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Oblivian's Adaptations

Thanks guys.

ThinkGreen - pretty much. I did the same thing before and took my Push Press from around 215 lbs to 242.5 lbs. I'm doing something similar to that on all of my lifts. One heavy day (singles) and one volume/high rep day. I'm feeling really good right now and I think big PR's will be coming my way in 2-3 months. I'm just working on being patient and resting more.

Also - no straps allowed for the contest.
 
Warmup
Jump Rope: 5-10 minutes
Explosive/Plyo Pushups: 3 sets of 10

Bench Press
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
185 lbs x 3
205 lbs x 2
235 lbs x 1 x 3 sets
205 lbs x 2
185 lbs x 3
*Singles went up easily. Bench is feeling good.

Dumbbell Rows
60 lbs x 8 x 2 sets
70 lbs x 6 x 2 sets
80 lbs x 4

Overhead Squats
95 lbs x 5 (warmup)
135 lbs x 3
155 lbs x 2
185 lbs x 1

Front Squats
205 lbs x 5
225 lbs x 3
245 lbs x 2
275 lbs x 1
*Went beltless on these. No issues except 275 lbs was harder than I expected. I definitely had some back rounding.
 
Overhead Squats[/B]
95 lbs x 5 (warmup)
135 lbs x 3
155 lbs x 2
185 lbs x 1

Do you have any suggestions on stretches to get more flexible for overhead squats and snatches? The main thing holding my numbers back, i believe, is my flexibility.
 
When I first started doing OHS, I could barely do 95 lbs. It's a tricky lift involving balance and flexibility. I can't remember who suggested this to me, but it's golden advice. If you are trying to learn OHS, do OHS as a warmup before every single lifting session. It's a great lift to get you warmed up and it doesn't burn you out since the weight is so light. I would do about 5 sets every day I lifted. If you are lifting 3 days a week, that's 15 sets of OHS per week. One day, it will all click. At first, I was just doing sets with the bar. I remember when it clicked for me I did 135 lbs for the first time. That same day, I did 135 lbs for 5 reps.
 
Warmup
Jump Rope: 5-10 minutes
Power Cleans: 135 lbs x 3, 155 lbs x 2, 175 lbs x 1

Push Press (+ Power Clean where noted)
185 lbs x 3 (Power Clean 1st rep)
205 lbs x 2 (Power Clean 1st rep)
225 lbs x 1 (Power Clean 1st rep - video)
227.5 lbs x 1 x 2 sets
205 lbs x 2 (Power Clean 1st rep)
185 lbs x 3 (Power Clean 1st rep)
*Push Presses felt solid. Power cleans were ugly as hell on 205 and 225.



Squats
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
185 lbs x 5 (warmup)
255 lbs x 5 x 5 sets
*Beltless. Felt really light. I really want to jump up in higher increments, but I'm going to be patient.

Curls
Barbell: 95 lbs x 5 x 3 sets
Dumbbell: 30 lbs x 12

Ab Wheel Rollouts
3 sets of 10 (first 5 reps from standing, next 5 from knees)
 
Thanks. This patience and rest thing is new to me.
 
Nice work on the patience seconded. Why the two curl variations? And thanks for updating the June conditioning challenge for me.
 
Also, not sure if you want advice or not, but I'll put it out there and you can always ignore it. With your feet that wide on the first pull of the PC you're losing time/distance that the bar can travel and gain momentum. A closer stance = longer arms and a longer pull which while bad in a deadlift is good in a clean. And a caveat on catching with the feet splitting that WIDE instead of dropping your hips down/under: I did the same on a single arm bb snatch and it was at least half the contributing factor in the knee pain I've been struggling with the last year or so. Also, you recieve the bar on the way down after the press in a great rack position, but I notice you don't press from there, is there any reason? Do you just feel stronger with your elbows pointed lower, or have you not tried them up?
 
Nice work on the patience seconded. Why the two curl variations? And thanks for updating the June conditioning challenge for me.

The dumbbell curl is just a finisher. I'm trying to work a bit on hypertrophy after getting down to 160 lbs, and biceps are something I've neglected quite a bit.

Also, not sure if you want advice or not, but I'll put it out there and you can always ignore it. With your feet that wide on the first pull of the PC you're losing time/distance that the bar can travel and gain momentum. A closer stance = longer arms and a longer pull which while bad in a deadlift is good in a clean. And a caveat on catching with the feet splitting that WIDE instead of dropping your hips down/under: I did the same on a single arm bb snatch and it was at least half the contributing factor in the knee pain I've been struggling with the last year or so. Also, you recieve the bar on the way down after the press in a great rack position, but I notice you don't press from there, is there any reason? Do you just feel stronger with your elbows pointed lower, or have you not tried them up?

I definitely appreciate the tips. My Power Clean is god awful. I'm not that concerned with it as it's just an assistance for DL for me. I probably only clean once every 2-3 weeks. I've tried fixing it in the past, but to no avail. I do appreciate the tips though and I'll try it out.

As for the Push Press, I think we've talked about this briefly before. I was really surprised that a lot of people press/push press with their elbows in front. I've always felt the strongest with my elbows lower and almost in direct line with the bar. For me, there is a drastic difference in strength when I try the other way.
 
Warmup
Jump Rope: 5-10 minutes
Overhead Squats: 95 lbs x 5, 135 lbs x 3

Squats
185 lbs x 5 (warmup)
225 lbs x 5
275 lbs x 3
295 lbs x 2
335 lbs x 1 x 2 sets
295 lbs x 2
275 lbs x 3
*Everything went up smooth and strong

Bench Press
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
197.5 lbs x 5 x 5 sets
*Solid. I'm thinking that I may be able to get up to 205 lbs x 5 x 5 sets pretty easily.

Thickbar Pullups/Chins
BW x 12 x 4 sets (2 sets pullups, 2 sets chins)
*I almost skipped these, but I'm really glad I didn't. Had a few reps in the tank on the first two sets and maybe an extra couple on the last two.

Pinch Grip
Four 10's x 1 x 2 sets
Two 25's x 1 x 2 sets
 
haven't been in this log in a month or two and your press seems to have doubled.

whats the secret? besides steroids of course
 
haven't been in this log in a month or two and your press seems to have doubled.

whats the secret? besides steroids of course

Well my 1RM is still from 2009, so I don't think I've got much stronger yet. I think I could probably hit that # right now or maybe a bit more though. The program I'm running for it is the same program that took my Push Press from 215 lbs to 242.5 lbs. I Push Press twice a week - one day I work up to a 10 rep set and the other day I'm working heavy singles. I basically run a linear progression for both increasing by 5 lbs until I approach somewhere in between 90-95% of my PR in which I microload with 2.5 lbs. I'm also doing bench twice a week, another assistance day for bench, and an assistance day for Push Press. So basically, do a lot of pressing with varying reps.
 
Warmup
Jump Rope: 10 minutes
Power Cleans: 135 lbs x 3, 165 lbs x 2, 185 lbs x 1

Deadlifts
225 lbs x 5 (DOH Warmup)
295 lbs x 3 (DOH Warmup)
345 lbs x 1 (DOH Warmup)
435 lbs x 1 x 6 sets
*Solid, but last two singles were a bit slower than I'd like.

Push Press
95 lbs x 5 (warmup)
135 lbs x 5
155 lbs x 5
187.5 lbs x 10

Bench Press Lockouts/Board Press (pins set halfway between chest + lockout
225 lbs x 5 (warmup)
255 lbs x 5
275 lbs x 3
295 lbs x 3

Weighted Pushups on Dumbbells as Handles (pause at bottom)
+75 lbs x 8
+100 lbs x 6
BW x 50
 
Warmup
Jump Rope: 5-10 minutes
Explosive/Plyo Pushups: 3 sets of 10

Bench Press
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
185 lbs x 3
205 lbs x 2
237.5 lbs x 1 x 3 sets
205 lbs x 2
185 lbs x 3
*Singles flew up really fast. Bench is feeling strong again.

Bent Over Row
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
200 lbs x 5 x 5 sets
*Strict form. I'm thinking 225 lbs will be the breaking point where reps start getting sloppy.

Squats
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
185 lbs x 5 (warmup)
205 lbs x 20
*I decided I'll be doing a 20 rep squat session once every 2 weeks on my Squat assistance day. I wanted to go light for the first day. I'll do 215 lbs next time and keep increasing by 10 lbs until it gets really tough.
 
Warmup
Jump Rope: 5-10 minutes

Push Press
95 lbs x 5 (warmup)
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
185 lbs x 3
205 lbs x 2
230 lbs x 1 x 3 sets
205 lbs x 2
185 lbs x 3
*Singles are still going up easy.

Squats
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
205 lbs x 5 (warmup)
260 lbs x 5 x 5 sets

Seated Good Mornings
135 lbs x 10
185 lbs x 10
205 lbs x 8
225 lbs x 5

Dumbbell Curls
45 lbs x 5 x 2 sets
30 lbs x 12
 
Warmup
Jump Rope: 5-10 minutes

Push Press
95 lbs x 5 (warmup)
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
185 lbs x 3
205 lbs x 2
230 lbs x 1 x 3 sets
205 lbs x 2
185 lbs x 3
*Singles are still going up easy.

Squats
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
205 lbs x 5 (warmup)
260 lbs x 5 x 5 sets

Seated Good Mornings
135 lbs x 10
185 lbs x 10
205 lbs x 8
225 lbs x 5

Dumbbell Curls
45 lbs x 5 x 2 sets
30 lbs x 12

Push press machine
 
Warmup
Jump Rope: 5-10 minutes
Overhead Squats: 95 lbs x 5, 135 lbs x 3

Squats
185 lbs x 5 (warmup)
225 lbs x 5
275 lbs x 3
295 lbs x 2
340 lbs x 1 x 2 sets
295 lbs x 2
275 lbs x 3

Bench Press
135 lbs x 5 (warmup)
200 lbs x 5 x 5 sets

SOHP
95 lbs x 5 (warmup)
135 lbs x 8 x 3 sets
*Set/Rep PR. I've never been able to get that 3rd set. It was a struggle on the last rep.

BW is still floating right at 180 lbs. I'm thinking it will probably stay right around here. I'm eating whatever I want and quite a bit and not seeing any fluctuations.
 
Warmup
Jump Rope: 10 minutes
Power Cleans: 135 lbs x 3, 165 lbs x 2, 185 lbs x 1

Deadlift
225 lbs x 5 (DOH Warmup)
295 lbs x 3 (DOH Warmup)
345 lbs x 1 (DOH Warmup)
445 lbs x 1 x 4 sets

Push Press
95 lbs x 5 (Warmup)
135 lbs x 5
155 lbs x 5
190 lbs x 10

Close Grip Bench Press
135 lbs x 5 (Warmup)
200 lbs x 3 x 3 sets

Dumbbell Tricep Kickbacks
20 lbs x 12 x 3 sets

Thickbar Pullups
BW x 15

*Tough workout today. It was hot as shit in the gym.
 
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