Burning Bridges in Montana

[AaronM]

11/25/17 (Saturday)

200lb (salt/carb bloat from yesterday )

Mishmash W5D3

- Squat
135
185
225
265
290
315x5@RPE9.5 (x5 PR!!!)
- CGBP (3m rest)
145x12@RPE6
145x10@7
145x9@9
145x9@9 (4m rest)
- SGDL
270 10x1 (90s rest)

Notes: Program called for a 310 AMRAP for a new estimated 1RM, I did 315 instead since I hate lots of little plates. 315x5 is a x5 PR, and puts my e1RM at 370lb. That's a 35lb gain over the last 5 weeks. Another 35lb puts my e1RM at 405lb, which is my current goal. Funny, since back in January when I restarted SSLP my goal this year was to hit 315x1. Lower back felt a little off/tweaked after my top set, but it seems to be fine now.

CGBP went fine, but my ulnar nerve feels even more agitated today than usual after squatting and benching. Need to get this figured out soon. Taking 800mg motrin 2-3x/day doesn't seem to be helping at all. If I had $$$ lying around I'd see a massage therapist and let them mash my triceps and forearms till they were jello. That worked for my hip and thigh a few years ago when I had horrible pains from squatting.

SGDL is keeping things interesting. Maybe I'll try sumo out in a month or two when SGDL gets boring

Now to see what marcf wants me to do for the next 5 weeks to get my squat up.

EDIT - just realized tomorrow's my birthday. 315x5 is a good birthday present

[Wilhelm]

Nice, Aaron!
Sweet PR

Happy birthday.

[AaronM]

Nice, Aaron!
Sweet PR

Happy birthday.

Thanks! I turn 31 on the 26th, which puts me solidly in my 30's now. Too bad I didn't start lifting and gaining weight when I was 20...

[Wilhelm]

Ha! you could be like me and have started at 55.

[augeleven]

Happy birthday Aaron! Nice squat PR!

[Culican]

EDIT - just realized tomorrow's my birthday. 315x5 is a good birthday present

Happy Birthday!

[hector]

315 x 5 is a milestone!
Congrats!
And happy birthday!

[AaronM]

Happy Birthday!

315 x 5 is a milestone!
Congrats!
And happy birthday!

Happy birthday Aaron! Nice squat PR!

Thanks, peoples of the interwebz! Maybe I'll hit 405x5 for my next birthday

[AaronM]

11/28/17

Mishmash W6D1

- Squat (80% of 355lb)
135
225
265
285 3x5 (RPE's 7.5/8.5/8.5)
285x7@RPE9.5 (7m rest)
- TnG Bench (80/85% of 225lb)
135
155
170
180 2x5 @8-8.5 (4m rest)
190 3x3 @8.5 (4m rest)
190x6@9 (8m rest)
- DL
305 5x1
NO accessories (ulnar nerve issues in left arm).

Notes: Minimal energy today. Squats were slow, despite the low volume week last week. Bench was stupid slow, I may need to tone down the volume slightly on Saturday's session. DL felt slow despite the low weights. Ugh, not a good way to begin a new bench and squat cycle. Oh well, I still managed a decent amount of reps on my squat and bench AMRAPS.

[AaronM]

Oh boy, my lower back feels kentucky deep fried today. Sore, and so stiff I can't bend over to tie my shoes. Wonder if it's just fatigue from Tuesday's session, or if my technique is off.

Gonna assemble my new RF adjustable bench and Titan X3 rack today, hopefully my lower back feels better by the time I'm finished. Good thing today is light squat day. Jordan wants me to try out high bar to see if it agitates my ulnar nerve less.

[AaronM]

11/30/17 Thursday

Mishmash W6D2

- High bar squat (light day)
235 2x5
- Bench (4m rest)
160 5x8

Notes: Spent ~3 hours assembling my Titan X3. Wouldn't have taken so long if I had paid more attention to the directions. Didn't realize there were different length bolts, and some of the bolts had the washer and lock washers in the wrong order. I tried putting the center beam in after tightening everything else. Installed and tightened the chin up bar before realizing it was so high I'd hit my head on the ceiling. Oh well, it's fixed and finished now. Also assembled my RF adjustable bench. Only had an hour to lift before dinner and work.

I'm really pleased with the X3. However, the foot design doesn't overcome uneven garage floors, even with 3/4" rubber mats on them. Using a small cardboard "shim" to fix that. Took me a while to figure out where I wanted the safety bars for bench and squats, and I marked the holes with masking tape. Having closely spaced holes is going to really help my bench out, because now I can get setup properly and unrack the bar without having to get re-setup. I also like that the rack is so heavy it doesn't wobble or shift when I rack a bench, like my other rack did. The new bench is good, and has zero wobble. Perfect width and firmness for benching.

Tried high bar squats today per Jordan's recommendation since my ulnar nerve is still acting up. Going to take some getting used to, but I kind of like it. Need to find a tutorial on how to properly high bar squat, because I couldn't figure out how to grip the bar, or what que (sp?) to use to get out of the hole. Thinking "hip drahve" didn't seem very helpful with a more upright posture. Felt like the movement used more leg and less lower back/hips, which is what I expected.

[AaronM]

12/02/17 (Saturday)

Mishmash W6D3

- Squat (75% of 355)
265x8@RPErepsabove5suck
265x8@RPEwhyamIdoing8's?
265x8@RPEihatemylife
15 minute breather (had a headache, lungs burned, ears were ringing and felt dizzy)
- CGBP
155x10@7?
155 4x8@RPE6-7? (3-7m rest)
- SGDL
275x1@almost passed out (belt too tight?)
225 5x1 (beltless)
- Sumo DL (1st time trying these)
135 1x5

Notes: Low energy today, felt tired, and not too motivated to train. Lower back felt fatigued, which is very odd since I haven't touched heavyish weights since Tuesday.

3x8 squats suck. @d0uevenlift is a masochist who lives vicariously through the suffering of others. I don't want to see 8's unless it's below 70% of my max... Low bar thumbs under is definitely contributing to my ulnar nerve agitation, so I need to get my grip figured out.

CGBP was stupid easy today, despite benching 160 5x8 48 hours earlier. New rack+new bench=lower RPE. So nice having the hooks at the perfect height for unracking, and a bench that doesn't wobble.

Almost passed out doing SGDL 275x1, so I think maybe my belt was too tight. Dropped to 225 beltless. Tried out sumo for 135x5. Need to look up some videos on setting it up properly. Deadlift is definitely getting detrained, but I'll fix that after I get my squat up to 405.

[AaronM]

12/04/17

Mishmash W7D1

196.6lb (oops, not trying to lose weight)
Waist: 39/34" (wth? Weight goes down, relaxed waist size goes up?!?!)

- TnG Bench (85/90% of 230lb)
195 3x3 @RPE 8.5-9 (5m rest)
205 2x1 @RPE 9.5? (5m rest)
205x4@RPE9.5 (x4 PR, 7m rest)
- Squat
295 4x3@RPE8?
295x6@RPE9? (7m rest)
- DL
315x1 @almost passed out (weird)
275 4x1

NO accessories (ulnar nerve issues in left arm).

Notes: Squats felt solid today. Fooling around with thumbs around wrist bent back grip to see if it makes my ulnar nerve less mad. Bench was surprising. 205 was slow going, but somehow managed 205x4 for my last set.

Deadlifts are a train wreck. Oh well, I'm chasing a 405 squat right now. Thinking about switching to 1 heavyish single conventional, and 5 SGDL singles on Tuesday, and fooling around with sumo on Saturday. Might as well try some variations since my conventional DL won't be going up anytime soon.

[AaronM]

12/7/17 Thursday

197.6lb

Mishmash W7D2

- Wideish Bench (2 finger widths wider. 4m rest)
162.5 5x8 (RPE's 6-8)
- High bar squat (light day)
240 2x5 (@8. HB squats suck)

Notes: I'm finally benching 5x8@72% of my 1RM and it's relatively easy. Took me over a month to get used to this kind of volume. Checked my tonnage numbers last week, and I benched 17,560lb vs squatting 14,980lb. The bro is strong with this one. HB squats suck, but I'm hoping they'll make my elbow/ulnar nerve less agitated.

[Wilhelm]

Gotta bench more to bench more. : )

Great work, Aaron.

[hector]

12/7/17 Thursday

197.6lb

Mishmash W7D2

- Wideish Bench (2 finger widths wider. 4m rest)
162.5 5x8 (RPE's 6-8)
- High bar squat (light day)
240 2x5 (@8. HB squats suck)

Notes: I'm finally benching 5x8@72% of my 1RM and it's relatively easy. Took me over a month to get used to this kind of volume. Checked my tonnage numbers last week, and I benched 17,560lb vs squatting 14,980lb. The bro is strong with this one. HB squats suck, but I'm hoping they'll make my elbow/ulnar nerve less agitated.

I respect that superior bench to squat ratio.

It's probably not your issue, but when I fixed my squatting grip my elbow pain went away. Might be worth checking out. Jordan has an article on it. Or, I don't personally think it's that much of a difference whether you squat high bar or low bar. Seems like people have made way too big a deal about one being better than the other when, in practice, there doesn't seem to be much difference in results.

[AaronM]

@Wilhelm @hector , thanks! Maybe after a few months I'll start looking like I have a superior bench to squat tonnage ratio.

I'm still playing with the new grip, so it may take a few weeks to notice if there's elbow/nerve improvement or not.

[AaronM]

12/09/17 (Saturday)

Mishmash W7D3

- Squat
270x6@7
270x6@8 (4m rest)
270x6@8 (5m rest)
270x6@8.5 (5m rest)
- CGBP
165x8@8
165 5x6 @8 (3-5m rest)
- SGDL (beltless)
235 5x1
- Sumo DL (need to look up a video on how to do these properly)
155 x3/3

Notes: Was uber agitated after taking a final this morning. Felt a lot better after squatting. Less angst. Squats were solid, CGBP was decent, deadlift variations felt ok. Training definitely went better than my final today.

Next week I test my bench again! Aiming for 235-240lb.

[AaronM]

12/12/17

Mishmash W8D1

- Squat (7-9m rest)
305x2@10?!?!?
305x2@9.5???
305x2@9.5???
305x2@10?!?!? (What the deuce? I hit 315x5 no problems just 3 weeks ago!)
- TnG Bench (70% of 235)
165 5x3 (2m rest)
- DL
275 5x1 (almost passed out after a couple of these)
- Hammer curls
10lb 6x15

Notes: This is stupid. I've had 72 hours to recover from 270 4x6 squats and light deadlifts. Yet 305 felt like it was 335 today. What the deuce?!? Diet, sleep, external stressers, etc are all the same. Lower back felt fatigued just with the light warmups. What's wrong with me?

Light bench today, hoping to hit a PR on Saturday. Deadlift singles felt heavier than they should have.

[AaronM]

12/14/17 Thursday

197.6lb
Waist: 37.5/33.5"

Mishmash W8D2

- Bench
195x1
195x1
- High bar squat (light day)
245 2x5@RPE8
- DB curls
12lb: 4x15, 4x12 (108 reps)

Energy: none
Motivation: none
Fatigue: a ton
Stress: a ton (not conscious, but it's final's week and my gut is acting uber stressed)

Notes: This training week sucks, which isn't good since I'm supposed to hit a bench PR on Saturday. Sure hope my head/body is back in the game in 48 hours. I'll try to get some extra carbs & sodium down the next couple days, and pop a 200mg caffeine pill Saturday morning.