splinterhands (quest for 300/400/500 at 181 by year end)

[Zach Trowbridge]

I would also suggest ordering a pair of jumpstretch mini and light bands if you can afford it.  Rotating in band cycles for your speed work will help keep you fast while overloading the top end.  You won't need them the first month but they'll be beneficial for later cycles.

[splinterhands]

I went ahead and started my Bench DE day today.

Speed bench
45lbs X 10reps
135lbs X 3reps
155lba X 3reps X 8 sets

Closegrip bench off pins 6" off chest
145lbs X 5reps
185lbs X 5reps
225lbs X 5reps
275lbs X 2reps  (I couldn't get 5)

Lying extensions (Should have been 30lbs but I don't have a smaller bar than 45lbs) Still easy.
45lbs X 8reps X 3 sets

Barbell  rows
135lbs X 10reps X 4 sets  (I had to suck it up to get all these in but I did it)

Dumbell press
35lbs X 10 reps alternate arms  X 3 sets

I felt pretty good today after getting some needed rest in.  I feel a little pain in my upper chest/collar bone area but it's the same on both sides and I'm not too worried about it.  For some reason I only get that pain when I do presses off pins?? 

I did the dumbell press with my palms in because my shoulder joints feel "funny" if I go palms out.  This was a good workout and I handled the volume pretty good, although I was sucking air doing 40 reps of fairly heavy rows.  I just realized I did 25 sets... That's probably the most I've done in several years.

[Zach Trowbridge]

Looks good, except the lying extensions were prescribed 30lbs with dumbbells.  If you don't have dumbbells and are using a bar then you could probably work with 60-70lbs no problem.

Also, I'm a little surprised you had a hard time with the pin presses.  We may have to decrease the percentages on those a bit next week to keep your tricep volume high and make sure you're getting all your reps in.  Also, with the pin presses, I highly suggest taking the first rep out of the j-hooks instead of starting the first one from a dead stop on the pins.  This seems to help with the shoulder/clavicle issues for most people.  If not then I may have you sub in something else.

Good work today.  Make sure your rest periods on your DE sets are 45-60 seconds.  Your pin presses you can rest 1-3 minutes between sets, and everything else should be a minute or less.

[splinterhands]

Looks good, except the lying extensions were prescribed 30lbs with dumbbells.  If you don't have dumbbells and are using a bar then you could probably work with 60-70lbs no problem.

   Yep, I thought it was too easy but I told you I would follow it for a month as written...   I do have dumbells, just not contacts.  My tri's are actually a little sore today from something?  Probably just the volume overall.

Today I shot basketball at a brisk pace for about 25 minutes then spent another 15 on a treadmill and 7min on a stepper.

[Zach Trowbridge]

Most likely the volume.  If we need to add some special workouts 1-2 days a week following your main workouts those are easy to fit in and help accelerate recovery.  Shouldn't be needed for at least the first month though.

[splinterhands]

My tri's are a very good sore.  No complaints there at all.

My collarbone/upper chest area is a little pulled though.  I may need to sub something in for the pin presses for a while.  It's not bad, but it's not a good kind of sore either.  I'll admit though that my chest/shoulder/arms are still as pumped today as I can ever remember.  I think I'm going to respond well to the increase in volume.

[Zach Trowbridge]

Do you have access to boards or anything?  If not I'll have you sub in either floor presses or close-grip incline for supplemental work next week.

[splinterhands]

Yep.  I've got one board and  two boards but can make whatever I need.  I have a cabinet shop I run on the side so boards are no problem.   I also have chains.

[Zach Trowbridge]

No chains for now.  You can get a lot out of a few cycles of straight weight progressions and incorporate bands and chains once you've got the flow of things.  Otherwise people get too obsessed over the extra stuff that they never learn the basics.

Anyway, a 2-board should be enough if it's made from 2x6's.  Maybe a 3-board, depending on how long your arms are.  We'll switch next week's work to a close-grip 2-board and I'll tweak the numbers a bit.

[splinterhands]

Lowerbody ME

Rackdeadlifts (few inches below knees)
135lbs X 5reps
185lbs X 5reps
225lbs X 5reps
275lbs X 5reps
315lbs X 3reps
365lbs X 3reps
405lbs X 3reps
430lbs X 3reps (easy, could have went quite a bit higher)

Box squats (easy to start with got somewhat tougher near the end)
165lbs X 10 reps X 3 sets

Back raise
15reps X 3sets

Hanging knee raise
8reps X 4 sets

Farmers walk
3 sets X 45lbs X 200feet

Deadlifts went well, sucked some air doing the squats and really sucked air the rest of the workout.  Thighs feel good though.

[Zach Trowbridge]

Good shit.  Don't worry about having room to go up on the deadlifts, that's the whole idea.  You've got a PR to work with, next week you'll be cranking a 1RM on it and increase the volume on your accessory stuff.

How low were your rest periods on accessory work?

[splinterhands]

My rest periods were around a minute or so on the deads, probably stretched to around 2 minutes on the squats and probably about 1-2 after that.  I pretty much went back to the next set as soon as I got my breath again. 

I went about as fast as I could catch my breath. 

[splinterhands]

I'll have to hit my ME bench workout tomorrow.  I worked 15 hours today and I'm beat...

[Zach Trowbridge]

Not a problem.  Ideally you'll get your 4 workouts in in a 7-day timespan, but I have some clients that we rotate 4 days in a 3-day a week format, so it takes them 10 days to get through all 4 workouts.

[splinterhands]

ME Bench
Close-Grip Bench Press - 45 X 10, 95 X 5, 135 X5, 185 X 5, 235 X 3, 245 X 3
45-degree DB Incline Press w/ palms in - 3x45x15
Cable Row - 75lbs X 10 reps X 3 sets
Side Dumbbell Raise - 20lbs X 2 sets, 25lbs X 1 set
Dumbbell Hammer Curl - 25lbs X 10 X 2

245lbs X 3 reps is a PR and was actually easy.  The rest of the workout went well.  The dumbell presses were easy, the rows weren't bad and the curls were easy.

I noticed that I've got some new muscles in my legs that I don't ever remember having.

[Zach Trowbridge]

Nice work.  Try and hit your dynamic squat work tomorrow if you can.  I'll have your stuff for next week posted by the end of the night.

[splinterhands]

I'll should be able to get it in tomorrow, unless I'm just beat by the time I get home.     I was a little worried about my collar bone area but it doesn't hurt in the least. 

I'm normally off Sat and Sun so it may be better to TRY to get workouts on those days, but I've got so much overtime now that it's just pick a day that I'm less beat to get a workout in.  This is going well so far.

[Zach Trowbridge]

Week 2
DE Bench
Speed Bench Press - 45x10, 95x5, 135x3, 8x155, 185x1, 2x205x1
Close-Grip 2-Board Press - 3-5x175x5
Lying Barbell Extension - 3x60x12
Barbell Row - 4x145x8
Alt. Overhead DB Press - 3x35x12

ME Squat/DL
Rack Deadlift (just below kneecaps) - 135x5, 185x5, 225x5, 275x3, 315x3, 365x1, 405x1, 425x1, then maybe 1-2 more singles going up 10lbs at a time if 425 wasn't enough
Low Box Squat (close stance, 12-13" box) - 3x185x6
Back Raise - 4xBWx15
Hanging Knee Raise - 4xBWx10
Farmer's Walk - 5 sets of 200' with 45lb dumbbells, 30 sec rest btw sets

ME Bench
Close-Grip Bench Press - 45x10, 95x5, 135x5, 185x3, 225x1, 245x1, then 1-2 more singles going up 10lbs at a time
45-degree DB Incline Press w/ palms in - 3x50x10
Cable Row - 4x10 (pick a weight that you could get 15 with and stay with it for 3 sets of 10)
Side Dumbbell Raise - 3x25x8
Dumbbell Hammer Curl - 3x25x20

DE Squat/DL
Parallel Wide-Stance Box Squat - 45x10, 95x5, 135x2, 8x185x2, 205x1, 225x1
Stiff-Leg Deadlift - 3x195x10
Hamstring Curl - 4x10
Decline Situp - 4x8
Farmer's Walk - 5 sets of 200' with 45lb dumbbells, 30 sec rest btw sets

I may make some changes to your DE squat day depending on how tomorrow goes for you.  The added singles after your DE bench and squat are to keep perfecting your form with weights that are in the 70-80% range.  Those reps should look perfect.

[11venthhour]

ME Bench
Close-Grip Bench Press - 45 X 10, 95 X 5, 135 X5, 185 X 5, 235 X 3, 245 X 3
45-degree DB Incline Press w/ palms in - 3x45x15
Cable Row - 75lbs X 10 reps X 3 sets
Side Dumbbell Raise - 20lbs X 2 sets, 25lbs X 1 set
Dumbbell Hammer Curl - 25lbs X 10 X 2

245lbs X 3 reps is a PR and was actually easy.  The rest of the workout went well.  The dumbell presses were easy, the rows weren't bad and the curls were easy.

I noticed that I've got some new muscles in my legs that I don't ever remember having.

workouts look a little more organized so far!
keep it up man!

[splinterhands]

They are more organized...thanks to Zach.  

[splinterhands]

Lowerbody DE

Box squat
45lbs X 10 reps
95lbs X 10 reps
135lbs X 5 reps
185lbs X 2 reps X 8 sets

SLDL
185lbs X 10 reps X 1 set (I hurt my back so I didn't finish the last two sets)

Ham curls
120lbs X 10 reps
145lbs X 10 reps
160lbs X 10 reps

Decline situps
3 sets of 8

Farmers walk
45lbs X 200' X 3 sets

My hams are fried, my back is aching but I had a long day yesterday and probably hurt it then.  I think my back will be fine by my next workout.  I feel like my cardio is getting stronger.

[splinterhands]

Stiff-Leg Deadlift - 3x195x10


I may make some changes to your DE squat day depending on how tomorrow goes for you.  The added singles after your DE bench and squat are to keep perfecting your form with weights that are in the 70-80% range.  Those reps should look perfect.

The only changes I'd suggest would be keep the weight at 185 or possibly even 175, depending on how my back feels after a few days.  My legs are really growing well!!  I'm excited to see how well my legs respond after a few more months.

[Zach Trowbridge]

That surprises me, but it sounds like your lower back just isn't up to par when it comes to higher-rep work.  I would like to see you add 2 sets of 15 reps of 45-degree back raises with no weight to the beginning of your squat days as a warmup movement and another 2-3 sets to the end.  I've found that some moderate endurance work for the low back helps keep it alive when it's a supporting muscle group for other exercises.

[splinterhands]

You've gotta remember that I've done almost nothing high rep for a LONG TIME.   

[Zach Trowbridge]

You've gotta remember that I've done almost nothing high rep for a LONG TIME.   

Then get used to epic lower back pumps with the shit you'll be doing.