More Like a Half Gallon of Milk - Powerlifting for Little Guys

[MannyPrieto]

Even though Rip would probably make fun of me if he saw me in person, I have officially entered "Not just fucking around" territory with 2 powerlifting meets and a nationally ranked Squat and Total under my belt, so I figured some people might actually be interested in how I train. I was debating whether to post my log here or on T-Nation (I post as BigRedMachina over there), but then I realized all I need to do to keep a log on both sites is just copy and paste. I have posted more often over there, but I figured some people might want to comment but don't want to join another damn forum. Also, since I've actually lifted alongside some of the members here, this might be a better place for inside jokes. Anywho, I suppose I should introduce myself.

Age: 29
Lifting Experience: 6 months as a competitive powerlifter (I've done 2 meets so far), but I've been lifting since high school (was a track sprinter/jumper in HS - kept lifting with more of a performance focus than an aesthetic one though my college/grad school days weren't so consistent)
Height: 5'4"
Weight: 132 (usually walk around at 138-140)

Here are my best lifts (all at the 2/22/14 meet unless otherwise noted):
Squat: 325
Bench: 205 (I did 220 touch-and-go a LONG time ago - ever since I started training specifically for powerlifting I have always done benches with a pause but only go for a true max at meets.)
Deadlift: 355 (Tied a PR originally set at my first meet, 11/17/13. I've done it several times in training since then and went for a bigger PR at the meet but missed.)

Misc. Lifts (obviously all in gym):
Press: 135
Chinup: +90 lb. for a 1RM
Hang Snatch: 140

I train primarily at a corporate gym where I work as a Registered Dietitian and personal trainer. The gym is well-equipped - we recently built a new one which opened last December, as the membership outgrew the old facility. I work late (don't get out until midnight). This actually works well for me as I can train in the afternoon before work when the gym isn't so crowded. So I'm up long enough to not drag through training but can still get my day off to a good start. Also, getting out late keeps me out of the bars.

[John Petrizzo]

Good to see you on here, Manny. Awesome job at the meet this weekend. I am looking forward to following your progress.

[Adam Skillin]

Hey man, great stuff. I'll be following along for sure. Which meets have you been lifting in? I'm planning on doing my first in South Jersey on May 17th with RPS, but I'm not so far from you that we might not run into each other at one some time.

[MannyPrieto]

Good to see you on here, Manny. Awesome job at the meet this weekend. I am looking forward to following your progress.

Thanks for the kind words! It was nice to meet you this weekend.

Also, thanks to you and RoriMegan for leading my "cheering section" at the meet. As much as I constantly tell my friends, family, and coworkers about my training it's been hard to get them to come out to meets, so I appreciate all the support. It's always great to see you guys cheer on fellow lifters, whether they're attempting all-time World Records or are just doing their first meet - I'm glad to be part of such a great community.

Hey man, great stuff. I'll be following along for sure. Which meets have you been lifting in? I'm planning on doing my first in South Jersey on May 17th with RPS, but I'm not so far from you that we might not run into each other at one some time.

I did the InsurreXtion meet in November and the Dominion meet this past weekend, both in Long Island. Good luck on your first meet in May!

[MannyPrieto]

Since I'm just coming off a meet, this week's training may not be particularly interesting, so I figured I'd start off with a little "The Story So Far" section, outlining my previous two meet cycles and the thought processes that went into each of them.

I won't detail every workout of my previous cycles, partly because that would make for too much "fluff" for this log, and partly because the templates for these cycles were taken directly from Jim Wendler's Beyond 5/3/1 book. So if you want those programs, just buy the damn book! But I will list my final training maxes along with selected attempts.

Meet #1: Long Island InsurreXtion - 5/3/1 Strength Challenge
I was just coming off a disappointing open track meet and was trying to figure out what I was going to do for fall training. In the program following my track meet I hit a squat PR (the first time in a while that I got a new 1RM in the gym) which got me thinking. I had also just recently acquired Beyond 5/3/1 and was looking through the programs.

On a whim, I checked Powerlifting Watch and found a meet in Long Island. I checked the RPS web site and saw that the New York State Amateur Raw Classic Open records for all lifts in the 132-pound weight class were vacant, so I decided on a whim to give it a shot. I did have the full 12 weeks to prepare, so I chose the 5/3/1 Strength Challenge to prepare for my first meet. I should note that I started this program with 85% Training Maxes (instead of the usual 90%) as the weights do get much heavier later on in the program.

Final Training Maxes
Press: 125
Deadlift: 335 (I based my training maxes off a rep max - 350 was my best single pulling sumo, however.)
Bench: 195 (I hadn't tested a paused 1RM before this cycle so this number was based off a touch-and-go max of 220. Singles were all do-able but reps were tough.)
Squat: 290

My goals for the meet were to simply set 5 lb. PRs to each of my best gym 1RMs, and I used 85% of that goal for openers and 92.5% for planned 2nd attempts.

I overshot my weight cut more than I'd like (weighed in at 127.4), but had no problem getting back up to 140, even though much of my time the day before the meet was spent in a tire shop (I had a flat tire the night before weigh-ins and had to drive to weigh-ins on a spare). Yes, I know people don't recommend cutting weight for your first meet, but I was going for a record, damnit!

Squat
1st Attempt: 275 - Good!
2nd Attempt: 300 - Good!
3rd Attempt: 325 - This was a real grinder, but I stood up with it. Unfortunately I saw two red lights - Gene said I was "just at parallel" - just needed a little more to reach depth.

Bench
1st Attempt: 190 - Flew up easily, but it officially went down as a Miss as I racked it at the same time as the "Rack" command. I knew I could do more and was going to go for 210, but since this was a miss I didn't want to go up too high and risk bombing out.
2nd Attempt: 200 - Good! Still easy, and I held it longer just to make sure I didn't beat the "Rack" command this time.
3rd Attempt: 225 - Miss. Since I had a good number on the board I had figured I'd go for a PR, but this was the one attempt that I looked like I had no business taking.

Deadlift
1st Attempt: 300 - Good. Felt a little slow, so I went for 325 instead of 330.
2nd Attempt: 325 - Good. Much easier than the opener.
3rd Attempt: 355 - Good! A real grinder but I made it!

The "first meet nerves" probably affected my squat more than they should have - I was going down slowly and trying to "feel" depth rather than attacking the hole aggressively. I also learned I needed to work on holding the bar at lockout longer - don't want to beat a "Rack" command again, lol!

The more recent meet write-up will be in the next post.

[MannyPrieto]

The Story So Far, Part 2

Meet #2: Dominion (2/22/14) - S.S.S.
I was feeling pretty good after the meet (no pain or soreness at all) so I was itching to get right back into training. But this originally wasn't going to be a meet cycle. I originally chose the Speed, Singles, Size program as I wanted to transition from powerlifting back to more athletic movements, but when I saw this new meet announced for the same Long Island location that would serve as a qualifier for the RPS World Championships (and knowing that my total was more than good enough to qualify), I jumped at the chance. And with the heavy singles, I felt like I could just stick to the program. Of course, just after the meet I reset my training maxes. Oh, and I did happen to throw snatches and cleans as well.

Training Max Progression (didn't take any deloads until after the 12 weeks were done)
Squat: 270 -> 300
Bench: 180 -> 195
Deadlift: 320 -> 350
Press: 115 -> 130
Hang Clean: 165 -> 180
Hang Snatch: 120 -> 135

I should also note that we opened the new facility in December, giving me access to some new equipment including bumper plates and a platform (hence the inclusion of cleans and snatches, and also why deadlifts felt much better - Iron Grip plates suck). My one complaint is the bench - the uprights aren't adjustable (which of course means the high ones are too high and the low ones are too low), and for some reason I cannot explain, there is a "head gap." My bench setup never felt right during the training cycle.

Planned Attempts
Squat: 280-305-325 (I was close enough to 325 that I knew I could get it this time around, but I did choose slightly more aggressive attempts so I could at least secure a 5 lb. meet PR even if I didn't get the big one.)
Bench: 185-205-220 (I chose a lower goal - you have to bench 220 before you can bench 225, right? Though again, I did want to at least secure a 5 lb. meet PR.)
Deadlift: 325-355-375 low/380 high (Pulling my old PR in training felt like a breeze, so I knew I had more in me. If I were to make all my PRs up to that point, a 380 would give me a 925 total which would qualify for RUM, assuming they don't raise the qualifying totals again. If I knew I was out of the running by that point, though, I'd choose a more "conservative" 3rd attempt.)

Weighed in at 129.2. Did a better job of not letting myself get too low on the last day, but still had plenty of room to spare. Warm-ups felt easier now that I knew how much the squat and bench bars weighed and factored those in to my planned warmup attempts.

Squat
1st Attempt: 280 - Good
2nd Attempt: 305 - Good
3rd Attempt: 325 - Good! Left no doubt regarding depth this time. Not only is this an all-time PR, but I never touched anything heavier than 305 during the entire training cycle.

Bench
1st Attempt: 185 - Good. Bar speed wasn't super-explosive like other openers but there was still no doubt I would make this.
2nd Attempt: 205 - Locked it out but got red-lighted for "up-and-down" movement. This was much harder than I thought, so this wasn't the time to be a hero and call for a heavier weight like the last meet.
3rd Attempt: 205 - Got it this time. Would've loved more, but a 5 lb. meet PR is a PR. My bench setup just didn't feel right on any of my attempts, much like training.

Deadlift
1st Attempt: 325 - Good.
2nd Attempt: 355 - Good. At the last meet this was a real grinder, but this time I smoked it. No ammonia caps necessary (more on that later).
3rd Attempt: 375 - Miss. I fell backwards and landed on my bum. No harm done, but obviously not the result I was looking for. Foot slippage was never an issue but was for this attempt - I'm considering deadlift slippers or Chucks for next time (I had been pulling in just my socks). Also, I think I may can the "ammonia caps before my 3rd deadlift attempt" routine - I can see how this works for some people, but it may be a little too much for me, given both my ammonia-induced miss and my 355 pulls.

The first meet did have more of a "storybook" ending for me, but I can't complain about adding 30 pounds to my total and having one fewer lift where my meet PR is less than my training PR.

[MannyPrieto]

Offseason
My next planned meet won't be until September, so this week marks the beginning of an "offseason" period for me. I generally don't ever let myself get "out of shape" per se, but since I am more than 20 weeks out from my next meet it's not the first thing on my mind right now.

Starting next week I will receive coaching from Jason Manenkoff of Iron Arena. While I have had success training on my own with 5/3/1-based programs and the like, this will be the first time I will receive formal powerlifting coaching, so I am excited about that. Because of my work situation, I will still train mostly where I work, but I do have the opportunity to train at Jason's facility on weekends.

Offseason Week #0: Week of 2/24/14
I should note that my new program doesn't begin until next week, so I will refer to this week as "Week 0." I didn't suffer any injuries or even soreness after this weekend's meet, so physically I feel like I can jump right into hard training, but I do know my coach wouldn't be too happy with me doing something stupid and getting hurt before we even begin training. Still, I can't just sit around and do nothing, so I'm doing the following (again, this is not part of the program I will be receiving from Jason):

Main Lifts: High Intensity Deload from Beyond 5/3/1 (basically just work up to your TM for a single)
Assistance Work: Simplest Strength Template at Deload Percentages (using the same exercises as I did for the previous training cycle)

Offseason Week #0, Workout 1 - 2/24/14
A. Hip Snatch: 45x5, 65x3, 85x3, 95x3, 105x1, 115x1, 125x1
B. Squat: 45x5, 135x5, 175x3, 200x3, 230x3, (add belt) 260x1, 290x1
C1. Half-Kneeling Lift with TRX Rip Trainer: 3x10
C2. Snatch Grip DL: 120x5, 150x5, 180x5

This workout felt pretty short, and Tuesday and Thursday were going to be long days, so I decided to consolidate workouts, doing Bench Monday and Bench Assistance on Wednesday.

Bench Press: 45x5, 95x5, 115x3, 135x3, 155x1, 175x1
Mini Band Pull-aparts: sets of 10 between Bench sets

[MannyPrieto]

Offseason Week #0, Workout 2 - 2/26/14
I decided to do Deadlift + Bench Assistance today, Press on Friday. My legs were feeling good today and I hear there's a Squat seminar this weekend, so I figured I'd get deads out of the way.

A. Hang Clean: 45x5, 95x5, 115x3, 135x3, 155x1, 165x1
B. Deadlift: 165x5, 205x3, 235x3, 265x3, (add belt) 295x1, 325x1
C1. TRX Rollout: 3x10
C2. Bulgarian Split Squat (had to use DBs because the racks were occupied): 35sx5, 45sx5, 50sx5
D1. Pullup (on "rock climber" grips): 3x10
D2. Incline Bench: 60x5, 75x5, 90x5

After my first warmup set on Deadlifts, someone's personal training client said, "That's just a warm-up for you, right?" I replied, "Yeah, I just came off a meet so I'm going light today." (He did know about my powerlifting meet as his trainer mentioned it to him on Monday). After I loaded the bar to 235, he said, "Now you're just showing off."

Of course this made me LOL, but now that I think of it, there are guys like Layne Norton who "deload" with 500 lb. deadlifts, so I guess it is just a matter of perspective.

[Seth_H]

double post...

[Seth_H]

C1. TRX Rollout: 3x10
C2. Bulgarian Split Squat (had to use DBs because the racks were occupied): 35sx5, 45sx5, 50sx5
D1. Pullup (on "rock climber" grips): 3x10
D2. Incline Bench: 60x5, 75x5, 90x5

Maybe I'm just slow, but can you decode the notation for me? What connection do the TRX rollouts and the Bulgarian Split Squats have that makes them "C1" and "C2"? Why not just C and D?

Anyway, I like this log; keep up the strong work. Little guys gotta support each other.