Struggling...could use your input...

christianteach

I have failed the bent over rows the past two weeks on heavy day. I think I was only able to do 2X7 today, instead of 2X10...warm-up sets went fine of course. My form is going downhill...I'm not able to lift the bar high enough anymore. I also failed my deadlifts last week but not today. I was shaking while doing my bench press. :noway: Should I deload? I should mention that I've been fighting a cold for the past week as well and that may be playing a part in this...I think the past couple of days have actually been the peak of feeling icky. I don't know where to go from here...thinking of dealoading bent over rows quite a bit, but not sure if that's the solution.

Thanks in advance for your two cents!

Tami

pandorakick

Did you fail on your second set or also on your first set?

Because you're fighting a cold now, I think it would be wise to take a week off from lifting to recover properly. Then retest your 10 rm for each exercise and start a new cycle with those stats. I think that will help tremendously!

Hope you feel better soon. :flowerforyou:

cmeiron

I totally agree! Being sick (heck, even just getting a bit less sleep) can really affect your performance. A week off would be wise.

jimmmer

Agree with the ladies. You are sub-par whilst sick. This routine demands you are at least at par (or above-par!). Take a week off, recover 100%, then return to the rep range of the week before this one (i.e. your 9 rep week) and pick up from there.

christianteach

Okay, I will take the rest of the week off then. Thanks! My neck could use a break anyway. It's been really sore lately...from around my right shoulder blade up through my neck. I'm constantly asking my husband to rub it and Aleve doesn't help. I don't know if it's from lifting, my pillow, stress or what. (I'm thinking it may been from leaning over my laptop all the time doing homework) It's started way before my cold and it hurts constantly. Maybe I will actually squeeze in some cardio this week to help burn off all those extra calories I'll be eating Thursday.

christianteach

Did you fail on your second set or also on your first set?

Because you're fighting a cold now, I think it would be wise to take a week off from lifting to recover properly. Then retest your 10 rm for each exercise and start a new cycle with those stats. I think that will help tremendously!

Hope you feel better soon. :flowerforyou:

I failed both sets. I had a hard time with all my sets yesterday. I think I just finished the worst of my cold, last night was much better. I even slept through the night without waking up coughing or getting up for more medicine. Hopefully a week off helps, although I just did that recently. I'm swamped with school work right now. Lots of deadlines hanging over my head and doing homework nearly all day. Thank goodness we are off all week! It will all be over soon!!! :happy:

sun_fish

Agree with everyone who suggests a break until you're feeling better. From everything I have read, and am now starting to experience, so many things go into insuring that lifting goes well. Adequate sleep, lack of illness, proper nutrition, level of stress, muscle rest and recovery, and even time of day for some. And I think sometimes even when all those needs are being met, one may still struggle and have to deload or take a break. Try to not be so hard on yourself, and remember how much progress you have made! Hope you feel better soon.

jasonheyd

So, if you fail the first set, there shouldn't be a second set:

2) If you miss a rep on your first set there is no second set. Hopefully that wont happen. If you miss a rep on the second set oh well! Keep following the program. Failure is going to happen at some point. Do the best you can and at worst you'll be repeating the weight on the next cycle. This program is VERY aggressive.

In general, that means, for whatever reason, you're tapped out. Pushing into the 2nd set for endurance isn't going to gain you much of anything except punishment, and -- I'd image -- is more likely to risk injury.

If you've been sick, that's probably why you're struggling, and I'd say that shouldn't be unexpected... especially on exercises that're close to your 10 RM.

If you feel well enough to keep up the routine, then you can either try normal Heavy / Medium / Light and do what you can do (but don't push a 2nd set if you fail the 1st), or you could just do three light days until you're feeling better.

I usually end up restarting a cycle if I lose a week to being sick. The week I'm sick is a wash, and the week after I'm just not where I was. Two weeks is my break point... If I break the 3-day cycle for more than a week, I know I can't pick up where I left off, so back to the beginning of the cycle I go.

ETA: Hope you're feeling better soon. Sick sucks. :-)

christianteach

I'm feeling much better now so I started back with cycle 4, week 3...the last day I attempted before my week off. The lifts felt much better except the BORs. I give up on my current weight attempts with those and am going to deload. I didn't want to start this cycle over because I will finish this cycle right as my long Christmas break begins. That will give me plenty of extra time to figure out where I should go from here. Thank you all for all your help and support!

cmeiron

Glad to hear things are back on track !

christianteach

Glad to hear things are back on track !

Thank you! You arm(s) looks fantastic!! Looks like your bulk is going well.