Workout Check-in September
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It looks like most of you have gone rogue! Not a lot of pure SL5x5 results. I also added because I craved more. I do sumo squats. I lift at home and don't have the advice of a PT like some of you do. Any tips on how to increase strength on the OHP would be appreciated! I am on my 3rd deload. 65 down to 55.
Question I notice that a lot of you do more than the recommended 1x5 on the DL Mendhi said no warm up. I lift 144 last time and that was difficult. What is your reason for doing more or benefits?
I also noticed that some of you do pull ups I can't even begin to pull myself up! Someone on the pull-ups thread recommended negative pull ups. Does anyone do those? Or is there a better way to get the strength to do them?
Squats 5x100 5x105 5x110 5x5 114
Sumo Squats 5x5 95
OHP 5x45 5x50 5x55 5x5 57
DL 1x5 1440 -
fanncy0626 wrote: »Any tips on how to increase strength on the OHP would be appreciated! I am on my 3rd deload. 65 down to 55.
Switch it up and either do DB presses for a while, push presses, or add reps at lower weights on every set instead of sticking to 5x5. As a general rule, 5x5 doesn't work all *that* well for women when it comes to upper body, so allow yourself some play in finding out something that works better for you.fanncy0626 wrote: »Question I notice that a lot of you do more than the recommended 1x5 on the DL Mendhi said no warm up. I lift 144 last time and that was difficult. What is your reason for doing more or benefits?
Not warming up for deadlifts when it gets heavy (or any lifts, really) is asking for trouble. Also, at the moment I'm doing more sets than prescribed because I'm far from what normally should be my work set because of the injury, and I'm trying to build my work capacity back up a bit. It works cuz I'm not at the point where it taxes my CNS so much that I can't workout every other day, so it's all good. I'd dial it back down if I found I couldn't recover well, for sure.fanncy0626 wrote: »I also noticed that some of you do pull ups I can't even begin to pull myself up! Someone on the pull-ups thread recommended negative pull ups. Does anyone do those? Or is there a better way to get the strength to do them?
Can't do pull-ups either, so I use a resistance band (or 3) to do assisted pull-ups. Negatives are probably okay, however if you don't have the proper set-up (a high step you can just step off of) I wouldn't recommend them, as having to jump up to the bar then decelerate yourself for the negative part can do bad things to your elbows. I speak from experience
I hope that answers your questions! Don't hesitate to ask more
And also, if you think some have gone rogue, wait til you see the program I'll be jumping into next week ;P
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I hope that answers your questions! Don't hesitate to ask more And also, if you think some have gone rogue, wait til you see the program I'll be jumping into next week ;P
Thanks for the suggestions! It would be nice if there was a program with heavy lifting designed for women. I'll be looking forward to seeing your new program next week.0 -
fanncy0626 wrote: »Question I notice that a lot of you do more than the recommended 1x5 on the DL Mendhi said no warm up. I lift 144 last time and that was difficult. What is your reason for doing more or benefits?
i've started with a trainer who likes volume and lots of warmups for newbies, is the reason for my warmup patterns. extra reps with (lower weights and ) GOOD FORM give your body more chances to learn GOOD FORM in a way that becomes automatic habit - what they often call 'muscle memory'.
i'm all down with it atm, because i don't have the GOOD FORM part of it down. i did sl for a year without any coaching at all, and slid into some bad form habits. that made me decide to wipe my whole data bank and start all over again from day 1.
plus, me personally . . . i just really like doing deadlifts. so if it means i can do more of them i don't at all mind not caring what weight i'm pulling.
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fanncy0626 wrote: »Thanks for the suggestions! It would be nice if there was a program with heavy lifting designed for women. I'll be looking forward to seeing your new program next week.
sl seems so bro'd up because mehdi's a dick, not because the program itself has anything in it that's especially male-specific. the program itself is fine . . . and you don't need to add 5 pounds every time you work out just because he says you should.
that's about the only part that needs tinkering for some of us: the weights. the lifts and the way they're divided is actually pretty good. each pairing gives you a push exercise (bench/press) and a pull exercise (row/deadlift). and each pair is designed to complement the other one.
so workout a is in the horizontal plane (you're working at right angles to your own body). when you bench, you push with the muscles in front of your body. then you do rows, which means you pull with your back. that balances everything around your shoulder joints, which, believe me . . . it's a Good Thing.
and workout b is in the vertical plane (i.e you move the weights parallel to your body). it has you pushing with the ohp and then pulling with the deadlift. and squats tie it all together.
it's a good programme, and the 5sets/5reps format is pretty nice. but at least one woman here has completed a programme called new rules of lifting for women, so there are alternatives if sl isn't really appealing to you.
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fanncy0626 wrote: »Question I notice that a lot of you do more than the recommended 1x5 on the DL Mendhi said no warm up. I lift 144 last time and that was difficult. What is your reason for doing more or benefits?
I do one set of warm up DL at 135 lbs to make sure I remember to brace my core and back before lifting something really heavy. I also use it to hopefully help with grip strength, as I do double overhand for warm up.I also noticed that some of you do pull ups I can't even begin to pull myself up! Someone on the pull-ups thread recommended negative pull ups. Does anyone do those? Or is there a better way to get the strength to do them?
I did my first pull up this summer. I really wanted to be able to do one. I started with assisted pull ups with the machine at the gym, then moved to negatives. I also did those on the assisted pull up machine. I just folded down the pad and used the steps to reach high enough so that I could hop up above the bar. At first I pretty much dropped like dead weight. It got better. When I was able to do 3x8 slow, controlled negatives, I started trying regular pull ups, and was pretty close.0 -
This ^^
yes he is
i love solidarity so much.
workout x. still kind of on trainer time. except i'm squatting every workout like sl, and doing 5-rep sets a lot of the time. truth is, i don't really know which one i'm doing. but i do squat every time.
squats: 2x5@45, 1x5@55, 3x5@60, 2x5@65. 5x5@70. guess i did the trainer's warmups (mostly) and the sl work sets. i just couldn't have kept going with extra reps on set 3 of the work sets, but of course that didn't mean i couldn't rest a bit and do another two sets of five, so i did.
i felt good. still feel good. the form tweaks provided by him and mr back squat seem to be holding up well - i got crazy depth until i decided i don't really need to go down till the bar hits the safeties before i come up. shoulders and upper back really tight but comfortable, felt no lumbar twinge, and most absolute-definitely my posterior chain was involved all the way. @krokador's link to the hip-mobility wod helped a lot and has been making a major difference in getting that depth with a stable pelvis. i added 5 pounds with this workout over the last one i did, and will probably try for 75 on my next one. now that my 'real' form feels like it's coming back i'm starting to feel bulletproof and unstoppable once again.
ohp: not so great. i'm working to develop the 'shelf' thing for my overhead press, so some of it went really well. but i had lost the rack by that point and i was cleaning the bar, which caused me problems with proper setup once i was up to my work weight. i tried to make it 50 this time, but never got more than 3 reps to each set that i tried. i did many many sets of 3 at that weight though, just trying to make it happen. and also, my warmups were 2x5@30, 1x5@35, 1x3@40, and 1x2@45 pounds. so damn, i did DO overhead pressing today.
*** i may/think i will ask mr trainer to teach me how to do cleans, because i'm doing them anyway whether i like it or not, most days i press. and besides, they're badass.
deadlifts: trouble is, i did deadlifts, bench and rows on friday for trainer dude. so that left me a bit stuck for a third lift today, because any one of the remaining options would have been a repeat. i chose deadlifts and put the trainer plates on the bar and for 5 sets of 5. that was 65% of my friday work weight, so really just form exercising. but man i was tired by the last of those sets. might not done the 5th one at all, actually.
lat work: eh feck it. i just didn't have it for lat work today. did 3x1 negative chins from the handles, and didn't enjoy them at all. so then i did (i think) 3x5 sets of pulldowns from the cable machine, and didn't like those much either. and finally, 3x8@65 of pendlays, since that was the weight on my deadlifting bar. so i guess i got the work in, but it wasn't what anyone would call smooth or well-organized.
accessory: i did this and i'm proud, so i'll report. with every squat set, after i'd finished the squats or before i started them, i unracked the bar and just stood with it in the ohp starting position. practicing that 'shelf' form and getting a feel for the way that it feels. i guess 10-20 seconds each time, and i did it with all my squat weights at least once, so 45, 50, 55, 60, 65 and 70 pounds. i can actually 'shelve' 70 pounds pretty comfortably although i wasn't stupid enough to try pressing it over my head.
then i came home and put on my tickle-me-elmo pants. they're either yoga pants or pyjamas, but the exciting news is they FIT me now. quite comfortably.0 -
ooo Fun lifting going on. To add to the warm up talk with deadlifts, I'm not the best at following programs exactly as prescribed. Going rogue is fun, but I just found once it got heavier that I liked having a first warm up set at 135, even though last time I basically did romanian ones for that set. It's the start of the main set up, just need to add whatever I need to that and it's all good. When it's over 200, I may add a couple reps (though not many) at 185 in between as I really start to notice the sudden huge weight difference.
I lifted tonight after work, though was silly and left my packed gym bag at home. So, I had to drive all the way home, get it, stop by other store for supplies we need at work, then get to the gym It was pretty quiet hough because I tried new. I started PHUL, which is upper/lower split. Today was upper body power, which was fine except my right arm was cranky on a few lifts. Lat pull down bothered shoulder, OHP bothered wrist and skull crushers with the weird ez curl bar made my elbow unhappy. But I made it through and it's interesting so far. Next up is lower power, though I'm probably going to add good mornings on one of the lower body ones because one day is minimal and both days involve calf work and eh. Anyways, numbers...
Bench press 4x5 @ 85 - not bad, felt heavy at first then fine so ended up 4 sets instead of 3.
db incline bench 3x8 @ 30 - fine like before, might try increase next time
bent row 3x5 @ 90 - heavy but used the fixed weight one cause I didn't want to find a bar to use
lat pulldown 3x8 @ 70 - tried 80 but shoulder ached, was better by the end
OHP 3x5 @ 65 - started with 75 but nope, wrist hurt, wasn't too bad by the end at this
bar curl 3x10 @ 30 - eh, it's curls
skull crusher 2x6 @ whatever the ez bar weighs - awkward. My toes barely touch the ground when using the bench and I'm using 2 plates per foot on regular bench, so that might be an issue. Elbow was a little unhappy and I was really shaky, plus I find that bar very awkward in general to hold and use. Will take some time to get used to it.
Now it's late and I'm sleepy. Bed time.0 -
DawnEmbers wrote: »skull crusher 2x6 @ whatever the ez bar weighs - awkward. My toes barely touch the ground when using the bench and I'm using 2 plates per foot on regular bench, so that might be an issue. Elbow was a little unhappy and I was really shaky, plus I find that bar very awkward in general to hold and use. Will take some time to get used to it.
Kro-tip (cuz I ain,t a pro, lol) on the skull crushers (and it might save your wrists and elbows down the line): take a slightly wider grip than what would appear comfortable and make sure the bar is in your PALM (and not your fingers, the way you would go with rows) and squeeze it so that your wrist stay neutral - incidentally, the EZ bar makes this easier because you don,t have to over-pronate to match a straight bar. If I recall correctly, my best position was when I actually had my thumb tightly squeezed into the groove of the bar). I injured my wrist by letting it hang loose when I incidentally was doing PHUL 2 years ago. It made a scary ominous crack and I was unable to do push-ups on the floor for MONTHS after that. If you have wrist wraps, I would recommend using them on triceps movements just for overall wrist stability. Better safe than sorry, and it will not take away anything from the movement at all.
Also, if doing them laying down is iffy because you can,t touch the ground, you could try doing it on an incline instead. Usually, the inclineable benches are a bit lower than the straight ones to begin with, and you can also sit on one of your feet to prop yourself up far enough and still be somewhat stable.
And if all else fails, a seated overhead 2-arm DB triceps extensions is a good sub
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbX7Wd8jQ-Q 0 -
I was worried abotu my shoulder because it hurt a LOT yesterday, but lo and behold, it was fine this morning
Sadly, my legs hadn't recovered from the hill sprints
Squats 165x5/3/5/4/5
The set of 3 I actually failed on the 4th rep. I think I got a bit distracted, tried to look at the ground instead of in the mirror but it honestly doesn't not work for me. Keeping my head up helps keep my chest up. So not gonna try that again xD
Bench 95x5x5 - no issues here. I even did 100 jumps on the rope between each sets. It was a bit more challenging though, I'll admit. Good to be within the range of 100 again.
Rows 65x4x5, 85x5 - I only intended to go up to 75 on the last set. 65 was too easy. but I grabbed 10s instead of 5s. I had a big frown on the first rep going "dude, this is way too heavy for 75" lol. Still made it without too much pain!
Barbell Alternate drop lunges 45x8, 55x10, 65x8
superset with incline Y trap raises x10, 15, then 3lbs x15
The Y trap raise makes my shoulder snack crackle pop and hurt a bit. So I know I'm working on a part of the muscle that's not very close to being healed yet. however, the more I do it, the less it hurts, so I'm probably clearing up scar tissue and whatnot as well. As long as the pain doesn't stick I think I'm alright.
Oh, and NMW push-ups x8: success!
Tomorrow is a rest day, and Wednesday is my last 4-lap run before the final 1 mile test!0 -
Deadlift 3 day
155 lbs x 3, 175 lbs x 3 and 200 lbs x 4
Accessories
Sumo DL 5x8 155 lbs
Front squat EMOTM x 5 5@ 65 lbs
Nothing too exciting but it felt good. I need to go jog out a 5K pretty soon here but it is so cold
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Kro-tip (cuz I ain,t a pro, lol) on the skull crushers (and it might save your wrists and elbows down the line): take a slightly wider grip than what would appear comfortable and make sure the bar is in your PALM (and not your fingers, the way you would go with rows) and squeeze it so that your wrist stay neutral - incidentally, the EZ bar makes this easier because you don,t have to over-pronate to match a straight bar. If I recall correctly, my best position was when I actually had my thumb tightly squeezed into the groove of the bar). I injured my wrist by letting it hang loose when I incidentally was doing PHUL 2 years ago. It made a scary ominous crack and I was unable to do push-ups on the floor for MONTHS after that. If you have wrist wraps, I would recommend using them on triceps movements just for overall wrist stability. Better safe than sorry, and it will not take away anything from the movement at all.
Also, if doing them laying down is iffy because you can,t touch the ground, you could try doing it on an incline instead. Usually, the inclineable benches are a bit lower than the straight ones to begin with, and you can also sit on one of your feet to prop yourself up far enough and still be somewhat stable.
Interesting. It didn't bother my wrist really, even though I'd done OHP not long before that which did bug my wrist. I was using the inner part of the grip based on a video I watched on how to do the lift. Though, I have to admit, gripping that bar anywhere is awkward, so I've just been using straight bars on the occasion I do curls. I could try the wider grip next time though slightly would mean holding the curve and not sure how that would go. Never used a strap before. Thanks for the tips. We'll see how it goes and what I can incorporate over time.
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I've been lifting since March and I am always hungry. I was wondering how many calories most of you eat. I eat sweets because I'm addicted and have put on 15 lbs. because of lifting I stayed the same size and toned/muscled up. I really want to lose 25 lbs and I quit all of my aerobic exercise because Mehndi advised it. I was doing 24 hours a week. Any suggestions would be appreciated!0
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I'm pretty short but mildly active, and eat from 1400-1700 depending on the day, but I do cardio 3 days a week as I'm training for a 10k. I was training for a 5k earlier this year and have run in 3 of them. Just depends on when you do the cardio more than not needing to do it at all. Based on the site alone, I think his thoughts are more towards those wanting to gain strength and maybe gain some mass, but not so much on the deficit side of the calorie range, even though the program works during such as well. Today is a no cardio or lifting day so I'll get around 1400 while trying to reach my protein minimum. Tuesday I do both, and Friday is a 5 mile run, so those will be higher. I've slowed down in weight loss but I'm almost at those last pesky pounds so slow is the process.0
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I know that you need 1g of protein/lb of LBM so around 130g for me. That is almost impossible for me to do. I know a lot of people drink whey shakes but yucky! That's about 21-28 oz of chicken beef or eggs. Is there anyone that can get that much protein without supplements?
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Lifted last night - lower body superset at the end just about killed me lol
Squat 5x5x135lbs
Bench 5,4,3,5,4 x 100lbs - finally made triple digits but was NOT pretty
Row 5x5x105lbs - easy so moving up
Lower body superset 3x8
Bulgarian split squat 18lb dumbbells
Front squat 55lbs barbell
Hip thruster 145lbs
Romanian deadlift 145lbs
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fanncy0626 wrote: »I know that you need 1g of protein/lb of LBM so around 130g for me. That is almost impossible for me to do. I know a lot of people drink whey shakes but yucky! That's about 21-28 oz of chicken beef or eggs. Is there anyone that can get that much protein without supplements?
I aim for around 150-160g of protein a day. I drink a protein shakes (whey if during the day, casein if before bed and after lifting). I also do baking with protein powder - I've got mini protein cheesecakes for breakfast this week! I also eat protein bars occasionally at work, they're easy, usually pretty nice and boost my protein intake. I eat a ton of chicken and egg whites etc but its not always practical for me so most days I supplement in order to meet my target.
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fanncy0626 wrote: »I really want to lose 25 lbs and I quit all of my aerobic exercise because Mehndi advised it. I was doing 24 hours a week. Any suggestions would be appreciated!
honestly, i think if mehdi advised me not to jump off the brooklyn bridge, i might give serious consideration to doing it. just on general principles that there's probably value in it. and because, as discussed, the man is a dick.
fwiw, my opinion of him is this: he's a businessman. "his" programme is a perfectly valid and viable one as far as strength training goes, and it's pretty much in the public domain. but beyond that the entire purpose and intention of his site is to sell. he's picked out a single lifting protocol which doesn't belong to any specific person, and wrapped it up in a package very intentionally designed for and aimed at a specific market.
that market ain't us. it's the young bros who want to make Gainz, impress other men and avoid being shamed by such men when there are women around. so if you want my opinion: take the two-workouts and the 5x5 set:rep protocol and ignore everything else that he says. do what you want, and work out by yourself what works best for whatever you're looking for.0 -
I think I missed posting Saturday's workout which was:
Bench w/u; 10x80
Row 10x65; 8x70; 6x75
OHP 12x45; 12x45; 10x45; 8x50
Lat pull down 12,12,10,8
Push-ups 3x10
Bench dips 3x10
Today was:
Squat w/u; 8x95; 5x3x100 w 60sec rest
Pause deadlift 3x8x105
Glute bridge 3x10x135
Nothing exciting.0
