Fireworks! November workouts going off like a rocket
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So....after "buzzing" all night from having skied, and not getting the best night's sleep, I was a bit bleurgh when the 5.30 alarm went off, but gym kit was ready prepared so I went, and I am glad I did as the weights room was really quiet so no hanging around for kit.
SQ: 5x5@ 50kg - got all five this time, and really pleased. Will probably stay at this weight for the next session as well to ensure form remains acceptable. (did type "good" but "acceptable" was more appropriate!!!)
OHP - hmmm.....failed at 27.5kg using the olympic bar again, so took off 2.5kg to bring back to 25kg and still failed! However, did 5x5 without too much difficulty using the 25kg barbell. Not sure why, whether it is psychological or just the shorter bar is easier?
DL: 2x12@ 40kg then 1x5@ 57.5kg. Last rep was a struggle, but with my grip/weak wrist rather than my back/legs. Might need to start trying variations of grip with my lower weight sets, and will stick with 57.5kg next time before trying 60kg which is one of my goals for November so still 2 weeks left to achieve it!
Lat pull down - 2x12@ 33kg
Lunges - 2x12 each leg @25kgbarbell
Swissball crunches with 10kg plate - 2x15
Dumbell shoulder press 2x12 @10kg but using bench rather than freestanding as by that time I was ready to run away!
6 pressups. Could try harder!
So, just a day at work to get through now - would quite like to go home and get back under my duvet!!0 -
Lots of hard work going on in here. Great lifts @christch
Went to gym after work, which was fine except on the second lift my headache from earlier returned with a vengeance. I pushed through and feel a little better after eating foods but still it's achy so may have to take something before bed. Legs were still a little achy but not a hindrance and I did de-load on most of the lifts, so that helped. Left water bottles at work though, oops, and I have the next two days off but oh well. So, glad to get days off as it's the first day off since I got back and I need to do laundry after sleeping in. Lifts were a bit out of order cause had to wait for the deadlift spot to open up, though all of the other equipment in the area was open as not many lift on a sunday night after 11 pm.
26 lower power
squat 3x4 @ 155 - felt okay considering I have been sore for a few days now.
leg press 3x8 @ 210 - okay as well
leg curl 3x8 @ 60 - eh
deadlift 1x5 rdl warmup then 1x3 and 3x4 @ 185 - Not bad, calluses hurt a little but 185 finally feels somewhat easy instead of heavy.
sumo deadlift 2x5 @ 135 - just for fun, still feels a bit odd.
standing calf 3x8 @ 75 - only one I increased instead of de-load, more challenging but managed it.
Now I wish I was sleeping but instead am eating chicken enchiladas that roommate made and have to write newsletters and stories before bed, which the cat likes cause she's going to nap on my lap while I do that.0 -
Back from the first lift of the week, switched to 3x5 during today's workout (it was taking me SO LONG, squats alone took like 25 minutes!!)
Squat warm up: 1x5 20kg, 30kg, 40kg
Squat: 5x5 55kg
Bench warm up: 1x5 20kg
Bench: 3x5 37.5kg
Row: 3x5 42.5kg
Squat: Have been working on my bar position and grip, feeling better with it now, and no more wrist hurting with the thumbless grip. Slightly felt myself pushing from not my heels on a few reps so I guess my weight is shifting forwards a little. One to watch out for going forwards.
It's odd how heavy the weight feels on your back but then you go to squat and down and up you go!
Bench went better thanks to your videos above! Getting verrry close to my max though as some of those reps were properly dodgy. I'm going to practice failing on Friday (I'm thinking roll of shame onto the safeties) as now that I'm benching to my bra band I have to set the safeties lower and they won't catch the bar anymore.
Row actually felt ok today, it's still an odd feeling exercise but I think I'm getting better about keeping my back down and flat, and maybe even working the right muscles!
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I had a great non 5x5 workout today, just taking the opportunity to getting to the gym on a day off. Kettlebells, some elliptical, sit ups, just having fun really! Back to the squats etc tomorrow :-)0
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I( have been downright hurtin' from the "back at it" + new workout days soreness so I was a little dreadful of today, even though I had my favorite lift planned - the clean! All went well, however. Even considering I woke up at like 4:15 and couldn't go back to sleep xD
Power clean pull + power clean combo.
65x3
75x2
85x1
95x1
then EMOTM x6 with 105x2, 110x2 and 112.5x2
Then I re-racked the bar with an additional power clean (which I intended to make a full one, but I actually overpowered the bar something fierce and almost hit myself in the chin! I guess I was afraid it wouldn't clear, lol)
Decided with my bench being a little more difficult, it was also time to reincorporate dedicated overhead pressing.
67.5x5x5 went fairly well. No knee bend, barely any arching. Last 2 reps aren't easy by any means, but they were not grinders either. Wee!
Then hit up the speed shred session which turned out to not be as hard as I thought. For once!
every 20s x 3min -> seated vertical jump
3 rounds per arm with the 25lbs KB of
- KB Power clean x5
- KB push press x10
- bodyweight split squat x15
every 20s x 3min -> power step broad jump - I almost cleared the floor panel which I estimate is about 6 feet wide a few times!
Finisher: 10, 8, 6, 4, 2 for time [4:34]
- Push-up
- Recline Row
- KB Swing @24kg (that's about 52.5lbs)
In retrospect, I went too easy on the regressions on this one. I think the step up is shoulder tap push-ups and feet elevated recline rows, so we'll see. Cap is 10 minutes so obviously I can push a bit more. Maybe I could try the 70lbs KB. But that's a HUGE step up from 50. Why is there nothing in between? =/
Then did 4 sets of face-pulls
30x20, 45x15, 50x15, 55x15
superset with cable crunches
90x15, 105x12, 110x12, 115x15
Oh, and I finished with an easy 15mins on the recumbent bike. Got my glutes good!0 -
Yesterday I did kettle bell swings on my rest day. I increased my weights today. It was a little difficult. I will need to stay here at these weights until I get my form perfect.
Squat- 5X 65\75\85\95\105, 5X 5X115
Sumo squat- 5X5X 100
BP- 5X 65/70/75, 5X5X 80
BR- 5X5X 85
I am still painting. I have trim boards a hallway and the kitchen left to do. Three coats of paint. Hopefully tomorrow we will be able to put the trim back up. Then I will start tearing up the wood floor.0 -
i need upper-back strength. my legs laugh at these 100-lb squats, but my t-spine sure doesn't. deloaded again yesterday over it. i don't really consider this a full workout, but not sure if i'll try to repeat it today.
85 squats and 3x5@55 for ohp because my back wasn't the world's happiest.
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canadianlbs wrote: »i need upper-back strength. my legs laugh at these 100-lb squats, but my t-spine sure doesn't. deloaded again yesterday over it. i don't really consider this a full workout, but not sure if i'll try to repeat it today.
85 squats and 3x5@55 for ohp because my back wasn't the world's happiest.
I agree with you. Sometimes when I don't have good form during an exercise I feel like I didn't even accomplish anything. If you find anything that will increase upper back and body strength let me know.0 -
fanncy0626 wrote: »I agree with you. Sometimes when I don't have good form during an exercise I feel like I didn't even accomplish anything.
yeah, a whole lot of this. i'm vaguely following what i think mr trainer was saying, and looking at things that will hit the space between my shoulderblades so i can maintain a straighter shelf there. and when i say 'following' what i really mean is 'thinking about' since i know perfectly well already what kind of things i should do. but yeah, a few flyes and airplanes couldn't possibly harm me with this.
downward dog (ugh) really helps to un-round the t-spine, i know. and the other thing is pec stretch. i swear i'm coming to believe that tight pecs cause 87.3% of all the evil in this world.
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canadianlbs wrote: »
downward dog (ugh) really helps to un-round the t-spine, i know. and the other thing is pec stretch. i swear i'm coming to believe that tight pecs cause 87.3% of all the evil in this world.
Totally agree. This has been a years long issue with me. I stretch all of the time, but STILL have tight chest muscles. My chiropractor reminds me about the stretches every time I see him for an issue between my shoulder blades...something I have to address this week, again.
I went to yoga today. Felt really tight after lazing around all weekend.
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Totally agree. This has been a years long issue with me. I stretch all of the time, but STILL have tight chest muscles.
it is so hard to get to the pecs. i know all about the wall stretch and the this and the that. but i still have to find just exactly the right angle and configuration to actually 'hit' the muscles i'm aiming for . . . and i can spend half an hour trying to hunt that down sometimes. it's so easy for them to hide behind everything else.
i saw a massage therapist a few months ago who made me feel better by saying yeah; no. when it's got to the point of just being a big lump of angry muscle it's not going to respond to that stretch. he did a sort of 'pinch and strip' thing on me that helped a lot, but i'm finding i still have to keep doing that to myself.
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Do any of you do cable flys or clean and push or Snatch, and if so how long did it take to learn form and are they really necessary for a beginner. The trainer that showed me around the new gym said they're great to help work whole body. But as ive only started front squats with bar I think I've got enough other stuff to work on. It's only taken 11 months top learn to breath and lift bar at same time. Yes I'm coordinationally challenged.0
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My upper mid back is a weak spot for me too. Lots of rows and pull a parts and inverted rows on the TRX and Lat pulls.
Also if you tape two tennis balls together you can do myofascial release for your rhomboids by lying on them and rolling them up and down your t-spine. Feels great. Put the grove between the balls over your spinous processes and just lie on it. Move it up or down a spinal segment and lie on it again.0 -
i love the idea of some of those moves. but no, i haven't progressed to them either. i keep tinkering with my form on the 5 sl lifts.
it's okay to say you don't feel ready for something. maybe in six months or a year you can start asking yourself whether you're being sensible or lazy, but it does sound like you've got a lot going on already. my guess is that when you're ready to learn some new stuff you'll know. you'll be bored with 'just' doing what you're already doing and start eyeballing everyone else's moves to see which extra things you might want to pick up.0 -
Feels great.
i beg to differ.
or maybe it's not the rhomboids, but there's a bundle of little somethings right directly attached to those t-spine vertebrae, and you odn't even notice them most of the time. but if something come along and disturbs them zom-freaking-g. they hurt like a depth charge in some kind of trench. kind of a rolling-thunder echo effect that's insane.
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Do any of you do cable flys or clean and push or Snatch, and if so how long did it take to learn form and are they really necessary for a beginner. The trainer that showed me around the new gym said they're great to help work whole body. But as ive only started front squats with bar I think I've got enough other stuff to work on. It's only taken 11 months top learn to breath and lift bar at same time. Yes I'm coordinationally challenged.
Cable flys I'm not huge on because I feel like a jerk using the two pulleys that can be adjusted at the gym and can never quite get them right, but sometimes I'll try just to do something different haha.
Clean and press + snatch I have learend with video coaching, and even over a year later I'm still not all that advanced with the technique.
With the barbell
Dumbbell snatches and cleans are a LOT less technical and quite beneficial if you can learn to do them properly. But they're more of a conditionin/powerg move than a pure strength exercise. It all depends on what you are going for.
But no, they are absolutely not necessary. They,re fun, but they also have a high risk vs reward rating.Re on the rhomboids and pecs
Take it from the gal who ended up hurting her shoulder and upper back with a good yank on the rower: do not dismiss the lower traps!
I'm one of those weird freaks of nature that have hyper lax shoulders, so for me the pec stretch is kind of a funny thing. I can step my feet beyond the door frame I am stretching on and still manage to get a forward lean into the chest. I have to consciously pull the shoulders back to get any sort of stretch.
And my T-spine is a permanent ball of concrete. I only have a lax ball and I roll both sides separately quite regularly. I am still contemplating upgrading to a golf ball to go dig into that spot behind my shoulder blade.
Face pulls and Y raises are very good for working on that, and surprisingly enough, straight arm lat pulldowns give me a nice amount of work on the back of the shoulder - moreso than reverse flys, even.0 -
I am still contemplating upgrading to a golf ball to go dig into that spot behind my shoulder blade.
seriously. if you never listen to another thing that i say, listen to this one. go to your closest loonie store and hit the party-favours section. buy one pack of those little ~1-inch super-bounce balls before you bother to try a golf ball.
those things are plenty firm enough to do the deed. and they get IN under the shoulderblade as well as all of the other crannies, without hurting your skin. not to mention they're easier to roll around against a wall with, without chipping the paint or kind of skidding away because there's a hard finish on them.
do this. it's an order
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You know when the guys in the gym sigh and look away things aren't good that's me trying to do a cable fly even with no nearly no weight on. Just gets worse with weight. I'll try it lying on a bench with db before I give up completely.
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Another session tonight mainly ISO work though.
Glute kickbacks 3x12 35kg
DL 1x5 40kg,2x5 50kg, 2x5 60 kg
Goblet squat 3x10 20kg
Plie squat 3x10 20kg
Db bench 5x5 14kg
Incline bench 3x10 10kg machine
A press bench 3x10 10kg
Tricep pulldown 1x10 10kg, 3x 10 10+ half
Leg press single legs 3x10 20kg
Leg curls 3x10 10kg
Tomorrow and Thursday no session though Thurs having measurements done so will be interesting to find out bf% hopefully not to high.
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Sunday...
Squat: 57.5kg - 5x5
OHP: 25kg - 1/3/3/2/2
DL: 70kg - 1x5
Yesterday... some much needed cardio after a really bad weekend.
10 minutes of Vinyasa (warm up)
Burpees x5/Plank x30sec (alternating - 6 sets each)
Crunches x20/Scissors x20 (alternating - 5 sets each)
Plank - 1min (2 sets)
Treadmill: 5km (30min)
Treadmill: 4km, uphill (45min)
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