Deadlifts

Today was deadlift day and during this cycle I am doing high bar Trap bar deadlifts. Went in get these done thinking I might go to about 280kg for a couple, However warm up was going real well with triples so I just kept at it all the way though. My thoughts were if it is going well then I will keep at it and the dangerous " I feel strong at the moment so lets go for it". My warmups were 80 x 3, 130 x 3, 170 x 3, 210 x 3, 250 x 3 and then on to 280 x 3 for 2 sets and I still felt real good so after the second set of 280 I thought what the hell lets go for it and put on 300kg. My thought was I hope to get the first rep then just whatever after that. I got the first one out then just thought what the hell go for it and had a go at a second thinking at worst it doesn't go and I put it down but it just kept coming so I was lucky enough to get a 2nd rep out. Not to bad for a PB attempt, However what do I now do next week which is the final week of this cycle. Hmmmm. Here is some photo's of the last set.

From there I went on to Log shoulder press like last week except this week I started with the 5kg plates on the bar. First set felt like shit and I felt like I had no power. However before the second set I got my head into it a bit more and added the 10kg plates on to the log. A lot better set and it felt good as well. On the last set I added the 5kg plates back on to the log to make and all up weight of 85/86kg. 6 good reps later I was finished.

Then went on to bentover lat raise for my rear delts. I am one of these people who lower the weight on this exercise under control and don't just drop it back to  the start so the amount of weight I use is not a lot but my rear delts get a great workout. 3 sets of 10 reps @ 15kg was all I needed. on the second set instead of bringing the weight up the normal way people do I pronated my hands so the palms were facing backwards while the rep went out to the sides. Different movement and a different feel. Good to use for a change and if done right I feel it targets the rear delts a little better. Just my thoughts.

Anyway I feel good at the moment and hope to get in and start doing some speed work as I really need it.

Benchpress Day

Yeeeyyy, Got in on the right day for Benchpress again. Second week of this cycle.

Benching went well today although I am still a little slower off the chest than I want to be. Using the No# 2 bands again this week. The first set @ 185kg for a couple of reps went well and felt good off my chest. I was able to keep my elbows tucked in tight which gave me a good press.
The second set was @ 205kg for a couple of reps. Again a good set up and good press for the first rep, got the second down with control and part of the way up then needed just a small help to finish off the top. Still happy with how it went.
3 set was @ 215kg, got the second rep down and part way up then needed a bit of a hand to the top. On the second rep did a full negative and part of the way up again before needing a hand to finish the top of the rep. Not entirely happy with the second rep but I need to push myself a bit. Not every rep can be perfect but it is a start.

215kg Set and ready to go

Hey a post on the right day

Mondays are Squat days or something similar so as this is the second week of the cycle it means doing Safety bar squats with the No# 1 bands over the bar. After last week I was expecting this to be a lot harder than it turned out to be. I think a better mindset and the advantage of another week made a big difference. Felt a lot stronger and got out some good reps. 3 sets of 3 reps @ 170kg with 40kg of tension from the bands at the top. Here is a picture of the set up.

Safety bar squats set up with No# 1 bands

Also did some Zercher squats after the Safety bar squats. I am using the Zercher squat harness I helped develop with Kevin from getstrength.com. I find this works well and saves me from destroying my elbows. Again this week i have gone up in weight and felt these were some real good reps. I also find that by standing a bit wider I get a better workout from my butt. Also you must try and get to a least parallel as you will get so much more out of the exercise. Good control on the way down with reasonable speed on the way up. 3 sets of 6 reps @ 120kg. Also got some pics of this as well.

on

 

A normal week would be nice

Ohh to have a normal week for a change. I have been able to get in all the training this week but just not quite in the way I wanted. I got in the Squat workout on Tuesday with some Safety bar squats for 3 sets of 3 reps at 160 plus the No# 1 bands over the bar which is about and extra 40kg. I also used knee wraps for the first time since somewhere in July so that felt a little different but also so good. Felt a little slow on the way up but the rest of it was good. It is good to be able to change type of exercise with some of the different  relevant. Will keep this for the next couple weeks adding a bit more weight each week. Hope to add in some speed work soon as I feel I am missing out there for the being able to have some good speed with the reps.

Benchpress on Wednesday was okay as it was time to put on some more real weight. Wanted to use my No# 3 over my elbows a bit like a Titan Ram or Mark Bells Slingshot, but could not find them so used 2  No# 2 bands over the elbows. 3 sets of 2 reps with 1 set of 180kg with a stop on the bottom, second set of 2 reps at 200kg with a stop and a third set of 2 reps at 210kg with a stop. The first 2 sets were real good and had some good power to them but the last set could have been left at 200kg. Still happy with how it went and it shore felt good to have that much weight in my hands again.

Deadlifts on Friday went well. I was using the high bar on the trap bar so it worked a bit like having a 3" board under the weights which is perfect for where I am at in my training at this stage. I was able to get my 3 sets out with reasonable amount of weight. I do singles on deadlift day and got out 250kg (the trap bar weighs 30kg) for 3 singles. Good speed off the floor and a strong lockout already. Happy with this and again to be to have some heavy weight in my hands again felt good. Got a couple of photo's of the setup I had with the trap bar.

Last warm up weight 230kg. Trap bar weighs 30kg

My workout weight this week of 250kg. 3 singles

Also did some shoulder presses with something different. I used the strongman log to the front for a different way of doing things. 3 sets of 6 reps with the log weighing 56kg then I added 5kg a side for the 2nd set and 10kg a side for the 3rd set. Felt good and liked the variation. Got some pics as well.

Set 1 56kg

Set 2 56kg + 10

Set 3 56kg + 20kg

Also tried a different exercise for my shoulder using the buffalo bar. As this bar hangs a lot lower and is a lot fatter it also swings during the rep a lot more. I am hoping over time this will help strengthen and stabilize my shoulders which in turn will help me have a cleaner press on the bench. Got some pics of this with some light weight. I will increase the weight next time but as this was the first time I have done this I didn't want to go over board. The reps are done behind the neck.

Buffalo bar shoulder press with 10kg xtra weight.