quest to be sqautlicious

[siobhain]

the past...on-going epic battle to master the squat. worked with many a different trainer/coach to try and get me strong with little results.

i am not an athlete and never was. i like to say "late bloomer" to physical activity and even later bloomer to the wonderful world of barbells. i maaay have dabbled in long distance running and elliptical-polozas. don't judge...i believed skinny was where it was at.

the in-between...discovered crossfit and the barbell. but couldn't shake the urge to be a metcon whore. started dreaming of being hella strong but just couldn't seem to get there. i am not dainty so the fact that i was weaker than the teeney girls both baffled me and pissed me off!

the awakening...a super smart hulk of a squatter convinced me to try starting strength. he even helped me fix some form issues...of which i have plenty! (if one more person yells "chest up" at me i will punch them!)

pre-winter - started the basic novice program and loved it. actually started to see progress in my training. sadly i couldn't shake my metcon habit.

the terrible...two injuries this winter took me outta training for a few months. reduced to minimal barbell work and a whole lot of bodyweight stuff. i was discouraged and chubby. gah! both injuries were ridiculous, non-training related and in the butt/back region. who knew you use those damn muscles so much. putting on socks was an effort.

the present...went on an epic trip and returned with a squat fire! back on starting strength and the gains returned. even mashed two plateaus that i couldn't seem to get past pre-injury.

this past weekend i had the HUGE privledge of attending the starting strength seminar. it was by far the awesome'est weekend ever. if you think you know squat...well...you don't know squat. or press, deadlift, bench or power cleans for that matter.

so...decided to start posting my log. my numbers are embarassing but putting them up is gonna just drive me harder to make them presentable...maybe even brag worthy.

diet...my biggest obstacle. i eat too little. OR. i eat too much of the wrong stuff. sugar is my drug of choice and m&m's don't have a chance in my presence. i also view cupcakes as devine gifts of the gods. during the q&a i asked rippetoe about programming and being completely gassed after squats. he replied simply...eat more protein. gotta hate when you know someone is right. so gone are my dreams of being beyonce, as my other dream of a huge squat is much greater. calorie phobia be gone, sugar be gone...

when i hit my 200# squat however...there will be a party...and there will be cupcakes and copious amounts of wine.

my stats
sidenote...yes, they are sad little numbers. also, i am a girl. remember this if you feel the need to make fun of these numbers...i may cry. if you are a boy, this crying may make you uncomfortable. i am however open to loud cheers, glitter signs, pompoms and any useful insights.

height - 5'7
weight - 155 lbs

my most current bests (3x5)
squat - 125#
deadlift - 155#
press - 55#
bench press - 90#
power clean - 87.5#

ya...those are pounds and not kilos. don't judge.

stuff i need to work on...
squat - pretty much everything. i'm flexible so the rack position is no worries. i am a "good morning'er" so it's always a battle between chest and hips. i am also the slowest squatter you have ever seen. i am missing the explosive gene...or perhaps have a dominant retardation gene! over the weekend matt told me "that's ok...that's just how jesus made you!" matt became my favorite person in the world right then.
deadlift - tight back and once again a chest that wants to stay down.
press - left arm is ridiculously delayed. overall i am just hella weak on press. better hips through...which is new to me after the weekend seminar
bench press - not too bad. my better lift overall. juli taught me a ninja trick on the weekend which i think is gonna make magic happen. push back with the feet...not down into the floor.
power cleans - seeing as i am missing the explosive gene you can imagine how my jump looks. need to remember to keep hips high on the start. this was actually a relief to learn over the weekend as previously everyone else always made me squish down into a praying mantas position that was less than agreeable with my limbs. chest up...slow up to the jump and then JUMP. faster elbows will serve me well also.

so that's it...

[siobhain]

august 3, 2011

since i learned so much over the weekend...ahem, learned all that i wasn't doing correctly...i reset some of my numbers so i can focus on getting the form better. sadly, this didn't make any of my lifts feel easy. course they never do.

squat - 115#
as usual, felt like slow painful death. narrowed my stance a little as suggested by ripp, and toes at more angled out. this part felt pretty good. warm up sets felt almost pleasant and dare i say closer to explosive from the hole. all changed for worksets...sigh. felt heavy and each was a fight. damn chest. hit depth for all but by rep 3 on all sets they start to drift to good mornings. gah!

press - dropped it back to 50#
while the new motion feels awkward, i think once i get it down it's gonna make for some awesome'ness. mos def felt more powerful. liking the different grip too. makes way more sense for driving power. still really need to focus on UP and avoid the whole face loop.

power cleans - 75#
usually where i fall apart. tired and cranky by this lift i usually can't get my body to coordinate. warm up sets felt like hell. got angry and frustrated...super mature i know. had internal girly fit and packed it in before my worksets.

returned this morning (aug 3) with a new attitude and killed the cleans. woot! everything was coming together from ground to jump to rack. got that beautiful floaty feeling where the bar almost levitates. hells ya.

also worked pull ups in. have vowed to have unassisted by end of month. i've been fighting the dead hangs for ever. had them for a short time...ate too many m&m's and lost them. went well this morning and have high hopes to be busting them out bandless very soon!

on diet...
tracked my intake yesterday. man i have some work today if i am going to get all my protein in. trying for a gram/body pound. that's A LOT of protein. also trying to make sure i hit 2000 cals per day. i have been promised this will make me strong and not chunky! this is where i have to let go of the calorie restriction tendencies and eat good foods to make squat happy. went into panic when i realized by mid-afternoon i was barely over half way to my protein target. went home and ate 8oz of beef tenderloin. hmmmm...this eat more protein ain't so bad! ended up hitting 120g protein and 1800 cals. i don't eat starchy carbs so my cals come from protein, veggies and lots of fat. (i am not afraid of starchy carbs...they just don't like me much!)

all in all...not my finest hour(s) but excited to see how focus on diet and form go!

[Alex Cibiri]

There's a typo sio, I'm sure you meant to say 2,800 cals.

I'm excited for your 200lb squat party!

[Brother Francis]

Nice meeting you this weekend. I'll be following this log and yelling at you if you don't eat enough. Can't wait to see you nail 200lbs!

[f4thpathway]

Harness your inner Boudica...

[siobhain]

Nice meeting you this weekend. I'll be following this log and yelling at you if you don't eat enough. Can't wait to see you nail 200lbs!

more ribs yah! you're invited to the party!

There's a typo sio, I'm sure you meant to say 2,800 cals.

I'm excited for your 200lb squat party!

baby steps yo! hahaha. between you and rachael, i foresee many calories ahead!

[siobhain]

boudica is my new favourite word! and she was badass!

[f4thpathway]

One of the baddest. And squats improve your boudica.

[xcardiobunny]

Best intro post I've ever read- nice to meet you! Sharing your pain on squats, I will be following your log here. Our lifts are pretty close too. Feel free to check out my lifting blog under the user name above, I think it says 'visit homepage', to commiserate any time.

[siobhain]

Best intro post I've ever read- nice to meet you! Sharing your pain on squats, I will be following your log here. Our lifts are pretty close too. Feel free to check out my lifting blog under the user name above, I think it says 'visit homepage', to commiserate any time.

nice to e-meet you as well! will check out your log. and happy to have some company in squat misery/happiness!