Mike D's Training log

[Mr_Rogers]

Power clean 145 or should have been. Elbows bothered me so I just did some technique work with lighter weight

Are they sore from power cleans? Depending on how you're put together power snatches may be more your thing. Great lifts btw.

[Mdemarco]

Are they sore from power cleans? Depending on how you're put together power snatches may be more your thing. Great lifts btw.

No, I believe it's a bout of golfers elbow that was being caused by wrist flexion. It seems that using the stricter form is helping, as I haven't had any pain at all today or yesterday. I had the GF do a few real deep hard massages on the muscles and insertion points, used about 800 Mgs of naproxen and alternated ice and heat and I seem to be good to go. It usually flares up after the 3rd set of squats when I guess my upper body tightness gets a little sloppy, causing me to hold the weight in flexion with my arms. I've fixed that error. We will see Wednesday. Thanks for advice if it keeps happening I'll try the snatches

[Mr_Rogers]

If it's squat related stick with power cleans. They should fly up for you lol

I only suggested power snatches because I thought power cleans might have been causing them (ie catching them with your hands and not your delts). If PCs don't irritate your wrists stick with them, you'll be able to move more weight compared to power snatches.

[Mdemarco]

At first that actually was happening as you describe. I ended up buying the SS DVD and restarting my PCs to fix my form. Now I rack correctly instead of holding it with arms and hands. I had waaaaay to narrow a grip for my forearm length. People that don't have that DVD need to get it if they have form problems, its badass

[Mr_Rogers]

The DVD is great. The book gives some pretty good rules of thumb, but it helps to actually see the principles applied to a wide variety of anthropomorphies. That was one of the bigger things I took away from the seminar.

[Mdemarco]

I'm currently laid off or I would go to a seminar for sure. They are pretty expensive though for me at the moment.

[Mdemarco]

8/22
Squat 390 3x5
OHP 180 3x5
power cleans 145 5x3

First day working out at Gold Gym. I thought that it was going to be like going to the zoo and watching the animals. I was right, except that I guess I was the animal for the most part. I guess they dont have that many people that squat deep and heavy there because I felt like the main attraction. Dont get me wrong though im a bit of an exhibitionist. Nobody bothered me at all, i just saw them staring and whispering. Ill talk about some of the "Brah" things I saw going on in a minute. But first

Positives: 2 nice Squat racks, plenty of rubberized weights, all tucked away into an "L" shaped corner of the gym, so its suppose to be kinda private back there
Sauna felt absolutely positively fantastic after the heavy session. This will be repeated.
The mirrors actually helped me center on the bar, but stopped just short of being where I stare for squats, so they werent an issue for me in that way, except i could see people watching me a few times as I racked the weight
They are getting a platform in for lifting, and dont care if I do power cleans and snatchs as long as i control the descent. And if Im starting to get too loud there are a few rubber deadening mats i can use, they dont give a fuck
Lots of beautiful spandex covered lifting incentives around, im engaged so I can look at the menu, I just cant make a purchase.

Negatives: Fucking Taco Bell in the parking lot, and I sure do love me some Fourth Meal. THis will be a issue for my fatass.

I forgot my micro plates at home, so my squat was a little heavier than it should have been, i went to 390 instead of 387.5. Got all reps so no big deal ill just have to recover well.
Presses felt great, Power cleans were functional with good form, the mirrors actually helped with this a little so i could see what i looked like.

A guy started setting up the Squat rack next to and doing some Hang Snatches as i was doing squats, so during his rest I asked him if anyone ever got on to him about doing Power cleans or deadlifts. Turns out he was a trainer there and was just off today lifting, and said that the manager was 100% ok with it, as long as weights are lowered under control and not just dropped from high. He said they were getting a platform within the month so people could do Olympic lifts and drop the weights. So other than the No chalk policy, which i dont use chalk anyway, Im very pleased with this place. Each Golds is different but this one is actually not bad at all.

Funny things i saw people doing: Some kinda bent over behind the knees lateral 40lb barbell raises with calf raises every other rep.
1/16 ROM hack squats
Smith machine decline bench
Guy with almost straw style thong sandels, a weight belt on, so loose he could slip it up his entire body, which he did a few times, Gloves on, doing 5lb plate left to right swings at shoulder height. He came in the same time I did, and left before me, and he never ever did ANY excercise except this. Getting water after every "set"
Chicken leg bro doing behind the neck smith machine presses with 55 total pounds. and he was super pumped for it too. He has a MASSIVE upper body also, but his legs were as big as my wrists, no joke
I think the guy behind me on the elliptical, as i was doing 5 minutes on a bike to warm up a bit, had Turrets(spelling) syndrome. He kept going "yeeeip yeeeip pop pop" on pretty regularly scheduled intervals. Im not one to make fun of people with disabilities at all, but I had to hurry and get up and leave because i was about to start laughing uncontrollably. It just hit me funny for some reason.
Not sure what this was, but there was a guy, headband and all, with a 10 lb dumbell, bent over with his unarmed elbow resting on his knee, 10 lb armed dumbell hanging straight down, doing some kinda movement that looked like he was stirring up a bucket of shit with it, not big turns, but small circular turns. If anyone knows what this excercise is called please tell me

[nmcmahan52]

people definitely tend to stare if you regularly squat in the gym, especially if it's more than two plates

i get asked about "leg day" quite often

every day is leg day pussies

[Mdemarco]

8/24

Squat 395 3x5
bench 235 3x5
deadlift 405 1x5

The PRs keep droppin like panties on prom night baby!!!!
Great day today. Felts fantastic. Beastie Boys post workout music for the drive home was epic as i was soo jazzed up. It made me want to go home and put on my Adidas trac suit and break out some B-Boy shit!!
I am having problems with one thing. I want to help people, but Im not one to give unsolicited advice unless its a saftey thing. Kid next to me was doing some kind of hybrid lowbar/highbar squat and was just barely missing parallel. I kept my mouth shut because i wouldnt want anyone butting in on my workout and giving me advice, but there it is for ya. Hoping a few of them will ask me after they see me a few more times for help, because I do love helping people.

I felt bad for him because after he saw my 395 he just left the bar with everything on it and went and did leg presses. Kinda like he gave up after he saw me bust em out. Im just vain enough though that it also instilled a slight bit of pride.

On a funny note, the belt really helps for everything, and deadlift too, but its hard for my fatass to get my straps on the bar and set up right with the damn thing on. It was kinda humourous

[nmcmahan52]

they forced us to wear lifting belts in high school so it actually feels weird for me to not use it

good job on dem squatz though, going for work set of 340 tonight which should be rough, i've felt sick all day