Finding Out that the Iron Never Lies

[bustermonkey2]

April 6, 2016
Bodywt 227 lbs. I'd like it to be 224 lbs by April 14th so I'll only need a small water cut for weighin on the 15th.

Bench, 1st rep paused @ 335 lbs-5,5,4,4 Third set I got out of grove and called it as I din't have spotter. 4th set I almost had 5th rep but got stuck a few inches up for an eternity before spotter grabbed it. I'm guessing I needed to eat more to recover from last bench session but I want to cut a tiny bit more first.

Sumo Deadlift. I wanted to get a little work in and also see where I'm at so I can gauge a good opener. @ 455 lbs-2; @ 475 lbs-3 PR RPE 9.5; @ 495 lbs-2 PR RPE 9.75 495 was a bit grindy but not completely terrible . Both Prs are very close to my conventional pr's, so I will open at either 485 or 495 lbs and go from there. Focusing on getting the weight set into my heels seems to help me keep the weight close and keep chest up.

Press @ 185 lbs-5,5,5 Rpe 9.5

[bustermonkey2]

April 8, 2016
Bodywt 225 lbs

Bench, 1st rep paused @ 345 lbs-3
Bench, 1st rep paused @ 350 lbs-3,3,3 RPE 9.5, although that was probably my best set. The first two sets were a bit rushed and felt like 9.75.

Squats @ 465 lbs-2
Squats @ 475 lbs-2 PR RPE 9.75

Wrapped Squats @ 485 lbs-2
Wrapped Squats @ 495 lbs-2 PR RPE 9.75 Pretty tired by this point. Also some right elbow tendinitis again.

Chins w/ 45 lbs-5,5,5

[bustermonkey2]

April 11, 2016
Body wt 226 lbs- Still a couple pounds heavier than I want to be.

Bench, 1st rep paused @ 365 lbs-2,2,2,2 RPE 9.5 Last set.

Sumo Deadlift @ 425 lbs-4,4
Sumo deadlift @ 435 lbs-4,4 PR RPE 9.5

Press @ 185-3
Press @ 195 lbs-3 RPE 9.5 I was pretty tired by this point so I stopped here instead of doing one more set. Also the bar I was using had a messed up sleeve on one side which was kind of throwing off the press.

I'm going to compete on April 16th at the NASA Iowa State Meet at 220 lbs Masters and Open division. I'm doing the Open division because the current state record for open bench in powerlifting is only 162.5 kilos (358 lbs) and I think there's good odds I can set a new record there. I'll probably open at 205 kilos (452 lbs) on squat; 157.5 kilos (347 lbs) on bench and 220 kilos (485 lbs) on deadlift. These all should represent last warm ups so should feel real easy as openers.

[bustermonkey2]

April 13, 2016
Bodywt 224 lbs

This is a lighter session as the meet is on the 16th. I wanted to make sure I was fully recovered but not detrained.

Bench, 1st rep paused @ 315 lbs-5,5 Rpe 8

Squat @ 405 lbs-5,5 Rpe 8.5

Chins-10,10 Easy.

I'm about where I want to be for 7 p.m. weigh-in on the 15th. I will eat last solid food around noon tomorrow April 14th, but keep drinking fluids, including protein shakes, until about 7 a.m. on the 15th. That should mean an easy cut under 220 lbs.

[bustermonkey2]

Meet Report- NASA Iowa State Meet 4/16/16

I weighed in at 217.8 lbs around 7:30 p.m. on the 15th so I cut slightly more than necessary to compete at 100 kilos. I really didn't feel too dehydrated as I had only stopped fluids about 7:00 a.m. after a protein shake and morning coffee.

I competed in Raw Powerlifting in 2 categories: open and masters 1 division.

Squats: I started at 205 kilos (452 lbs), got all whites. Then did 220 kilos (485 lbs) and got all whites which was a Masters State record and meet PR. I then did 230 kilos (507 lbs) and got 2 whites and one red for an overall PR and Masters State record. I think my depth was close on the 3rd attempt which was likely why I got 1 red.

Bench: I started at 157.5 kilos (347 lbs) and got 3 whites. I then did 167.5 kilos (369 lbs) for 3 whites which was both an Open State record and a Masters State record. I then did 172.5 kilos (380 lbs) for 2 whites which was a meet PR and Open State record and a Masters State record. On 3rd attempt I was told by another lifter that 1 judge gave me a red because he wanted to see bar held straight out before dropping it to chest and getting press command to show bar control. I wasn't even aware that was in the rules.

Deadlift: I started with 220 kilos (485 lbs) for 3 whites. I then did 235 kilos (518 lbs) for 3 whites as I knew that set a new overall State Masters record. I then did 250 kilos (551 lbs) for 2 whites and an overall PR. I'm not sure why I got a red light on this but it was really slow, right at my limit.

My overall total was 652.5 kilos (1439 lbs) for a Masters Total State record as well as the State Masters Squat and Bench Records and State Open Bench Record. I was very happy to get all nine lifts and the attempts were right on the money as each 3rd lift was only barely completed.

I forgot to mention that I tied for 1st place in terms of coefficient among all raw powerlifters for the whole meet, which is rare since it goes out like 4 digits past the decimal point. However, the other guy was a few pounds less so the meet director said he would be considered the best lifter.

[jenica]

Sounds like a really successful meet. Congrats on the many records and PRs!

[bustermonkey2]

Sounds like a really successful meet. Congrats on the many records and PRs!

Thanks. To quote the A-Team's Hannibal, "I love it when a plan comes together."

[bustermonkey2]

They just posted the results on the website and the other guy I tied with had the same total in terms of amount lifted but weighed less (although in the same weight class) so had a higher coefficient so was in fact the better lifter. That makes more sense than having 2 lifters with the same coefficient as that would seem to be extremely unlikely. I still finished 2nd overall among all 32 raw male powerlifters, which is the best I've ever done.

[idlehands]

Wow. Awesome meet man!!

[bustermonkey2]

Wow. Awesome meet man!!

Thanks. I really can't think of anything I would have done differently. I'm thinking now about dropping a weight class because there's some obscure national records for NASA I might be able to hit if I drop a weight class without too much strength loss.

April 21, 2016

Bench, 1st rep paused @ 315 lbs-5
Bench, 1st rep paused @ 325 lbs-5
Bench, 1st rep paused @ 335 lbs-5 RPE 9.75 Shoulders were pretty sore from the start so I'm probably not quite fully recovered from meet yet.

Squats @ 405 lbs-5
Squats @ 415 lbs-5
Squats @ 415 lbs-5 RPE 9.5

Chins w/ 45 lbs-5,5,5 RPE 8.5 Pretty easy.