Wolf's Log: From Cub to Direwolf

[Kyle Martin]

Impressive, most impressive.

[kpsmiley]

Awesome! Congratulations!

[neilc1]

Congratulations coach

[Michael Wolf]

Thanks so much to everyone for the kind words and support after my last workout. There are too many to reply to each one personally right now at 1:15am with a 6:15am wake-up tomorrow for the seminar, but I read them all and they mean a lot.

And: another lifetime goal milestone achieved today!

Press: 4" belt + wraps
285x1, 305x1 - PR @8.5, 315x1 - PR @9.5
Notes: 3 plates, bishes!! Once again the plan was 305 but it went up super easy, so I took out 315 very confidently and it went up too. It was a fast 9.5, but the way press dies at the tricep hand-off point without a layback, I can't be sure I'd have gotten a second rep. Still, super excited here. Not as big to me as a 700 DL, but definitely still very big. Glad to have done it with a bunch of friends and colleagues present. 700 was awesome, but being there basically by myself wasn't the same as 10 people whooping and cheering for me while I did 315.

I have bitched for years about how if I got even just one full year of lifting uninterrupted by injury, I would be seriously strong. But no one likes a bitcher and moaner, even when they're right, so I've mostly kept it to myself. But it bubbles up now and then. It's also true that some injuries were of my own making, stubbornness or refusal to adapt my program quickly enough to be more appropriate for my training advancement. But it's also true that most of them haven't: freak injuries like slipping down an icy staircase and tearing my shoulder completely when grabbing the rail to prevent my fall; developing a bulging ventral hernia or an infected cyst on my neck out of nowhere; many back tweaks occurring on DLs that appear to be absolutely rock solid from a technique standpoint. And on and on. So it feels somewhat vindicating to make a solid amount of progress and hit two lifetime goals when having not even one year but just one training cycle without major injury or setback, my first since the first half of 2014. I did have a back tweak, that stopped me from deadlifting for about 2 weeks, and a pec tweak which set my bench back to rehab mode for a few weeks - but for me, those are so much more minor compared to my usual not being able to perform a lift at all for ~2 months, that I can almost consider this a fully unfettered training cycle. Anyway, it's pretty obvious to me that I'm both right and that it doesn't matter because no one cares - nor should they - about what you could've done. It just sucks to be the one who could've but didn't for reasons beyond your own control.

That said 585/475/700/315 are respectable numbers to be able to list as PRs, so I'm quite happy about where I'm at right now. Let's see if I can put another relatively injury free training block together next year as well, and make a run for 500 bench and 725 DL.



315x1 Press on IG

Bench
315x5, 365x5 @7, 315x5
Notes: All super easy, just getting in a small amount of bench volume work this week.

Chins
BWx3x4 - no lat PD so did low volume chins

Rolling Dumbbells
50x10x2

[neilc1]

ann-E-mahl

[Ryan Arnold]

Boom! 3 plates is serious bidness. Awesome

[kpsmiley]

Awesome!

[Michael Wolf]

ann-E-mahl

Boom! 3 plates is serious bidness. Awesome

Awesome!

Thanks brosephi. Felt good to his that lifetime milestone PR.

[Michael Wolf]

Today was unexpectedly good. First strike is I'm always beat and blasted the day after a seminar weekend. We're up early, stay up late, and are somewhat "on" all day long, from Friday at 5pm till Sunday at 7-8pm. Second, I traveled a ways for this one which makes me tired. Third, dinner Sunday night was at a restaurant with a cramped corner booth and a very odd shaped table that forced me to sit in a way that had my back spasming and cramping after an hour or so, and I still feel that today so was worried I'd not be able to work up to my last DL warm-up, which was the plan.

I also planned to do my one squat preparation workout today, since I have to hit a squat at the meet. I planned to hit something heavier for Nationals than my token 60kg that I did in October's meet, but was thinking something in the 100-125kg range, maybe 150 tops. A warm-up set in my former life, but I don't want to risk back re-injury.

But expectations were surpassed and not only could I deadlift but I unexpectedly got in some ridiculously fast heavy squats.

Squat: 4" belt
45x5x a bunch
135x5, 185x3, 225x3, 275x2 - still felt ok, what? 315x1 - felt fine, what? 365x1 - no prob? 405x1 - felt knees a little but not bad. OK. 455x1 - felt knees more but still tolerable.
500x1 @FAST - a little discomfort leading to some knee wobble but really very manageable and no lingering effects.
Notes: Totally, absolutely, completely shocked by this. When I did this before the meet in October, I felt fine at 135 and then immediately at 185, my knees were not happy and I stopped there. I hoped to get to 225 today, maybe 275 tops. Going up to 500, doing it with a bunch of gas in the tank, and with only minor knee pain and minor collapsing into the hole? Totally fun and cool and unexpected.

I know DLing heavy helps preserve this somewhat, and leg pressing again the last month, but still super pleasantly surprised at this.

Squat Progression 365 to 500 on IG

Press: 4" belt + wraps
260x1, 285x1, then 205x3x3
Notes: Not fully recovered from Friday yet but these were fine.

Deadlift: 3 belt
565x1 @7ish, then 455x3
Notes: Back was a little wonky from dinner last night but pulling didn't make it any worse so stuck with the plan and worked up to last warmup.

Bench: no belt or wraps
405x1 @6, then 315x3x3
Chins
BWx3x4

DB Triceps
45x8x2

[Ryan Arnold]

So happy with this report! Texas was the right move