bean counter's Barbell Medicine Log

[bean counter]

Right. I was going to write "minimum dV/dt", but I didn't want to look like such a nerd.

It's OK, I was thinking that already. You basically put out the gilchrest bat signal.

[bean counter]

Wedneday 13 June
Cycle 4
Week 8, Day 3

Bodyweight: 101.3 kg

Deadlift
℞ 1 @ 8, 4 X 4 @ 8
Belt
187.5 kg: 1 X 1 @ 8
170 kg: 4 X 4 @ 7.5, 8, 8+, 8.5
Totals: 17 reps, 2,910 kg

Hmmm. Legs were sore warming up, but I didn't develop the hip pain that's troubled me lately, which was a good sign. Adductors still very tight and my right groin was pulling a bit. 187.5 kg moved well, but my back felt very round. I turned the camera on myself for the first time in a while and to my dismay found my back was rounding off the floor on every rep with 170 kg. Deadlift is so frustrating sometimes. Got through the sets at 170 kg OK other than crappy form. I probably should have been working at 175 kg if I was less beaten up. Because this was my third session in three days and I'm quite fatigued I made it easier by supersetting deadlift and press, therefore getting more rest between deadlift sets. One of my calluses has been troubling me for the last few days, but thankfully it didn't seem to interfere with today's pulls.

300 Tempo Deadlift
℞ 3 X 3 @ 55%
Belt
110 kg: 3 X 3

Press
℞ 7 @ 6, 7 @ 7, 4 X 7 @ 8
Wrist wraps, belt
50 kg: 1 X 7 @ 6
52.5 kg: 1 X 7 @ 7
55 kg: 4 X 7 @ 7, 7, 8, 8
Totals: 42 reps, 2,260 kg

Good! Thanks to my supersetting I had lots of rest and breezed through this relatively light work. Sticking my with current high-rep press technique which is 2.0 for the first rep, then breathe at the top and use the stretch reflex at the bottom subsequently.

Knee hurting again post-session for some reason.

[bean counter]

Saturday 15 July
Cycle 4
Week 8, Day 4

Bodyweight: 101.0 kg (?)

I just received my own scales from Amazon so I should be able to get a better handle on this in future.

2ct Deadlift
℞ 4 @ 7, 4 @ 8, 4 @ 9, 6-9% fatigue
130 kg: 1 X 4 @ 7
135 kg: 1 X 4 @ 8-
140 kg: 1 X 4 @ 8+
130 kg: 1 X 4 @ 7
Totals: 16 reps, 2,140 kg

Frustrating. I filmed the top set and saw a bit of back rounding, even with much lighter weight than my competition pull. Tried to squoze up even more on the down set but it wasn't any better. Right adductor/groin was sore, but I think improved as the session progressed. I didn't take all the fatigue slots because I was planning to squat later in the session and wanted to have a decent amount of energy left. Also, I'm spotting/loading at a meet tomorrow and don't want to do so with lower back DOMS.

TnG Bench
℞ 7 @ 6, 7 @ 7, 4 X 7 @ 8
Wrist wraps
90 kg: 1 X 7 @ 6
92.5 kg: 1 X 7 @ 7
95 kg: 6 X 7 @ 8, 7
97.5 kg: 2 X 7 @ 8.5-, 8
Totals: 42 reps, 3,975 kg

Good. The one moment of idiocy was doing the first set at 95 kg with a wide grip, because I'd just done a squat warmup set on the other rack. It took me about three reps to realize and by that point I thought I might as well finish the set as it wasn't feeling too bad. Managed to get nice and tight and controlled on my subsequent sets and didn't seem to annoy my shoulder too much.

030 Squat, pause at weak point
℞ 7 @ 6, 7 @ 7, 4 X 7 @ 8
Wrist wraps, SBD sleeves
100 kg: 3 X 3

Knee pain. Since Wednesday (probably earlier) my right knee has been feeling rather off. Pain levels aren't too high but it is noisy and doesn't feel particularly strong. The main area of pain is just inferior to the knee cap. I ended up doing the missed paused squat triples from Monday's session rather than the full slot that I was supposed to do today. As suspected, pausing just above the bottom on the squat is way more difficult than just holding it in the hole. On the plus side I had no hip or adductor pain, so hopefully I'm getting past the soft tissues woes of the last couple of weeks.

[bean counter]

Training Update


Observant readers will have noted I'm posting this summary on Friday with two days left in the week. Sadly I am busy all weekend so there is no further opportunity for lifting until Monday. Trying to fit this week's training into the time available wasn't ideal.

This week should have been up on volume across the board. Bench/Press went OK, although I didn't have an opportunity to practise equipped bench. Squat wasn't good this week, with a painful main squat session and a skipped secondary squat. Deadlift was frustrating as I tried and failed to lock in decent back extension on both slots.

[bean counter]

Monday 18 July
Cycle 4
Week 9, Day 1

Bodyweight: 99.4 kg

Bodyweight readings from here on will be based on my home scale, taken just after waking.

LBBS
℞ 1 @ 8, 4 X 4 @ 8
SBD belt, SBD sleeves, wrist wraps
167.5 kg: 1 X 1 @ 8
150 kg: 4 X 4 @ 8-, 8, 8.5-, 8.5
Totals: 17 reps, 2,570 kg

Good! After a very busy weekend, poor food and poor sleep I felt terrible this morning. But it didn't hold back my squat which was much better than it has been for the last couple of weeks. The top single felt nice and controlled and the sets at 150 kg weren't a big deal. My new SBD belt did its job very well and there wasn't any new-belt awkwardness. I picked up one slight bruise from skin being pinched as the belt closed, but nothing other than that.

I did have some aches and pains though. Right adductor was kind of sore throughout. Left adductor and hip started to flare up during the last two sets. Knee didn't really trouble me during the workout apart from going clunk a few times, but feels sore again afterwards. Overall none of that is too concerning, but once again I'm not really keen on squatting so soon as tomorrow.

030 Tempo Squat, pause at weak spot
℞ 3 X 3 @ 55%
SBD belt, SBD sleeves, wrist wraps
100 kg: 3 X 3

These are horrible. But I didn't wimp out this week.

2ct Bench
℞ 4 @ 7, 4 @ 8, 4 @ 9, 4-6% fatigue
Wrist wraps
97.5 kg: 1 X 4 @ 6
100 kg: 1 X 4 @ 7
102.5 kg: 1 X 4 @ 8
105 kg: 1 X 4 @ 9
100 kg: 1 X 4 @ 8.5
Totals: 20 reps, 2,020 kg

Solid. Increased weight from last week, although didn't do as much volume.

[bean counter]

Tuesday 19 July
Cycle 4
Week 9, Day 2

Bodyweight: 100.0 kg

Comp Bench
℞ 1 @ 8, 4 X 4 @ 8
Belt, wrist wraps
122.5 kg: 1 X 1 @ 8+
108.75 kg: 2 X 4 @ 8+, 8.5+
107.5 kg: 2 X 4 @ 8.5, 8.5+
Totals: 17 reps, 1,855 kg

Decent. I moved my @8 single up to 122.5 kg this week. It felt heavy and slow, but moved well enough on video. Sets were all a little tougher than prescribed, but I was too stubborn to drop the load much.

030 Tempo Bench, pause at weak spot
℞ 3 X 3 @ 55%

Fine

Good Morning
50 kg: 4 X 7 @ 6, 6, 7, 7
Totals: 28 reps, 1,400 kg

I was supposed to do tempo squats, but decided not to for the sake of my knee. This seemed like the best thing I could come up with as an alternative.

[bean counter]

Wednesday 20 July
Cycle 4
Week 9, GPP

Bodyweight: 100.8 kg

No conditioning due to knee pain.

Arms [10 minutes]
- DB hammer curls [10 kg]
- Triceps band pushdowns [monster mini]

Lat Pulldowns [10 minutes]
32 kg - 39 kg X various 12s

Planks [10 minutes]
30s X 10 = 5:00

Mobility [25 minutes]

[bean counter]

Thursday 21 July
Cycle 4
Week 9, Day 3

Bodyweight: 100.8 kg

Knee still sore. Using diclofenac gel rather than oral ibuprofen now.

Deadlift
℞ 1 @ 8, 4 X 4 @ 8
SBD belt
190 kg: 1 X 1 @ 7.5
172.5 kg: 3 X 4 @ 7.5, 8+, 8.5
172.5 kg: 1 X 3F @ 10
Totals: 16 reps, 2,780 kg

Urgh. 170 kg didn't feel any heavier than 140 kg while warming up, so I put 190 kg on the bar for my top single. That went up really fast, but full back extension still wasn't there. That makes a 480 kg total on my top singles this week, which is only 12.5 kg off my competition total.

First set of 172.5 kg went up well, but the SBD belt wasn't really providing enough support. Because it's still a fairly rigid hoop it fits well while standing up, but when bent over in the hole the front gets pushed in against my gut and the inflexible back stands away from my body. The third set was pretty tough and I didn't feel great about the fourth set, even with seven minutes rest (all previous sets on five minutes). I pulled three ugly reps, and on the fourth my lower back completely rounded off the floor and I instinctively gave up on the pull at mid-shin rather than risk injury. Lumbar area felt bad after this, but I don't think I've injured myself. OTOH I'll probably have some nasty DOMS tomorrow.

030 Tempo Deadlift, pause at weak spot
℞ 3 X 3 @ 55%

After failing my last deadlift rep I gave up on doing this.

TnG Bench
℞ 7 @ 6, 7 @ 7, 4 X 7 @ 8
Wrist wraps
92.5 kg: 1 X 7 @ 7
95 kg: 1 X 7 @ 8.5
92.5 kg: 2 X 7 @ 7.5, 9
90 kg: 1 X 7 @ 8
Totals: 35 reps, 3,240 kg

Weak. My upper body doesn't feel unusually fatigued so I'm going to blame this on the failed deadlift. Struggling to keep my shoulders set and my left shoulder was re-aggravated by today's work.

[bean counter]

Saturday 23 July
Cycle 4
Week 9, Day 4

Floor Press
℞ 4 @ 7, 4 @ 8, 4 @ 9, 4-6% fatigue
Wrist wraps
100 kg: 1 X 4 @ 6+
105 kg: 1 X 4 @ 7+
110 kg: 1 X 4 @ 8.5
105 kg: 2 X 4 @ 8.5, 9-
Totals: 20 reps, 2,100 kg

OK. I can't do equipped bench this week due to gym unavailability, so I did this as a substitute. None of the normal guys I trust were around so I did without a handoff until the 110 kg set, where a randomly selected gym dude didn't do a good job. On that set and the first 105 kg down set another random bro wandered into my field of vision to watch (and subsequently ask questions) which was kind of offputting. Those annoyances aside, strength was good as 110 kg X 4 is a floor press PR. Shoulder got irritated yet again.

2ct Deadlift
℞ 4 @ 7, 4 @ 8, 4 @ 9, 4-6% fatigue
130 kg: 1 X 4 @ 7
135 kg: 1 X 4 @ 7
+ Straps
140 kg: 2 X 4 @ 8+, 8.5+
Totals: 16 reps, 2,180 kg

Meh. Still not getting a great back position. Didn't push this too hard because of back soreness from Thursday.

Press
℞ 7 @ 6, 7 @ 7, 4 X 7 @ 8
Wrist wraps, Belt
50 kg: 1 X 7 @ 6
52.5 kg: 1 X 6 @ 7-
55 kg: 4 X 7 @ 8, 8, 8.5, 8.5
Totals: 42 reps, 2,260 kg

OK. First couple of sets felt good but then fatigue kicked in, which is to be expected after the earlier floor press work. Sure I could push the weight more if I was prioritizing these.

Neutral-grip chin
BW: 1 X 1
BW: 2 X 5

I haven't done any chins or pullups in months. Not to tempt fate, but my elbows are feeling better than they have been in a long while, so I thought I'd try these out today. Strength on this movement was surprisingly good - I'm not sure I could do a set of 10, but 5s weren't very close to failure. Elbow did twinge slightly afterwards, so I'm not sure I was ready to do this. I'll monitor and maybe cautiously add some more reps in the near future.

Training Summary


As expected, this developmental block (the last four weeks) was tough. I've had some injury issues, but managed to keep training through. E1RMs from the final week look very nice, with a projected 524 kg total @ c. 100 kg (319 Wilks), which is an all-time high for me, even without a peak.

That's the end of the current block. I haven't received the next block yet, but Jordan says it's going to be his take on Norwegian-style programming, so it remains to be seen what that'll be like. That's going to last for four weeks.

After that I have some holiday at the end of August that will disrupt training for a couple of weeks. And from the start of September the aim will be to train for a meet at the end of November.

[Gerhard]

Norwegian... Hmm, not even Jesus himself could get Wolf's secrets...