My Log - SS, etc.

[jacob cloud]

Alllllllrighty then. I was keeping my log elsewhere but not getting much feedback and got bored. I think a lot of you are like-minded so this place might be a better location to keep it. I'll enter this week's info and keep it updated going forward.

First, a bit of boring history: I'm 28, 6'1", no major athletic background other than high school football, but did a Super Squats (+milk) routine in college and loved it. I sporadically worked out for about a month per year until last summer, when I got serious and did a few months of SS, and made huge strength improvements. Had shoulder surgery in Dec 07 after tearing it up wakeboarding, got depressed, sat around, and got fat. Started off this year at about 270. Worked back into the major lifts, did some running, some crossfit, and got back to about 250. I love to eat. And drink. I moved from Austin to Seattle recently and still haven't found "the right" job, so I have more free time than I should - used mostly in the gym and online.

Currently using a lot of the SS template and a low carb diet during the week. Weekend cheating has slowed down weight loss to a crawl, and is what I need to get under control. I'm down to the low 240's and strength is pretty much at an all-time high. Still need some form work and my upper body strength is seriously lacking. Physically, I look pretty "Average."

Current PR's:
DL 485 (a couple months ago, got to pull it in front of Rip, which was cool. had bad form, which was not cool)
Squat 425 (last week, no vid, depth might be questionable, last year's PR was 415)
Bench 225x3 (couple weeks ago...235x5 before surgery)
Press 150x5 (couple weeks ago)
Pull-Ups 3-4 max
Power Clean 225 (last week)
Push Press 225 (last week)

Strength 1RM Goals:
500lb DL, 500lb Squat, 315lb Bench, 200lb OHP, 10+ Pull-Ups (at least)

Body Goals:
Ultimately I want to be about 225 and sub 15% body fat. I'm not overly concerned with looks, but am man enough to admit that I'm girly enough to care a little bit. I also want my arms (and back) to be bigger. Sue me. At least I'm not shaving odd body parts and flexing in the mirror.

Some vids:
405 Squat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hHjGOGrwMM
Knees sliding forward, leg pressing, yadda yadda. Working on it.
220kg DL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2s_nCOZ12Y
Ugggggly. Eat me. Working on it!

[jacob cloud]

Mon 10/13
Weight: Very bloated 248.0
Diet Grade for the day: 5/5

AM Workout:

Warm-Up: 1 mile bike

Back Squat: 45x8,8 / 135x5 / 225x5 / 315x5,5

Standing Overhead Press: 45x8,8 / 95x5 / 135x5,5,5

DL: Too sore

Last Friday I "maxed out" on squats and did way too much volume working on form - including a oh-so-close-455 attempt. I was still *very* sore Monday, and it really screwed up this workout. Lots of lower back soreness and shoulder pain. I reset my press to 135, as it seems to have stalled at 150 recently.

PM Workout:

Treadmill, about 30 minutes @ 4mph and 4.0 incline

[jacob cloud]

Tues 10/14
Weight: 245.0
Diet: 4/5

AM Workout:

WU: 1m bike, barbell complex

PC: 135x5 / 175x3 / 185x3,3,3,3

Rows: 135x5 / 155x5 / 175x5

Curlzz: 45x8 / 95x8,6

C2 Rower: 1000m (1:52.4, 1:55.8 500m splits, 26spm) / 100m sprints 16.1, 17.0 (30 sec rest between)

Stretch: 10 minutes

I'm just starting to power clean, and it's rough on the shoulders, especially lowering the weight (no bumpers in my globo gym). Worked with 185 to grease the groove, and it's feeling better already. Never done much BB rowing, but felt like it today. Ditto curlz. Was planning on a 2000m row but pussed out - legs exhausted. Stretching shows that my hip flexors are tight. Need to work on hip mobility big time.

[jacob cloud]

Wed 10/15
Weight: 242.5
Diet: 4/5

PM Workout:

WU: .75m bike

BS: 315x5,5,5

Bench: 210x5,5,5

Back Extensions: +25 x6,6,6

Chins: 3,3

Decline Situps

I felt like an old man in the gym. Sore back, tight legs, iffy shoulders, and my left bicep screaming at me for doing isolation work. Reset bench to 205 last week after stalling at 225, but 210 felt hard. I hate bench! It didn't help that my girlfriend and I were bitching at each other the whole workout. Skipped my last set of chins. I'm a wuss. During my "ab work," I got to witness a guy warming up doing very loud obnoxious FLOPS on the stretching mat at the gym. At least laughter cures bitching workout partners.

Dinner was a chicken breast stuffed with pepperjack cheese and rolled in my own taco seasoning. Damn good stuff.

[jacob cloud]

Fri 10/17
Weight: 242.0
Diet (yesterday) 4/5

AM Workout:

BS: 315x2 / 365x1-2 / 385x1 / 405x3 (PR)

OHP: 140x5,5,5

DL: 405x1 / 455x1

Curlzzzz: 95x6

Chins: 3,3

aBzzzz: Hanging Leg Raises x 6,6,6

Not a bad gym outing. 405x3 is a big PR for me, I was only shooting for a double, but it felt good so I pounded out another rep. Form is improving, but I need to video myself to make sure. Was shooting for a 455 triple on DL, but the single was all I had. Very disappointed - I've lost a lot of my DL strength. Not good. Hanging leg raises help my shoulder mobility. Goofed around with some curls and chins but was pretty tanked by this point.

Diet has been good this week - made spaghetti squash (like mashed potatoes) and cubed steak w/ gravy last night. Not perfectly in line with "no carb" but damn tasty. Split a bottle of wine with the gf, too. Doh. Friday cheat day is here...gonna try and not go too crazy so I can break through the 240.0 barrier ASAP!

[jacob cloud]

Mon 10/20
Weight: 244.0
Diet (weekend) 2/5

PM Workout:

BS: 365x5,5,5

Bench: 215x5,5,5

Chins: "Some"

Gym was crazy packed, and squats beat me up so I didn't quite get to finish up the rest of my workout. Squats were ugly, form was iffy, and I think my hams were cramping up (dehydration? lots of caffeine today). Pushed through and got my 3 planned sets, at least. Bench wasn't too tough (+5lbs from last workout). Hoping to bust through the 225 sticking point this time.

Diet was crap over the weekend - all beer and football. Did make some great chili, though, and will be smoking a turkey tomorrow.

[Tor]

Hey Jacob,

I just checked out your DL video and wanted to pass something on that's worked really well for me. I should note that I use a belt, and it might be a part of why this works.

I've found that if I try and grab the bar, breath in, and then set my back and pull, I have a really hard time a) taking a huge breath and b) actually getting and holding my back in the correct position.

What I do instead, now, is inhale while standing up, and then lower myself down to the bar with my back locked in place. This lowering process looks just like a deadlift in reverse, my hips go back and then my knees bend.

As soon as I've locked on to the bar with my hands I pull.

This process makes me feel much stronger because I'm able to breath deeper at the top and lock my back in while I'm not bending over, and got me from a 390 pound deadlift to 425 in just a couple weeks with no noticeable increase in effort.

Tor

[jacob cloud]

Tor - Thanks for the tip, I'll give it a shot. I kinda did today during PC's but DL's are a different beast. I'm thinking I might need to get a belt, too. I need to get an updated DL vid - my form has improved since then for sure, though my strength hasn't. :-/


Wed 10/22
Weight: 242.0
Diet (Tues): 3/5 (GD MF Cinnamon Rolls!)

AM Workout:

FS: 225x3,3,3

OHP: 145 (+5) x 5,4,4

PC: 185x3,3,3,3,3

Thrusters: 95x9,9,10

Knee Raises: 6,6,6

So, I'm obviously trying the "intermediate" squat action, with Wednesdays being "light/recovery" day. Haven't done front squats in awhile, and racking the bar was really the toughest part. Stupid shoulders. Speaking of which, I hate my shoulders. Press was painful, this time in the right AC joint. Stalled onn my 2nd and 3rd sets right about my head. Might be pushing the bar a little forward. Need to re-read the OHP section of SS.

PC's felt light except for my left bicep, which is still mad at me. I'm also not racking the bar correctly up top - elbows not pointing forward enough. Plenty of room to improve on form here, but I at least focused on finishing the pull, stomping, and the hook grip. Got lots of stupid looks, especially from the douche next to me doing 95lb power reverse curls. Sorta. Ugh. I hate my gym. Did the thrusters for fun with about 30s rest between sets. They were pretty easy, but I was winded by the end. Conditioning sucks.

Anyway, not a bad workout considering I had a headache. I drank a bit last night. Which led to the cinnamon rolls. Damn they were good. Luckily the freezer is now empty of delicious carbs, and all I have left to fight is the bag of chocolate chips and a little bit of Vodka.

[Tor]

I'm shooting for a 435 PR deadlift on Friday (up ten pounds from last week), and I'll video tape how I get set and post it.

[jacob cloud]

I'm shooting for a 435 PR deadlift on Friday (up ten pounds from last week), and I'll video tape how I get set and post it.

So, how'd it go??

Missed last night's workout but made it up this morning.

Sat 10/25
Weight: 245
Diet: Crap

AM Workout:

Squat: 315x2, 365x1, 405x1, 435x1 (PR)

Bench: 205x1

Treadmill: 3 400m sprints @ 8 & 9 mph w/ 400m walks between

Ate like crap Thurs and Fri, and was bloated this morning. Set a new all-time 1RM PR on squat...and my left bicep felt torn in half. No bueno. Couldn't bench worth a crap, skipped the rest of the planned workout. Did some running to try and kill some carb stores, but it was to no avail as I ate a bunch anyway watching foozball today. Go UT and Bama!

Looks like I'll be focusing on running for the next week or so? Not sure how bad this bicep injury is just yet, but for such a "beach muscle" it sure as hell hurts doing every single functional exercise. Ugh.