Okay here we go

Okay so after sorting a few things out mentally in my head and getting back into the groove of things I need to get back into things.

First thing: 2 yrs after being told I probably would never lift again competitively I was able to get back to the competition stage at the Canterbury Powerlifting Association (CPA) Champs on the 8th April. My main focus for this event was to have some fun and to come away with a total. Well we got the first part done but not the 2nd part. Because of a couple of the drugs they have me on for controlling the blood counts in relation to the Myeloma I have put on a bit more weight than I would like and was having trouble getting down to depth. Unfortunately this lead me to bomb on the squats. Interesting in that I wass trying to get 255kg down and it still wouldn't go. On reflection I should have started on 270/275. With the bench I did a raw 120kg then came off and got into my benchshirt. Went to 220kg and got right out of the groove and the bar came back towards the top of my chest instead of staying down towards my belly. Got a press but it stopped 1/2 way up. Wasn't to worried about it so for a play I went for 235 on the 3rd and it went down real well and I knew this ine was coming up, however waiting for the press call my left wrist started to roll forward and I was never catching that much weight. Damn cause that weight felt good and it was set to go back up. I was still having fun and deadlifts were up next. I have been having a real mental challenge with these for a few weeks and also been trying a new style of lifting with them so opened with a real light 200 which I got and then went for 220kg which I also got. Tried for a 250kg but it just wasn't going to happen so put it down. I learnt lots and had a lot of fun and enjoyed myself which was the big part.

Then the hard part: Self evaluation Hmmm, In reality yes I need to change the depth I squat to on a box, 1 mat should put me under and also a lot more work needs to happen on my benchpress either in a shirt or out of it, and I need to sort out what I am doing with my deadlifting. I was going to pass on the South Island's in June but have since decided I need to do them to motivate me to get better and to give me more time on the platform. I feel my training program is right but I just need to sort out some of the finer details. I do need to put in more GPP work to help get me fitter and to help bring my weight back to around that 138kg mark. I weigh in for the Canterbury's at a massive 149.9kg which is way to heavy. I also need to do a lot more mobility/stretching work and speed work. So plenty to work on over the next few months. So expect more updates over the coming months.

   

Lets get back into this

Haven't been able to train properly this week due to a real annoying cough which strikes at any time and leave me gasping for air. Felt a lot better today so thought I would give it a shot. I was able to get in some Safety bar squats for close to max effort. The last rep being one of the ugliest reps I have done in a long time. Used a digital set of scales that I was able to tell that the band tension was 33kg per side and a bar that weighs 25kg. Got up to 205kg + 65kg of bands for a rep. Will go in and do the rest of the workout tomorrow.

Well here is that ugly rep. 270kg including 65kg of Band tension. Going up the bands at the moment. Feet a little close, Knee's come to far forward and I do the Honky Tonk at the bottom. 65kg of Band tension Bar weighs 25kg. Thank you to Rene de joux for keeping and eye on me. Also to Maddy Walker for bringing in a hand held digital weight scale that you can quickly measure band tension with. Also having Rene Riksem-Old there helping and filming. 
link for the scales
http://www.macpac.co.nz/macpac-electronic-scales-58238.html

Week one out of the way

After nine months of training and a couple of weeks of testing myself I feel confident enough to start some serious training and to aim for a return to the competition platform at the Canterbury Powerlifting Championships in April 2017. This will be nearly 3 yrs after my last competitive outing. I feel that I am able to turn up to win and not just make up numbers. A lot has changed for me in the time since my last competition and some of my training has as well. I will be training in my gear for safety and when some people would be saying you should be doing doubles or triples again for safety I might be only doing singles. I still have the drive to want to win and to be the best. I have also set myself some big goals as well and if I didn't feel I could achieve them I would not be wanting to compete. WATCHING SUCKS. Also there is the goals I had last year that need to be chased and conquered

1. 900kg Total
2. 907.5kg (2000 lbs) Total
3. 300kg Benchpress
4. 365kg Squat

These were the goals for last year. There are a couple of other goals for next year however at this stage I will keep them to myself. 

To the week of training

Monday went pretty well with me getting the numbers on the big stuff that I wanted. 3 sets of 3 reps @ 265kg. Speed of the reps was good even though I have not a lot of speed work over the last year. I had more trouble with foot placement than anything else. Accessory work was also good but will need to up the intensity next week.

Tuesday was a hit and miss day as I was only able to get my benches in as getting use to the benchshirt again. By the time I had finished that I had run out of time so went in on Wednesday to finish it off. Again the accessory stuff was good but I will have to challenge myself a bit more on that next week. 

Friday was for deadlifting which went well, not looking for big numbers yet however I had 180kg + 40kg of chain off  3 mats. Good feel and happy with them but need to work on locking my knees out more. The accessory work was good as well however some of the numbers will have to be changed for next week as I am leaving a bit on the floor. 

Overall a good starting week with being able to hit the numbers I wanted which now gives me confidence I can carry on. 

Well on to the start of another cycle with a bit more gusto in it

Sled Face Pulls

Done as a warmup before getting into my workout. Have to keep your hands coming past your eyes. Not a lot of weight but I will go up next week. 3 sets of 10 pulls

Seated Buffalo Bar Press with mini green bands (25kg each)

Sitting on the box squat box and pressing the bar. Put a dumbbell either side to get the bands to work that was giving me 25kg of tension per side. got out 2 sets with the bar and then added another 10kg of weight. Left shoulder/tricep seemed to handle it well. The left side is the one I am trying to get to answer again after everything. The lower reps tonight helped with that. 4 sets of 6 reps.

Shoulder press off pins

From a dead stop, weight was probably way to light but will go up next week. 2 sets of 10 reps

Barbell Shrugs

this was the first time going to 15 reps er set so wasn't to sure what was going to happen. Biggest problem at the moment is grip but that will come with time. 2 good controlled sets at 60kg.

Dumbbell Curls

Just to do these to help balance out the arms. 2 sets of 10 reps per side.

GHR

Again a change here, have been doing sets of 10 reps but have decided to up this by 2 reps per set. Still using pole as my upper body is just to big. I am working on getting a good pull from my hams on the way up. No one will be able to accuse me of not having strong hams. 4 sets of 12 reps

Well have changed things around a bit and it feels good. The fewer reps on the power movement mean that I can use a bit more weight, that is then compensated for with the extra reps in the next 2 exercise's. The curls to keep my arms safe and the extra reps in the GHR make for an interesting workout. Wasn't sure how this was going to go but more than happy and now I know I can go a bit harder/heavier next week.

Training Session 3 for 2015

WOW is all I can say with today's training session. I have not done anywhere enough of this sort of training for TO long. I felt real weak on a set of exercises and weights that should be well within my reach. I am going to have to go back to the drawing board on this one and make sure I am getting everything done. On a scale of 1 - 10, I would rate this as a 1 JUST.

Today first up was Deadlifts with only 100kg on the bar. Wow, slow off the ground, slow in the middle and slow at the top. Real Bad. Only had one good rep and that was beause I concentrated on it. Somehow I was able to get in 3 sets of 10 reps @ 100kg. Long way to go and lots of work to do. 4 mins between sets. Trap bar deadlifts weren't to bad but my positioning could have been a lot better. Something to work on. 4 sets of 10 reps @ 100kg. 2 mins between sets

Shoulder press was next up and while I got though the sets/reps because of my shoulder I had to break the last 2 sets down into 4 reps then 3 reps then 3 reps to get them done. However on the plus side it is now some 3hrs since I did them and my shoulder feels a lot better. 2 mins between sets. Pronated dumbbell press was up next and while I could still feel my shoulder I was able to get out 3 sets of 10 reps at 20kg. A long way down on what I can do but at the moment I will take it. Again at 2 mins intervals. Last exercise was Bentover Lat Raise which I have never really been that strong on so it was only 3 sets of 10 reps @ 12.5kg. Was able to feel a lot in my rear delts though so it saiy's that I wasn't just throwing the weight around.

Man is there a lot of work to do here but at least I found out now and not just before a competition.

Some stats from this week

Total reps: 536 across all exercise's
Total Volume: 41489kg across all exercises


Saturday 10 January 2015 C1W2D3 Actual Training     

Training Session 2 of 2015

Sorry guys for taking so long to get this up but it has been a busy few days. This train was for Benchpress and Triceps. Again doing volume and it was real hard because my left shoulder did not want to come to the party.

Got the 3 sets of 10 reps @ 120kg on the benchpress fairly easy. Good form and a little bit more power. Things are coming along nicely on this part. Stop presses is where the fun started with my shoulder and while I was getting good strong presses off the pins and to lockout it did not want me to do more than 5 reps in a row, so I went back to how I got out the Front Squats from the other night. had a number that I had to do and just kept working on the reps until I got there. If I had to stop then it was for only 20 - 30 seconds then back into it. If you have never trained like this beofre try it one day as it is NOT as easy as it sounds. The equivalent of 4 sets of 10 reps @ 100kg off Pin# 3.

On to doing Close Grip Benchpress for 4 sets of 10 reps @ 100kg and here was another exercise I had to grind though with only being able to do sets in the form of 4 reps then 3 reps then 3 reps. My shoulder just would not let me do any more. I don't have a problem with 3 reps it is just when I go to the bigger numbers that it plays up.
Flat Back Dumbbell Ext were next and again 3 sets of 10 reps. Could n't feel my shoulder this time so it was reasonably easy to get the reps put. Starting to get full reps as well with a strong lockout. I was using the 40kg dumbbells.
2 sets of Tricep Pressdowns were up next just as a finisher. Was able to get a full lockout as well. Good control of the whole rep as well. 2 sets of 10 reps @ 100lbs.

Overall a  good workout it just the volume that is tough for someone who is a powerlifter and likes to train for power and strength.

Tuesday 6 January 2015 C1W2D2

Training Session 1 2015

Back to the start of the week today and this time it is a full week. Damn it is hot here in Christchurch 29C yesterday and 30+ today. Yes I am from the southern hemisphere and it is summer here right now. Good weather to train in.

Today we are back to Squats and Back work with it being the 2nd week of my 3 week cycle. Squats were for 3 sets of 10 reps @ 140kg. First set felt a bit heavy but then the rest were pretty good but boy does volume suck or what. Got me feet out a bit more today and I am slowly getting back to where I want them when the gear starts getting used. Speed on the whole rep was above average for the first time in a while. Happy with that. Front squats using the Get Strength Front squat harness was another story. Tough work. got in the 40 reps that I was meant to do but with the extra weight the bottom of the harness wants to press into your stomach which makes it hard to breathe so had to break them down into groups of 3 reps so I would be able to take a breath, however I would not way away from the rack so it went something like this, 3 reps re-rack the bar for 20seconds to suck in as much air as I could then 3 more reps then re-rack and 20 seconds later go again. until I had done about 24 then I took a 5 mins rest then repeated the dose. Tough work. All these sets are done 3 - 5 mins apart. That is what a smartphone is for. Haha.

Onto back work starting with 4 sets of 10 reps @ 90kg of bentover rows. Good sets and I am starting to get back to the way I felt last year already. Nice controlled reps.
Dumbbell rows were for 3 sets of 10 reps @ 45kg. These felt real good with good speed and control.
Cable rows for 2 sets of 10 reps at 72kg, Chest out and up high with an emphasis on keeping my elbows tuck in tight.

We are lucky enough to have a Reverse Hyper machine so it was on to that for 3 sets of 10 reps with 40kg  on the plate. I believe this is one piece of equipment that if you have it in you gym you use it. It has helped my out over the last 4 months like you wouldn't believe. Will slowly be bringing my weight on this up over the next few months. This machine just helps out your lower back/glute area so much. Have one in your gym learn how to use it and do so. These sets are done 2 mins apart again using a smartphone for a timer.

Getstrength Front Squat/ Zercher Squat Harness

Reverse Hyper Machine

Cycle 1 Week 2 Monday

Benchpress and Tricep Training

On to the next day of training. Benchpress and Triceps. Still doing the volume thing so the reps are up at 10's. Each set felt really good with plenty of power. I think the training from the week before has helped quite a bit. As it was the last day of the year and the temperature here in New Zealand is about 25 - 28 degrees C I wasn't in a rush to get things done. Benchpressing went real well and I was able to get in my 3 sets quite easily. Still had plenty of unintended speed off my chest. 3 sets @100kg. Stop presses are going well if you include last weeks work. 4 sets of 10 reps @ 100kg.

As close grip was a little to easy last week I went for 80kg this week and will look at pushing that even higher over the next few weeks. Good form and pretty happy with that. Good start to a BIG benchpress year. Flat back d/bell ext were a little off from what I would have expected but I struggle though to make sure I got them all. Tricep pressdowns finished it all off. as my tricep were starting to feel like they had been worked real well. 2 sets of 10 at 80lbs.

Moved onto a couple of accessory exercises that I need to do a lot more of with the first being Good Mornings with the Buffalo bar. A lot of focus on getting that good worked feeling in my lower back/erectors. so not big weights. 3 x 10 @ 60kg. Finished the train off with 3 return trips of prowler pushes for approx 30 mtrs each with 60kg on the machine.

Overall a good workout and now onto even better training in 2015 and to chasing those real big goals that I have set for myself.

Follow this link to see what I actually did in the gym last night.
Actual training for 31 Dec 2014

Training for competition has started

Now that we have got the warm up week out of the way it is now on to the real training. This cycle is going to be a lot of volume, eg sets of 10 reps. At this stage my first competition this year is going to be the Canterbury Benchpress Champs which is generally held in March with my first 3 lift competition being the Canterbury Powerlifting Champs. While I want to be putting up some good numbers at these competitions they are not "targeted" comps. My first Targeted comp will be the South Island champs to be held in June. By this time I hope to be on for a go at a few New Zealand National Records.

Today it was Squats with a straight bar for 3 sets of 10 reps @ only 100kg. Felt a lot better than last week and I had more power, speed and focus for them.

Front squats went pretty well, Could feel myself using my butt a lot more this week than last. happy with them.

Back work consisted of Bentover Rows for 4 sets of 10, D/bell rows of 3 sets @ 35kg and Cable rows for 2 sets at 78kg for 10 reps. All the sets went pretty good and right now I am happy with how it went. A few more weeks of this and I should be getting back on track a lot more.

Go to my training program page to see what I did yesterday

Benchpress and Tricep Training

Wow I got to get into the gym 2 days in a row. Today I was just getting my body back into doing benchpress and tricep work. Again volume work, set are for 10 reps and anywhere from 3 to 4 sets.

Didn't feel to bad after yesterday so was able o get back into it reasonably quickly. Wasn't pushing things so my benching was 3 sets of 10 @ 100kg. Was able to get them out reasonably well. Stop press was pretty good with some speed and power of the bars. Just straight weight.

Close grip bench I was a little light and could have probably got been able to get 80kg done but will take the 3 sets @ 60kg all things considered. Flat back tricep extensions were okay but were a little down on what I might have expected. Tricep pressdowns went well and was getting a good pump out of the exercise.

Buffalo bar good mornings went okay and I was able to get a bit further over than I thought I would be able to. 3 good quality sets. Finished off the train with 3 sets of prowler pushes with 60kg on it and about 15 mtrs each way.

23 sets done in 85mins and a total volume of 13174kg

Benchpress: 3 x 10@100kg
Stop Press: 4 x 10 @ 100kg
Close Grip Benchpress: 4 x 10 @60kg
Flat Back Tricep Extension: 3 x 10 @ 25kg
Tricep Pressdowns: 3 x 10 @ 32.5kg
Buffalo Bar Good Mornings: 3 x 10 @ 60kg
Prowler Push: 3 x 30mtrs @ 60kg

Just Getting Back Into It

First time back in the gym in such a long time (5 weeks) due to personal matters and the fact that there was so much work for me at this time of the year. Long days at work. Got the chance to go in yesterday and start the process again.

Have some pretty big goals and plans for the next 12mths so will have to get it all done. Have targeted 3 big competitions for 2015 with the possibility of a 4th towards the end of 2015. Individual lift wise I have some big goals on that as well. We will go into them at a later date.

Yesterday and for the next few weeks it is a lot of volume and to make sure the body is working fine. I am going to be making a few changes to timing and that sort of thing as well. For the first couple of cycles when I am doing the big heavy weight sets the time between sets is going to be 6 mins for the first week, 7 mins for the second week and 8 mins for the third week. The timing between my accessory sets is going to be 2 mins. So as you can see the speed is going to be up there, However when you go to a competition generally you will have 10 -15 mins between attempts so if you can do this during training it should be quite easy at competition time. All he time I will be trying to push my limits in relation to both weight and reps.

An interesting thing in regards to the workout from yesterday that while I am a little stiff and just a tad sore if I was to rate it I would put stiffness at a 2.5 maybe a 3 out of 10 and soreness at about a 2 just. And this was with 5 weeks off training anything at all.

Total reps for the Day was: 230
Total volume for the Day was: 12590kg

Squats 3 x 10 @ 100kg
Front Squats 4 x 10 @ 60kg
Bentover Rows 4 x 10 @ 60kg
D/bell Rows 3 x 10 @ 25kg (way to light)
Cable Rows 2 x 10 @ 72kg
Reverse Hypers 3 x 10 @ 60kg (love this exercise)
Cable Obliques 4 x 10 @ 42kg

All of this was done in 67 mins from start to finish.