SociallyChallenged Workout Journal

[SociallyChallenged]

Last week I got 2 bouldering sessions in (~1.5h each session) and 2 gym sessions.

First session:

Barbell back squat (high bar)
10x45
6x135
5x175
5x205
2x5x225

Dumbbell bench press
10x35s
6x45s
5x55s
5x65s

One-arm bias chin-ups (alternating)
3x4 each side

Random ab work; bicep, tricep, pec work

Second session:

Barbell back squat (high bar)
10x45
6x135
5x175
5x205
2x5x230

Barbell bench press
10x45
10x75
8x95
3x5x120

Machine pull-down (mostly did this for grip, back was sore from rock-climbing anyhow)
3x10x90

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Mon 7/23/12

Dynamic warm-ups

Barbell back squat (high bar)
10x45
7x135
5x175
5x210 (belted)
2x5x235 (one set belted)
1x255 (belted)
1x265 (belted)
1x275 (belted - playing with belt, checking potential 1RM)

Barbell bench press (working on form, full ROM still - able to hit almost all reps full ROM, even with pause, without discomfort)
10x45
10x75
8x95
6x115
2x5x125
5x130

DB rows (in a rush at this point)
10x35
6x50
5x65
5x70

Did some pec, posterior capsule stretching, ab work. With squat, was just trying to see where I'm at. I had 280 in me definitely, 285 potentially, but wasn't there to get a true 1RM. I know how much gas I had in the tank and I didn't need to see the number to know where I was at. I just wanted to know how long it'd take to progress back to my previous numbers. With bench, range and strength felt good. It's important for me to actively depress my scaps to be in a good benching position. It changes everything.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Went rock climbing twice last week, definitely improving my planning and grip strength. Averaged probably 1h per visit.

Mon 7/30/12

1-1.5h bouldering early in day

Later at night:

Dynamic warmups with ~1200m run

Barbell back squats (high bar)
10x45
8x135
5x185
5x215
2x5x240 (one set belted)

BB deadlift
5x215 (just adding deadlifts back to the mix, just wanted to feel it today)

BB bench press
10x45
8x80
6x115
2x6x130 (didn't want to up to 135 yet, want to work on form)

Also did various pec isometrics, hip mobility work.

Finally got my own home gym set up - squat rack, good bench, Oly lifting BB, weights, etc. Played with it today, had little light but did alright. 240 squat was rough without the belt, but I survived. Just gotta keep on chugging.

 

[blackdogdeek]

Finally got my own home gym set up - squat rack, good bench, Oly lifting BB, weights, etc. Played with it today, had little light but did alright. 240 squat was rough without the belt, but I survived. Just gotta keep on chugging.

did you get bumper plates?

 

[SociallyChallenged]

did you get bumper plates?

Got a pair of 35s because 1) I don't do enough Oly lifting at the moment to justify spending almost $30 for 45s, 2) it makes my deadlifting less loud since the plates are just slightly bigger than my metal Oly plates, 3) I can just add 10's on the sides to make the popular weight of 135 without any problems. I got them for a pretty good deal at a fitness equipment place out in the backwoods.

 

[blackdogdeek]

Got a pair of 35s because 1) I don't do enough Oly lifting at the moment to justify spending almost $30 for 45s, 2) it makes my deadlifting less loud since the plates are just slightly bigger than my metal Oly plates, 3) I can just add 10's on the sides to make the popular weight of 135 without any problems. I got them for a pretty good deal at a fitness equipment place out in the backwoods.

how much? your remark about paying only $30 for 45s has me intrigued about the price at which you got the 35s, if you don't mind my asking.

a friend of mine got me a pair of 15s from rogue fitness. i have a pair of metal 10s that i add to the sides to get up to 95# (which i'm sure you know is a popular CF weight). however, all my other plates are the big metal kind.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

how much? your remark about paying only $30 for 45s has me intrigued about the price at which you got the 35s, if you don't mind my asking.

a friend of mine got me a pair of 15s from rogue fitness. i have a pair of metal 10s that i add to the sides to get up to 95# (which i'm sure you know is a popular CF weight). however, all my other plates are the big metal kind.

I'm sorry, I meant $30 MORE for the 45lb pair compared to the 35lb pair. And actually, I don't think it was $30 more, but it was literally at the very end of my budget lol. I can't remember what I paid per pound anymore, but it was pretty cheap.

The 15s are ok for that, but they're kinda fragile. I've seen a lot of people break them, which would just be depressing. I feel like you still have to be pretty gentle with them. I might have bought some 25s if they had them, but I wanted the sturdier thickness just to reduce the wear and tear on my metal Oly plates from deadlifting.

How's everything go for you with CF? I've been reading your journal - seems like you're getting stronger.

 

[blackdogdeek]

I'm sorry, I meant $30 MORE for the 45lb pair compared to the 35lb pair. And actually, I don't think it was $30 more, but it was literally at the very end of my budget lol. I can't remember what I paid per pound anymore, but it was pretty cheap.

ah ok. when i was shopping around i also determined that 35s were the best bang for buck compared to the 45s and would also give me the flexibility for different weights with the 15s and the 10s.

How's everything go for you with CF? I've been reading your journal - seems like you're getting stronger.

it's been going well, thanks. the biggest difference started when i joined an actual box. on my own i would only perform wods with no strength work except for the strictly lifting wods. now we do strength work before most wods. also, having access to the supply of bumper plates and having rubber floor matting helps me mentally somehow. i think i feel like i can use more energy focusing on the work instead of focusing on not breaking stuff in my garage.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

ah ok. when i was shopping around i also determined that 35s were the best bang for buck compared to the 45s and would also give me the flexibility for different weights with the 15s and the 10s.

it's been going well, thanks. the biggest difference started when i joined an actual box. on my own i would only perform wods with no strength work except for the strictly lifting wods. now we do strength work before most wods. also, having access to the supply of bumper plates and having rubber floor matting helps me mentally somehow. i think i feel like i can use more energy focusing on the work instead of focusing on not breaking stuff in my garage.

Yeah, they're expensive, but they work well and still cheaper than the 45s.

Nice. Yeah, working out at a box does give you ideas and helps push you to do things you wouldn't otherwise attempt. I didn't like doing strength workouts prior to metcons because I take a while to warm-up and they just didn't want to give me it. If you do lighter stuff though, it works fairly well. And yeah, I get what you mean. Everything's padded to a certain extent so you don't gotta worry about anything but pushing yourself.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Tues 7/31/12

Run 3.5mi (did some intervals at the end)

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Wed 8/1/12

Warm-up: ~0.5mi walk/jog with girlfriend, dynamic warm-ups (including good mornings with bar)

BB back squat (high bar)
10x45
6x135
5x185
5x220
2x5x245 (one set belted)

Single arm DB bench press
10x33
4x5x53

Single arm DB row
10x35
3x6x53

I essentially superset the bench and rowing to see how quickly I could get through upper body stuff. Did some posterior capsule stretching, accessory bicep work (curls), left posterior hip foam rolling. I felt pretty sore yesterday. I don't know if that was from lifting Mon or from the run the day before, but even 185 felt hard initially. Also, just to explain, I currently only have one adjustable dumbbell that works with my Oly plates (I took clamps from the other one to make it work). I figure it's good because it slows me down (with excessive weight progression), helps me work on my stabilization, and requires more core strength and recruitment. Did one set of BB bench at 95lbs because I didn't have a weight between 33 and 53 when I was warming up. Felt really light.

 

[conorvansmack]

accessory bicep work (curls)

Are you ashamed to admit that you did curls?

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Are you ashamed to admit that you did curls?

Not at all. I've had a biceps strain previously and I'm doing the accessory work to improve the tensile strength of the muscle belly and tendon. Plus, my left arm is slightly smaller than my left due to an old shoulder injury. I'm working on normalizing the size, recruitment strategies, and making sure I don't hurt it again I'm rehabbing it before it needs to be rehabbed (and getting swole for my lady )

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Fri 8/3/12

Dynamic upper extremity warm-up

Barbell bench press
10x45
10x80
8x115
3x5x135

Barbell bent-over row
10x45
10x80
6x115
2x8x115

Also did some shoulder and elbow mobility work (stretched pecs, posterior capsule, biceps). Have been feeling worn down by squats so I figured I'd just do them twice this week. Didn't feel I had to nix the upper body stuff though, especially considering my bench is so weak right now.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Sat 8/4/12

Walk/Hike/Jog/Sprint 2mi with girlfriend

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Sun 8/5/12

Bouldering 1.5h (did some lateral paths to just work on overall grip strength. My forearms and hands were hurtin' by the end)

Later in the day

.75mi run, dynamic warmups for posterior chain (good mornings, body weight RDLs, RDLs with bar, deadlifts with bar)

Barbell deadlifts
10x45
8x115
5x185
5x235 (meant to jump to 225, but was using 35lb plates so it was weird)
2x5x245 (used straps on both sets, belt on one - hands were toast from bouldering earlier, was the only way I could get some reps in).

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Was gonna lift yesterday, but it was hot and late in the evening so I just postponed it to today.

Wed 8/8/12

Dynamic warm-ups (jog, sagittal, frontal plane leg swings, BW bulgarian split squats, good mornings with bar)

Barbell back squat (highish bar)
10x45
6x135
5x185
5x230
2x5x250 (one set belted)

Barbell bench press
10x45
8x80
6x115
2x5x140 (still need better ROM on left shoulder with proper neutral wrist position)

Bent-over long-bar row (alternating grip)
15x75
12x110
5x145
2x5x155

Scaled planche push-ups (using bench for neutral wrist, toes only on floor)
2x10

Bulgarian split squat
2x10xBW

Worked on pec, posterior shoulder capsule, hamstring, hip flexor (dynamic) stretches. Also did some nerve glides for my tibial nerve.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Fri 8/10/12

Dynamic warm-ups (sagittal, frontal plane swings, good mornings with and without bar, side steps)

Barbell back squat
10x45
6x135
5x185
5x225
2x5x255 (one set belted)

Needed some motivation so I turned on my truck and listened to some AFI, helped quite a bit.

Barbell deadlift
5x205
5x240
5x260 (belted)

Barbell military press
10x45
6x80
5x100
2x5x115

Front lever work (scaled to flat back front lever with knees bent)
3x15s

Incorporated pull-ups into the front lever work, pulling up and transitioning from the top down to a front lever and back up.

Did some hamstring stretching and nerve glides as well.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Sun 8/12/12

Dynamic warm-ups (track warm-ups, box squats, good mornings with and without bar, sagittal and frontal plane leg swings, BW bulgarian split squats)

Barbell back squat (low bar/high bar hybrid)
10x45
8x135
6x185
5x235
2x5x260 (one set belted)

Too hard today, squatted 3x this week which is a bit much on my body. Need to either 1) eat more, 2) not squat when its 85, 3) slow down to 10lb increase per week. Likely #1 and #3 to happen soon to ensure wellness and reduce injury.

Barbell bench press
10x45
8x95
6x125
2x5x145

Felt light today, finally felt like I got a good position and push. Gonna start doing a pause rep either first or last rep in a set to prep for powerlifting meet conditions.

Hand to front level transition
3x5

Pull-ups
5xBW

Chin-ups
10xBW
2x6xBW (alternating one-arm bias)

Chins and pull-ups done in between front level work.

Also did some good hamstring, adductor, hip flexor stretching in tall lunge position using the bed of my truck. Feeling way more mobile, much less discomfort in hips when in deep hip flexion. Will probably press and pull 3x per week heavy, but will only squat heavy 2x per week (will use other session for light squat and deadlift work).

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Mon 8/13/12

HIIT: Walk/Sprint combo - 8 rounds of 120-130 steps between 70-85% RPE (rate of perceived exertion) with rest to near full recovery. Took about 25min.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Tues 8/14/12

Barbell bench press
10x45
8x95
5x125
2x5x150
5x155

Pull-ups
5xBW
8xBW
10xBW

Front lever work
2x5xBW transition from hang to front lever

Seated cable row
10x90
8x105
2x6x120

Tricep push-downs
15x40
2x8x60
8x80

Cable cross body pull
10x20s
10x25s
2x10x30s

Bicep curls
10x25s
10x35

DB shoulder press
8x45s

DB shoulder abduction
15x8
2x10x12s

Went to work out with a friend, didn't wanna squat again so soon after my last session so I just took it easy and hung out. Got my bench volume in, my pulling, and my gymnastics work so I felt good about it.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Thurs 8/16/12

Dynamic warm-ups (BW squats, box squats, squat with alternating side preference, sagittal and frontal plane leg swings, BW bulgarian split squat, push-ups, dips, good mornings)

Barbell back squat
10x45
8x135
6x185
5x225
5x240 (had to do awkward increase in weight due to oly plate limitations - not enough)
2x5x265 (one set belted)

These freaking sucked. I was punished doing these. Just barely below/above parallel. Need to continue working on mobility. Maybe need to work with some lighter weights between heavy days to work on getting deep enough.

Barbell deadlift
5x205
5x255
5x270

SC joint was bothering me so I decided not to do any pressing. I think it's because I don't have enough pronation. While benching, that causes me to internally rotate and abduct at the shoulder, creating more stress and motion at the scapulothoracic joint (thus affecting my SC joint). Need to do some soft tissue work and joint mobes to get more pronation.

Pull-ups
BWx6
Alternating bias
BWx3 each side
Normal
BWx10
Alternating
BWx7 each side

Little bit of front lever work.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Fri 8/17/12

Dynamic warm-ups (1200m jog, push-ups, bench press, bent-over rows, air squats)

Circuit 3x of:

Barbell bench press 45lb
Barbell upright row 45lb
Single-arm dumbbell bench press 63lb
Single-arm dumbbell bent-over row 63lb

Mainly wanted to do an upper body workout, but work on my cardio a bit and work my bench form with lighter weights. I realized that I've been having trouble with my bench because I've been taking too wide of a grip. Much better narrower for me.

Core work:
Leg raises (while holding barbell and while not)
Dying bugs
Straddle scissors
Isometric superman with unilateral shoulder flexion
Standing sidebend (with 35lbs in hand)

Single leg squat work:
Concentric pistol from box 2x5xBW each side
Full single leg squat with non-squatting leg directly underneath 2x5xBW each side

Also did some AC joint and hip distraction, posterior shoulder capsule stretches, and forearm pronation stretches. I've had difficulty in the past trying to gain pronation on my right arm. However, I used the straps I found years ago for deadlifting and they gave me 1) a tight grip on the forearm, 2) better leverage due to the extra length of the handle I could pull on. Really need to keep workin' on that.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Was gonna squat tonight, but just didn't have it in me. I spent half the day in the sun at a baseball game and was just out from that point forward. I'm also realizing the amount squatting takes out of me so I need to be realistic about when I do them. I may mix things up tomorrow and do a greater number of lighter sets and then work up to a 3RM.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

Mon 8/20/12

Dynamic warm-ups (air squats, bulgarian split squats, incline push-ups on bench, sagittal, frontal plane swings, stationary high knees)

Barbell back squat
15x45
8x135
5x185
3x225
3x255
3x275 (belted)
3x285 (belted)
2x290 (belted, positive failure)

Bench press
10x45
6x95
5x135
3x165
3x175
3x180

Will do some gymnastics work on my indoor pull-up bar tonight for my pulling motion. I really need to set up a sturdy pull-up bar via metal piping in my garage. I'm sick of not doing enough pulling - it's what I'm actually good at lol.