Oblivian's Adaptations

[XTrainer]

Very few can close the 1.5 on their first try. I sure couldn't. Good work.

 

[Oblivian]

Very few can close the 1.5 on their first try. I sure couldn't. Good work.

That shows how clueless I am. I was hoping to do that for sets of 3!

 

[Oblivian]

Warmup
Bas Rutten Cd's: Two 3 min. rounds thai boxing
Overhead Squats: 95 lbs x 3 x 3 sets (paused)

Squats
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
255 lbs x 3 x 5 sets

Push Press (Heavy, Low Volume)
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
185 lbs x 3 (heavy warmup)
205 lbs x 1 x 5 sets

Pullups
BW x 8
+15 lbs x 5 x 3 sets
BW x 8

LSD (Later in Afternoon)
3 miles

Core
V-ups: 10 x 3 sets
Toe Touches: 10 x 3 sets
Sprinters: 10 x 3 sets
Hip Thrusters: 10 x 3 sets

Static Stretch
15 minutes

 

[ShadowNINku]

nice log, simple... and I can actually understand it
Lots of conditioning in here
I'd like to start working on some conditioning but don't want to lose strength, is the key to eat enough so that you don't start losing muscle especially if you do lsd?
How have you been gauging the amount of effort on the lsd work? It usually just says 3 miles or 3.5 miles.

 

[Oblivian]

nice log, simple... and I can actually understand it
Lots of conditioning in here
I'd like to start working on some conditioning but don't want to lose strength, is the key to eat enough so that you don't start losing muscle especially if you do lsd?
How have you been gauging the amount of effort on the lsd work? It usually just says 3 miles or 3.5 miles.

Well I'm actually struggling now with gaining strength, and I think it might be due to the conditioning work. My weight has gone from 182 lbs (over the winter) to 177 lbs. In the winter, I didn't run at all and I was inside a lot more. Now that it's nice out, I'm running and outside in general. I also eat a lot less as compared to eating myself into a food coma during winter. I'm to the point where I think all of this conditioning work is becoming a bit detrimental to my strength gains, but it doesn't bother me that much as of right now. Depending on your body and work capacity, you should definitely be able to fit in some conditioning, but it's hard to say exactly how much. If you look at my log through the months of December and January, that is where I had the best gains. I'm pretty sure my conditioning work has increased a lot more now compared to then. During that time, I don't think I made great conditioning gains though. I'm guessing my best balance would be somewhere between what I was doing then and what I'm doing now. For the time being, I'm liking my conditioning gains though.

As for the LSD work, I don't really gauge it at all. By the time I'm done with 3 miles, I'm pretty bored with running. It really just feels like a very light workout. I'd much rather run 3 miles slow than 1 mile fast. One of these days, I'll probably go around 5 miles and maybe work up higher. It just seems that if I go much farther than 3, my legs would be gone for the next couple days.

 

[Oblivian]

Picked up my new bench yesterday. Very excited about that. It's 12" in width, compared to my shitty 9" one. I did a couple sets and my shoulders finally have support. 225 lbs went up a lot smoother and faster than with the old bench. I figure I'll stick to my program strictly, and then I'll retest my max. If I'm still in a plateau, I'm willing to sacrifice gains and work in everything else to get my bench number up.

 

[Oblivian]

Warmup
Jump Rope: 5 minutes
Power Cleans: 135 lbs x 3 x 3 sets

Deadlift
225 lbs x 5 (DOH warmup)
295 lbs x 3 (DOH warmup)
345 lbs x 1 (DOH warmup)
425 lbs x 1 x 3 sets (mixed - right hand under, left over)
425 lbs x fail x 2 sets (mixed - left hand under, right over)
405 lbs x 1 x 2 sets (mixed - left hand under, right over)
*I haven't deadlifted in close to 2 months. For some reason, I was having trouble when I switched my mix grip. The goal was 425 lbs x 1 x 5 sets, but I just couldn't do it today with the left hand under.

Push Press (going for 10RM)
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
155 lbs x 5 (warmup)
185 lbs x 8 (fail on 9)
*I actually cut my workout short after this. My left arm around the bicep felt like I'd been armbarred really hard. I'm assuming I strained it on the deadlift with the left arm under. I'm really hoping to get 10 next week.

*Below was done later in the day after a nap. My arm felt much better after the nap, but it actually hurts a bit again after finishing up the below workout.

Overhead Squats
95 lbs x 3 (warmup)
135 lbs x 1 x 5 sets (long pause at bottom)
*I think each week I'm going to increase by 5 lbs. This would put me close to my 1RM for 5 sets. I'm hoping to do 185 lbs x 1 soon. I'm also practicing my jerk when I do these.

Thickbar Chins
BW x 8
+25 lbs x 5 x 3 sets
BW x 8

 

[WhiteLightning**]

Have you tried spreading your hands out on the OHS yet? If not, ice that bicep and let it heal, then try it with a bona fide snatch grip. An inch wider than this works well for me:

http://tomgorman.moonfruit.com/#/snatchgrip/4512329257

Lower bar position is closer to CoG is way easier to balance and keep over the midline of the foot.

Also if you still feel like form is holding you back on the heavy back squats, you might try throwing in some sets of 10. Increased volume has done more for my squat form than instruction ever has.

 

[Oblivian]

Have you tried spreading your hands out on the OHS yet? If not, ice that bicep and let it heal, then try it with a bona fide snatch grip. An inch wider than this works well for me:

http://tomgorman.moonfruit.com/#/snatchgrip/4512329257

Lower bar position is closer to CoG is way easier to balance and keep over the midline of the foot.

Also if you still feel like form is holding you back on the heavy back squats, you might try throwing in some sets of 10. Increased volume has done more for my squat form than instruction ever has.

I'm slowly working my grip outwards. I used to press the weight up instead of jerking, and it always felt weird with the wide grip. It's still a bit narrower than most, but it's wider than it used to be.

As for squats, I still think what is holding me back is the long layoff I had. Having weight on my back still feels uncomfortable. I'm going to finish out this 5 sets of 3 routine (5 more weeks), and then I'm going to focus on weaknesses. I'm guessing the routine following that will mainly focus on bench and back squats. Off the top of my head, I'll probably do something like this:

Day 1
Squats (Volume)
Bench Press (Heavy)
Bent Over Row

Day 2
Bench Press (Volume)
Deadlift
Squats (Light/Recovery/Form Work)

Day 3
Squats (Heavy)
Power Cleans
Bench Press (Light/Recovery/Arch Work)

Chins/Pullups would be on conditioning days. That's just a rough guess, but I'm thinking I can work out form issues that way.

 

[Oblivian]

Yesterday was a day off. A lot of food and 10-11 hours of sleep.

 

[Oblivian]

Warmup
Jump Rope: 5 minutes
Overhead Squats: 95 lbs x 3 x 3 sets

Squats
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
225 lbs x 3 (warmup)
265 lbs x 3 x 5 sets

Push Press (Heavy - Low Volume)
135 lbs x 5 (warmup as Push Jerks - these still feel awkward)
185 lbs x 3 (warmup)
210 lbs x 1 x 5 sets

Thickbar Pullups
BW x 8
+20 lbs x 5 x 3 sets
BW x 8

Warmup (Later in Evening)
Bench Press Form Work: 135 lbs x 5 x 3 sets
I watched some videos and took some advice from people prior to this. I'm going to consistently work on my arch, leg drive, staying tight, etc.

Mile Run
Somewhere in the low 6 minute range

Pinch Grip
Three 10's plates x 5 reps (each hand)
Two 35's x 5 reps (both hands at same time)
Four 10's x 1 (right hand PR)
Four 10's x fail on left hand
Two 45's x 2 reps (both hands at same time)

Wrist Roller
35 lbs x forward + back x 3 sets

Grippers
Cheap Ones (Similar to Trainer): 10 reps w/ hold on last rep (30 seconds or so)
COC #1: 5 reps w/ hold on last rep (5-10 seconds)
COC #1.5: 3 singles

Hex Dumbbell Claw Hold
20 lbs x 3 sets on each hand (my hands were sweaty so it was probably a little under 10 seconds)

Static Stretch
15 minutes

 

[XTrainer]

Lotta work today, nice.

 

[Oblivian]

Light jog/run
1.75 miles
*Nothing serious, I just wanted to get out in the good weather.

Bench Press Form Work (Warmup before Conditioning Challenge)
135 lbs x 5 x 3 sets
Really focusing on all aspects of the arch, staying tight, wider grip, etc. It's a lot to think about at once. Some reps are better than others.

May Conditioning Challenge - 1/2 Bodyweight Hang Clean to Press (No dropping bar)
34 reps with 90 lbs (Bodyweight = 178 lbs) *This will be my last attempt. Same result as last time. I about lost grip twice.



Core Work
Weighted Situps: 20 lbs x 20 x 2 sets
Leg Raises: 25 x 2 sets

Static Stretch
15 minutes

 

[Oblivian]

Warmup
Jump Rope: 5 minutes
Hang Cleans: 135 lbs x 3 x 3 sets (form work)

Bench Press
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
185 lbs x 3 (heavier warmup)
215 lbs x 3 x 5 sets
*This was tough. I had a breakthrough though. I'm pretty sure looking down at the bar touching my chest was a major flaw of mine. Curling my head up like that released the tightness in my shoulders. I will try to focus on that as well.

Front Squats
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
205 lbs x 3 (heavy warmup)
245 lbs x 3 x 2 sets
245 lbs x 2 x 1 set (fail on 3)
*I cut it short here. My mind wasn't in this because we were getting a new kitten delivered in about an hour. I figure I'll cut the weight to 240 lbs next week and move forward with the 3 reps x 5 sets. This weight is definitely tough for me, but I think part of the reason for the fail was mental.

Bent Over Row
135 lbs x 8 (warmup)
185 lbs x 5 (heavier warmup)
205 lbs x 5 x 2 sets
225 lbs x 3 x 2 sets
*Keeping form as strict as possible.

50 Burpee Challenge (Later in Evening)
3 minutes exactly. I did the first 30 in about 1 min. 40 sec. and took a 20 sec. break. I did the next 20 in a minute.

*That's all I had time for. We got the kitten around 7 and she kept us occupied. She adapted to the dog really quick which is good. My other cat is at my parent's so he can run around in their backyard/woods. We are too close to the road to let the cat out here, so I let him play at my parent's house outside. I'm a little curious as to how he will react to a new kitten.

 

[Corrosion]

Nice front squatting, it's a tough lift.

 

[Oblivian]

Heavy Bag
Four 5 min. rounds
*It was so hot down in the basement that I contemplated stopping after 3 rounds. Lately I've been doing 5 rounds, but that wasn't going to happen today. We need to put in all of our A/C units.

Grippers
Cheap Gripper: set of 10 (warmup)
CoC #1: 2 sets of 5
CoC #1.5: 2 sets of 2

Static Stretch
20 minutes

 

[Oblivian]

Very odd day today. My first lifting session was cut short due to failure and negativity. I ended up redeeming myself later in the afternoon though.

First Lifting Session​

Warmup
Bas Rutten Tapes: Two 3 min rounds (one boxing, one thai boxing)
Jump Rope: 5 minutes
Power Clean: 135 lbs x 3 x 3 sets

Push Press (Going for 10RM)
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
155 lbs x 5 (warmup)
185 lbs x 9 (failed on 10th)
*This was rather discouraging. A couple of my reps felt very out of control. The 10th I just couldn't lock out. I actually felt like I hurt my back on one of the sloppy reps as well.

Deadlift
225 lbs x 5 (DOH warmup)
295 lbs x 3 (DOH warmup - grip didn't feel good though)
345 lbs x 1 (DOH warmup - I almost lost grip again - that's not normal)
405 lbs x 1 (left hand under mixed, for some reason my left side felt weak)
425 lbs x 1 (right hand under - which is normal for me - the left side hung down low at first)

*I decided to call it quits here. There could be multiple reasons why I was lifting so shitty. I've had bad sleep since we got a new kitten. The kitten will cry at night waking me up multiple times. I also have noticed that if I fail early in a workout, I end up screwing up the rest of the workout. I need to work on the mental part. On the flip side, if I hit one PR, I feel like I can hit other PR's.

Second Lifting Session​

Warmup
Jump Rope: 5 minutes

Overhead Squats
95 lbs x 5 (warmup)
135 lbs x 3
155 lbs x 1
175 lbs x 1 (+10 lbs PR - a bit sloppy though)


Push Press (retry at 10RM)
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
185 lbs x 10 (+5 lbs PR)


Deadlift
*No need to log it. Almost identical to the first session. I have no idea what is wrong. I'm concerned about the left side seeming so weak compared to my right. I've never ran into this.

Ab Wheel
5 sets of 10 (first 5 reps standing, next 5 from knees)

Static Stretch
20 minutes

 

[Deleted member 87037]

Nice OH squat! Is that almost BW for you?

 

[Oblivian]

Nice OH squat! Is that almost BW for you?

Thanks. Currently I'm at 177 lbs, so it's pretty much bodyweight. Now that it got nice out, I'm running more and I've dropped 5 lbs. I have a feeling I may end up at around 170 lbs by the end of summer just from being out and about more. I still eat like a pig.

 

[XTrainer]

Nice PRs, oblivian!