Strength training for the puny

[Waxwingslain]

How difficult is that to do?

 

[SmashiusClay]

How difficult is that to do?

Well, I'll put it this way, the thumb I was driving into the can is pretty damn sore today, it took me a minute of repeated, all-out 5 second squeezes (which is what Brookfield reccomends) and by the end of it both my hands felt absolutely destroyed.

Feel free to give it a go, just to see how much the can deforms in your hand. It's quite a cool thing to shoot for, especially as there's nothing between the CoC#2 and 3 to target (except possibly a clamped #2 or buying some other company's gripper). That's one of the reasons I want to go back to doing more RT lifts, you can see steady progression more easily than with grippers.

If you do really go for it, I'd reccomend leather gloves, an apron (or really old clothes) and doing it outside.

 

[SmashiusClay]

5x5 - Week 1, Day 2

Strict overhead press:

145x5x5​

Deadlift:

275x5x5​

Squat:

180x5x5​

Pullups:

BWx5x5​

Gripper work and sledge hammer levering, followed by isometric leg stretches.

 

[SmashiusClay]

5x5 - Week 2, Day 3

Bench

190x5x5​

Squat

165x5
180x5
195x5
205x5
225x5​

Dynamic row:

180x5x5​

Gripper work, sledgehammer levering and isometric leg stretches.

 

[farmboy]

I may have asked this before. I know you're in England, but are you're weights posted in kilos or lbs?

 

[kaboom187]

I'm pretty sure its in pounds.

Smashius doesn't want the people too lazy to convert from KGs to LBs to miss out on his true greatness in the weightroom.

 

[SmashiusClay]

I'm pretty sure its in pounds.

Smashius doesn't want the people too lazy to convert from KGs to LBs to miss out on his true greatness in the weightroom.

Pretty much, weirdly enough I'm an engineering student by day and spend all the rest of my time working and thinking in the metric system, yet somehow I think of weightlifting in lbs. Dunno why.

 

[farmboy]

Pretty much, weirdly enough I'm an engineering student by day and spend all the rest of my time working and thinking in the metric system, yet somehow I think of weightlifting in lbs. Dunno why.

Too much American television, lol.

 

[SmashiusClay]

Too much American television, lol.

Nah I think it's the effect of learning about weightlifting from this place and t-nation, y'all have brainwashed me.

 

[SmashiusClay]

5x5 - Week 3, Day 1

Bench

170x5
185x5
2000x5
210x5
225x5​

Squat

225x5​

At this point my right hip flexor started to really throb, it was twinging all the way through the last set and i decided to cut the session short rather than risk an injury.

Dynamic row:

170x5
185x5
2000x5
210x5
225x5​

Gripper work, sledgehammer levering and isometric leg stretches.

 

[SmashiusClay]

5x5 - Week 3, Day 2

Strict overhead press:

160x5x5 (PR)​

Deadlift:

320x5x5 (PR)​

No squatting becaus eI'm being careful with my hip flexor, hopefully should be able to squat friday.

Some gripper work, finally managed to cheat close my clamped CoC#2 (left hand holding the spring). I will close this thing before the end of the year and then go to town on my #3.

 

[graedy]

Join Alon, Ian and me on the metricsystem bandwagon! We are standing with the back to the wall against those lbs-guys

 

[SmashiusClay]

Join Alon, Ian and me on the metricsystem bandwagon! We are standing with the back to the wall against those lbs-guys

I do feel dirty about posting in lbs, then again it's actually the way i think about weights. Everything else goes through my head in metric.

 

[SmashiusClay]

5x5 - Week 2, Day 3

Bench

210x5x5​

Dynamic row:

210x5x5​

No squats as my hip flexor is still giving me gyp.

Gripper work, sledgehammer levering and isometric leg stretches.

 

[SmashiusClay]

Monday's training

Bench:

190x3
210x3
235x3 (PR)​

Dynamic rows:

190x3
210x3
235x3​

Today's training

Strict overhead press:

155x3
170x3 (PR),1,1​

Deadlifts:

155x3
200x1
245x1
285x1
330x5 (PR)​

Both day's had gripper and sledgehammer work.

Think I might go for a new 1RM on deads next monday, I'm also on course to up my bench pretty soon. Should also be sending out an e-mail to my Uni's PLing club either today or tomorrow, after a year of lifting it's about time I get some training partners.

 

[jk3004]

Smashius, I see this : Gripper work, sledgehammer levering and isometric leg stretches. in every training day. Do you only do this 3x per week, or do light training for the other days?
Also as I am about to begin gripper training, do you feel levering is a vital role in grip strength? (Dumb question but hey, I need to give you someway to flame me ) I need an excuse to go buy a 8 lbs. sledgehammer anyways. Should I only be training levering on that 3x per week, same day as workouts?

P.S. excellent job on the beer can, is that a Pabst Blue Ribbon can?

 

[SmashiusClay]

Smashius, I see this : Gripper work, sledgehammer levering and isometric leg stretches. in every training day. Do you only do this 3x per week, or do light training for the other days?
Also as I am about to begin gripper training, do you feel levering is a vital role in grip strength? (Dumb question but hey, I need to give you someway to flame me ) I need an excuse to go buy a 8 lbs. sledgehammer anyways. Should I only be training levering on that 3x per week, same day as workouts?

P.S. excellent job on the beer can, is that a Pabst Blue Ribbon can?

The beer can was a Kronenbourg 1664, a pretty decent french lager.

Mostly I only do gripper work on the three training days, although I'll do some light training and work with extensor bands and those chinese ball thingys you spin around in your hand (sorry for the technical jargon, do try to keep up), I was very interested by Sonny's post on closing the #3 and how he used light days to practice setting the gripper and getting the form correct.

Levering is awesome, it's the best wrist strength exercise going and the only thing the comes close to it is a wrist roller (then there's steel bending and ripping phone books). I would definetly go with an 8lb hammer and just start off as high up the handle as is necessary and then slowly work your grip point down til you can manage the whole thing. I work sledgehammer work three times a week as that's what seems to work best for me, whereas my arms seem to prefer to use a wrist roller once a week, play around and see what frequency helps you most.

If you have'nt yet I highly reccomend buying Brookfield's books on grip strength, together they tell you just about everything you'll ever want to know about having hands that can do stuff that terrifies normal people, he even has a chapter on how to rip a tennis ball in half!

 

[Waxwingslain]

Join Alon, Ian and me on the metricsystem bandwagon! We are standing with the back to the wall against those lbs-guys

You forgot someone Graedy...

 

[heliogracie215]

Ok, so I've decided to start a log as this may help give me a little bit more training incentive as well as reminding me how far I have to go before I'm happy with my gpp.

First off a little about me:

Age: 20
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 170

I've been training in Muay Thai, Sombo, Judo and Vale Tudo for about 7 years all told and have competed in Sombo, Judo and mma as an amateur; all with a fair bit of success(though I say it myself), but I am looking to train a powerlifting style routine to try and get as much carryover to my fighting as possible.

For quite a few years I've supplemented my MA with a godawful "strength" training routine that consisted of doing low weight isolation exercises and did absolutely sod all for my fighting. Thanks to the S&P forum I've now been doing my current program for about 2 months and I'm finally not so horrifically embarassed that i'm prepared to post my training (I'm still very embaressed but at least now anyone reading this won't assume I'm a 90lb twelve year old schoolgirl, or at least i hope not ). My squat still sucks but at least my dead and bench press are coming along, plus i'm actually vaguely proud of my grip (shut CoC#2).

My current routine:
Monday: deadlift
Wednesday: press
Friday: squat

All days are supplemented by grip and ab work.

NB. all exercises will be posted as weight(lbs)xSetsXReps

Oh yeah, please feel free to post any criticisms, improvements, encouragement or general ridicule either here or PM me.

DUDE get the bas rutten dvd's and some russian kettlebelles you'll be all set dont wast money on a gym brotha ... just get mean in your back yard

 

[Feature boy]

I believe Smashius lifts in his own garage.