Workout B today

Having a fight with OP. Deloaded to 55 from 60 and now I am failing out on reps at 55... Need to buy fractionals/eat protein/rest longer/eat better/etc... I'm considering going all the way back to 45 lb oly bar and starting over. Must beat OP!! Rawr!!

Today
Squat - 130# 5x5 - Met my April goal!!
OP 55# 5,5,5,4,3
DL 130# 5x5 - 10 lbs over April goal!

Saturday
Bench 80# 5x5 - 5lbs from April goal! Totally gonna hit it.
Row 70# 5x5 Back to where I was before mini deload for form.
Squat 125# 5x5

It's been my long term goal to squat & dead lift body weight. Since the body weight doesn't seem to be coming down, glad to see the weights are going up!

Dani - Yes, working out in a gym does lend itself to seeing and hearing some very interesting stuff. I also wanted to thank you for your discussions on the progressive lifts (pyramid). I think I will be doing them more now that I am getting close to my upper limits.

Kira - WOW, just WOW. That guy had no clue did he?

So, workout A today....

Squats - did a progressive climb on the weights, warm up with body weight and bar, then did 1x5 @ 65, 75, 85, 95 and 105. This seemed to give me the chance to hit a higher weight before wearing down the hip flexor. I also tried to "rip apart the floor with my heals" as I was coming up out of the squat. I saw that tip in the Eat, Train, Progress group and I think it really did help to take some pressure off the hip flexor.

Bench - did a similar progression, but did warm-up at bar and 75 then 1x5 @ 95 and 105 then 115 for 3 sets for 4, 5, 4 reps.

Rows - I made the mistake of not stacking plates to lift off of since the weight room was busy. 105 was rough so I dropped down to 95 for the last 4 sets.

Dani-I work out at home and every now and then this guy appears at the top of the stairs making growly sounds and talking about "pipes! Look at those pipes!". He actually made me fail on bench once due to his random, goofy comments! Then there's always some cat meandering around the power rack and the dog who thinks the coin socks are dog toys. Does your home gym not have these things?!

No ma'am. My gym is in the garage, so first thing I do is open both garage doors and turn on our enormously huge, loud fan to get the gasoline smell out (cause we have lawnmowers and a motorcycle plus gas cans in there. Then I go do yoga (in the house, not the garage). Then I return (to the garage), close one door completely and the other partway (leaving a crack for some air circulation), and the only thing you'll hear for the next 45 minutes or so is me talking to myself, grunting here and there, and the clanging of plates and the bar. No music (can't hear it due to said enormously loud fan). Just me, the fan, my own thoughts and my barbells.

Dani - Yes, working out in a gym does lend itself to seeing and hearing some very interesting stuff. I also wanted to thank you for your discussions on the progressive lifts (pyramid). I think I will be doing them more now that I am getting close to my upper limits.

You're so welcome! I was surprised when I read about variations of 5x5, and the staggered (pyramid?) was what really appealed to me because it seemed straightforward and effective without being overly taxing. Glad my rabid researching is helping somebody else! :flowerforyou:

It just makes me mad when I read posts about "I failed this lift" and "I failed that lift" when really, none of you people are failing anything, and all it would take are some minor tweaks for you to find your happy place and being able to continue progressing without sitting there beating yourselves up for no reason whatsoever. Stronglifts is only one variation of the 5x5, and while it's a solid program, I think it's perfectly fine to adapt it to your situation here and there with certain lifts and being able to steadily progress without getting frustrated or feeling like some sort of failure (in what universe is a woman lifting an olympic barbell plus plates over her head repeatedly a failure anyway, pray tell????). Do what you gotta do to progress and enjoy the journey, because why frustrate yourself for no reason?

I did the "rip the floor apart" today too while squatting. Very effective!

@macy LOL at the home gym quirks.

@fishlover 5x5 deadlifts? Hardcore!

So, lunchtime workout B on 3x5 for me today.

Squat - 37.5kg/82.5# again. Ready to go up next time
OHP - 17.5kg/38.5# Fractions next time, then I'm ready to use the men's Oly bar instead of the women's! This is where I stalled out last time...
DL - 57.5kg/126.5# Easier than last time. Back up to 60kg bodyweight next time.

It's also okay to take more than one rest day. Sometimes lifting helps you work through the muscle soreness, and sometimes you just need another day of rest, good food, and lots of water!

Today will be my second day. I will go with less weight for my squats. They did not feel 'too heavy' at 45, but totally messed up my back muscles on my left. I will probably go with 30 instead of 45/50#... Try that, maybe for a few more sessions, see if it helps my weak left side.

Normally, I think I'd be fine with the planned Deadlifts, but I can still barely walk from Monday's workout. I guess I am a wimpy squatter.... Gonna take a bot longer to bring those up to par.

Don't be discouraged, and don't think about 'par'. :bigsmile:

If it makes you feel any better I did bodyweight and 20- and 30 pound squats for almost a month before I started using the 45 pound bar. What I always say is, you're only competing against yourself. And in fact, you are only competing against your last session. But in this case, you are still finding your starting point. Once you do find the right starting point, you'll be able to progress smoothly from there and it will be really amazing and fun!

I'm so excited about squats tonight. I think I'm quad-dominant, so all the way up to 45kg I was struggling to engage my glutes but they suddenly needed to kick in on 47.5kg which felt GREAT.

Don't be discouraged, and don't think about 'par'. :bigsmile:

If it makes you feel any better I did bodyweight and 20- and 30 pound squats for almost a month before I started using the 45 pound bar. What I always say is, you're only competing against yourself. And in fact, you are only competing against your last session. But in this case, you are still finding your starting point. Once you do find the right starting point, you'll be able to progress smoothly from there and it will be really amazing and fun!

Thanks. I'm not discouraged. Not really. Just trying to figure out whhat works for me. nd glad to see how my mile scoliosis reacts now- and how I can fix- before I start with my son next month- he has 43 degree curve- so much more severe than mine.

I guess by "on par"- Just hoping the squats will one day be the same level as the other stuff- as the squats will be low and slow for a whie, but the rest should progress much easier. And right now, my squats won't be 'better than last time"- just hoping for 'not more painful"...

Most people have limitations that hold back one or more of the lifts. I've been dealing with some hip flexor issues that keep me from really pushing it far on the squats. At this point I'm not sure if my squats will ever be on par with my other lifts, but I am still better off for attempting them each time and working towards figuring out what works. I can totally relate to the "not more painful" thought. I have good days and bad days with squats. Just keep at it and progress when you can. Plus, you will probably find that one lift that comes more naturally to really be proud of.

Good Reminder!
:flowerforyou: