April workout check in thread - aprilliant workouts here!
lwoodroff
Posts: 1,431 Member
not like this of course..
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Replies
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Haha, nice gif :-D
I was confused for a sec that we already have april.
My workout was a bit meh today. I was able to finish everything except for the very last bench press rep, but I had to struggle big time with the last reps of each set of the squats - the fifth was always super hard. I suppose from now on I will not be able to add 2,5 kg (5lbs) there anymore euch time...are you guys still be able to do so?
Also I realized my form going squats is worse than I had imagined. I tried to do it against the wall and my face and breasts got in the way, so obviously I lean forward too much, although I manage to go pretty low... I have to practice at home
I did some hip thrusts at the end, wanted to include them in my routine..
Squats
50 kg 5x5 (110lbs)
Bench still
30kg 4x5 + 1x4 (66lbs)
Rows- didn't go up here, cause last time I felt I was pulling my wrist in, so I even went down, but cool do these with proper form
25kg 5x5 (55lbs)
Hip thrusts
20kg 3x100 -
Eh, so-so work this morning. Had to do 3x5 for time. My workout partner discovered pre-workout coffee and wouldn't stop talking...
Squats: 2x5 145lbs, 1x5 150lbs
(still can't break this barrier; need more glute work?)
Bench: 3x5 65lbs
Row: 3x5 65lbs (and it felt light!)
Neon, how did you mentally feel starting hip thrusts? I feel so awkward, but I really think I need to start doing some direct glute work.
PS I stopped adding 5lbs to squats every workout a while back. I would go up 5lbs every other workout, then it fell to once a week, and now... it's when I feel ready.
Happy April, you lovely lifters! :drinker:0 -
Neon, how did you mentally feel starting hip thrusts? I feel so awkward, but I really think I need to start doing some direct glute work.
PS I stopped adding 5lbs to squats every workout a while back. I would go up 5lbs every other workout, then it fell to once a week, and now... it's when I feel ready.
Happy April, you lovely lifters! :drinker:
Yes, it was a bit weird, but I found myself a quiet corner and just did it.
The thing that is bothering me though is how to proceed when the weights get higher. Could one do these in the smith machine? I mean it's really only straight up and down movement.. What do you guys think? Any arguments pro or con?
About your squats. Maybe more glute work would help indeed but maybe also those fractional plates? I am thinking about purchasing these myself but in germany we don't have these nice coloured ones :-D
Happy April yourself :-)
I have a new fitbit! My old one was broken (and I hadn't used it in a while) and I contacted the customer service. They sent me a new one - even the newer model! Really cool! The strange thing: I put it on two hours ago, it counted about 1400 steps but more than 1200 burnt calories, that's way off imho... I will wait for tomorrow, when I start wearing it in the morning and after doing my walking in the gym....0 -
I do my hip thrusts in the middle of the gym for dollars. :laugh:
:smokin: 0 -
lwoodroff, LOL!!! How is your …I think it is wrist? tendonitis right?
Katerina, 150 lb squats is awesome!! I also do the increase when I am ready. I get those emails from Mehdi every day and I don't believe him when he says to go up every time. That kind of thinking can get you injured!! (I think anyway! ; )) I think it leads people to stop listening to their bodies.
Neon, do you have fractionals? I just finally got the paint sanded out of the hole so they will fit on my bar (It was all meant to be standard!!). My OHP yesterday was 60.5lb! The little weights look so cute on the bar! Before I got the fractionals I used some 1 lb Pink velcro wrist weights. They are easy to get on and off the bar and they are easier to get today than waiting for the fractionals in the mail or having to make them out of washers.
Squat: 5x5 75
OHP: 5x5 60.5
DL: 5x5 115
Random, LOL!!!
I do agree with Medhi about the evils of the smith machines. not that I have any experience but strengthening the stabilizers makes sense to me0 -
@randomtai cool, are you rich by now with a huge poschi? :-D
@fisher not yet, but I am thinking about getting them. The wrist weights are a great idea, I have those. Didn't think about that. Thanks!
I think Medhi does his program for men, not really thinking about women. I mean you can see that in his mails. We can/should lift like man, japp, but have a different possibility for progress, or the progress he recommends. We should just go in our own time. As long as we still see development in the whole process it's fine.
About the smith machine for squats, bench etc, I totally agree, but for the hip thrusts I am not quite sure. The movement is pretty straight and since I also do squats etc. with free weights, maybe it's alright doing these on the machine.. Hm.. It's a bit ****ty to train alone and not having a proper power rack...0 -
I do my hip thrusts in the middle of the gym for dollars. :laugh: :smokin:
Taking notes for next time I want new lifting gear...
That lady clean and presser kind of has crappy deadlift form. JS...
I would put the bar low on the smith then shove the bench against it for stability. Then Id get a real barbell to thrust with on the bench.0 -
Lots of lolz in this thread so far.
Today i did:
Squats: 5x5: 95 lbs
Bench: 5x5: 65 lbs (i did the same as saturday, because i got all mixed up and turned around last week so i wanted to get back on schedule)
Rows: 5x5: 70 lbs
I think i hate rows the most, close tie with ohp lol.0 -
cardio day for me. Did some walking with my SO and attempted chin ups, dips, and pull ups with 100 lb assists. Pull ups are so hard! I also did 3x8 90 lb seated rows and 2x10 65 lb barbell hip thrusts. They are pretty awkward. Just one guy in the weight room with me
I'll be skipping a workout tomorrow because I'll be going out of town. So, cardio for me for the next two days and Stronglifts to resume on Friday.0 -
LMAO...love it!I do my hip thrusts in the middle of the gym for dollars. :laugh: :smokin:
@sarah-agree rows are not fun for me...I love OHP but they scare me from previous ouchy
@neon- could you use a plate on your hips for hip thrusts? Or do them with your legs on a bosu or exercise ball to increase muscle activation?
@fit-I thought the same thing...but cleaning a person might be tricky...I laughed out loud when he just threw her to the ground afterwards. I was taught not to throw my weights.
@lwoodruff-thanks for the laugh!
Today was just cardio...and not much. Walked a mile at work and then a mile after dinner with my kids. The second mile has to have burned more calories as I was carrying two scooters, walking our 87 pound dog and dragging my 70 pound daughter by the hand...:grumble: I just wanted to walk...heavy sigh.0 -
Get it, gurl!I do my hip thrusts in the middle of the gym for dollars. :laugh: :smokin:
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:sad: :sad: :sad: been stuck at home with a cold. All i can think about is when can i get back in
the gym. :sad: will probably deload due to cold
Regarding smith machine. Tried it with squats - it was very wrong. It just doesnt feel right - will never try that again. However, i will use it with bench press. I usually dont have a spotter available. So i will try heavier weights there first. When i feel more comfortable then i do the bench with free weights. There is a definite difference and you use more muscles with the free weights.0 -
@neon- could you use a plate on your hips for hip thrusts? Or do them with your legs on a bosu or exercise ball to increase muscle activation?
Hey :-) I did them with a 20kg plate yesterday and it was alright, but when i increase weight, i cannot have five or so plates on my hips, that would be hard to hold and balance. But maybe it would attract potential payers and maybe they would even start to bet...hmmmm... I will be in the chamber of understanding... :laugh: :drinker:Regarding smith machine. Tried it with squats - it was very wrong. It just doesnt feel right - will never try that again. However, i will use it with bench press. I usually dont have a spotter available. So i will try heavier weights there first. When i feel more comfortable then i do the bench with free weights. There is a definite difference and you use more muscles with the free weights.
Yes, you are right. I was just asking myself, if Î do everything else with free weights and just this one thing with the machine, it shouldn´t be so important if all particular muscles are used. They are trained with the other excercises. I just don´t want to do something wrong, get hurt or so.
For the money I think the smith machine is way better than my dark hidden corner ;-)
Get well soon, star! :-)
@sarah nice workout! I don´t like rows so much either, dunno
@wolfsbayne cool training! I agree hip thrusts are weird, but what we do for a nice (r) body...*sigh*0 -
5/3/1 OHP day. Was awakened by a phone call at 4:30. I am so tired. NAd hungry, and OMG can this week end yet?
OHP
57.5x5
65x3
72.5x5
I find my weak point is just past the head. I'm strong at the bottom, and strong at the top. It's just that sticking point that really sucks. I need to find a way to get stronger thar. I'd say considering my PR is 1 rep at 75lbs, those 5 reps are not too bad!
BP
87.5x4x10 and 1 set of 9. Almost... Almost!
Wid grip pulldown, neutral grip
120x5x5 but I missed 1 rep on the set before last. Boo. Felt a lot more natural than pronated wide grip. Less stress on my elbow.
13 push-ups unbroken
and like 10 mins of foam rolling cuz I'm still really sore. And now I have deadlift hungries. Well, TOM hangries, actually, but it's all the same. I want food. All of it.
One more day. Squats. Then I deload. And start a new program. Yay! ^^0 -
Checking in (from yesterday).
Squat - 50 lbs 5x5
OHP - 45 pounds 5,5,4,5,5 (first failure... with a previously injured shoulder, I'm trying not to worry too much)
DL - 70 pounds. 1x5 Seriously, these are my favorite.
Finally using the olympic bar (empty for OHP) in it's entirety!0 -
Hi ladies! Love the comments so far in here
Last night was squats, my 3 week of 5/3/1
Warmup Sets:
5 x 75 pounds
5 x 95 pounds
3 x 115 pounds
Working Sets:
3 x 135 pounds
3 x 150 pounds
3 x 170 pounds
Assistance Work:
Split Squat: 3 x 12 @ 65 pounds
Back Extensions: 3 x 10 @ 35 pounds
The last two sets of squats felt really frigging heavy last night, but I got through it. The back extensions went better this week as well, last week I got 8 reps and I was able to get all 10 this week. I'm doing a hill cardio session tonight, see if I can get my endurance up a bit from last week for the upcoming hike on the weekend.0 -
So, forever ago I said I was going to be coming back and posting more in this group and voted for a separate workout thread. Then I never posted. So, I swear, I want to post more about my workouts.
I lifted yesterday, which was B day.
Squats: 3x5 165 (Accidentally repeated from previous day, so I should read my notes more. Stalled at 165 before, so not a bad repeat.)
OHP: 2x5, 1x4 67.5 Grrr. Still is pissing me off; this lift should be better by now...
DL: 1x5 200lbs (2.5lbs over bodyweight!!!!)0 -
Squats: 3x5 165 (Accidentally repeated from previous day, so I should read my notes more. Stalled at 165 before, so not a bad repeat.)
OHP: 2x5, 1x4 67.5 Grrr. Still is pissing me off; this lift should be better by now...
DL: 1x5 200lbs (2.5lbs over bodyweight!!!!)
Great work! And can I say, it's actually a weird kind of an inspiration that your OHP is still low relative to your DL? Mine is only 50lbs and my DL is 165. Go you! :flowerforyou:0 -
Today was arm day (OHP)... I haven't done OHP in over a month. I have been using the Overhead press machine in lieu of the barbell (was getting tired of it and bored).
So I did:
OHP:
1X10 @ 20 lbs
1X10 @ 30 lbs
1X 8 @ 40 lbs
5X5 @50 lbs
Shrugs with barbell curl supersets:
5X8 @ 35 lb plates (Shrugs)
5X8 @ 40 lbs (Curls)
Lateral raise machine with tricep extension superset:
3X8 @ 20 lbs (Lat raise)
3X8 @ 75 lbs (Tricep extension)
Then I did 45 minutes on the treadmill doing Zombie 5K training. 2.5 miles in 30 minutes.0 -
Happy April all!!
sorry I cant help with the hip thrust. so far I've just been doing them at home. I know at some point I'm going to have to find a corner somewhere in the gym, my home weights aren't heavy enough. LOL
Today kind of sucked. I did insanity at my gym late last night and I'm still sore from it. tiring to do OHP today was pitiful!!
Squats 130# 5x5 Yay Body-weight!!
OHP after warm up - 70# 1 rep couldn't get any more, 65# 3 reps was all I could do, finely deload to 60# :sad: got 5x5.
Deadlifts 165# 5 those were hard but I felt good for getting them done!
Also did 3x5 chin ups 2x5 pull ups and 10min of core work. we got kicked out of the trainers room before we could finish another set of pull ups and do hip thrust but I'll do them at home here in a bit.0 -
Hi ladies,
I have missed my Friday workout because my hubby took us out to family dinner the first time since my baby born, and she is 15 months old now! I thought I will make it up on Saturday, but stomach bug or food poisoning? hit our family by Saturday afternoon. In a way I was lifting quite a bit as I ended up carrying my 45 lb son back and forth to the washroom dozens of times because he was so weak he could not walk
Yesterday I went to th gym and did squat and bench press and my additional things, and I totally forget to do barbell row. I just realized when I got home. For the first time this year , I pull out my bike and used it for going to the gym. It was 5 minutes in each way, but it felt good. My ears got a bit cold as it was still -6 c here. Anyway I decided it is April,so it is biking time no matter what. I guess now I am a true Canadian , lol.
Anyway these what I did yesterday:
Squat:
Warmup: 45lb 5x5, 65lb 5x5
Set: 80lb, 5x5, it was kind of wobbly and not good form the last rep on the last 2 sets I probably should. to increase weight next time.
Bench:
Warmup:45lb 5x5, 65lb 5x5
Set: 75lb, 5x5 , it was hard but still doable
I went down under 90lb assistance (87.5lb) on my pull-ups and made me feel so good.
I couldn't do the full sets though. I did 5,5,4,4,3. I will stick to this assistance for a couple of more times.
On my knees ups I was able to do 4x12 at the firs time ever, so that felt good.0 -
Hey Ladies workout A for me today.
Did some HIIT yesterday and my belly is a bit sore but not too bad.
I have been reading a lot about the "hip thrusts" lately and I workout at home so no need to find a corner I just can't seem to get comfortable in them...maybe I will give glute bridges a go someday...not much for accessory work tho...
Had to laugh at doing them in the middle of the gym for money...teehee...
DH is doing the workout with me today for the first time in 5 days...hehe...
Squats I deloaded down to 115 as my leg is actually feeling better and I don't want to push it if it's getting healed up for good..
removed the box and got quite deep today with the lighter weight...felt good.
5x5 @ 115
Bench is at 105 today 5x5
Rows back at 115....not feel ing optomistic.
1x5, 1x4 (hand placement got me), 2x5, 1x4...go figure jeez...
All in all a good workout. Gonna start increasing the weights on my squats again on Monday (I hope)0 -
Stef! good to hear you're not messing up your leg more, and you chose a good weight. I remember reading something by Wendler that it really doesn't have to be super close to your max weight to be working, and helping you progress. I always try to remember that when I can't train at my full capacity.
Todays workout:
Front squats
45x10, 95x5, 120x5, 155 2x5
Deadlifts
45x10, 135x5, 185x5, 225x5, 275x5, 315x2
Sumo Deadlifts
135 3x5 These feel so weird, but I want to start adding them as an accessory when I switch to 531, so I figured I'd give it a try.
Supersetsx4
Curls 15#x10
Knee raisesx6
Back extension 4x12
Some slow relaxing arc trainer action for about 35 minutes.0 -
Hi everyone,
Now that I'm into my third week of the SL program, I'd like to join this thread. Hopefully it will also help me remember what I've done; I swear my memory is getting worse everyday (lol). With that being said, do any of you use a spreadsheet or something like that to log what you're doing? I think I'd like to take something with me that I can write down right away what I've done. I haven't been able to find an app I particularly like for my phone (BlackBerry Z10) and I'm not entirely comfortable taking my phone with me yet anyway.
I did workout A today:
Warmup:
Squats: 3 x 5 45#, 4 x 5 65#
BP: 2 x 5 45#, 1 x 5 55#
Squats: 5 x 5 85#
BP: 5 x 5 65#
Row: 5 x 5 65#
I also did some accessory pullups wide grip and a closer grip. I only tried this machine the other day for the first time. I'm not sure how the assistance part works but I had the weights set at 30#. I did 10! Then I changed my grip closer and I think I got 8 in and the next one I tried, I could only do 5. For dips I did 2 x 10. This may sound like a silly question but does that mean I did pull ups with a 30# assist?
I also did ab crunches on a machine 2 x 12 80#, 1 x 12 85#0 -
Tonight was Legs night...
SQUATS
Warm Ups: 65x5, 95x3, 115x1
Working Sets: 127.5x3 for 5 sets
Decided to change things up for a couple months and decrease the reps and add a couple sets. I plan on Squatting x2/week so the other workout will be higher rep.
BARBELL REVERSE LUNGES
Workout Sets: 75x10 each leg for 3 sets
Lost my balance on the second set - doh! :noway: Was able to recover it but I'm going to have a beautiful big purple bruise on my left knee that I slammed to the ground. First time I've ever lost it.
BARBELL GLUTE BRIDGES
Working Sets: 130x12 for 3 sets
BARBELL CALF RAISE W/STEP
Working Sets: 130 x 40 seconds for 3 sets
SEATED BARBELL CALF RAISES
95 x 90 seconds for 3 sets
Workout Analysis-Haven't done this workout in a few weeks plus I had to do a TRX Class as part of a job interview earlier in the afternoon so I was shocked I had such a good workout. Will increase the lbs for all lifts next workout.
Have a wonderful night ladies. 0 -
Leadfoot, Ouch!!! I hope your knee is ok! Awesome workout! Have I told you that I think your biceps is beautiful and I hope to have a couple like that some day!0
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@randomtai cool, are you rich by now with a huge poschi? :-D
@fisher not yet, but I am thinking about getting them. The wrist weights are a great idea, I have those. Didn't think about that. Thanks!
I think Medhi does his program for men, not really thinking about women. I mean you can see that in his mails. We can/should lift like man, japp, but have a different possibility for progress, or the progress he recommends. We should just go in our own time. As long as we still see development in the whole process it's fine.
About the smith machine for squats, bench etc, I totally agree, but for the hip thrusts I am not quite sure. The movement is pretty straight and since I also do squats etc. with free weights, maybe it's alright doing these on the machine.. Hm.. It's a bit ****ty to train alone and not having a proper power rack…
Neon, I didn't get that you were talking about hip thrusts and I didn't know what they were so I googled them and there are some good videos on you tube of some people doing them with the bar. This one guy talks about using padding which seems like it might be a good idea. Have you looked at videos on you tube? what did you think? I am totally unfamiliar with this exercise so I really don't know why I'm even talking about it! LOL! I seem to be so tired after the normal workout I can't imagine doing extra!
Myrealname, welcome! Awesome workout!
Fit, 315 DL!! OMG!! You are a beast!0 -
@ Fittreelol “that it really doesn't have to be super close to your max weight to be working, and helping you progress. I always try to remember that when I can't train at my full capacity.”
That is super good advice and helpful to hear. I should tape that on my bench.
Also, I am super inspired by your workouts!
@ all y'all – Now I am feeling very motivated to try out some hip thrusts and assisted pull-ups! I really liked doing assisted pull-ups with the bands in cross-fit and want to have a set up like that in my house someday (not sure about the kipping or whatever its called though...) Anyone have thoughts about bands vs. the assist machine?
Today's workout
I ran 3.5 miles fairly slow before lifting. I know my lifts would be better if I stopped doing this, but I am happy so far with my progress and nothing bad seems to be happening so I'm going to keep up my runs.
Squat – I was really warm from the run, but in an effort to keep injury at bay I did more warm ups that usual.
Air squats – 15x2
45lb – 5x2
65 – 5x2
90 – 5x3
135 – 5x1
Working 160 5x5. I had some slight discomfort in my adductors but it was much, much better and I felt super strong.
Bench Press
115 – 5x5 I rocked these. Have repeated twice and am definitely ready to move up now
Row
95 – 5x5 I still sometimes feel like I don't “get” the rows. I dunno. I wish I had big bumper plates.
I am considering doing some personal training with a powerlifting coach. Anyone done that? Thoughts?0 -
@Liza:I have a pull-up bar in my basement, and I was doing p90x3 and really wanted to do the pull-ups , but I could't . I started to look into different bands type help. First I bought a generic copy cat thing, which supposed to do 100 lb help. Well I couldn't do a single pull-up with it. I was 210 lb at the time, so 100 lb help, still left me pulling up 110 lb.
I got frustrated and I bought a Lifeline Revolution US pull-up assist thing with the blue bands. The 3 blue bands supposed to give you 150 lb help. I still could't do a single full pull-up with it. Since the thing should have give me 150 lb help, I only needed to pull up 60 lb . With this gadget help I was able to to reverse pull-ups , and it helped me to start somewhere. I was doing set of 8-10 reps reverse pull-ups with it when I started stronglift. I started to use the pull-up assist in the gym, and is immediately could do 8-10 FULL motion pull-up with a 130 lb assistance. Since this happened, I do not think those at home band type of help actually help as much as they claim. I have not use the simple band type of help though like the rubberbanditz.
P90x3 workout had hip thrust , but it was so uncomfortable for me even with dumbbell.s. I am still quite fat ,so there is a lot of padding in the area, but the weight was bothering my hip bones a lot. Maybe I was doing is wrong, but the YouTube videos also show the girls having the bar on their hip bones.0 -
@randomtai cool, are you rich by now with a huge poschi? :-D
@fisher not yet, but I am thinking about getting them. The wrist weights are a great idea, I have those. Didn't think about that. Thanks!
I think Medhi does his program for men, not really thinking about women. I mean you can see that in his mails. We can/should lift like man, japp, but have a different possibility for progress, or the progress he recommends. We should just go in our own time. As long as we still see development in the whole process it's fine.
About the smith machine for squats, bench etc, I totally agree, but for the hip thrusts I am not quite sure. The movement is pretty straight and since I also do squats etc. with free weights, maybe it's alright doing these on the machine.. Hm.. It's a bit ****ty to train alone and not having a proper power rack…
Neon, I didn't get that you were talking about hip thrusts and I didn't know what they were so I googled them and there are some good videos on you tube of some people doing them with the bar. This one guy talks about using padding which seems like it might be a good idea. Have you looked at videos on you tube? what did you think? I am totally unfamiliar with this exercise so I really don't know why I'm even talking about it! LOL! I seem to be so tired after the normal workout I can't imagine doing extra!
Myrealname, welcome! Awesome workout!
Fit, 315 DL!! OMG!! You are a beast!
Haha, okay :-) yes, I watched a couple of videos and read a bit on the site of the glute guy and also his book. That's why I want to do them. But the weights are getting high there also and I am a bit scared of having to put the loaded bar on my hips while hanging with my shoulders on a bench... Today was deadlift day and I had enough, no extras :-D
@Leadfoot oO get well soon!
@all great workouts!
@Redhead the videos I saw recommend padding and even an extra mat when the weight gets higher, check here:
Everything You Need to Know About the Hip Thrust:
http://youtu.be/cBrHdatPj9g
I wasn't in good form today, menstruating, tired...And I really have to work on my squat form, a guy came over to tell me I bend forward too much - as I also thought. I have to make a video so you guys can advise me. I checked a couple of videos today and isn't it, that you go more forward doing a low bar squat?
Squats
50kg 5x5 (110 lbs, like last time)
Ohp
20kg (45lbs, went a bit down today, from 22,5kg)
Deadlift
57,5 kg - (126lbs, the only lift I increased weight today)0
