: Singles to 285
Squat: Singles to 385, 405 (walkout), 455 (walkout), 505 (walkout), 425*
superset {
Press: 8x5 @ 135
Pull-ups (bar to chest): 8x5 @ bw
}
Squat: 10 @ 315
another set of pull-ups

Pretty shitty day, pissed to miss the squat, but at least I got in some much-needed volume.

[Jake Galgon]

Didn't get much sleep last night, wasn't the best workout.

Superset{
Power Snatch: 4x4 @ 160
Bench: 3x5 @ 230
}
Press: 5@160 (pr)
some incline press and pull-ups (mostly bar-to-chest)

[Jake Galgon]

Clean & Press: Singles to 200 (pr)
Clean & Jerk: Singles to 235, 265**, 265**, 265**
Front Squat: 8x1 @ (275, 295, 305, 295, 320 (pr), 275, 285, 295)
Squat: Singles to 365, 1x12 @ 315

horrific leanback and a few back cracks on the press, but it got up. Think my problem with the cleans is just not getting under the bar fast enough.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatches to 185
C&J to 235
Bench: 5@240 (pr)

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: singles to 405
Deadlift: 5 @ 475 (pr)

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: Singles to 185, 195*, 185*, 185
Superset:{
Press: 3x5 @ 150, 9@135
Pull-Ups: 3x10, 1x13}
10 minutes on the bike

[kittenSmash]

Damn, good job on the deads PR man. Almost reppin' 5 plates! I'm trying to catch you, haha.

[Jake Galgon]

Damn, good job on the deads PR man. Almost reppin' 5 plates! I'm trying to catch you, haha.

It'll happen soon, particularly with your squat. Gains are coming slow (though still fairly steady) these days.

Snatch: Singles to 185, 210*, 210*
Bench Press: Singles to 275 (pr)
Snatch high-pull: 10x1 @ 255
Snatch-grip deadlift: 2x5 @ (325, 355)

Snatch-grip deadlift reps dropped at the top to save my thumbs, but still tore a bit of skin off. Gotta get straps for these.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: Singles to 190
Press: Singles to 185 (beltless)
Superset{
Bench: 4x5 @ (235, 235, 235, 235*)
Power Clean: 5x3 @ (235, 235, 235, 235, 235**)
}

Gym was closing, so didn't have as much rest as I'd have liked before those last sets, hence the missed reps I think.
Gonna go to the pool and swim some laps now.

[Jake Galgon]

Did some swimming today, mostly laid back, a couple laps sprinted

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: Singles to 395
Press: 5 @ 165 (pr)
Squat: 15 @ 315

then some pull-ups and dips

[Jake Galgon]

slowly but (hopefully) surely working up to a set of 20 with 315. Been a goal of mine for a while now.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: Singles to 195, 210*, 210*
Deadlift: Singles to 530 (pr)
Bench: Singles to 255, 280*

Deadlift PR, happy birthday to me

[Jake Galgon]

well, only 5 lbs, but still

[kunnar]

nice pull, happy birthday http://www.startingstrength.com/resources/forum/images/icons/icon7.gif

[Jake Galgon]

Thanks.

Weak as hell today (maybe all the birthday boozing) so I cut the workout short.

Snatch: Singles to 185, 195*, 195*, 195*
Front squat: 2x2 @ (295, 295*)
Press: 3x5 @ 150
some pullups

Gonna try and rest up and then hit the gym tomorrow for some c&j and upper body stuff

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: singles to 195
Clean & press: singles to 195 (beltless pr)
Clean & jerk: Singles to 245, 260* (clean pr)
Front squat: triples to 295
Dip: 2x5 @ (+90, +100*)
Pull-up: 2x5 @ (+45, +55)

Then a bunch of unweighted dips and pull-ups

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: Singles to 185, 185, 200*
Clean & Press: Singles to 185*, 185* (???)
Clean & Jerk: Singles to 235
Squat: Singles to 385, 1x17 @ 315

Guess the press was weak from all the dips yesterday, plus I was going beltless. Happy to hit a new squat rep PR given how weak I was (little sleep last night plus hardish workout yesterday). I think 20 is in my near future.

[Jake Galgon]

Goofy day today.
Snatch: 175, 185, 185, 195, 210*, 210*, 210*
OHS: 3x185, 195
then some bent press and rows

Think I need to work on my overhead squat. All three of those missed snatches got and stayed overhead for at least a quarter second or so--just didn't have the stability, strength, and flexibility to stand up with them. The first one was a serious bail, the bar basically landed on my neck/back because I tried to squat it up too bent-over.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: Warmup to 175, 175, 185*, 185
C&J: Warmup to 225, 235, 240
Squat: Warmup to 365, 385, 405, 425 (pr), 435 (pr)
Superset{
-Front Squat: 4x2 @ 275
-Pull-Up: (5, 5, 5, 5, 14)
-Dip: (6, 6, 6, 6, 17)
}
High-bar Squat: 10@275

Big day, super happy about the 20 lb squat pr. Both shoulders are a bit wonky, presumably from yesterdays horribly ugly snatch failures.

[Jake Galgon]

Swam some laps, then hit the gym a couple hours after.

Snatch: Singles to 195
C&J: Singles to 235
Superset--
--Press: 7x5 @ 135
--Pull-up: 6x8

Upper body was pretty weak today, either from the swimming earlier or from my still-slightly-achy shoulders. Got some ok volume in though.

[Jake Galgon]

Couldn't sleep thursday night, so didn't lift yesterday, which sucks because the gym's closed on weekends over the summer. Swam some laps today.

[Jake Galgon]

Think I'm going to have some retard-fun and do every lift, heavy, every day, all next week. Something like:

5 snatches
5 clean & jerks
4 clean & presses (or push presses?)
5 front squats
4 more clean & presses
4 squats
5 bench presses
3 deadlifts

The idea, I guess, would be to do singles across at around 85-90% in all those lifts. Should be amusing. If I don't burn out I might keep at it for a while, building and resetting each lift individually.

[Jake Galgon]

Didn't make it to the gym today, tried to go for a 75 mile bike ride but legs cramped up around mile 55. Should thought to bring the pickle juice.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: 6x1 @ 185 (3 missed)
C&J: 4x1 @ 235 (1 or 2 pressed lockout)
C&P (no belt): 4x1 @ 175
Front Squat: 4x1 @ 295
C&P (belt): 4x1 @ 180
Squat: 3x1 @ 385
Bench: 245, 245*
(cut workout short there, since the gym was closing)

I like just doing singles like this, and I'm gonna try and do the same workout tomorrow and friday (but finish it, of course). Maybe go a bit easier on the OL's, front squats, and presses so that I don't burn out by the end--that third 385lb squat felt like a 1rm.

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: 6x1 @ 175
C&J: 4x1 @ 225 (one missed, form issue)
C&PP: 4x1 @ 200
Front Squat: 4x1 @ 274
Press: 7x1 @ 170
Squat: 3x1 @ 385
Bench: 4x1 @ 255, 1x2 @ 255
Deadlift: 475, 495
Chin: +90, +90*, 5x1 @ +70

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: ~15x1 @ 175 (about half missed)
Press: 8,7 @ 135
Chins: 7,5 @ +35
Squat: Singles to 365, 385, 405*

weak day

[Jake Galgon]

Yesterday and today:
biked to the pool, swam 40 easy laps, biked back

[Jake Galgon]

Another bogusly weak day, but I think I can blame this one on weird sleep and having to go to the gym as soon as I woke up.

Snatch: 175, 185, 195*, 195*, 195*, 195*
Press: 4x1 @ 185
Squat: 1x3 @ 385
High Bar Squat: 1x15 @ 245

[Jake Galgon]

Clean & Press: Singles to 190
C&J: Singles to 245, 255**, 255*
Superset:
--Bench: 5x2 @ (225, 250, 250, 250, 250*)
--Deadlift: 10x1 @ 455
OHS: 2x6 @ 135 (then gym closed)

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: Singles to 175, 185*, 185*, 185*; 30x1 @ 155
25 short stadium sprints

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: 365, 385, 11@315 (blah...)
Superset:
--Press: 5x3 @ 155, 6@155
--Chin-Up: 4x3 @ +45, 5@+45

[Jake Galgon]

Friday:Spent the past week down the shore, looks like barbecue and sun and sleep does the body good:

Snatch: Singles to 210 (pr)
Snatch pull: Singles to 225
Clean pull: Singles to 315
Deadlift: Singles to 545 (pr)
Bench: Singles to 265, 285*
Squat: Singles to 365, 1x13 @ 315
Superset:
--Dip: 3x5 @ +70
--Shrug (clean grip): 4x5 @ 315
Incline press: 1x18 @ 135
BB curl: 1x10 @ 95

Today:

Clean & Jerk: Singles to 260**, 260 (pr)
Superset:
--Press (beltless): 10x3 @ 155
--Pull-Up: 10x3 @ +45
Superset:
--Dip: 13, 6, 4
--Chin: 11, 5, 3

[Jake Galgon]

Hadn't lifted for a couple weeks (illness and travel) so I didn't really go crazy my first day back.

Snatch: 135, 155, 175, 185, 195*, 195*, 195
Clean & Press: 3@135, 155, 175, 185
Superset:
--Bench: 5x5 @ (225, 225, 225*, 225, 225*)
--Power Clean: 5x3 @ 225, 1x5 @ 225
Press: 1x10 @ 125

[Jake Galgon]

Front Squat: 5x2 @ (225, 245, 265, 280, 290)
Squat: 315, 365, 5 @ 375 (pr)
Superset:
-HB Squat: 8 @ 245, 10 @ 225
-Chin: 3x5 @ +45

[Jake Galgon]

hill sprints and some handstand practice today

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: Singles to 195, 205*, 205*, 205*
Squat: Singles to 405
(Xlb snatch + Y ohs): 165+2, 175+2, 175*, 175+4, 175*, 175+4, 175*, 175*, 175+5 (or something like that)

[Jake Galgon]

C&J: Singles to 235, 255* (cleaned, missed jerk)
Bench: 3x5 @ (205, 225, 245**)
Power Clean: 4x1 @ 235
Clean High Pull: 3x1 @ 275
Clean Pull: 3x1 @ 325
Deadlift: 1x7 @ 455 (~10sec rest before each of the last 2-3 reps)
OHS: 3x10 @ 135

[Jake Galgon]

hill sprints, handstand practice, and clap pushups today

[Jake Galgon]

pc&pp: Singles to 225, 235*
superset:
--Squat: 3x5 @ (345, 355, 365) 10 @ 315
--Pull-up: 4x6 @ (+45, +45, +45, +45*), 10 @ bw

[Jake Galgon]

Haven't eaten well this week (moving and all) so today kind of sucked. First day lifting at the UT gym. The power room is ok (at least they allow chalk) but the plates are kind of shitty (don't fit tight) and there's not really a good place to OL. I may join the Hyde Park gym but it's a little out of the way and it's not free.

Front squat: 3x3 @ (275, 285, 290*)
Bench: 2x5 @ (225, 225* (wtf)), 7@205
Power Clean: 1 @ 225
Clean Pull: 3 @ 315
Deadlift: 1x10 @ 405

[Jake Galgon]

second day in a row since i wanted to teach a new housemate to lift

Squat: singles to 385, 405* (maybe could have made it, didn't push it too hard)
Superset:
--Press: (15, 10, 10, 7) @ 115
--Pull-up: 10, 10, 10, 9

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: 5@355, 5@385*** (blah), 12@315
Press: 4x5 @ (155, 155*, 145*, 145)
Pull-Up: 4x5 @ +50

[Jake Galgon]

Bench: 3 @ 245, 11 @ 195
cleans to 225, clean pulls to 315
Deadlift: 1x4 @ 485

blargh

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: 1x6 @ 385(pr--woooo)
Superset:
--Press: (4,4,4,4,4,3) @ 155
--Front Squat: (5,5,6) @ 245
--Pull-Up: (5,5,6) @ +55

special bonus: I haven't really eaten today, so I'm gonna take the gallon challenge and see how much milk I can do in an hour. Horchata mix for bonus calories.

[Jake Galgon]

finished about 4/5 of the gallon but i didn't want to die so i stopped

[Jake Galgon]

today was pretty fun.

Rack pulls to 675 (lockout only really)
4 or 5 x 6 @ 215 on the bench
bunch of power shrugs at 405-455

[Jake Galgon]

crappy day
press: 1x4 @ 175
deadlift: singles to 455, 505*

505 is 40 lbs under my max, so I figured it was a weak day and just did a bunch of goofy lifts (bent presses, cheat-curl-and-reverse-press, etc.) and some more presses and went home

[Jake Galgon]

hangover = shit workout

Squat: singles to 365, 13@315
Bench: 1@245 (wtf), 5@225
Pendlay Row: 5@225, 5@245
Snatch Pulls: 4@245

[Jake Galgon]

Yesterday:

Deadlift: Singles to 505, 555* (the 555 got off the ground, but no dice)
Front Squat: (8,8,6) @ 225
Press: (8,8,5,7) @ 135
Good Mornings: 2x8 @ 275 (pretty sloppy, whatever)

[misspelledgeoff]

Good God you are strong.

Do you compete? Oly, PL, strongman? Or are you jsut working on overall studliness?

[Jake Galgon]

I like olympic lifting better than powerlifting for the most part, but I'm generally shitty at it (full squat clean < 1/2 deadlift, even with lots of practice). I'm thinking of joining up with the UT powerlifting team. I don't think of myself as particularly strong, but a bit of competition would be fun just for the hell of it.

[Jake Galgon]

Was under the weather and didn't really want to lift, so I didn't bring shorts to class. Then decided to anyway, but did stuff one could do in jeans.

Squat partials (from pins): 495, 545, 545
Floor press: 4@225, (3 or 4)x6 @ 195
L-chins: 4x6
a couple dips

edit: the squat partials started with the bar a few inches above the navel, so not just unracks. Was surprised to find that floor press is actually harder than bench for me, I guess I get more out of the arch than I lose by doing full ROM.

[misspelledgeoff]

U go to school at UT then? What year are you?

[Jake Galgon]

First year grad student in philosophy. I seem to remember there being some UT kids on this board from a thread I made a while ago, are you one of them?

edit: oh, plano, nevermind

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: Singles to 425, 445*
Press: Singles to 185
Squat: (3 or 4)x8 @ 315, 13@315

Straps on (these are new)--
Power shrugs: 4x5 @ (405, 495, 585) (Pulled from near the top--I might as well just say "rack pull as high and fast as I can" really; hard to say when a shrug is a shrug)
Partial rack pulls: Singles to 975 (these were only like 2-3" rom)

guess straps really do let you hold more weight, huh

[kunnar]

Was surprised to find that floor press is actually harder than bench for me, I guess I get more out of the arch than I lose by doing full ROM.

Same for me. I could use only 80 kg when i first tried floor press, normal bench press training weight was over 100 kg. For some reason floor press is much harder although ROM is smaller. Even more weird is that for me lockout is not a problem in bench press, if i fail then i fail in the bottom of the lift. In first sight floor press is all about lockout, but still it is harder than bench press...

[Jake Galgon]

Yesterday--

Front squat singles to 315
Benches in the 225-235 range (was pretty weak...)

[Jake Galgon]

(power) clean & press to 185
power clean to 235
clean pull to 315
deadlift: 1x4 @ 475 (1 or 2 more in the tank probably)
snatch pull: 3x5 @ 315
pendlay row: 3x8 @ 205

The snatch pulls were done with straps maybe more like shrugged snatch deadlifts. A few of the rows didn't touch the chest, but I didn't cheat too hard other than that.

[Jake Galgon]

power clean & push press: singles to 205, 225*
power clean & press: (10 or 11)x1 @ 175 (about half belted, one missed)
squat: 3@405, 1@385, 3@365, 5@345, 8@325, 6@315
superset--
-rh db cheat row: (8,8,15) @ 145 (w/ straps)
-lh db cheat row: (8,8,15) @ 145 (w/ straps)
db floor press: (15,12,10) @ 70x2

First time doing more than 1 rep with 4 plates. Felt good. Almost got a fourth rep. Straps definitely help out with the 1-hand cheat rows, but I'm going to make sure not to go overboard with the new toy.

[Jake Galgon]

Front squat: 275, 295, 275, 275
Bench: 3@245, 3x5@225,
Close grip bench: (10,6)@135

[Jake Galgon]

Front Squat: singles to 315 (sloppy and slow)
Squat: 7x5 @ (315, 345, 365, 345, 335, 325, 315), 7@315

edit: not a strong day really

[Jake Galgon]

Rack pull (from knees): 495, 545, 585, 635*, 605 (pr I guess, but I don't really track this lift)
Deadlift: 9x2 @ (405, 425, 455, 475, 455, 425, 425, 425, 425), 5@425

[Jake Galgon]

I shaved my beard and good god did I get fat while that thing was hiding it. Feeling a bit overtrained too, and my lifts haven't even gone up that much. Think I'm gonna take an easy week or two and probably get my diet/drinking in check as well.

[Jake Galgon]

light day today, and I'll probably take the next couple workouts just as light if not lighter. Feeling like I need a rest.

PC&J: 5x1 @ 205
Squat: 3x5 @ 275
Superset--
--Press: 4x7 @ 115
--Pull-up: 4x7

[Jake Galgon]

thursday, another light one:

Front Squat: 10x1 @ 225
Bench: 5x5 @ 175 (mostly paused)
Snatch Pulls: 4 @ 225 (strapless)
Snatch DLs: 1x10 @ 225 (w/ straps)

in miami for the weekend, gonna lift either today or tomorrow hopefully, if i don't make it then I guess I'll just do some pushups and jump squats and shit then start back tuesday

[Jake Galgon]

Sunday: should have gone light again but i wanted to impress a girl

Squat: singles to 425, 445*
Press: singles to 185, 195* (wtf)
some accessory shit, cheat curls and whatnot

[Jake Galgon]

lone gunman on campus = rest day, I think

I think there are some other University of Texas dudes on this board, hope everyone's well.

[Jake Galgon]

light day:

high bar squat: 4x5 @ 225
superset--
press: 4x5 @ 115
chin-ups: 4x5

[Jake Galgon]

another light one. Probably get back on it next week, although i think I've got a cold or something.

Front squat: 3x5 @ 185 (cleaned)
Close grip bench: 3x8 @ 175
Snatch: 3x5 @ 135

[Jake Galgon]

shit day today, but i'm coming off a cold or something and I haven't been sleeping well so it's to be expected.

Front Squat: singles to 275 (beltless)
Squat: 3x5 @ (315, 345, 365)
Front Squat: 3x5 @ 225 (beltless)

[Jake Galgon]

Front Squat: Singles to 275 (beltless), 295 (belted)--295 went up real quick
Bench (index fingers on rings): 3x3 @ (235, 245, 255**)
Bench (pinkies on rings): 3x5 @ 215
Bench (narrow grip): (7, 7, 9) @ 175
Power Clean: singles to 235
Clean Pull: 2x1 @ 315
Deadlift (~4" defecit): 7@405
Pendlay Row: 5x5 @ 205 (cheated a bit, and they didn't all touch the chest, but whatever)

[Jake Galgon]

decent day today. gonna squat either tomorrow or wednesday, then probably take the rest of the week a bit lighter and try to hit some new xRM's next week.

Front Squat: singles to 295 (beltless), 305 (belted)
PC & PP: 5x1 @ 205 (extra pp on the last one)
PC: 3x3 @ (225, 230, 235)
PC & Press: singles to 185; 8x4 @ 155, 4@155** (didn't rest really before the last set) (only first reps cleaned)

then some chins, some one-hand (not one-arm) chins, and some chest fly w/ 40lb db's

[Jake Galgon]

tuesday: pushed it too hard like the retard I am, I don't know why I decided to do singles

Squat: 365, 395, 415, 430*; 5@345 (weirdly hard)
High bar squat: 10@225

will lift tomorrow or friday or both, probably some heavy bench, some lighter squats, maybe a few deadlifts if I feel good or just some chins if i don't

[Jake Galgon]

Bench: 3@255 (half-attempted a 4th rep, but I was happy with a triple)
Deadlift: Singles to 525
Deficit Deadlift: 4x3 @ 405, 5@405 (~4" deficit)
Close Grip Bench: 3x8 @ 185, 6@185
Goblet Squat: 3x8 @ 140 -- first time I've done these as anything more than a warm-up, pretty fun. Would be cool if the DBs in the gym went up to 200 or so.

[Jake Galgon]

I'm hoping that doing more defecit deads will help with my sticking point, which is right at the bottom of the lift or maybe an inch or two off the ground.

[Jake Galgon]

Front Squat: 3x3 @ (275, 285, 295) (felt pretty good)
Squat: 2x8 @ 325 (these were supposed to be lightish, but they felt like 10-12rms)
Press: 5x5 @ 155 (felt good)

chins, weighted chins, one-handed chins, rows, db floor press

[Jake Galgon]

paid my dues for the UT powerlifting team, maybe i'll try and do this meet in december. Either 242 or 275, depending on how fat I am then. I'm tall enough that I'd probably be best as a 275, but I've got a small frame and i don't think that sitting at much above 242 long-term would be particularly healthy--and it's not like I have the potential to be some kind of great competitor, so that's gonna be the deciding factor. I'll settle on a weight class later on probably if I stick with competing.

[Jake Galgon]

light day, gonna try to go heavy tomorrow, but i had some bad insomnia this week so.

power clean @ jerk: singles to 205
bench: singles to 225

[Jake Galgon]

Bench: singles to 285 (pr)
Deadlift: singles to 555 (pr)

overhead squat: around 20 total reps with 155
clean pulls/power shrugs (from rack, ~knee height): 12@315, 12@365
some dips, pull-ups, db bench, db fly, db incline bench

edit: Not huge PRs, but it's been a while since I set one so I'm happy. Back in the saddle again.

[Jake Galgon]

just 30 more lbs on the bench and I reckon I'll officially no longer be a weak-ass bitch

[Jake Galgon]

yesterday:
front squat: 40 total reps @ 245
Press: ~30(?) total reps @ 145 (mostly sets of 5)

Today:
Front squat partials (paused, from pins a bit below navel): (3,2) @ 315, 5x3 @ 285
squat partials (paused, from pins a bit below navel): 5x3 @ 415
chins: 15x3 @ +25

did the partials today cause i was late to class and didn't bring my gym stuff, and I can't really do too much in jeans. They're fun though.

Neither day super heavy, but both fun. Probably gonna bench and deadlift friday, maybe back squat instead of the DL if that's what I feel like.

[Jake Galgon]

Bench (competition grip, w/ fat grips): 10x3 @ 215
Front Squat: 3@265, 2@285, 305, 325 (pr), 2x8 @ 245
Behch (narrow grip, w/ fat grips): 10x3 @ 205 (or was it 195, I forget)

pull day next time I'm in the gym I think.

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: 15x3 @ 335
Oly Squat: 1x8 @ 275

[Jake Galgon]

Rack Power Shrugs: 20 singles @ 495, the last 15 or so on the 20 seconds. Straps & belt, rack low- to mid-thigh.
Clean & Press (w/fat grips): 9x3, 1x5 @ 155. Pretty hard letting the bar down gently with the grips.

bunch of curls and chest fly (neither strict) w/ 55lb dbs & fat grips

[Jake Galgon]

Front Squat (beltless): 9x3 @ 255 -- started a 10th set but felt a twinge in my back after the first rep and stopped with the squats
Press (belted, fattened bar): 7x3 @ 160
Chins/Pullups (fattened bar): 15x4

[Jake Galgon]

back's still a bit wonky, probably just gonna bench and do some db crap or something tomorrow then hopefully squat/dl friday with whatever feels comfortable

back hasn't acted up in over a year, dunno if it's stress or just bad luck or what. Anyway, not a huge deal.

[Jake Galgon]

Shitty day, but the back felt ok in the gym and I was strong enough. Gonna go for max reps with 405 in the squat friday I think.

Bench: 4 @ 255
OHS: 3x5 @ (135, 155, 165)
db flys and db curls w/ fattened 40s
Squat: singles to 405

[Jake Galgon]

threw out my back doing squat partials to pins w/o a belt, FUCK

kind of deserved it though i guess

[shaddix]

threw out my back

I suggest you guys make up because you need each other to lift.



yaya lame I know :(

[Jake Galgon]

har har har

It's getting better but I'm probably going to mostly do light + high rep stuff squats/good mornings/deadlifts/front squats and only bench heavy for at least the next week or two.

[spiderman]

Just checking out your log. Congrats on the 555 pull and other PRs. That serious business. Good luck with your back healing quickly.

[Jake Galgon]

went easy on the squat what with the back, although it didn't feel as easy as it should have. Probably higher-rep pulls next time I'm in the gym.

Bench: 4x3 @ (235, 245, 255, 265)
Squat: 3x8 @ 315
db bench: 1x4 w/ 100s (fattened) then I said fuck it and went home

[Jake Galgon]

a pattern I've observed is I never do what I say I'm probably going to do.

Dunno if that's good or bad.

[Jake Galgon]

Front Squat: (1,2,3) @ 275
PC&P: (1,2,3) @ 175 (fattened bar, only first rep cleaned)
PC&PP: (1,2,3) @ 205 (all reps cleaned)
PC&J: (1,2,3) @ 225 (all reps cleaned)

Overhead Squat: (5,5,5,10) @ 135
Good Morning: 10@135, 3x10 @ 185

C&Js weren't as easy as they shoulda been, either its the shitty bars or the fact that I don't really o-lift cause the UT gym huffs birds

[Jake Galgon]

quads real sore

[Jake Galgon]

powercleans to 235, clean pulls to 315

superset:
-deadlift: 5x3 @ 455
-bench: (3,3,3,3,6) @ 245

close grip bench (fattened, short rests): 5@205, 5@185, 7@165

[Jake Galgon]

don't think i'm gonna get to the gym for a bit (maybe a week or so) so I gave myself a little PL test

Squat: 405, 425, 445*
Bench: 275, 290 (pr), 300*
Deadlift: 525, 545
Total: 1260

[Jake Galgon]

C&J: 2x3 @ 225
C&P (fattened): 3x3 @ 170
C&P: 3x3 @ 170
Squat: 2@405 (was hoping for at least 3...)

[Jake Galgon]

I need to do more power cleans

[Jake Galgon]

Weds:
front squat: 5x1 @ 275
pc&j: 5x2 @ 205
press: 5x3 @ 165 (fattened)
some dips and chins

Thurs:
front squat: 3@225, 2@275, 1@295
pc&j: 3x2 @ (225, 230, 235) (last jerk missed)
snatch pull: 3x3 @ 235
bench: 2, 4 @ 225 (lol) (fattened)
some db stuff

[Jake Galgon]

press: singles to 205 (pr)
push press: 3x3 @ 205 (fattened)
squat: 405, 8@365, 13@315
press: 5@160, 8@145, 10@135 (i think?) (fattened)
some chins

[Jake Galgon]

In the midst of a pretty serious depression, I think it'll be a good idea to take a few light weeks and go for more walks for the sake of my health.

[Jake Galgon]

~2 mile fartlek type thing today, mostly walking and jogging with a couple short strides/sprints. Nothing hard. Feel good though.

[JAM]

In the midst of a pretty serious depression, I think it'll be a good idea to take a few light weeks and go for more walks for the sake of my health.

Why you depressed? Physically, or emotionally?

[Jake Galgon]

Been depressed on and off since i was about 8, so the reason is generally just that it's a part of my character resurfacing I guess. There's usually something to trigger it though. Various stresses and whatnot. It is what it is.

Don't know if I understand the second question really.

[Jake Galgon]

first time in the gym since my last update. Finals, etc. Felt good.

Power Clean: 2x3 @ (225, 230)
Press: 3@175, 3@165, 5@165 (fattened)
Squat: 1x4 @ 390
Rack Power Shrug: 1x(10-15) @ 405 (straps, lost count of reps pretty quickly)

gotta get huskular for winter

i need to do more GUBS (General Upper Body Swoleness) work I think

[Jake Galgon]

Gonna lift at Ironsport over break. Really cool gym.

Snatch (kgs): 60, 60, 80, 90, 95, 100*, 100*
Press (kgs): 3x3 @ 70
Squat: singles to 405, 8@335
Front Squat: 5@255, 5@235
Chins: 3x5 @ +25 (and then a triple)

edit: steve (the owner) flipped out on the whole gym cause someone clogged the toilet. pretty funny.

[Jake Galgon]

God, it's been a full 6 months since I hit a squat PR. Grad school has not been kind do me, lifting-wise.

[Jake Galgon]

C&J (kgs): 70, 100, 105, 110
Front Squat: 3@295
Bench: 2@275
Superset:
--Bench (fattened bar): 4x10, 1x7 @ 185
--Chest-supported machine row: 5x10 @ whatever

[Jake Galgon]

Snatch: 185*, 185, 205*, 205* (annoying to miss those last 2 snatches, but I could tell it was technique rather than strength)
Press: 1x3 @ 185 (probably a 3 rep PR but I don't track those)
Squat: 365, 415, 435 (thought this last one was 445 and I had gotten a PR, but I just miscounted)
Squat: 4x8 @ 315, 10@315

[Jake Galgon]

Bro'd out on the bench today--

Snatch: 185, 185, 185, 185, 185*
Front Squat: 275, 325 (tied pr), 335*
Bench: 3x5 @ (225, 255*, 235), 4x8 @ (205, 185, 165, 150), 13@135

shitty to miss the PR attempts, but that's mostly how it's been recently. Deadlifts next time I'm at the gym I think.

[Jake Galgon]

Wednesday 12/29:

PC (kgs): 3x3 @ (100, 105, 110) (top set was probably a pr)
FS: 3x3 @ (275, 295, 300) (top set was probably a pr)
Bench: 1x4 @ 255

10 chins, 10 dips
a minute or so on the erg

[Jake Galgon]

ski vacation this week

fun times

[Jake Galgon]

Ski vacation over.

PC (kgs): 3x3 @ (110, 100, 100) (first set was really sloppy, sorta caught them on the chest)
Press (kgs): 3x3 @ (75, 80, 80)

Squat: 1x8 @ 365
Front Squat: 3x10 @ 185
a few chins

[Jake Galgon]

I'm getting kinda chunky, and my lifts haven't really gone up proportionally. Think I'm gonna cut weight and then maybe bulk up again once I've dropped 15-20 lbs or so.

[Jake Galgon]

Power Clean: 3x3 @ 215, 225, 235
Front Squat: 3x3 @ 265, 255, 275

Bench: 4x3 @ 235, 245, 225, 255
Close Grip Bench (fattened bar): 10@185, 6@185, 6@175

[Jake Galgon]

Push Press (fat grips): 3x3 @ (195, 205, 215)

Deadlift: 3x5 @ (385, 435, 485 (pr))
some chins (w/ fat grips for some)

hadn't gone for a 5rm deadlift for a while but it was still nice to get the pr

[Jake Galgon]

Forgot my shorts, which meant it was partials day.

Front squat partials (bottom to bottom, guards @ hip): 3x3 @ (275, 285, 295)
Bench: 4x3 @ (225, 245, 225, 260*)
Superset:
--Wide grip bench (fat grips): (10, 8) @ 175
--Narrow grip bench (fat grips): (8, 4?) @ 175
some chins

got trapped under the bar on the last light set of narrow grip bench, which was super embarrassing and awful. Fortunately the weight was light enough that it was fine to just sit there waiting for someone to pull it off.

[Jake Galgon]

Press-grip muscle snatch: 5x2 @ 175
Squat: 3x3 @ (335, 365, 405)

Some leg press, last set was 12 reps w/ 7 plates on each side i dunno what the sled weighs or whatever. Honestly i reckon the leg press isn't a bad accessory lift--felt the quads without the crazy out-of-breath-back's-about-to-explode feeling of front squats, didn't seem to stress the joints out that bad so long as the feet were up around the top of the thing.

[Jake Galgon]

Bench: 4x5 @ (185, 225, 205, 245), 8@ 225

bunch of lighter wide- and narrow-grip bench and chins

[Jake Galgon]

Front Squat: 275, 305, 335*
Press: 3x3 @ (165, 170, 175)

Rack power shrug (straps): 5x3 @ (495, 545, 585, 635, 675)
Rack power shrug (straps): 6x10 @ 405

some chins

[Jake Galgon]

traps and calves are gonna be sore tomorrow i reckon

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: 365, 405, 425, 3x5 @ 365
some dips and chins and a bit of stretching.

[Jake Galgon]

Power clean: 3x3 @ (225, 235, 235(?))
Front squat: 3x3 @ (275, 275, 265)
Bench: 6x3 @ (205, 225, 245, 215, 255, 225), 1@265
some upper body accessory shit

then, a few hours later, some more upper body accessory shit

[Jake Galgon]

Press: 3x5 @ (135, 155, 175 (pr))
Deadlift: 3x3 @ (425, 455, 505) --that'd be a PR, but I don't track triples and it doesn't imply a higher 1rm than my current 555

some leg press and chins

[Jake Galgon]

Computer's been on the fritz.

Last monday: bench, shrugs?
Last wednesday: Squats
Tues-Sat sick with a cold
Sunday: Bench, shrugs
Monday: Press, chins, couple front squats

Today:
Squat: 3@365, 3@385, 2@405
Board press: 5x3 @ 265 or something like that. Not actually a board, just 3 2.5#s stacked--probably 2-2.5 inches I guess.
500m erg sprint, 1:29.4

[Jake Galgon]

I think I'm gonna focus on bench for a while, but my shoulder acts up a bit if I bench too much. This means, I think, that I'm gonna do a lot of board press and overhead press, but the main thing is I'm just really gonna hammer the volume on the upper body and keep it lighter on the squats and deadlifts and such for a bit, at least volume-wise.

[Jake Galgon]

Rack pull: 5x1 @ 565; 5x3 @ 495; 8,15 @ 405 (no belt or straps)
135lb presses, chins, some pec deck bullshit

[Jake Galgon]

Pretty mediocre day today.

Bench: 225, 255, 275, 300*
Deadlift: 405, 455, 505, 535*, 505, 495, 495 (didn't really go all out on the 535, might have been able to grind it out but it would have been on the order of a true 1rm attempt)
Bench: (8,8,8,7) @ 205
some chins and dips

A very small consolation for the fact that my lifts aren't going up a ton of late is that my chins are. Could probably do 15+ or so deadhangs on a rested max set.

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: 365, 395, 415, 365, 430; 2x2 @ 385
Press: Singles to 195
Press Starts: 10x1 @ 215
Superset:
--Squat: (13, 10) @ 315
--Press: (10, 10, ?) @ 135
--Chin: (15, 11, 8, 8, 9)

[Jake Galgon]

Monday: Total garbage day. Fucked up my left shoulder somehow on the last set of board press. It was hubris--the second to last set it was already starting to feel a little bit wonky. Plus I tore my cheap straps, though perhaps this just means I am swole.

Bench: Singles to 275
~2 Board Press: 4x3 @ 275, 1@275 (then ouch)
Rack Power Shrugs: 8 @ 455, 7@475 (straps tore on rep 7 of the second set--I was planning on going for 3x8)

did some cable triceps shit and preacher curls as assistance to not bother the shoulder, but I must have had some adrenaline going or something because by nighttime it hurt just moving around or having it in certain positions. It's a bit better today. Probably gonna starr-rehab it for a week or two starting maybe Friday.

[Jake Galgon]

friday:
bench: 3x25 @ (45, 55, 65)
bent-over row: 3x25 @ 65
press: 25@45

saturday:
elevated-hand pushups: 3x25

today:
pushups: 3x25

shoulder's still not great but it's not killing me all the time like it was for the first few days.

[Jake Galgon]

tuesday:
(at home) diamond pushups 3x15-20

today:
bench: 3x15 @ 155
chin/pu: 3x8

anybody know any good shoulder mobility routines that might help me prevent this from happening again?

[Jake Galgon]

thursday:

bench: 12, 12, 12, 8 @ 175

Last couple workouts my shoulder felt worse (or at least not better). Could be I've been bumping the weight up too fast. I'm gonna lift tomorrow and just go back to higher rep/lighter weight stuff and then run that alongside an intensive squat cycle. Maybe smolov base cycle based around a 420-425 (vs. actual 435) 1rm. (I've heard to lowball the 1rm estimate on smolov, and looking at this calculator it seems pretty essential)

edit: since the smolov base cycle starts out pretty light i figure it shouldn't interfere with shoulder healing too much for the first week or so

[Jake Galgon]

god i have such add. Why am I thinking about doing smolov when I was thinking about dropping weight a week or two ago?

[Jake Galgon]

smolov day 1
squat: 4x9 @ 295

way way harder than it should have been. Guess that's what happens when you don't squat for weeks. Fuck.

[Jake Galgon]

oh also did some 135lb presses and some chins yesterday. Just gonna do light upper body stuff like that maybe twice a week while I'm doing the smolov thing.

[Jake Galgon]

weds: smolov day 2
5x7 @ 315

fri: smolov day 3
7x5 @ 335
some presses

both days heavier than they should have been. Incredible DOMS from monday to wednesday/thursday but mostly better now. If I can't handle next week I'm gonna to a very short deadlift/press-emphasis cycle, take a week off, and then try again.

Shoulder's somewhat better, to the point where I can go heavyish on presses without a problem. I'm gonna keep the bench under 225 for a few more weeks to be safe. Pressing is more fun anyway.

[Jake Galgon]

ugh.

squat: 5x3 @ 355
chins: 3x8

That's right, I just bombed out on the FIRST WEEK of smolov. I am officially a bitch. This would not have been hard a month or two ago. I'm blaming it for now on the shoulder injury messing with my lifting and recovery, because I've actually been good about eating and sleeping recently.

So yeah as I say it's gonna be lots of heavy deadlifts and fairly heavy presses next week, light week after that, and then start a new cycle of some kind.

[Jake Galgon]

monday:
light squats: 3x5 @ 275
press: 10x5 @ 155

today:
light squats: 3x5 @ 275
light speed bench: 5x3 @ 185
deadlift: 20x1 @ 445 (beltless)

[Jake Galgon]

squat: 365, 385, 405, 415, 425
press: 185, 195, 205*, 195, 195
deadlift: 475, 495, 515, 565*

superset:
--chin/pu: 10,10,10,5
--close grip bench: 15@155, 10@165, 10@165, 6@165


Don't really know why I went for that silly big deadlift. I did get it a couple inches off the ground, though.

I don't think I'm going to do another smolov cycle now that I've bombed out. I'm going to drop some weight. And yes, it is for largely aesthetic reasons, although I'd also like to get some of my conditioning back too. I don't think I should sit around 250 for as long as I have without being more muscular than I am. I'll try some mini bulking cycles (probably smolov base cycles) once I'm comfortably back around 230 or so, which I guess will take a couple months at least.

If anyone has some good cutting resources for powerlifters or other athletes looking to drop a weight class (vs. just cutting for a competition and vs. bodybuilder type stuff) let me know.

[Jake Galgon]

so: the current thought is to keep squatting, deadlifting, front squatting, and power cleaning, but for lower volume than I traditionally do. Probably big focus on power cleans, really. I'll do a ton of presses on top of this, because so far they haven't bothered my shoulders--basically going to just focus hard on maxing out my press and doing general low-shoulder-impact upper body swoleness stuff. We'll see how this goes. My upper body really is pretty anemic vs. my lower--555 dead 435 squat 290 bench and 205 press is a pretty weak upper body for someone without gorilla arms.

[Jake Galgon]

wednesday:
front squat: 3@275, 2@295, 1@315
power clean: 3@225, 2@235
press: 8?x3@165 (every rep hang power cleaned)

some 145lb db rows--not that many cause the grip was a serious limiting factor (the dbs at the gym have pretty fat handles)

[Jake Galgon]

Squat: 3x3 @ 355, 375, 395
Bench: 8@205, 6@225, 4@245, 2@255, 2x6@205, some more backoff sets with a narrow grip
some chins and dips

[Jake Galgon]

I can close my coc #1 20+ times now so I ordered a #2. Plus some straps. Gonna get back to doing rack power shrugs

one of these days i will be big and strong instead of a little bitch

hopefully

[Jake Galgon]

wednesday--
squat: 315, 365, 385, 405, 425, 405, 405, 405
press: 185, 195, 185, 185, 8@145
rack pull: 405, 495, 585, 635, 675 (from just above knee)
rack power shrug: 5x3 @ 495 (same rack position, which is lower than I usually do for these)

edit: pulls and shrugs done w/ straps.

[Jake Galgon]

I can just barely close the coc 2 once. Surprised how much harder it is than the #1.

[Jake Galgon]

FUCK. Blew my shoulder up benching a 225 warmup. My OTHER shoulder. I'm done with wide-grip bench, fuck whatever extra weight it adds--all of my trouble has started since I put my middle fingers on the rings.

Did some squats (a triple at 365 and another at 385 and then some long-paused singles at 335) just so I could feel like I did something

What are you supposed to do when you're trying to cut weight and your shoulder's fucked? I guess I'm just gonna be squatting and doing bicep/tricep shit and grip work.

[Jake Galgon]

A couple PRs since I've updated:

565 deadlift (up from 555)
395x5 squat (up from 385)

upper body lifts are terrible though. Just starting to start doing the real lifts again. I'm going to stay away from wide grip bench for at least 3+ more months, and probably forever, unless I get into competing.

[Oldster]

A couple PRs since I've updated:

565 deadlift (up from 555)
395x5 squat (up from 385)

upper body lifts are terrible though. Just starting to start doing the real lifts again. I'm going to stay away from wide grip bench for at least 3+ more months, and probably forever, unless I get into competing.

What a great squat and fantastic dead, Jake. I don't know your BW, but at ANY weight, some great lifting!


FUCK. Blew my shoulder up benching a 225 warmup. My OTHER shoulder. I'm done with wide-grip bench, fuck whatever extra weight it adds--all of my trouble has started since I put my middle fingers on the rings.

What are you supposed to do when you're trying to cut weight and your shoulder's fucked? I guess I'm just gonna be squatting and doing bicep/tricep shit and grip work.
Are you familiar with Louie Simmons 'Rolling Dumbells'? Basically a pullover and press performed with dumbells and very VERY little rest time along with high reps. 15-17 seconds between sets. If you can do them relatively painfree you will really see your triceps blow up pretty big.

Don't worry about not doing a bench press. If you plan to compete you can use a close grip legally from what I understand. 16-17" between thumbs depending on how wide your chest is. My close grip and bench have always been within 5lbs of each other with the close grip usually ahead. A wide grip bench is a wonderful way of stopping any lifting with painfree shoulders. There is nothing good nor healthy about using a wide(r) grip IMHO.

Also, going back through your log a few pages it is pretty evident that as your shoulder heals you need to add overall pressing volume to your routine. It'll make you bigger, stronger and help with recovery as you build stamina. I can't wait to see how things go for you when you compete!

[Jake Galgon]

Thanks for the words of wisdom, Oldster. I think that right now my wide-grip bench is a lot bigger than my narrow-grip bench, but hopefully that'll change if I put a lot of focus on the narrow-grip bench and triceps accessory stuff. I'll give the db pullover & press a try tomorrow for sure.

I usually do that rule of thumb (literally I guess) where you just have your hand the length of your thumb away from the smooth. I guess the outside of the hand is a bit under an inch inside the first ring. Hopefully that's narrow enough to keep me out of trouble.

[Oldster]

If you concentrate on your triceps Jake, you'll be shocked at how quickly your strength will increase. Probably not too many months and it will exceed your bench strength, safely. I don't know what kind of bar you use. I use a Texas Power Bar and with my thumbs at the edge of the smooth they are 16" apart. If my hands are within 1" of the power ring, my grip is about 23" wide, a little too wide for my long term shoulder health. I'm sure your shoulder will let you know if you are working too wide.

[Jake Galgon]

Gave the pullover&presses a try yesterday, Oldster. Liked them a lot.

[Jake Galgon]

Lifted at a low-key local push-pull meet today. Unsanctioned. Benched 280 (didn't want to push the shoulders too hard) and deadlifted 570.

http://i53.tinypic.com/nmg2uv.jpg
http://i54.tinypic.com/k34ole.jpg

[Jake Galgon]

you can totally see my dong in those

anyway today was great, did a 5x5 at 385 on the squat with an extra rep on the last set and enough energy left over to do some higher rep zerchers afterward.