Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

OHP is simply a tough lift man. It's not different from bench in just a shift from chest to more shoulders, you have to balance that weight from the floor, a lot of core strength and it's way more taxing.

One thing I've noticed is you can squat or deadlift heavy before heavy bench and it won't affect it really. But doing them before OHP just kills your core strength before you get started.

Haha lop-sided deadlifts. Better than curls

Hey! Give me a break! I got some stretch marks from those curls!

11/27/10

Leg press machine
Bench press: (5, 5, 5, 3, 2) 160
DL: (1x5) 305. TONS of reps at 225 and 135.

Quick workout today.
I've decided to deload the DL again because my form isn't the best. Will go back down to 225.

11/29/10

Squats: (3x5) 185
OHP: (3x5) 85
DL: (1x5) 225, (1x3) 275 Deloaded
Pull-ups: 4, 2, 1 Ew
Prone bridges: (2x30) seconds +45 pounds

I'm back at school and can squat again. Call me a momma's boy, but I miss home already! It's nice to be one of the strongest people in the gym at home.

12/1/10

Squats: (3x5) 190
BP: (3, 2, gave up) 160, reps at 135 AWFUL I went 5, 5, 5, 3, 2 last time I tried 160
BB rows: (3x5) 120 *PR*
Dips: 7, 6 unweighted

Bad workout.
I don't eat as well at school, nor am I as happy. Obviously this isn't good for my progress. My roommate drives me crazy. He is always in the room. Okay, now I'm mostly just whining, not proposing reasons why my lifts are suffering.

Hang in there, room mates can be tough to deal with. Are you living in a dorm? What are the food options like there? Sorry if you've already mentioned that somewhere.

Thanks for the concern. I'm doing fine... was just annoyed with my body after that bad workout.
Yes, I'm living in a dorm. I'm in a forced triple--a double converted into a triple. It's not bad, just not as nice as home haha
They always have vegan food here, so I shouldn't have complained. I need to make myself eat more, is all. I should get a rice cooker and always have quinoa cooked....

12/4/10

Squats: (3x5) 195
OHP: (3x5) 85+ (microloaded with collars)
DL: (1x5) 225, (1x3) 275, single at 295
Chin-ups: 7 *PR*, 5, 3
Weighted prone bridges: +45 pounds for 45, 30 seconds

Not a bad workout! Finally!
OHP went up pretty well.
Chin-ups felt great today! Personal record of 7, even though I gained weight!

12/6/10

Squats: (5, 5, 3) 200 *PR*
BP: (5, 5, 3, 2, 2) 160 NO! Time to deload.
BB rows: (3x5) 120
Dips: 8, 7, 6 *PR*
Reverse crunches: (3x12)

Uhhh... I'm getting porky. I weight 194 fully clothed, fed, hydrated.
I want to cut some weight off, but I'll keep going! BULK!

Still looking great for progress as always, Rutroh!

Give lower-carb dieting a shot when it's time to cut some fat. I find that I can still maintain strength well on about 125-150g carbs/day (eating one larger carb-filled meal after training, rest of them on the low side of the spectrum), best type of diet I've done to drop fat without losing a ton of muscle or needing to kick in cardio multiple times per week.

And, to follow up on the overhead stuff as Chewy noted, it's usually the slowest lifting to progress for most people, so don't sweat it too much. As I tend to tell people here often, if your overhead strict pressing stalls out, change it up to doing push presses, 1-arm DB presses with a bit of side lean when necessary, partial presses, etc. as those things tend to work well for breaking through strict pressing plateaus. When you get to where you're push pressing 10-20% above your strict press weights, it definitely builds more strength and confidence for when you go back to strict pressing. Which is why I'm about to change back to non-strict pressing soon, as I'm hitting a wall myself!

Yay on the OHP!

Thanks for the words, both of you. Feeling better about OHP. I feel like my form has improved a bit.

I definitely eat too many carbs. It's an easy way to get calories around here. There are juices and vegan cookies (Alternative Baking Company... delicious).

12/8/10

Squats: (5, 3, 2) 200
OHP: (3x5) 90
DL: (1x5) 235, (1x2) 275
Pull-ups: 5, 3, 2
Prone bridges: + 45 pounds: 50 seconds, 40 seconds

Drat! Another bad workout.

Squats: (2, 2) 200 Awful awful awful awful
BP: (5, 3) 160; (7, 6) 135
Inverted rows: (3x5) 125 *PR*
Dips: 8, 6, 5

Been stressed from final projects and exams. Can't wait to go home! 5 nights, and then I'm back in business!