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Thread: Less weak than last week

  1. #31
    Join Date
    Jul 2016
    Location
    Knoxville, TN
    Posts
    310

    Default Reading Reference List

    • starting strength seminar april 2024
    • starting strength seminar jume 2024
    • starting strength seminar august 2024
    (Apologies to those who may have clicked for a training update. I find my self continually looking for past articles I've read on the SS website and using browser bookmarks isn't very helpful when I'm on a different computer. This will be a place I can come and find the articles I need. I'll be continually adding to this over time but hopefully it doesn't look like a fake 'update' when I do.)

    The Truth | Jim Steel
    Thoughts on modern trends in the exercise industry, and on working hard to earn things in life.

    Getting Played | Mark Rippetoe
    The intersection of effectiveness vs. human perception. Bonus: how fast can I get to Steph Curry's "amazing" 405-lb-for-6 deadlifts? (Only I'll do it without the trap bar.)

    Learning to "Grind" | Nick Delgadillo
    Something a novice just can't comprehend until experiencing. Pushing through the struggle when it really, truly feels like it's going to fail.

    The White Noise of Heavy | Carl Raghaven
    Honestly, one of my favorite parts of lifting is the way everything melts away once I'm under the stress of a heavy bar. Even my own inner voices go away. #IntrovertLife

    Training the Chin-up | Nicki Sims
    Training the Chin-up Part 2 | Nicki Sims
    Easy to forget the chin-up, and this has been effective in getting mine improved so far.

    The Ultimate Strength Exercise | Bill Starr
    The Ultimate Strength Exercise Part 2 | Bill Starr
    Isometrics as a way to very directly address weak points.

    Form Creep | Mark Rippetoe
    A reminder that there is always a need for honest critique and feedback.

    Preventing Elbow Pain in the Squat | Nick Delgadillo
    The article that did more than anything else to help me fix my own problems in the squat.

    The Reluctant Female Novice | Rebecca Fishburne
    Just in case "the conversation" comes up with the better half. Good to understand things from the other perspective.

    Starting Strength for Women | Ray Gillenwater
    Ditto.

    A Call for Coaches | Ray Gillenwater
    An idea that feels like a pipe dream now, but I don't like to predict the future too much.

    The Most Important Thing You Will Ever Learn About Lifting Weights | Mark Rippetoe
    If at first you don't succeed...

    What Not to Do: Observations of Powerlifters Coaching Novices | Kyle Mask
    Always remember your roots.

    Choosing the Path Less Traveled | Bill Starr
    More learning from those before us.

    Artificially Weak Deadlifts, Part 1: Perception vs. Reality | Robert Santana
    Artificially Weak Deadlifts, Part 2: The Arms | Robert Santana
    Last edited by David Hooper; 03-22-2021 at 01:03 PM. Reason: Adding links.

  2. #32
    Join Date
    Jul 2016
    Location
    Knoxville, TN
    Posts
    310

    Default NLP Week 15

    TL;DR - Back on NLP. Signed up for coaching in the near future.

    15 March 2021
    Weight - 205
    Squat - 300
    Bench - 140
    Power Clean - 110

    The squat went well. The biggest difficulty was having to use the power rack with the vanity mirror in front of it (it was the only one available at the time). Having myself moving in front of me is a distraction and I had to really focus hard on form instead of watching myself.

    The bench also went well. The elbow didn't care for unracking the work sets, but there was less complaint than I've experienced in a long, long time. It feels pretty good right now so I think I'm simply in the long tail of getting back to recovery. That's the 5th and final lift that's back on NLP. Given how well it felt today, I think I can do 5 lb jumps for a short while.

    Still struggling a bit with form on power cleans, but 110 was going up. The first three sets were tough; the bar was barely getting high enough for me to get under it but I was able to complete the cleans. Then something on the fourth set clicked, and the bar was flying up much faster. Both the fourth and fifth sets really felt good. The final rep of the fifth set was the best one of the day, with the bar crashing onto the shoulders. I still have a long way to go, but it's slowly coming into place.

    Lastly, I'm now going to Atlanta in April for a coaching seminar. I'll finally get the one-on-one with immediate feedback that I've been needing. :-)

  3. #33
    Join Date
    Jul 2016
    Location
    Knoxville, TN
    Posts
    310

    Default NLP Week 15

    TL;DR - Welp.

    18 March 2021
    Weight - 202
    Squat - 245 (light day)
    Press - 102.5 (5,5,4)
    Deadlift - 325 (fail)

    So, so close on the press. Can't count it though, so I get to repeat it again. Really tired of the press struggling so much.

    I'm mad at myself on the deadlift. I forgot to collar the right side before starting the workset. By the second pull, all of the weights on that side had walked out a good 4-6 inches. I had stopped briefly to readjust my grip because my right thumb was suddenly hurting more than at the start, and that's when I saw my idiocy. (Some quick calcs suggest I was pulling about 135 in my left hand and 190 in my right during the second pull.) I fixed it, took a break, and reattempted, but I just didn't have enough left to finish it. I'm pretty sure I would have had it.

    Just not a good day overall. Everything felt sluggish but I still think I should have made the lifts. Probably time to start eating a bit more now that I'm back on NLP.
    Last edited by David Hooper; 03-20-2021 at 01:58 PM. Reason: Added title.

  4. #34
    Join Date
    Jul 2016
    Location
    Knoxville, TN
    Posts
    310

    Default NLP Week 15

    TL;DR - A good day to strong.

    20 March 2021
    Weight - 204
    Squat - 305
    Bench - 145
    Power Clean - 115

    All three lifts went well. I had to use the rack with the bro mirror again, but mostly ignored it. A couple quick glances suggest I might be floating depth a shade at the end of the work sets (for what good it does to look in a mirror with a work set weight on your back) so that'll continue to be a focus. Maybe, just maybe, there'll be a third plate in my future this month.

    The bench press was very solid. It's amazing how much better they go without tendonitis. I think I'm getting a bit better at unracking, which undoubtedly helps as well. I'll do another 5 lb jump next time.

    Power cleans were much, much better. I still have the occasional screwball clean that doesn't land as well as it should, but some of them actually feel quite solid now. I find that thinking of 'jumping tall' is helpful. I also need to work on slamming my elbows forward.

    Getting the calories back up a bit now that I'm back to full NLP. Going for 3500-4000 for a week or two and decide from there.

  5. #35
    Join Date
    Jul 2016
    Location
    Knoxville, TN
    Posts
    310

    Default NLP Week 16

    TL;DR - Press went up, deadlift didn't.

    22 March 2021
    Weight - 202
    Squat - 255 (light day)
    Press - 102.5
    Deadlift - 325 (fail)

    I'm pretty sure I need to up the calories and probably also the protein. I tried this weekend, but eating was just hard. I felt somewhat nauseated much of Friday though Sunday so just had to grind to get the food in. I was still around 3000-3500 calories but it was really tough. Feeling better and gunning for closer to 4000 today.

    Squat went well, as a light day should. Focused on explosion out of the bottom.

    Press went up really well. I felt I had more in me at the end of the third set. Like Saturday's bench press, the lack of elbow soreness seemed to really help.

    Deadlift went up, but grip strength seems to be lagging. I noticed it on the warmups; at 235, I struggled with double overhand, which I hadn't had issues with previously. Still takes me forever to get my hook grip set in, and that's when I lost the set today. I had to readjust partway through, and it took a good long time to get the thumb locked back in. After getting set, it still felt unsecure in the hands and I couldn't finish it off. Still, some good diet over the week, some good rest, and I'm confident I'll get it on Friday. I'm very close to having my squat catch up to my deadlift at this point so I'm really anxious to get it moving. It just feels like I have more in me than my grip is allowing me to pull.

  6. #36
    Join Date
    Jul 2016
    Location
    Knoxville, TN
    Posts
    310

    Default NLP Week 16

    TL;DR - Playing whack-a-mole with power clean problems

    24 March 2021
    Weight - 205
    Squat - 310
    Bench - 150
    Power Clean - 120 (ish)

    Squat went well. Perhaps a bit too well on the final set. I felt like the last couple reps weren't as grindy as they should have been, which may indicate that I may be cheating depth a bit. Will continue to focus on this. If I didn't cheat, then I'm only 5 lb off my deadlift weight now. Need to get that deadlift grip fixed immediately.

    Bench also went well. I'm definitely doing better about not destroying my elbow unracking the bar over those monstrously huge sandwich hooks. I still feel like I can handle a 5 lb jump next time.

    I'm just a doofus at power cleans, though. I started with hook grip because it needs the work, and things were going well. I even got the first work rep up just fine with it, and then things went sideways again. Even going back to double overhand didn't help. I almost gave up, but decided to do a hang power clean starting at the jump point (i.e., just sliding it down to the jump, pausing to avoid stretch reflex, and then jumping the weight). Turns out I can hang power clean more than I can power clean. I did figure out that I'm just not getting to the same position when starting from the bottom. I took some time to try to find the difference, and to make the normal power clean feel more like the hang version. That helped immensely, and I managed 5 sets of 3. Some were quite ugly and I'm strongly considering redoing 120 lb next time, just to focus more on cleaning it up. Fix one problem, another pops up...

    I also measured the deadlift bar diameters with digital calipers. They're 27 mm, so grip issues are definitely not the fault of the bar diameter. Since Monday's deadlift problems, I did finally realize that my deformed elbow is missing about 45 degrees of internal rotation, which explains why it's so much harder for me to secure my thumb on my right hand. I'm just going to have to figure out how to get my grip set efficiently, now that I know there's a rotation problem.

  7. #37
    Join Date
    Jul 2016
    Location
    Knoxville, TN
    Posts
    310

    Default NLP Week 16

    TL;DR - Everything went. Grip on deadlift still a problem but better this time.

    26 March 2021
    Weight - 205
    Squat - 255 (light day)
    O. Press - 105
    Deadlift - 325

    Nothing to report on light squats. Great for focusing on depth, back angle, etc. while still handling a relatively heavy load. Definitely preserves the back for the deads.

    Overhead press went up on the first try at 105. :-)

    Got the deadlift but with something of an asterisk. This time, I did hook grip all the way through warmups to practice setting it. It helps if I (a) set my feet, (b) do whatever contortions needed to get the right hand locked in, (c) get in the right position and set the left hand, (d) finish setting and pull. Complicated but it seems to work. For the workset, I got four pulls in before having to reset the grip. Got aaaaaalmost to the top when the right hand started slipping (of course), at which point everything went pear-shaped and I had to set it down. Technically didn't lock out so a missed rep, but I had plenty of power to get there until the stupid grip failed. Again.

    I had made 325 before injuring myself, so I'm sure I lost more grip strength than pull strength when I was recovering. It was better this time than last so I assume it's recovering, but still. I'm pondering sneaking a 5 lb increase next time to start moving the weight again, and figuring out some sort of grip work to do on power clean days. Nothing too strenuous, just some kind of assistance work to encourage it since I'm evidently unable to reset without disaster.

    In happier news, the gym has a Prowler. I need to ask about it, but I'd like to use it a couple days a week to improve conditioning for recovery.

  8. #38
    Join Date
    Jul 2016
    Location
    Knoxville, TN
    Posts
    310

    Default NLP Week 17

    TL;DR - Wrist pain prevented power cleans.

    29 March 2021
    Weight - 205
    Squat - 315
    Bench - 155
    Power Clean - N/A

    Squatted the third plate today. I may need to consider redoing it Friday as I had two reps that felt high. I usually afford myself no more than one 'whoops' on depth so that's probably a good reason to repeat here. I also descended too fast on the 4th rep of the 2nd set, which made that rep particularly difficult to finish and made the 5th rep brutal. Still, it's nice knowing I'm on three plates now.

    Bench went fine. I found a use for the 35 lb plates - using them as footrests to get my legs in a more secure position. :-) This was much harder to finish than the 150 lb sets from last week, so it's probably time to slow to 2.5 lb jumps now. Still, last month's progress was really nice to get while it lasted.

    As I was warming up on the power cleans, my right wrist would hurt every time I racked the bar, even with an empty bar. As the weight went up, the pain increased. By the time I got to 95 lb there was enough pain that I decided it was wiser to skip the cleans today and not risk something. I have no idea what was causing the pain (right between the radial bone and the wrist, or so it felt) so I relented. Since the pull didn't feel bad, I did some deadlift hook grip practice. I ended up all the way up to 325 and did a single with a hold at the top for as long as I could manage. It wasn't too terribly long as the thumbs started complaining, but the hook grip held nicely. (I only did one so I don't screw up Wednesday's deadlift. Today was grip work, not deadlift work.) I'll definitely have to redo 120 lb next time I power clean, though.

  9. #39
    Join Date
    Jan 2021
    Location
    Gatineau, QC
    Posts
    349

    Default

    A 3-plate squat in 17 weeks? Very impressive, congratulations!

  10. #40
    Join Date
    Jul 2016
    Location
    Knoxville, TN
    Posts
    310

    Default

    starting strength coach development program
    Thanks! I tend to focus so much on the struggles it's nice to have a reminder that I'm nowhere near what I used to be just a few months ago. Looking back at my first post, 315 is 3x my very first set of squats. :-)

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