Cole's HLM/TM

[Cole Gorton]

Your squat technique is inspirational.

Thank you James! Great compliment. I still have some work to do and improvements to make

[Cole Gorton]

3/14
Intensity Day


Squat
415 x 5
-perhaps slightly slower than i would have liked. squats are so damn technically demanding. sometimes the more i think about what to do the worse i execute. sometimes its better to just let muscle memory take over. i think ill start just giving myself one cue to focus on, rather than many. pressure on mid foot is a good one (master cue) or hip drive.

Press Rehab
75 x 5 x 5
-shoulder is slowly getting better. damn tendonitis is a bitch, i normally would have started backing off as soon as i started noticing it but i had a meet so i pushed it further than i should which is probably the culprit for the slower recovery. time will make it better.

DL
435 x 5
-deadlift is never easy, but i handled all reps just fine. helps to straighten you arms just after getting hte back extension. i consider that a step in my wave of extension, and i think straight arms help to keep the bb close to the body on the way up and also allows me to focus completly on pushing the floor away with the quads, which is in my opinion just as important as back extension.





notes
-coming back after 6 weeks taper-meet-rest weeks and jumping back into TM again full throttle is slightly ballsy for me, but its going good so far. considering it took me about 5 months to get to the upper 300's for volume 5x5, now im back up there after 6 weeks i knew there was a risk as ive done this before and its like im strong enough to execute the movements but my body has de-trained from the volume aspect and is not adapted to 5x5 anymore. the intensity days are fine. but im noticing some slight hip soreness/achyness on the femoral tendons/ligaments. im assuming its volume induced as intensity doesnt bother me so much. will note it and adjust if needed.
-still continuing with 3250 cal, 250g protein, 5g creatine, vit D and fish oil qd. bodyweight around 230 lbs in the a.m.
-going to the Avs game this weekend with some buddies. last year i got drunk with them and it sucked. this year i am not having more than 1 beer. hold me accountable fellow lifters!

video
squat - YouTube
DL - YouTube

[Cole Gorton]

3/17
Volume Day


Squat
380 x 5 x 5
-did these with 8 min rest between sets. strength wise, reps slowed a tiny bit towards the end but not significantly, which tells me that this load is not that heavy. sets 4 and 5 my legs got a little shaky on the descent, but like i said no problem coming back up out of the hole.

Bench Rehab
135 x 5 x 5
-ive noticed that i have been subconsciously using a greater ROM on these which i think is leading to more aggravation of the joints in the problem delt. for the last set, i setup and executed as if there was 315 on the bar, using more shoulder tuck and leg drive and more arch, which effectively made the ROM of the shoulder joint shorter and more efficient and there was no popping or discomfort at all. things are looking up for bench and press and soon ill be able to take bigger jumps and get back up to previous loads.





notes
-nice weekend at ball arena watching the Avs beat DAL in OT. 9 straight games with at least a point and we are looking good. i had a salad,some chips and salsa, 3 pieces of pizza (which i normally dont eat bc fuck pizza but the alternative was some sandwhich that was 99%bread and one thin slice of ham), and a ginger ale. NO BEER.

video
squat volume - YouTube

[Cole Gorton]

3/19
Recovery Day


Squat (-20%)
305 x 5 x 2

Press Rehab
85 x 5 x 5

Chins
6, 6, 6



notes
-pretty easy day. shoulder felt best its been in a while. the kids are home from spring break so im trying to entertain them and get a few things done at the same time. fun.

[Cole Gorton]

3/21
Intensity Day (kind of)


Squat
420 x 5
-hips are getting achy and i didnt feel my usual excited and explosive self.

Bench Rehab
155 x 5 x 5
-these went well on the other hand. made a 20lb jump and i had zero discomfort. still a bunch of clicking and popping noise coming from my delt, but no pain





notes
-did not do any pulls today since my hips are bothering me now. its pretty faint and very minor, but its really similar to the delt situation in that its a dull ache, especially when reaching the bottom of the hole and walking up and down stairs. i dont have a meet coming up since im probably not going to nationals in june, so i figured why push myself into another bout of tendonitis.
-i will have to do some thinking this weekend about programming modifications. since returning from my meet ive had a harder time adjusting/adapting to the volume days. i cant complain, ive been pushing TM really hard since last September and ive set a bunch of rep PRs on I-day as it is. in fact, i was looking at my lifts today and i still have a significant way to go to catch up to where i was last cycle before i started to taper, and my motivation is no where near where it was then. im thinking foot off the gas for a bit might be in order, especially while im trying to rehab my shoulder. maybe a Matt Dawson style HLM for a couple months till i figure out which meet to do next and then ill ramp it up again.

video
squat - YouTube

[skid]

Yes, it's physically and mentally difficult to go hard all the time, especially when the weights get heavy. I'm doing a completely different routine than my normal powerlifting stuff and it is a nice break.

[Matt Dawson]

Thanks for the shoutout, Cole, though I ran my version of HLM balls-to-the-wall before backing off on the volume more recently. Press specialization has been great for my shoulders.

[Cole Gorton]

Thanks for the shoutout, Cole, though I ran my version of HLM balls-to-the-wall before backing off on the volume more recently. Press specialization has been great for my shoulders.

yea i know you did. i think backing off made it so you could squeek out some more gains, and it looked more enjoyable. looks like youre moving on to a split, should be interesting to follow along