GIFt us your lifts! (or other achievements!)

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Replies

  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    edited January 24
    nossmf wrote: »
    So, you are willing to do snow angels in -40, but heading to a heated gym is somehow difficult to force yourself to do? Makes perfect sense to me...

    It all depends on my mood. LOL

    I haven't been feeling that playful in a while. *shrugs*
    and who said I make sense? LOL that was your first mistake! HAHAHA
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 11,712 Member
    Considering the depressed-sounding tenor of your recent posts, it's good to "hear" you laughing, lady. 😃
  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    edited January 24
    nossmf wrote: »
    Considering the depressed-sounding tenor of your recent posts, it's good to "hear" you laughing, lady. 😃

    This breakup has hit me hard. Add that to my eldest's chronic illness and my youngest's mental health issues and some days the weight is almost too heavy to carry. That's pretty much the reason I lift weights. It's a physical reminder that I can carry this load. But some days.. it's just so damn heavy. The relationship was a bright spot in some heavy days. That bright spot is gone and now it's back to just me and the gym. The perk is that at least the gym is always there, I guess.

  • Minion_training_program
    Minion_training_program Posts: 13,438 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    Considering the depressed-sounding tenor of your recent posts, it's good to "hear" you laughing, lady. 😃

    Agreed that the smile suits you better Sandy, but life can be so hard sometimes, and you are going through a lot, i get that.
    Just know that we are here for you as well, just as much as the gym is there for you

    l7sc1zo9fg6c.gif
  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    Considering the depressed-sounding tenor of your recent posts, it's good to "hear" you laughing, lady. 😃

    Agreed that the smile suits you better Sandy, but life can be so hard sometimes, and you are going through a lot, i get that.
    Just know that we are here for you as well, just as much as the gym is there for you

    l7sc1zo9fg6c.gif

    That almost brought me to tears, Gus. Thank you. ❤️
  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    Tonight's session was good. Still had to force myself to go, but the lifts felt solid and I went up a bit on bench, deads and leg press.

    abviqq4y0jxd.gif
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 11,712 Member
    Solid day! (Night?)

    My morning session was a trifle humbling. I've been doing 4x15 on squats for so many months now, even when I increased weight, that I had come to expect to be able to do so every time I increased weight. Well, today proved it ain't always gonna come easy, as my sets at 365 turned into 4x10, 11, 12, 15. Earned it on the last one, so I know it can be done. Will probably be sticking to this weight for a while before I can go up again, though.
  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    edited January 28
    nossmf wrote: »
    Solid day! (Night?)

    My morning session was a trifle humbling. I've been doing 4x15 on squats for so many months now, even when I increased weight, that I had come to expect to be able to do so every time I increased weight. Well, today proved it ain't always gonna come easy, as my sets at 365 turned into 4x10, 11, 12, 15. Earned it on the last one, so I know it can be done. Will probably be sticking to this weight for a while before I can go up again, though.

    I think that some days just feel heavier than normal. Whether it's a result of less sleep, different fuel in our bodies, stress, or just regular life.

    Squats at 365 for that volume of reps is a heavy load on the CNS, and is very impressive. I am sure it's a blip.

    Way to drive through for that last set!
  • Minion_training_program
    Minion_training_program Posts: 13,438 Member
    So, last week i skipped my friday workout, and had a rest day instead.
    I felt so fatigue again, that i felt like i needed it.

    And guess that was the right decision.

    Today i am in my last week of my Mesocycle, and doing the compounds at 95%
    Today was Benchpress day, and my worksets were 2/2 and AMAP on last set.

    I felt really energized, and even my last warmup felt good (only 9% under my workset) for 3 reps

    Here is my second workset of today.
    w3gmm7bglg2t.gif

    I saw, after the set that i was sticking my arms too far away from my head, that's why i was kinda struggling there. So i made sure to focus on that for my last set on AMAP and was aiming for 3 reps

    Here is my AMAP workset:

    d6gyb2fchiho.gif

    I was soooooo freaking happy with 5 reps!
    My highest thusfar was 4 reps on 60kg, and today managed to do 5 reps on 65kg!


  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    So, last week i skipped my friday workout, and had a rest day instead.
    I felt so fatigue again, that i felt like i needed it.

    And guess that was the right decision.

    Today i am in my last week of my Mesocycle, and doing the compounds at 95%
    Today was Benchpress day, and my worksets were 2/2 and AMAP on last set.

    I felt really energized, and even my last warmup felt good (only 9% under my workset) for 3 reps

    Here is my second workset of today.
    w3gmm7bglg2t.gif

    I saw, after the set that i was sticking my arms too far away from my head, that's why i was kinda struggling there. So i made sure to focus on that for my last set on AMAP and was aiming for 3 reps

    Here is my AMAP workset:

    d6gyb2fchiho.gif

    I was soooooo freaking happy with 5 reps!
    My highest thusfar was 4 reps on 60kg, and today managed to do 5 reps on 65kg!


    I AM SO EXCITED FOR YOU!!! Way to go Gus!!!
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 11,712 Member
    Woot, woot!
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 11,712 Member
    Something must be in the water this weekend, as I also had a stellar bench press workout today. Felt rock solid on my 5x5x255 with 6 reps final set and felt I coulda done more, gonna increase to 260 next week.

    But the real confidence booster was when I loaded the bar with 315. That's the goal I'm working towards, and today I wanted a visceral feeling of what it was going to feel like. Would I even be able to lift it off the rack supports at all? Would it feel like my shoulders are being driven down through the bench and would detach from my torso?

    As it turned out, I had mentally built it up more than reality. I was able to unrack the weight with only minimal difficulty to full extension, lower back to the rack, and repeat three more times. At no point did I move the bar actually above my body, and at no point did I even consider actually trying for the weight, despite online calculators predicting I may actually be able to lift it once. And true, my personal strongest part of my lift is the finish...if I get a weight more than halfway up, I'm almost guaranteed to finish, it's at the lowest point where I'm weakest.

    But the moral of the story is the 315 no longer scares me. Not sure when I'll feel ready to actually try to tackle the beast, but my dream has officially moved from impossible to just-a-matter-of-time.

    Figured the fine folks in this thread could appreciate this sentiment.
  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    Something must be in the water this weekend, as I also had a stellar bench press workout today. Felt rock solid on my 5x5x255 with 6 reps final set and felt I coulda done more, gonna increase to 260 next week.

    But the real confidence booster was when I loaded the bar with 315. That's the goal I'm working towards, and today I wanted a visceral feeling of what it was going to feel like. Would I even be able to lift it off the rack supports at all? Would it feel like my shoulders are being driven down through the bench and would detach from my torso?

    As it turned out, I had mentally built it up more than reality. I was able to unrack the weight with only minimal difficulty to full extension, lower back to the rack, and repeat three more times. At no point did I move the bar actually above my body, and at no point did I even consider actually trying for the weight, despite online calculators predicting I may actually be able to lift it once. And true, my personal strongest part of my lift is the finish...if I get a weight more than halfway up, I'm almost guaranteed to finish, it's at the lowest point where I'm weakest.

    But the moral of the story is the 315 no longer scares me. Not sure when I'll feel ready to actually try to tackle the beast, but my dream has officially moved from impossible to just-a-matter-of-time.

    Figured the fine folks in this thread could appreciate this sentiment.

    I actually did this very thing after my bench set with 155lb on the bar, but I unracked it, held it over my body locked out and then returned it to the rack. I did that three times. My goal is the ever elusive 1 plate on each side... 135lb. I hope this will help!
  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    Here's tonight's session

    It felt heavy, but good. My calculated 1rms are getting close to where they were, so hopefully I'll have recovered the strength I lost by getting trapped in my feels for a couple months. 😊

    yzrpwlcuc6oc.gif
  • Minion_training_program
    Minion_training_program Posts: 13,438 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    Something must be in the water this weekend, as I also had a stellar bench press workout today. Felt rock solid on my 5x5x255 with 6 reps final set and felt I coulda done more, gonna increase to 260 next week.

    But the real confidence booster was when I loaded the bar with 315. That's the goal I'm working towards, and today I wanted a visceral feeling of what it was going to feel like. Would I even be able to lift it off the rack supports at all? Would it feel like my shoulders are being driven down through the bench and would detach from my torso?

    As it turned out, I had mentally built it up more than reality. I was able to unrack the weight with only minimal difficulty to full extension, lower back to the rack, and repeat three more times. At no point did I move the bar actually above my body, and at no point did I even consider actually trying for the weight, despite online calculators predicting I may actually be able to lift it once. And true, my personal strongest part of my lift is the finish...if I get a weight more than halfway up, I'm almost guaranteed to finish, it's at the lowest point where I'm weakest.

    But the moral of the story is the 315 no longer scares me. Not sure when I'll feel ready to actually try to tackle the beast, but my dream has officially moved from impossible to just-a-matter-of-time.

    Figured the fine folks in this thread could appreciate this sentiment.

    Awesome work man!

    My aim this year is hitting the 90kg/200lbs for 3 reps
    It will be hard but doable.

    In 2 weeks i know what my new 1RM is (i hope to be around 75kg)
  • Minion_training_program
    Minion_training_program Posts: 13,438 Member
    Squats yesterday felt heavy, but i was able to do my 3x2 @ 95%

    I also did, instead of RDL some quarter squats. And did 5 and 6 reps on that. It was heavy, but something you can easily train till failure, because the safety bars are way up
    Was reading into those, to create more explosive power (lot's of cyclist use this)

    Here is a example on how to perform them:
    vcs9tenc59it.gif

    It works just the quads, and not the glutes which you would work on in a regular squat as well.
  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    edited February 2
    I really wasn't in the mood tonight, but I went anyways.

    I am sooooo glad I went! This was such an awesome session! Lifts were solid and moved nicely. Deadlifts went better than expected and my leg press was awesome!

    I upped my weights/reps on bench, deads and press.

    yfzam4e6mg4v.gif
  • steveko89
    steveko89 Posts: 2,223 Member
    I really wasn't in the mood tonight, but I went anyways.

    I am sooooo glad I went! This was such an awesome session! Lifts were solid and moved nicely. Deadlifts went better than expected and my leg press was awesome!

    I upped my weights/reps on bench, deads and press.

    yfzam4e6mg4v.gif

    Way to get after it, Sandy! Happy to hear this session lifted your spirits. Your tenacity and perseverance is more impactful and inspiring than you know.
  • Minion_training_program
    Minion_training_program Posts: 13,438 Member
    So yesterday my new gym gear arrived, a lifting belt and straps (oh and new socks, because adding that extra made it that it have no shipping cost)

    Today was my deadlift day on my last week of my cycle.
    So 95% of 1RM. And 4 sets of 2

    Here was my last set. I still definatly need to get used to a belt, but it did make it a lot easier for me to brace and keep that brace from bottem to top and back to bottem.

    bf3f2zus4prn.gif

    After that first rep in this clip, something happened, dunno what exactly, but had to catch my breath again, so that's why there is a little more time between the 2 reps.

  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    So yesterday my new gym gear arrived, a lifting belt and straps (oh and new socks, because adding that extra made it that it have no shipping cost)

    Today was my deadlift day on my last week of my cycle.
    So 95% of 1RM. And 4 sets of 2

    Here was my last set. I still definatly need to get used to a belt, but it did make it a lot easier for me to brace and keep that brace from bottem to top and back to bottem.

    bf3f2zus4prn.gif

    After that first rep in this clip, something happened, dunno what exactly, but had to catch my breath again, so that's why there is a little more time between the 2 reps.

    Your lifts have grown so much over the last year Gus! You're a beast! Congratulations on the new belt, it does take a bit of getting used to, but it definitely makes me feel like my low back is safer on those max effort lifts.

    As for the nausea and breathlessness... I find that especially with squats and a belt. I had to back way off the tightness for squats because I almost gave myself an hiatal (?) hernia from the internal pressure. It's funny now... My belt has two holes. It's meant to clip into the second hole and then latch for tightness. Right now I use the second hole (latch open) for deads and the first hole latch closed for bench. Lol not quite as intended but it works for me!
  • kinetixtrainer2
    kinetixtrainer2 Posts: 9,274 Member
    So yesterday my new gym gear arrived, a lifting belt and straps (oh and new socks, because adding that extra made it that it have no shipping cost)

    Today was my deadlift day on my last week of my cycle.
    So 95% of 1RM. And 4 sets of 2

    Here was my last set. I still definatly need to get used to a belt, but it did make it a lot easier for me to brace and keep that brace from bottem to top and back to bottem.

    bf3f2zus4prn.gif

    After that first rep in this clip, something happened, dunno what exactly, but had to catch my breath again, so that's why there is a little more time between the 2 reps.

    Looks like a good solid lift to me Gus. 💪🏼
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 11,712 Member
    ...and without the use of the wrist straps! Grip looked like it held just fine, my friend.
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 11,712 Member
    Opted to do an impromptu de-load leg day today. Last week I hammered the squats at 365, and over the weekend my knee was rather grumpy. Maybe a coincidence (I do have bad knees), maybe not. Tuesday's leg session didn't really test the knee between rack pulls and hip thrusts, so was able to use full weights that day. But my knee still pokes me in the shoulder some times when I twist just wrong, so I told myself going into my squat session today that I would listen to my knee, and the moment it started to object, I'd stop increasing weight, and if it started to holler I'd stop completely.

    No hollering, but the objection came when I hit 225, so I cut my warmup short at that point and did my 4x15 working sets at this much lower warmup weight, really concentrating on form to prevent any wrong angles turning an objecting knee into something worse. Got through the sets, and the rest of my workout went without a hitch using full weights, though admittedly my knee was plenty warmed up by then.

    Here's hoping this lighter workout, getting the blood flowing, will help speed up the recovery and allow me to get back to where I want to be next week.
  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    Opted to do an impromptu de-load leg day today. Last week I hammered the squats at 365, and over the weekend my knee was rather grumpy. Maybe a coincidence (I do have bad knees), maybe not. Tuesday's leg session didn't really test the knee between rack pulls and hip thrusts, so was able to use full weights that day. But my knee still pokes me in the shoulder some times when I twist just wrong, so I told myself going into my squat session today that I would listen to my knee, and the moment it started to object, I'd stop increasing weight, and if it started to holler I'd stop completely.

    No hollering, but the objection came when I hit 225, so I cut my warmup short at that point and did my 4x15 working sets at this much lower warmup weight, really concentrating on form to prevent any wrong angles turning an objecting knee into something worse. Got through the sets, and the rest of my workout went without a hitch using full weights, though admittedly my knee was plenty warmed up by then.

    Here's hoping this lighter workout, getting the blood flowing, will help speed up the recovery and allow me to get back to where I want to be next week.

    Smart call! Sucks to feel pain but really smart to listen to your body.

    I am going to have to do the same, I think. I recently added machine assisted Dips to my routine and now my right shoulder injury is acting up. 😔. I don't know why my shoulder hates dips so much, but it does. Not sure if I need to lessen the ROM, lighten the weight, or drop them entirely. Sigh.
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 11,712 Member
    My shoulder also hates dips, so I gave them up completely years ago and never looked back.
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 11,712 Member
    Today was upper body power day, and successfully raised my bench to 260x5,5,4,4,5. One step closer to that 315 goal. Maybe by my birthday in June? Though in the effort to avoid injury, I won't try it until the computer model says my 1RM is actually closer to 330, give me a buffer. So it may take the entire year instead of the next 5 months, but I'll get there, no worries.
  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    Today was upper body power day, and successfully raised my bench to 260x5,5,4,4,5. One step closer to that 315 goal. Maybe by my birthday in June? Though in the effort to avoid injury, I won't try it until the computer model says my 1RM is actually closer to 330, give me a buffer. So it may take the entire year instead of the next 5 months, but I'll get there, no worries.

    That's awesome!
  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    steveko89 wrote: »
    I really wasn't in the mood tonight, but I went anyways.

    I am sooooo glad I went! This was such an awesome session! Lifts were solid and moved nicely. Deadlifts went better than expected and my leg press was awesome!

    I upped my weights/reps on bench, deads and press.

    yfzam4e6mg4v.gif

    Way to get after it, Sandy! Happy to hear this session lifted your spirits. Your tenacity and perseverance is more impactful and inspiring than you know.

    I missed this! Thank you Steve! ❤️

  • KickassAmazon76
    KickassAmazon76 Posts: 4,678 Member
    edited February 6
    Last night's session went pretty well. I did notice that I have to focus more on keeping my knees from caving when the squat weight gets heavy.

    Bench - it's bench. It's so hard for me to see gains. And yet, I distinctly recall when I could not squeak out 105x5 without damn near dying... so I know I've made progress. Still, I'm pushing toward a goal of 135lb and it feels like it'll never get here.

    "Patience is a virtue, seldom found in men, never found in Sandra"
    ~ quote: my dad

    LOL

    Hope you all have great sessions today (for all those who are lifting)

    vetbmetx0tud.gif
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 11,712 Member
    Great on ya, Sandra! (Your dad sounds like quite a card, lol.)