NEW PR!!

     You get another two-fer today because I forgot to upload yesterday's notes. No PR on bench, but some good progress. The PR happened today on deads. Keep reading to see all the deets.

••••••••••

Monday 5/11

DB BENCH:

Slight Incline:

30lb x12

It was after this first set that the flat bench opened up, so we switched over to that.

BENCH:

95lb x12

115lb x6

(135lb x3) 3x

4.5" block:

155lb x2

155lb x3

1/2 Rep - Bottom Up:

(95lb x10, x1 Full ROM) 2x

DB INCLINE BENCH:

35lb x10

45lb x2  - needed a spot on both, basically a fail, immediately went to 35lb x4

(40lb x4) 2x

I went to the 45's first because someone was working with the 40's. I had a feeling I wouldn't be able to get them, but I tried anyhow!

SEATED CHEST FLY:

85lb x10

95lb x8

105lb x5

I then tried a variation I've seen where you're not sitting, but leaning against the seat, legs out in front, about a 45° angle.

45lb x3

95lb x2

65lb x6

Tuesday 5/12

DEADS:

133lb x12

199lb x3 (overhand), x3 (mixed)

(239lb x3) 3x

BENT BB ROW:

Bar x20

55lb x12

65lb x12

75lb x10

SINGLE LEG RDL:

(50lb KB x10 ea. leg) 3x

LAT PULLDOWN:

Narrow:

85lb x12

90lb x10

100lb x6

CABLE LAT SWEEP:

15lb x10

25lb x6

20lb x5

CABLE LAT PRAYER:

20lb x10

30lb x7

35lb x5

20lb x10

ASSISTED PULLUPS:

I used the same hand/arm position on the pullups as I did on the pulldowns

90lb x10

(80lb x6) 2x

MACHINE CRUNCH:

(80lb x12) 3x

BACK RAISES:

25lb x12

45lb x10

70lb x8

••••••••••

     I'm kind of pleased with the 135lb on bench. I couldn't make sets of 5 this week, but the sets of 3 felt stable and solid. I'm not making the progress that I would like on the bench. I need to look into that and adjust what I'm doing. 

     The deads went well! I didn't do a lot, but I did get a PR on my sets of 3! I've never done that weight before and I'm very pleased with my progress. I remember when I was stuck at sets of 185lb, and even that was a struggle. I didn't even have to wear my knee sleeves tonight. My right knee is angry now, but it held up while at the gym. 

     I'm reigning my food in and getting it back to where it should be. I didn't have a ton of energy last night for bench but for some reason today, I was kind of peppy. I don't question it anymore, I just roll with it. 

     I've had dinner, had my treat, and now I'm ready for tea and a rest.

Squattin' Solo

     I was without my other half for squats today. Frank was off on an adventure up north. I was on an adventure at the Y. Here's what I did:

••••••••••

45° LEG PRESS:

(190lb pulse x10) 3x

240lb x10

(280lb x10) 3x

SQUATS:

High Bar:

Bar x10

Low Bar:

95lb x10

Low Bar 1.5 Reps:

(95lb x6) 2x

115lb x6

115lb x3

LEG EXTENSIONS:

Single/Single/Double:

(40lb x10 / x10 / 90lb x5) 2x

50lb x5 / x5 / 100lb x5

LYING HAMSTRING CURL:

Single/Single/Double:

60lb x4 / x4 / 110lb x4

(50lb x4 / x4 / 90lb x4) 2x

MULTI HIP:

Standing Adduction:

(29lb x10 ea. leg) 3x

Standing Abduction:

(29lb x10 ea. leg) 3x

••••••••••

     Aside from feeling totally alone, everything went alright. I haven't been eating very well though, so much energy was tanked. I really should have pushed for more squats and I should've done the hip flexors and kickbacks on the multi hip machine. I need to do better, so I will. I'm also going to reel my diet back in today. No excuses. 

I Didn't Bring Da Noise

     The past 2 days have gone well. Nothing remarkable, which, in relation to last Tuesday, is a wonderful thing! Here's the rundown for Monday and today:

••••••••••

Monday 5/4

BENCH:

Paused:

65lbx10

95lb x10

1.5 Reps:

115lb x3

95lb x6

95lb x3, x1, x.5

Larsen Press:

95lb x9

95lb x10

INCLINED PRESS:

(75lb x8) 2x

75lb x7.5

DECLINE PRESS:

95lb x10

115lb x5

115lb x4

DB ROLLBACK:

(20lb x10) 3x

DB PULLOVER:

(40lb x10) 3x

SEATED FLY:

Single/Single/Double:

80lbx10/x10/90lb x5

(80lb x10/x10/90lb x6) 2x

Tuesday 5/5

DEADS:

133lb x10

177lb x8

221lb x2, x4

221lb x5

221lb x3

KB RDL:

Double Leg, kb in ea. hand:

(50lb x12) 3x

DB BENT ROWS:
Narrow/Sweep:

20lb x10/x10

25lb x7/x7

30lb x5/x5

SEATED WIDE CABLE ROW:

25lb x12

30lb x12

(40lb x8) 2x

NARROW LAT PULLDOWN:

70lb x10

75lb x10

85lb x8

BACK EXTENSIONS:

Weight Held w/arms extended

25lb x12

35lb x12

45lb x12

••••••••••

     I felt a little "scattered" and unfocused yesterday. It seemed like my brain just couldn't stay in one lane. I look back at my notes and see that my reps/sets had no rhyme or reason, or at least, less than what they usually have. Today went a little better. I tried not to do too much with the deads because my goal is to keep these sessions less taxing on my body. I'm hoping to find the sweet spot of doing enough to progress, but not so much that I can't recover. I think I'm getting close. I had some tightness in my left hip after the deads, but I did some stretching and then a dead hang and I felt a nice, releasing pop. Most of the pain was gone after that. My knees have been achy but I'm blaming this crazy weather for that. Other than that, I'm all good. I also had no...let's call it..."gastrointestinal issues" today. Praise baby Jesus.

     I'm feeling good, and trying to stay positive in the face of adversity. It sounds so cliché, but it's true. The easy thing to do is just give in to the negative feelings and throw your hands up in defeat. I don't want to do things the easy way, though. I never have. I work hard, I push hard, I complain loudly at times, and I persevere. 

     On a side note, I'm trying to update the look of this old blog. I don't know about you, but the white font on a dark background was really straining my eyes. I opted for this new brighter look, but I'm on the fence. I think it's a little too "foo-foo" for my liking. I may play around with it a little  and see if I can't fine tune it. Let me know if you have any suggestions!

Saturday Squats

     We skipped yesterday and hit squats today. It was a good day, keep reading to see the details.

••••••••••

SQUATS:

Sumo Squat:

Bar x10

Standard Back:

95lb x10

1.5 Reps:

95lb x10

115lb x10

Anderson Squats:

95lb x10

115lb x5, x5

STANDING CALF RAISE / SHRUGS:

(+45lb x10 / x12) 3x

45° LEG PRESS:

[(190lb x10 pulses, 1 Full ROM) 3x] 3x

LEG EXTENSIONS:

Single/Single/Double

40lb x10 pulses / x10 pulses / 90lb full ROM x5

Single/Single/Double

30lb x10 full ROM, x5 pulses / x10 full ROM, x5 pulses / 90lb x5

INNER / OUTER:

Inner:

(55lb x11) 3x

Outer:

(70lb x10) 3x

SEATED HAMSTRING CURLS:

Single/Single/Double:
(70lb x10 / x10 / 130lb x5) 3x

••••••••••

     I'm very happy with today mainly because I had zero pain! I was a little nervous at first but once I did those first squats with just the bar, I felt much better. I kept the weight relatively low again and played around with rep schemes and form. I haven't done Anderson squats in literally years. They weren't as low as they probably should have been. I put the safety bars one hook up from what parallel probably was, but I'm OK with that. It feels good to do things that I haven't done in a such a long time. It makes me feel like I'm not as much of a trainwreck as I think I am. 

    We went out and celebrated our awesome squat day (Frank moved heavy weight and did an amazing job) with some sushi. I don't care if that was a good idea or not. We had fun and enjoyed our day. I've been getting away from using the macro app and I'm doing well. I had put some pounds back on but they're back off again. I'm honestly not sure if that was eating or some hormonal / water thing going on. I still haven't gotten a doctor yet. I'm still on the waiting list, as far as I know (insert massive eyeroll).

     All in all, it was a good day. I'm trying to focus on things that will help strengthen my VMO because I think that will, in turn, help hold my knees in place. I'm also sticking with a few weeks of hypertrophy work, and then a few weeks, or whatever I can manage, of strength work. I'm trying to work with this old body and not totally destroy it in the process. We'll see how it goes.

Pressed For TIme

     Tonight's normal schedule got thrown into chaos courtesy of The Child. I managed to squeeze in a decent session anyhow. Here's what I did:

••••••••••

O.H. PRESS:

Strict:

Bar x15

50lb x10

55lb x7

60lb x6

65lb x6

(65lb x5) 3x

Z PRESS:

Bar x10

50lb x7

55lb x5

(60lb x4) 3x

CABLE LAT RAISE:

5lb x12

10lb x10

10lb x6

15lb x3

ISOLATERAL SHOULDER PRESS:

+10lb x12

+15lb x3

+10lb x6

REAR CABLE FLY:

(80lb x8) 3x

••••••••••

     Em's school was having an open house night tonight and she was staying after for it for some extra credit. But I ended up having to drive her and her friend back and forth because it didn't start till 5:30 and they couldn't just hang around until it began. They came to the gym with me, (Frank ended up staying home) but they had to wait in the lobby. I ended up training solo today. I much prefer having a partner there with me. 

     I didn't have a lot of time because I had to get them back to school by a certain time and traffic sucks (bridge work on the highway), so it was a quick bing-bango, get 'er done sort of night. I think I did fairly well. I'm officially on some lighter work for a few weeks and then I'll switch back to heavy. 

     Right now, I'm waiting for my dinner to cook and then the text message to go get the kids and run her friend back home. Mishy's Taxi Service in full effect!

The Shot Heard 'Round The World

     It was deadlifts tonight. After what happened, I kind of wish I was dead. Here's what I managed:

••••••••••

DEADS:

111lb x12

Paused:

155lb x8

155lb x6

199lb x3

199lb x4

199lb x3

BB RDL:

155lb x6

155lb x8

(199lb x3) 2x

BENT BB ROW:

Bar x15

67lb x10

77lb x8

SEATED NARROW CABLE ROW:

Single/Single/Double

45lb x8 / x8 / 90lb x8

45lb x8 / x8 / 90lb x6

55lb x5 / x5 / 100lb x5

ISOLATERAL LAT PULLDOWN:

SIngle/Single/Double

35lb x15 / x15 / x7

40lb x10 / x10 / x5

ASSISTED PULLUPS:

90lb x8

90lb x5.5

90lb x6

•••••••••

     Everything felt pretty good tonight. I'm pleased with the paused deadlifts and there was zero pain in my knees. As of right now, there is also no pain in my lower back. So, knowing all that, you're probably asking yourself why I wish that I was dead. Part of me doesn't want to even talk about it, or breathe life into it. Another part of me, however, knows that sunlight is the best disinfectant and if anything needs disinfectant, this would be it. So let's pour some sunshine on this moment of my life.

     We arrived at the gym and made our way to the back where we deadlift. It was fairly quiet in there, as it has been for the past few days. There was a young guy to our right and another guy on our left, both working diligently on themselves. We got the bar set up with my first weight, as is our custom. I set up, lifted it with ease, and stepped aside for my love to get his warmups in. Everything was smooth and easy, and relatively ho-hum. 

     We got the weight put on for my first set of paused lifts. I set my feet and bent to grab the bar. I set myself in position and took my beautiful, deep breath and braced. I pulled that bar smoothly from the floor and just as smoothly let escape the loudest burst of gas I think I've ever had. It resounded in the weight room like the crack of a lightning bolt from a midsummer's storm and I was mortified. I lowered the weight and got 7 more reps just as beautiful as the first but a lot quieter. 

     I turned to Frank and shut him down before he could get one lousy dad joke out of his cute little mouth. He obviously saw the horror and self-loathing on my face and immediately went into playing dumb, acting as though he had no earthly idea what I was talking about. Bless his little heart. 

     I resolved right then and there that I would never set foot in that gym again. I was done; this was my last day. How could I show my face again after having such thunderous flatulence? The shame would be passed down my family line for generations - sorry Em and all of my future grandkids. I suppose it could've been worse. At least it didn't stink and thank goodness it wasn't anything more than air that came out. Oh my god, I can't even imagine...

     OK, so maybe I will go back on Thursday but I'll guarantee you I'll still be embarrassed and still be 100% totally certain that everyone will now identify me as "the chick that farted". Google reassures me that "it is common; many lifters just allow it to happen as the part of the sport." Thanks Google, but that's not making me feel any better. Here's to hoping that I'm truly overreacting and if I'm not, here's to hoping that people have short memories.

Other Plans

     Last Friday was supposed to be squat day. It's my favorite day. Last Friday was most definitely not my favorite day. I had every intention of going heavy one more time but my knees had other plans. Read on to share in my misery.

••••••••••

Friday 4/25

SQUAT:

95lb - FAIL

Bar - FAIL

There was just too much sharp pain even with knee sleeves for me to continue.

Elliptical:

10 minutes, .6 miles

My knees were "catching" even on the elliptical. They weren't moving smoothly at all.

STANDING CALF RAISES:

(+90lb x10) 3x

EXERCISE STEP:

4 Risers high

SINGLE LEG DIPS:

Body Weight x10 ea. Left knee was giving the most pain here.

KB STEP UPS:

(20lb x10 ea.) 2x

KB SINGLE LEG DIPS:

(35lb x10 ea.) 2x

MULTI HIP MACHINE:

KICKBACK:

15lb x12 ea.

18lb x10 ea.

29lb x8 ea.

35lb x6 ea.

Monday 4/27

INCLINED BENCH:

65lb x10

75lb x10

85lb x8

BENCH:

95lb x10

115lb x3

Larsen Press:

95lb x10

115lb x5

Narrow Grip:

65lb x10

95lb x5

DB ROLLBACKS:

15lb x10

20lb x8

25lb x8

DB PULLOVER:

35lb x10

40lb x8

45lb x8

SEATED CHEST PRESS:

50lb x10 narrow

50lb x10 wide

55lb x6 narrow

55lb x5.5 wide

60lb x4 narrow

60lb x2.5 wide

PEC DEC:

Single/Single/Double

(80lb x10 / x10 / x10) 2x

100lb x5 / x5 / x4

TRI. PUSH DOWN:

Single Arm

15lb x12

20lb x4

15lb x7

••••••••••

     I was so friggin disappointed on Friday. I don't know why I had so much pain in these knees, but there was just no way any squats were going to happen. And let's be honest - those single leg dips weren't very dipped, but I needed to do something. 

     Today was OK. I was slipping on the damn bench though and it was aggravating. Those bench pads at the gym are like ice. I may need to get some sort of grippy thing to put down. 

I don't have too much to say. As always, I can have all the plans in the world, but sometimes Life has it's own agenda.