jamesxvx

I've done a few workouts since my last post. Did a 225x2 Bench, heavy chain dips and had a 465 deadlift in the bag. Don't have my notebook with me, but that's a solid summary.

Arms, June 14th, 2013 Felt nauseus and light headed this whole workout. Went through it anyways haha. 21s, 25sx3x10 Alternating curls with hammer curls with reverse curls 20sx10 25sx10 20sx10 Dips BWx2x10 30lb chain 2x10 Pull ups 3x10 Tri pushdowns with rope extensions 50lbs x10x10x3 sets

June 13, 2013 Legs Oly Squats bar, 95x 135x 185x10 225x8, 275x6, 295x4 Chained Squats 2 chainz 195x10, 255x8, 295x4 Leg extensions 80x10, 90x10, 100x10, 100x10 Ghetto GHR and Ab roller 3x10

Shoulders, June 12, 2013. Arnold Press 30sx10, 40sx10, 45sx10x3 MP barx12, 95x10, 105x10, 95x10 MTS row with front raises 120x10, 15sx10 160x10, 15sx10 180x10, 15sx10 Shoulder Press with Lateral raises and rear delt 60x10, 15sx10, 55x10 70x10, 15sx10, 85x10 80x10, 10sx10 (Some dude hopped on my machine... Ain't got time for that) Dynamic stretches

Can I get my bench up to 245 lbs and my body weight back down to 180

I missed putting up my DL workout from last night so here's two workouts in one post. Back, June 10, 2013 DL. 135x10, 185x10, 225x10, 275x8, 315x6, 365x5, 405x1, 445x1, 455, missed the lockout. Had this one in the bag but I loosened up my lats when I felt it slow down. BB Rows SS with WG Pull ups. barx12 x BWx10 135x10 x BWx 6 185x10 x BWx5 155x10 x BWx4 2 Minutes rest between each. Lat Pulldowns SS w DB shrugs 85x10 x 70x10 105x10 x 70sx10 120x10 x 70sx10 Foam roller and stretches. Bench June 11, 2013 2x15 Pushups 2x15 Close grip pushups Bench Press barx12, 95x10, 135x10, 165x6, 185x5, 205x1, 225x1, 245x1 PB Haven't hit anything over 225 in a solid two months. Switching my form up a bit to incorporate a more dramatic arch and a slower decline helped a lot. Incline DB Bench SS with Incline DB Flyes 35sx10 x 20sx10 45sx10 x 20sx10 50sx10 x 25sx10 50sx10 x 25sx10 Dips SS with Decline Pushups BWx10 x BW x10 Bwx10 x Bw x 10 BW x 9 x Bw x 8 Bwx10 x BW x 9 Foam roller and stretches. I'm also sitting at 180 lbs. Very happy about that.

June 9, 2013 Legs Front Squats barx10, 95x10, 135x10 OLY squats 185x10, 225x8, 275x5, 295x3 Leg Press 285x20, 375x15, 465x10, 555x10 Leg Extension 70x10, 95x10, 105x10, drop-set from 105-75x20.

Can't be kept down too long apparently haha

Currently 180, heaviest I was 190.

I've been reading a fair bit of posts on this forum and many others regarding a decline in motivation and consistent workouts, essentially just getting burnt out. I thought I would write a bit of a post to let some people know what goes on inside my head to keep me in the gym. About two years ago I was a small 150 lbs 5"10 dude trying to find my way around in life. I just transferred programs, moved 100 kms away from my friends and family and started a new life in a city full of racist, sexist and mainly those interested in getting drunk. I was an outcast. I didn't drink, I don't smoke, I don't go out, I mainly just hung around in my room. I transferred over to being vegan that year, eating mostly pasta and tomato sauce, knowing nothing about nutrition and putting on a fair bit of fat from the lack of knowledge on nutrition. My girlfriend at the time went vegan as well, and struggled more than myself. That relationship, lasting almost a year and a half ended abruptly in January. I fell apart. I slipped back into a deep state of depression, anxiety attacks and becoming a self loathing individual. I had no idea where to turn or what to do, so I just didn't do anything. I came to the conclusion that I didn't want to exist anymore, and daily thoughts about my existence troubled my mind. One summer day after working a long shift landscaping I hated myself, the way I felt, the way I looked so much, I found my dad's rusty ass barbell and started curling. Started from the bar, worked my way up, only five pounds when I could make the jump. I liked the way I felt when I was working out. How I was putting myself through shit to get stronger. I knew mentally and physically I was growing. I threw in military press, squats, deadlifts, clean and jerks, snatches, anything I could think of to work myself harder. I didn't want to be as weak as I was to let someone else influence how I felt. The bar saved my life. It molded me into a stronger person. Someone with discipline, a backbone and work ethic. Its the ultimate deal breaker. You think you're on top one day and ruling the world, and the next, the barbell tells you you're back at the bottom. Its a humbling experience. I came from someone who wanted to end their life, to someone who still relies on the gym to get me through all the shit in my life. The relationship problems, the remaining self hate I have, everything that breaks down in my life. You need to use that. Every problem you have, every person that fucked you over, every person who said you weren't good enough, that's what fuels me at the gym. That's what gets me through the worst days of my life. Because I know I'm stronger because of them. You show them that they made you a better person, a stronger version of yourself. But don't give them all the credit. You got off your ass and went to the gym, or your basement, or your garage, and you made that commitment to be stronger. No one else gets that credit. No matter what, when you fall off that track, and I have, and I will again, and you may too. You get back up and show yourself you're not weak, and you do not falter underneath the weight of your world on your back. You pick it up, and fucking rack it. I'd rather beat myself up at the gym, than wallow in how shitty my life is any day. Powerlifting has saved my life, it changed how I looked at challenges and it made me who I am today. Don't let your mind slip into where I was. There is always another option than looking at your life as meaningless. Use that hate, those emotions to drive yourself through the shittiest days, and come out stronger.

There's also a full series on bench and deadlift floating around ELITE FTS. If anyone is curious, it is out there.

YOUTUBE.

June 7, 2013 Shoulders Workout Dynamic stretching warm ups (rotator cuffs) Arnold Press 15sx10/30sx10/40sx10/45sx10/50sx8/45sx10 Log Press 45x10/65x10/85x10/95x10/115x8/105x8 Shoulder Press and Lat raises 50x10+10sx10 50x10, 60x2 +10sx10 60x12 +10x10 MTS high row + front Raises +Rear delt raises 50 +10sx10 + 10sx10 60 +10sx10 + 10sx10 80 +10sx10 + 10sx10 80 +10sx10 + 10sx10 Vega pre-workout and post - workout 2 scoops vegan proteins plus with almond milk.

New routine I started this week has me doing heavy singles, switching back squats for fronts and supersets. Its kicking my ass, but I'm getting back into the swing of things. 450 DL pull today. felt quick and tight.

Best quote on this forum.

Hey guys. Thanks for checking in. I've been super busy with work, almost 65 hours a week of physical labor. So I haven't had much time to post. I've lost 12 pounds, with I'm guessing a solid portion of that being muscle. My lifts have all stalled or dropped in the last month, and my depression has come back into play because of those drops. I go into the gym thinking it will come back to me quickly, but right away I come to the realization that the weight is too much for me to handle. Today I failed on a triple bench that a month ago I could hit for 10. Just embarassing. I dropped out of the competition. I knew that this wasn't good timing to be trying to hit any heavy maxes. Trying to find a new car, keeping a relationship strong, full time work and registering for a new school has just slowed me down so much. I'm not happy where I stand right now, but I'm looking at it as a rebuilding process. I'm going to eat cleaner and up my calories so I'm not always at a deficit because of work. Train harder and bite the bullet that I have to drop the weight to get my strength back. Once I'm happy (More content) with where I'm sitting with my lifts I'll be looking into a few PL coaches in the area to tweak some things and give me some guidance. I'm shooting for a competition at the end of August now, and that's my goal. I luckily met a National master class PLer today at the gym who gave me some tips, some people to call and reset my bench form which felt more sturdy. Hopefully I'll be able to post a bit more now, but if not I'll be posting as much as I can anyways.

Thanks guys. I'm back ona routine that I'm happy with, the cube method. My shoulder is a lot better, I took a few days off and it felt good as new. I enjoyed smolov, and would run it again next year, but I think I'm out of love for it for now haha. I did some heavy bench (FP 205x2) and some deadlifts for reps. Worked up to about a 405 for three sets of doubles off a 4" block. Definitely enjoy the variety the cube brings to the table. I really need to test my max for bench, I haven't done that in a while and I think its 10-15 lbs stronger than my 235.

I'm stopping my smolov cycle short a week. Its taken all the fun out of squatting, and it's been dragging me down. Working about 11 hours a day outside doing labor kills me, and doing high volume heavy squats, I can't keep handling it. So I'll be heading back to the cube method this week. One of my favourite methods, super fun, a lot of variety. I've also found that a lot of my other muscle groups have lost their strength since I've been doing solely heavy lifts on main movements and less assistant work. I did some heavy log press yesterday and worked up to 135x6. That's nothing too impressive for me, but It let me know that sometimes sticking to a routine that doesn't make you happy isn't worth it. I am still hesitant on my training though. I have a pain in my left shoulder, more muscle soreness than anything. But I think that's from work, and not working my shoulders in a long time. As for my meet, hopefully my work lets up a bit, I can't put my whole effort into training right now when I barely have enough to get through a work day. I am however losing weight, I'm sitting at around 180 and decreasing steadily. So that's nice.

I'm at a heavier 179 right now. No point in being at the top of the chart when I'm ten pounds heavier haha.

April 25 Deadlifts and Squats Deadlifts 135x5, 185x5, 225x5, 275x5, 315x5, 365x3, 405x2, 455x1, 500x1 PB Legs were shaky but I'm happy I pulled that one out. It took a lot out of me so I was hesitant to squat after. Squats barx10, 95x5, 135x5, 185x5, 225x3, 275x3, 300x3, 315x3. Today called for 315x5x5, there was no way that was happening. The deadlifts took so much away from my legs that I wasn't strong, and I was tired. Threw on some chains (100 lbs) 135+chainsx5 225+chainsx5 275+chainsx3 So essentially at the top of the lift I was about 375, felt good to drive up against the weight and get my lockout a bit stronger. Decline sit ups with 25 pounds x30, x20 Foam roller and stretching.

Can I get my deadlift to 500 Please?

Thanks man, glad you're back in the rack too. MF: Its set in stone, my registration will go out this week!

Just moving stuff home and packing my stuff up. I moving back home for the summer, so just gotta move a few things. April 22, 2013 Squats barx5, 95x5, 135x5, 185x5, 225x3, 275x4, 300x5, 315x5 (four sets) Felt strong on the four sets at 315. Legs felt good, hit them to depth, and that was for a rep PB. Light bench barx10, 95x10, 135x10, 185x10, 155x10

Thanks man, not sure what I have got myself into. Gonna be insane It will rule man. Everything that is intimidating is always the best result