One Man's Journey through SS

[John Tony]

I guess this is a bit belated, but I thought I may as well start a log to keep myself on track. I started SS on Dec 12 with the following numbers:
Squat- 135
Bench- 115
Deadlift- 165
Press- 65
Clean-95

I started the first 2 weeks with deadlift only and introduced power cleans in week 3 to get my deadlift numbers well ahead of my squat. I have been working on my squat form for some time so I decided to do 5lb jumps from the beginning. I also did 5lb jumps on bench, press, and cleans and 10 lb jumps on deadlift.

At 5'7" and 200lbs its no secret that I could afford to lose some of my gut so my weight has remained relatively constant, but clothes have started fitting a lot better.

A quick breakdown of my diet is as follows:
Breakfast- burrito consisting of eggs, sausage, cheese and salsa accompanied with a cup of milk- ~31g protien
Snack- protein bar and 1 cup of milk ~26 g protein
Lunch- 2 cans of tuna with mustard and a piece of fruit with peanutbutter / cashews depending on the fruit - 40g protein
Snack- 1 cup of cottage cheese 1 cup blueberries - 26g protein
Dinner- chicken/salmon/steak with rice and or veggies- ~30g protein
Snack- protein shake with 1 cup milk and peanut butter- 52g protein

I have been trying to get at least 200g protein a day. So far it has gone pretty well. I am not expecting the weight to fall off that quickly which is fine because strength is my priority, but I can see positive changes nonetheless.

My last workout was 2/1/12
Squat- N/A working on form....
Press- 110 3x5
Power Clean- 130 5x3

My workout scheduled for tonight is:
Squat- 220 3x5
Bench- 170 3x5
Deadlift- 285 1x5

The bench is starting to feel pretty heavy so I imagine I will have to start microloading soon. But at this point, I still plan on making 5lb jumps until I stall, deload try again w/ 5lbs and if I get stuck again deload and start microloading.

My goal before the end of the year (see "Goals for 2012" thread in the training section) is 200lb bench, 300lb squat and 400lb deadlift.

Hopefully tonight's workout goes well. I am pretty disappointed with my squat right now. I have missed a few squat workouts because my form is causing knee pain so the battle continues. I will try to keep this as up to date as possbile.

Thanks for reading.
John

[John Tony]

Tonight's workout was bittersweet.

Squats- still working on form, didn't get to 220 like I was hoping. It was odd, during my warm up at 135 I really focused on keeping an active hip and after only 4 reps my lower back felt like I had just done 100 low back extensions. So I decided to get a few sets in at 135 focusing on form. Oh well at least it wasn't a total waste.

Then comes the good part, hit 170 3x5 on bench. 165 felt pretty heavy last workout so I had someone spot me for the first set and to my suprise the weight moved really easily. I am very close to my 200 lb bench goal! It will be nice to check that off the list.

Then came deadlifts where I got 285 1x5. It was definitely heavy, but I was able to keep the weight moving. Great feeling as that was a new PR for me.

All in all a good night, squats will continue to help me "build character" as Calvin's dad would say...

[John Tony]

Today was pretty disappointing
Squat
Dropped down to 205 to work on form. Did 2x5 and my knee tightened up pretty good so I didn't want to push it with a third set. It is already stiff and popping, tomorrow should be fun.
Press-115 1x5, 1x4 1x3. I will give this another go on Friday
PC- 135 5x3, still progressing nicely w/ 5lb jumps, the only good news for the day.

There are no coaches in the directory that are within 5hrs driving distance from St. Louis, So I will have to find a coach in the area. I might try out Iron Maven, she has worked with US junior olympic team. I just know I will not progress with the squat until a coach can see what I am doing wrong.

Back at it on Wed. The grind continues.

[John Tony]

Squat- tried 205 for some reason it felt like 300lbs and after 3 reps I racked it. Still working on hip mobility so I think I am going to drop the weight down and restart with the squat.
Bench Press- 175 3x5 was really shocked how easily this went up.
Deadlift- 295x5 lifetime PR! Only problem I am having with this is my grip strength. I am having to regrip after every 2 reps or so.

2/3 lifts went well so I can't be too upset. I just hope my other lifts keep progressing even though my squat is stagnant.

That's all for now.

[John Tony]

A bit belated in updating my workout from Friday (2/10)
Squat- 135 3x5 worked on form more about that later
Press- 115 3x5 hard as hell but I got it. We'll see how 120 goes up on Wed.
Clean- 95 1x3

So after my deadlift session on Wed my abdomen started hurting right above the waistline on the right side. It hurt all night Wed and well into Thurs so I made an appt with the doc just to make sure I didn't have a hernia or anything. Doc cleared me said it was probably just a strain but to take it easy. I did a few sets of warm ups on the clean with the bar and it felt okay. So I loaded the bar up with 95lbs (workset was supposed to be 140) but as soon as I went down to grip the bar I felt my side tighten up real bad. So I did a set of 3 and called it a day.

Now about my squats... I have noticed that my shins are too vertical so I was trying to focus on getting my knees over my toes or a little past. Every time I do that the next day the top of my left knee cap hurts like hell. It is tender to the touch and putting weight on my knee is very painful even if the squats the day before were at light weights (135). So I was sitting in a low chair over the weekend and i pulled my feet back so my knees were over my toes. My right heel was on the ground but my left heel was not. When I flexed my ankle to get my heel to the ground my knee hurt in the exact spot it does after squatting with my knees in the same position. I guess I need to work on ankle flexibility? That would have been one of the last things I would have thought to work on to stop knee pain. Anyone else had this experience?

Back at it tonight. I am going to do a few light warm ups with the deadlift and see how my side feels. I would like to get a full set in, but if I feel pain like I did before I will probably stop short. I would rather take a little longer with my strength gains and avoid injury.

[John Tony]

2/13

Squat- 145 3x5
Bench Press- 180 3x5
Deadlift- 305 1x2

I did some ankle mobility stretches before the squat and really stretched before I started my workout. No pain in the knee as of yet, typically it would hurt first thing in the morning the day after squats so this is a good sign. Squat felt really light and went up easily.

I'm surprised how well the Bench is progressing. That has always been one of my weakest points. The weight feels difficult, but very attainable each workout. Still going up 5lbs a workout. Started at 115 in mid Dec so I am definitely happy with the results so far.

Tried deadlifting with a belt. It Didn't work too well... I am only 5'7" so a 4" belt really digs in when I'm in the starting position. First one felt okay, second felt bad and couldn't start the third. I think the strength is there I just wasn't used to the belt. Going to stay at 305 on Friday without a belt and see how it goes.

[Mr_Rogers]

Some very solid stats so far John. Keep up the great work.

[John Tony]

Thanks Mr. Rogers, you seem to be moving along nicely as well.

Squat- 165 3x5
Press- 120 1x5 1x3 1x3
Clean- 135 5x3

Squat- 145 felt so light on Mon I decided to make a 20lb jump. Not the best idea I've ever had, but I was able to get all 3 sets.

Press- I got the weight above my head on the 4th rep of the second set but couldn't lock it out. I am frustrated because given my bodyweight of 200lbs I don't think I should be having trouble with my presses this early on. I will give 120lbs another shot on Monday and see how it goes.

Cleans- I repeated the same weight from 2/6 because last Fri 2/10 I essentially missed the clean portion of the workout. It felt good and was moving real easily. 140 shouldn't be a problem next week.

My camera is broken so I am going to beg/borrow/steal (not really steal...) one from someone to get my press from on video. I found that facing away from a mirror in the gym really helps keep the bar as close to the body as possible on both the press and the clean.

[John Tony]

2/17
Squat- 175 3x5
Bench- 185 3x5
Deadlift 305 1x1

Didn't get to the gym until 11:30 p.m. and had a terrible night. Working out pissed off is useful for some, but I just get distracted. Thus the 1 rep of deadlift. I tried ripping it off the ground and tweaked my shoulder on the second rep. Dumb move.

That was the second time I failed at 305. 295 was hard but not so hard that I should miss 305 with only 1 or 2 reps. I am going to give it another shot on Wed. May have to deload.

[Bradley]

Are you using knee sleeves?