April Check in & Chat - Spring into the Squat Rack

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  • lwoodroff
    lwoodroff Posts: 1,431 Member
    yeah I shouldn't be so lazy, I hear ya sister! ;)
  • BikerGirlElaine
    BikerGirlElaine Posts: 1,631 Member
    I am going to post and then go back and read. I hope those of you who are well stay well, and those of you who are sick and/or injured rest up and heal fast!

    I had a challenging workout with a lot of progress made in my form.

    I had committed to not increasing my squats until I had played some more with my stance. So I warmed up with BW, 45, & 65 and then did 85 for 5X5. By the end I was feeling good about my form. I feel like I have so much strength to unleash, but my form, or lack of coordination, or the little helper muscles, or something like that, is holding me back!

    For OHP I warmed up with 20 & 45, then did 47.5 48.5 48.5 48.5 and then 48.0 for four. I was focusing on my form here as well and I made significant progress. I re-read the SS section on OHP the night before and it was as if I had never read it before, that's how much extra I got out of it this time. By the end of the session, I again felt like I have lots of power to unleash but I just need my little assistance muscles to catch up.

    Then I deadlifted my goal body weight of 150 ::chuckle:: That was the first time that deadlifts felt like maybe I was at/near my max. So we'll see next time what happens.

    This morning I am feeling my shoulders so I must've done something Very Right on those OHP's.
  • DaniH826
    DaniH826 Posts: 1,335 Member
    I again felt like I have lots of power to unleash but I just need my little assistance muscles to catch up.

    And/or ligaments and so forth. It takes more than just major muscle groups to lift anything consistently, so just give your body some time to adapt and get stronger.

    I do a lot better with my back stability now that I've incorporated sphinx and locust into my yoga practice. They work the spinal erectors that nobody talks about (who the heck ever heard of a multifidus muscle?) and that often get neglected, but are awesome when it comes to stabilizing the core (which is a big deal for squatting, obviously). They're deceptively easy and simple but very effective.

    Congrats on the 150 lb deadlift! That's a great milestone!
  • chunkmunk
    chunkmunk Posts: 221 Member
    @Freckled: You go girl! I was into triathlons when I had my first (at age 30) and I swam a mile the day he was born. Being in shape helped my recovery a lot. And I know that for sure, because i had two kids after that (at 32 and 34) when my fitness level had dropped a bit, and the recovery was tougher. Thankfully, now that they are older mommy has more time to get fit again!
  • freckledLeanne
    freckledLeanne Posts: 111 Member
    @Freckled: You go girl! I was into triathlons when I had my first (at age 30) and I swam a mile the day he was born. Being in shape helped my recovery a lot. And I know that for sure, because i had two kids after that (at 32 and 34) when my fitness level had dropped a bit, and the recovery was tougher. Thankfully, now that they are older mommy has more time to get fit again!

    Love, love, love this @chunkmunk! I get some looks/questions for sure. I've been going to the gym very consistently 4-5 times a week for the last few years, and I'm not looking to quit just because I'm pregnant (especially when so much of what I've read seems to really encourage maintaining being active and its benefits on pregnancy/baby's growth). I love hearing about other fit moms who kept active -- a Zumba teacher at my gym who was teaching classes the week before she gave birth, another woman who did yoga right up to the end... whatever works to keep you moving. At a time when my body is doing all these crazy things, the Oly bar is a bit of a zen place for me... it makes me feel strong, confident, and takes all the stress of the day away.
  • zumbajheri
    zumbajheri Posts: 200 Member
    Jstout - I think I'm learning that in this program you can't go too strenuously on non lift days. I really feel it today, my body is tired lol. But not enough to keep me from weights today. I'm wondering if others have found that it's too much to go hard core on cardio when trying to stick to a 3x week SL schedule.

    One of the reasons I want to get fit is to someday have healthy pregnancies. I've had friends with gestational diabetes, and since i have belly fat mostly, I wanna reduce my risk of that. I have seen full term mommies doing Zumba lol super cute! They have low impact Zumba, I think I will try that instead on off days. Thanks for the input ladies.

    Dani- yes, I'm feeling quite proud of my protein intake now! :0D

    Hope y'all are having a great day! It's sunny and 50° in MN, so no complaints here!

    Body it's feeling ready for weights today, a good 8 hrs of sleep did my body well, no DOMs today!:bigsmile:
  • extraordinary_machine
    extraordinary_machine Posts: 3,028 Member
    I did my first 5/3/1 workout yesterday--I think I'm going to really like it!

    Here's what I did...
    Warm Up
    Dumbbell overhead presses
    30 lbs (15 each) 5 reps
    35 lbs 5 reps
    40 lbs 5 reps
    45 lbs (bar) 3 reps

    Work Set
    OHP
    45 lbs 5 reps
    55 lbs 5 reps
    60 lbs 7 reps

    Assistance
    Weight assisted dips
    3x10 with 95 lbs assistance
    Weight assisted chin ups
    3x8 with 110 lbs assistance
    Body Weight Dips...just 3

    I was done in less than 30 minutes, so I tried to do some intervals on the treadmill, but I didn't have my inhaler and I couldn't breathe, so I quit 8 minutes in (I was going for 15.)

    I really think I'm going to love the change and just focusing on 1 lift per session.
  • mrskchris
    mrskchris Posts: 28 Member
    I copied my goals here too. Thanks for adding the separate goals sticky because they can be hard to find at the end of the month.

    I would like to lose a bit more on the scale and less inches if that's possible. I am losing my butt and boobs - not happy! I hit my goal weight of 125, but I would like to go down to 120 since I'm 5'1". I'm still doing cardio 4 times a week in addition to other weight machines. Doing S/L only was not enough for me, so I had to add more to it.

    squat - 175 (currently 160)
    deadlift - 150 (currently 135)
    OHP - 65 (currently 55)
    Row - 65 (currently 55)
    Bench 50

    Is there a point where I will max out on my deadlifts and squats?

    I love that I am getting stronger and stronger, and I have had to change my grip with the extra weight. The guys at the gym are stopping in there tracks to watch me lift, and I have even had an offer for a spotter and to add a pad to my back for squats - so annoying. Such a shame that they act like teenagers when a lady is in the weightroom.
  • freckledLeanne
    freckledLeanne Posts: 111 Member
    I copied my goals here too. Thanks for adding the separate goals sticky because they can be hard to find at the end of the month.

    I would like to lose a bit more on the scale and less inches if that's possible. I am losing my butt and boobs - not happy! I hit my goal weight of 125, but I would like to go down to 120 since I'm 5'1". I'm still doing cardio 4 times a week in addition to other weight machines. Doing S/L only was not enough for me, so I had to add more to it.

    squat - 175 (currently 160)
    deadlift - 150 (currently 135)
    OHP - 65 (currently 55)
    Row - 65 (currently 55)
    Bench 50

    Is there a point where I will max out on my deadlifts and squats?

    I love that I am getting stronger and stronger, and I have had to change my grip with the extra weight. The guys at the gym are stopping in there tracks to watch me lift, and I have even had an offer for a spotter and to add a pad to my back for squats - so annoying. Such a shame that they act like teenagers when a lady is in the weightroom.

    Dude, you look AMAZING. Awesome goals. I agree, it's a shame when guys act like teenagers when a lady is in the weight room. Flattering, but rather hilarious.
  • tameko2
    tameko2 Posts: 31,634 Member
    Is there a point where I will max out on my deadlifts and squats?

    Eventually. But you're years out from that.
  • fisherlassie
    fisherlassie Posts: 542 Member
    Ges congratulations on body weight!!

    Mrsk you look awesome!

    Very impressed that everyone is getting/staying strong for and through pregnancies! I did a lot of belly dancing which was helpful for the 4 days of back labour. I wish I had been lifting then!

    Extra, let us know how 531 goes! Looks interesting!

    I am taking a day, maybe the week off. I am tired of having a sore butt. It is clearly time to let it heal.
  • mrskchris
    mrskchris Posts: 28 Member
    :smile: :smile: Thanks Fisherlassie and FreckledLeann! I love your names BTW.

    Tamkeko2 - As always, thanks for the insight. I've had a few guys saying I was going to hurt myself lifting too heavy of a weight. :noway: I'll ignore them and keep adding the iron. StrongLifts is flipping awesome!
  • Imadarkswan
    Imadarkswan Posts: 113 Member
    Got my workout in this morning and of course had issues with OHP
    Here is what I did
    110 squats
    60 OHP -sorta
    140 dead lift

    Here is what happened on the OHP.
    Last workout whereby did OHP I did 57.5 so naturally tried
    To go up to 60. First set was really difficult but I got it done
    2nd-4th set were gosh awful and I really think the spotter gave way
    More help than he said he was giving. 5th set I could not even
    get the weight up and went back down to 55 since in had left my 1.25 s
    at home :(
    I remember 57.5 being difficult but not this much!
  • macybean
    macybean Posts: 258 Member
    Workout went well today, increased my squats to 120 despite my notes to stay at 117.5. Stuck at 85 on bench, but I'm ok with that right now since I haven't been stuck forever (like my nemesis OHP!).
    Got a little soreness tonight...which I actually like:)
  • zumbajheri
    zumbajheri Posts: 200 Member
    My workout tonight took a lot longer, I needed more rest between sets. I think switching to lower impact cardio will help.

    Squats 80# 5x5
    OHP 55# 5x5
    DL 120# 1x5 only went up 5# on all lifts

    I'm gonna stay at 55# on OHP until I get some fractionals this wknd. I also feel like I lost form and pulled a tendon in my neck shoulder area. I'm using a heat pack, hopefully it's nothing serious:smokin: a little herbal medicine and some vino is helping too!
  • jstout365
    jstout365 Posts: 1,686 Member
    Workout A for me today....I will start with a 5 min jog on the treadmill and then stretching to include the pigeon pose as suggested. My plan for squats today will be to start out with my normal warm up progression and see how things feel as I work my way up. I'm not going to push it beyond 115 lbs right now. I want to keep up with squating, but I think it will be a pattern of adding weight, feeling the pain, backing down a little, working there for a little bit, then going back up again.

    For the rest of the work I will have my first attempt at 100 for bench press today and then I'll go for 105 on row. My PR for 1RM on bench is 110 so I am getting excited about getting close to that for my working weight.

    zumbajheri - I have neck/shoulder issues with OHP movements as well. It is no fun. Heat helps me a lot. I have to focus a lot on looking forward the whole lift or it can happen. I hope you feel better soon!

    MrsK and Freckled - Way to go on both of your general bad @ssness.
  • Soosannah
    Soosannah Posts: 270 Member
    Good morning my fellow bad azzez.

    I did my workout A 3x8 last night. Got a late start (730p) and really wasn't feeling the workout to begin with. My eating was off yesterday because I slept in and missed breakfast, ate a footlong sub which I never do, my son wanted Subway. I try to take him to lunch just me and him every few weeks or so, and was still 400 cals short on my high calorie day. So all messed up yesterday. Thankfully time passed quickly and it was over with before I knew it.

    Squats- 65lbs went up 5 lbs today and it seemed incredibly easy so will raise again next workout. I think my daily ATG BW squats are helping. I find myself doing them randomly. Also seems to help me loosen up when my legs are feeling tight.

    Bench- 55 lbs... still couldn't even get 60 off the bar so I decided just to stick with 55 for the moment since they were really hard last time anyways. will add on some fractionals next time.

    Cleans- 65lbs 1x8. 2x5 I got stupid on these and really should have looked on my log to see my previous weight instead of thinking I knew. I went up 15 WHOLE POUNDS on these. No wonder they seemed so danged hard and I was struggling with every set and had to take several rest breaks between reps and probably accounted for the weird twinges I was having in my abs and obliques last night. Pretty sure this counted as cardio too because my heart was a-thumping.

    Bicep curls- 35.5lbs will definitely up weight on these next time

    Standing tricep extension- 10lb each arm with kettlebell. Decided not to do the skull crushers last night because hubby was at work and I really don't trust my 12 yo to spot while I am aiming a barbell at my head. And by the time I got to these I was wore out.

    Almost time for progress pics and measurements. Going to do these on Saturday. I am hopeful to see some changes. I think that I look smaller, but I also notice that I have a new confidence and don't see my body as negatively as I did before I started lifting. So there may be only a small change . My weight is staying pretty consistent between 209-214, 5 lbs spread but I have some crazy water retention fluctuations.

    @Tameko- Is it possible to get a sticky for our progress pics???? I think this would be some great motivation especially for new people.


    Everyone is doing awesome here and putting up some super numbers. Y'all are definitely some BAMF's!!!
  • DaniH826
    DaniH826 Posts: 1,335 Member
    Soos, what program are you following? Something homebaked?

    I'm seriously thinking about going back to 3x5 here soon cause I notice the higher rep ranges are not a friend of good form, and plus I don't want to get swole :laugh: AllPro's is aimed towards hypertrophy ... of course cause it's from a bodybuilding forum ... and so I don't think that's going to help me aim for endurance unless I go further down in weights and go way up in reps. Not that I'm actually getting swole (matter of fact I seem to be shrinking slightly), but I realized I miss making those frequent strength gains. Then again my happy day is Saturday when the big deloads happen and I can just dinker around at my own leisure (and even do triceps work!) because it feels so ez (compared to Tuesday which generally just kicks my tail now). :laugh: at myself for thinking "ez" means a 45 lbs barbell rather than a 5 lb dumbbell.

    Thinking about switching things over to a 3x5 program with an automatic deload put in so I can keep the extra stuff I'm doing that keeps me from becoming bored, and generally keep the same lifting rotation but go up in weight every week rather than reps. I.e. somehow merging principles from AllPro's and Rippetoe while aiming for a personal sweet spot of sorts that works for me. :smile:

    I need to kick Rippetoe out of my head and his "just follow the damn program" harpings and be fine with tweaking things to avoid boredom while still making overall progress. I mean, crap, I've been lifting and doing yoga religiously 3 times weekly for 2 months now, and that's definitely unheard of in my corner of the universe. That part of it I love. Devil's in the details I guess as they say ...

    I'm going to go pick stuff up and put it down again for a while. That always helps defuzz the brain. :drinker:
  • lwoodroff
    lwoodroff Posts: 1,431 Member
    ooh session A for me tonight, due for 40kg (88lb) squats eek.. I've always chickened out of this (with proper form!) so will steel myself. 30kg (66lb) for bench press. hm. not sure if this will happen, and 40kg pendlay rows. finally get to break out the big girl plates!!

    must take some 'before' photos too, now this is happening regularly. not sure measurements are going to happen. I'm rather fond of the way my calves are looking already though :) I also think my eating bigger is with rather more gusto than the weights currently deserve but will stick with it for now!
  • tameko2
    tameko2 Posts: 31,634 Member
    Dani - why don't you just commit to 8-12 solid weeks of 3x5 progression to get a good base for your weights and then swap over to 5/3/1? I think you will like that - you can reprogram your assistance every cycle (although ideally you shouldn't reprogram more than every 2-3 cycles) and you get a good mixture of endurance work and strength work. You can also use power cleans as an assist for that program so its a way to put in some movements you like/want to do.

    The thing with the whole 'do the program' bit that I really agree with is that in theory you've picked a program that is going to help you with whatever your goals are, and the person who wrote it (probably) knows a lot more than you about programming.
    BUUUUUT!!! If your goal is "to go to the gym and not be a fat lazy *kitten* at least 3x a week" then its fine to make your program yourself. Will you gain as much strength/endurance/hypertrophy/balanced looking physique as you would if you followed a program for those things? Of course not. But you have to pick a goal and if its 'go to the gym' then those other things are LESS important.
  • lwoodroff
    lwoodroff Posts: 1,431 Member
    Straight into a squat rack yeah and a guy asked very politely if he could use the bench press after me. I even let him warm up in between my sets. Yay!
    squats 40kg 5x5 yay! Will redo next time to keep form!
    bench 30kg new pr, 5,5,5,4,3
    and had a durr moment on the rows.. I have used the half weight bar before so loaded up the Olympic bar with 20kg weights err no that is 60kg should have been 10 each side! (the maths was screwy whatever bar I was using I am turning onto a meathead!) so even with the right weight only managed 5,4,4,5,4 but it didn't feel great. will try with the small bar and the 15kg plates next time for better distance to floor! Oh no that would still be a 5k increase. Bah humbug I need to get stronger fast!
  • Soosannah
    Soosannah Posts: 270 Member
    Soos, what program are you following? Something homebaked?

    I'm seriously thinking about going back to 3x5 here soon cause I notice the higher rep ranges are not a friend of good form, and plus I don't want to get swole :laugh: AllPro's is aimed towards hypertrophy ... of course cause it's from a bodybuilding forum ... and so I don't think that's going to help me aim for endurance unless I go further down in weights and go way up in reps. Not that I'm actually getting swole (matter of fact I seem to be shrinking slightly), but I realized I miss making those frequent strength gains. Then again my happy day is Saturday when the big deloads happen and I can just dinker around at my own leisure (and even do triceps work!) because it feels so ez (compared to Tuesday which generally just kicks my tail now). :laugh: at myself for thinking "ez" means a 45 lbs barbell rather than a 5 lb dumbbell.

    Thinking about switching things over to a 3x5 program with an automatic deload put in so I can keep the extra stuff I'm doing that keeps me from becoming bored, and generally keep the same lifting rotation but go up in weight every week rather than reps. I.e. somehow merging principles from AllPro's and Rippetoe while aiming for a personal sweet spot of sorts that works for me. :smile:

    I need to kick Rippetoe out of my head and his "just follow the damn program" harpings and be fine with tweaking things to avoid boredom while still making overall progress. I mean, crap, I've been lifting and doing yoga religiously 3 times weekly for 2 months now, and that's definitely unheard of in my corner of the universe. That part of it I love. Devil's in the details I guess as they say ...

    I'm going to go pick stuff up and put it down again for a while. That always helps defuzz the brain. :drinker:

    Ummm pretty much lol. I am building off the SL with including the compound lifts, but I found that I get incredibly bored, incredibly fast so I thought I would switch it up just at bit. My other choice, as Tameko puts it, is to be a fat lazy *kitten*. :laugh: I figure when I get bored with this I will find another routine or just change up my accessory lifts.

    I love lifting but the same thing over and over greatly affects my ADD and it will get to the point where I hate doing it. Right now I am happy with what I am doing, exchanging rows for cleans, adding some accessory arms one day and then accessory legs the next. I am doing things that I like (with the exception of that OHP, *kitten* :grumble: I will keep doing those because they are good for the arms and shoulders ). I figure if I can keep it fresh for myself then I am more apt to stick with it. I am probably going to go back to a 5x5 though because I am not feeling the 3x8. My mind and body wants to give out after that 5th rep because it has been programmed to take at break at 5 I guess. I even deloaded some of my weight when I went 3x8, but still hit 5 and my body thinks I am done and those last 3 are a struggle sometimes.

    @Tameko- thanks for the progress pic thread! I am hoping to see some "progress" in mine this month.

    @lwoodroff- I cant math either lol. But nice workout!
  • DaniH826
    DaniH826 Posts: 1,335 Member
    BUUUUUT!!! If your goal is "to go to the gym and not be a fat lazy *kitten* at least 3x a week" then its fine to make your program yourself.

    That's about my goal, really. The other goal being to never lose my love for lifting, and to stick with it, while making some sort of upward/forward progression on a semi-regular basis. Which is very generic, I know, but that's still a HUGE improvement from where I was this time last year when I was lifting zero and doing yoga a couple times a month maybe.

    I'm terribly concerned that using up my newb gains too quickly by putting the pedal to the metal is going to make me stand in my garage a year from now and think "ok now what?" Because once you're at the point of making like a pound or two gains every month, what's there to aim for now if your goal is to max out some program or to achieve straight-up number gains? The point in a video game where I roll an alt is usually way before I reach top level. Just so I can do the thing over again in a different way, apply what I've learned, and explore different sides of it, rather than maxing out top end gains (eeking out the last 1-2% of something is never my idea of a good time).

    I know that Starting Strength is proven, as is Stronglifts and AllPro's and those people obviously know way more than I do about strength training. They've poured all their years and decades' worth of experience into these programs and made them as close to ideal and efficient as you're going to get.

    But who they don't know, is me. I know me and my boredom threshold, I know what I've learned from my personal lifting sessions over the past couple months, and sticking with the same program for 8 weeks isn't going to happen. I gotta have that variety sprinkled in. That's why I can never get to a max level in a video game very quickly because I love the process of exploration and folliwing side trails to see where they lead. Or use shortcuts/cheat codes just to see how the game ends. Except you can't do that with lifting. :huh:

    If you don't play video games, then my analogy is probably meaningless to you but that's really the best way I can put it. :drinker:

    Now at some point I might get a wild hair up my *kitten* and decide I want to straight-up power lift to see how high I can get, and that's when I'll be following Starting Strength to the letter because it's designed to help people do exactly that: The greatest amount of strength gains in the shortest amount of time. But, at this point in the game, my goals are a lot more fuzzy than that, which is why I don't mind experimenting, trying different things and discarding what doesn't work for me. Heck I just might actually give SL a whirl for a few weeks and see what that's all about (and actually earn my right to be posting here :laugh:).

    TLDR: I'm perfectly okay with taking the first 6 or so months of my lifting experience to find out what actually suits me, and trying out different programs to see what those are all about while I figure out more concrete goals. All the while gaining strength and getting rid of some unwanted fat cells that have set up shop for way too long around here. I am definitely going to stick with some form of compound lifting as a foundation/focus, because there's just nothing better, period, and I really enjoy it.

    Sorry for throwing up my random inner musings all over this thread. But it helps to get them out and getting feedback, so thanks for that! :flowerforyou:

    Oh and I took some vids of me OHPing and rowing today. Those were very eye opening! Going to try and upload them for some feedback.
  • chubby_checkers
    chubby_checkers Posts: 2,352 Member
    Didn't check up on you ladies yet, but throwing out my prgress from today.

    Workout A

    Squats: 145lbs--New PR but I need to watch my knees. They were a little wibbly wobbly.
    Bench: 92.5lbs--I made sure to really squeeze my shoulders and arch my back. The weight was still heavy, but it went up easier than 90lbs did.
    Rows: 95lbs (thought I was doing 100lbs)--:angry: Accidently deloaded because I'm seriously dumb. I kept thinking "These are so easy!" I may need to start writing on my arm which plates to use for each lift. :grumble:
  • lwoodroff
    lwoodroff Posts: 1,431 Member
    great workout, some amazing weights there! I use the lifting buddy app which tells me what to lift, but not how to work out the weights.. *sigh*..
  • Will_Thrust_For_Candy
    Will_Thrust_For_Candy Posts: 6,109 Member
    @Dani.....you know you might also like the way that I have started following SL. I know that you aren't "supposed" to mess around with it too much, but what I found after going through my first cycle was that I love the program....but I was starting to take an *kitten* whooping on the progression. I fully realize that is the basis of the program.....but the bottom line for me is that I do still have physical goals that I want to meet and I just can't eat enough to fuel that sort of strength progression SOOOOOO.......

    I took a deload week between cycle 1 and 2 and then used my deload weights as starting weight for cycle 2. Progression can either be in intensity or volume or both......I am now doing a hybrid whereby I don't increase weight every session, but rather work to pound out an extra rep....I try not to go any longer that 4 workouts/ lifts at the same weight though. This allows me to work on my form further while messing with the heavier weights, plus I'm still progressing and I don't need to eat quite as much to progress at this level. The other nice thing is that because I'm also doing 3x5, I can fit my cardio in after.

    Anyway.....I realize that as Tamkeo said, the people that designed these programs are experts.....and I respect the program but I feel like as long as your are progressing in your lifts in some fashion that you will still be ahead of the game. For myself personally, I know that I can accomplish a lot more before I move to an intermediate program and quite frankly, being fairly new to lifting, I just don't know my "lifting body" well enough yet to feel confident moving forward.

    But that's just my 2 cents :smile:
  • Soosannah
    Soosannah Posts: 270 Member

    But who they don't know, is me. I know me and my boredom threshold, I know what I've learned from my personal lifting sessions over the past couple months, and sticking with the same program for 8 weeks isn't going to happen. I gotta have that variety sprinkled in. That's why I can never get to a max level in a video game very quickly because I love the process of exploration and folliwing side trails to see where they lead. Or use shortcuts/cheat codes just to see how the game ends. Except you can't do that with lifting. :huh:

    If you don't play video games, then my analogy is probably meaningless to you but that's really the best way I can put it. :drinker:

    Now at some point I might get a wild hair up my *kitten* and decide I want to straight-up power lift to see how high I can get, and that's when I'll be following Starting Strength to the letter because it's designed to help people do exactly that: The greatest amount of strength gains in the shortest amount of time. But, at this point in the game, my goals are a lot more fuzzy than that, which is why I don't mind experimenting, trying different things and discarding what doesn't work for me. Heck I just might actually give SL a whirl for a few weeks and see what that's all about (and actually earn my right to be posting here :laugh:).

    TLDR: I'm perfectly okay with taking the first 6 or so months of my lifting experience to find out what actually suits me, and trying out different programs to see what those are all about while I figure out more concrete goals. All the while gaining strength and getting rid of some unwanted fat cells that have set up shop for way too long around here. I am definitely going to stick with some form of compound lifting as a foundation/focus, because there's just nothing better, period, and I really enjoy it.

    Sorry for throwing up my random inner musings all over this thread. But it helps to get them out and getting feedback, so thanks for that! :flowerforyou:

    Oh and I took some vids of me OHPing and rowing today. Those were very eye opening! Going to try and upload them for some feedback.

    You're my ADD twin lol. I have a very very low boredom threshold :yawn:
  • DaniH826
    DaniH826 Posts: 1,335 Member
    You're my ADD twin lol.

    Yes I think so! :drinker:
    I feel like as long as your are progressing in your lifts in some fashion that you will still be ahead of the game...

    3x5 is short and sweet. I like that. Leaves you plenty of breathing room for other things. I really like that now that I'm figuring out which lifts I want to keep and which ones I want to dump (good bye barbell curl! hellooo power clean, front squat and overhead squat!) There's a lot of lifts I want to try on for size, so I'm going to leave myself lots of wiggle room while sticking to a main core progression. :smile:

    Programs do work and I think that a written record is absolutely necessary for lifting to stay on top of progression and to keep you from doing anything too willy nilly in the weight room. I have to have my spreadsheet and program there with me so that I have at least a general idea of what I'm doing that day. Keeps my ADD in check *mostly*. :bigsmile: So I will definitely stick to having a written program several weeks in advance.

    Anyhoo that's prolly enough about me and best suited for a journal or blog :bigsmile: Maybe somebody will benefit from all my brain/keyboard diarrhea posts today. Sorry! :huh:
  • DaniH826
    DaniH826 Posts: 1,335 Member

    "Would you rather run on the treadmill or play with the barbell for 15 minutes?"

    Dur! That's a no brainer! Favorited. Thanks!! :flowerforyou: