The Return of: The Weenie in the Squat Rack

[48mpg]

Feb 10:

Squat: 220
OHP: 115
DL: 225

i'm consciously contracting my abs hard and it feels weird and sometimes, I'm not even sure I'm doing it right. my lower back does feel better, so I guess its working.

OHP was still tough even though this is the second week at 115. hopefully next week feels good at 120.

DL: felt good. I figured out a few things. My stance needs to be a bit wider than it was. just a hair. My upper body was too far over the bar before and i think th ebar was getting away from me. I need to drag it up my shins more and keep it on my heels.

I've also noticed that my stance on squats have gotten a bit wider as well. Im not sure why. but it is so.

 

[48mpg]

Feb 12:

Squat: 300
Bench: 170
Row: 155

squat felt good, gotta get pumped up and just do it. not too bad for 3 reps. again my stance is a bit wider. if it works, i'm going with it.

Bench: i scooted further up the bench. felt better. 170 for 3 felt good.

rows: moved my grip wider to where my bench grip is. thumbs length from the edge of the knurling. feels better.

things are going in the right direction.

my lower back was a bit tight again though. not nearly as tight as the week before. see what happens.

 

[48mpg]

Feb 15:

squat: 300
Bench: 170
Row: 155

3 @ 300 was tough, but got it up.

bench was tough too.

heck each of the top sets were tough today, but I guess thats the point.

I need to keep playing with my squat stance to find where it is best. if my feet are too close, I'm havng trouble opening up my hips.

 

[48mpg]

Feb 17

squat: 225
OHP: 120
DL: 405

OHP: the last 2 reps were tough, but I got them up. I need to focus on getting my head through instead of leaning back so far to get it up.

DL: first heavy set in ~2 - 3 weeks. felt good. once I can get pumped up for it, its good. I'm a few weeks behind on DL but I'm ok with it, I know I just need to focus on doing it right and the numbers will come.

 

[48mpg]

ups and then downs

Feb 22:

squat: 300 x1
bench: 170x3
row: 95 x 3x8

so i missed a workout last week thursday, boss was in town and my schedule changed, eating & sleep got thrown off too.

I suffered today for it.

going in, i decided to just redo the last week because i missed the 3rd workout of the week.

I didnt have the energy and i was really really tight. and now I'm hurting. ramp up sets of squat, something wasnt right, i was ending up much more forward than id like, but i was able to get the weight up with out much issue so I just kept going. last set, i almost buckled at the bottom and almost fell forward, my knees collapsed but i caught it, and was able to grind it out and get it up. mistake.i should have just came down on to the crash bars and called it. lower back is a bit sore.

I think i know what it is, glutes, hamstrings, hip flexors are ridiculously tight giving me serious donald duck ass. been stretching out since i got home.

I think I am so tight because of the DLs.

bench: just didt have it, and my back was sore. only got 3 reps. I did widen my grip about ~3/4 inch on each side. that helps a bit i think, but my grip was slipping and my hands were getting wider going through the sets. will keep working on hand positioning.

row: i figured i should just get some in. no other reason.

I'm going to take it light this week and see where I'm at by the end of the week. I may reset my weights a little lower and work back up.

I've been slacking on my mobility work and need to get on it. need to find better ways to stretch out my back side, all of it from neck down.

 

[48mpg]

March 1

So i didnt go into the gym all week. lower back and legs were tight all week. so i spent evenings stretching/foam rolling, etc

one night, I was stretching with one foor up on the counter and leaning forward. something popped in the area of my glute/hamstring. when that happened I went forward more and it hurt, but it also loosend somehting up.

my hamstrings are still a little tight but not awful. i've mostly fixed the duck ass issue. I just need to stay on top of it and keep up with the mobility work.

went into the gym today just to feel things out.

Squats: 225 3x3
bench: 170
row: 155

just did several sets of 95, 135, 185 to feel it out on squats. concentrating on staying more upright and keep it on my heels more. 225 was doable, but i felt like my lower back was geting tired and giving way, so I only did sets of 3.

bench: went well surprisingly.

row: a bit heavy, but no real issue.

when I"m in position for the rows, though, i really feel the tightness in my right hamstring, so i need to figure out how to loosen that up.

I'll keep going to the gym on my regular schedule, and keep progressing on my bench, OHP, row, and just keep it light on squats & DL.

we'll see how it goes.

 

[48mpg]

March 3

squat: 225 x 3 x 5
OHP: 120
DL: 225

I think i'm just going to work up on squats, 3x5, with 5 lb increases each workout just like SS or SL, when I hit a wall I'll drop to 1x5 just concentrating on proper technique and keeping up with my mobility work. today, each rep felt really good. probably some of the best complete sets Ive ever done. I'm also practising breathing into my belly, I havent really been very good at that.

OHP: got the last rep up, it was a grind, but felt good.

DL: forgot my long socks and have a bloody shin to show for it. will do 5 individual reps and not touch and go. I was having trouble making each rep the same doing touch and go and I'm sure that affected my lower back etc. my left hamstring is still fairly tight. no where near what it was like last week. I can finally touch y toes again, but i feel something tight in there. it goes from the bottom of my spine right over my left glute and to the outside of my knee. so i need to keep loosening it up.

keep grinding at it, including mobility work.

 

[48mpg]

March 5:

squat: 230
bench: 175
row: 155

only did 2 sets of squats. dont know why but I felt like i was in a rush. after the second set, i just didnt feel like doing set 3. wussed out i guess, i dunno.

bench felt good. 175 moved pretty well.

row: nothing to report.

need to keep on the mobiility stuff

 

[48mpg]

march 8

squat: 235
bench: 175
row: 155

only did 2 sets at 235. my legs are mostly fine. its my lower back that is having a tough time keping up.

bench: felt good. I havent done 175 x 5 in a long long time. no drama, i was able to bang out the 5 reps. so I"m glad that this is progressing nicely

row: its heavy, and I feel like i'm pulling m upper body up at the top, but thats ok i think. so I'll just keep going with it and see what happens.

something in my left hamstring/glute is really tight. going to bring the lacrosse ball to work so that I can sit on it and mash it it.

I think this tightness is messing with my back. just slouching the wrong way on the couch for 15 minutes kills my back when I try to get up.
I can feel a cord in there thats really tight.

 

[48mpg]

March 10:

squat: 240
OHP 120
DL: 355

squats feeling better. got 3 sets of 5 in. I need to learn how to breathe again. I'm struggling trying to take a breathe in between reps and still have a full belly of air and do it quickly.

ohp: I only got 2 reps for some reason. I got 5 at 120 last time. will redo 120 next week.

DL: 225, 275, 315 all felt good, so i went for 355. I think I'll work my way back up from here. I was resetting each rep, coming to a complete stop, take a breathe, and pull again. I think I will start standing up between reps and pul each of 5 reps like singles, back to back. it is much more tiring this way def.

left hamstring is getting better, still tight, but getting better.

 

[48mpg]

March 12:

squat: 245
Bench: 180
row: 160


squat: 3 sets of 5, felt good. getting better at breathing between reps. if i pull my elbows down and in keeping it in line with my torso helps form heaps.

bench: felt strong. was heavy but felt good

still tight but need to keep working on it. is getting better.

 

[48mpg]

March 15:

squat: 250
bench: 180
row: 160

squats, 3x5, felt really good. better than usual. breathing between reps is getting better, and pulling my elbows down to my sides helps tremendously in keeping my torso upright.


bench: not sure what happened today, only got 2 reps at 180. at 160, it felt really heavy already. maybe I psyched myself out of it before i even got there.

row: not bad, it is heavy though. inhale, squeeze, pull, bring it back down, exhale completely, repeat.

that thing that is really tight in my left hamstring is still really tight. it is really messing with my lower back. I'll keep stretching it and smashing it with a lacrose ball.

I smr'd my psoas with a lacrosse ball and that has really helped. so I'll keep at it.

 

[48mpg]

march 17

squat: 255
ohp: 120
DL: 365

squats are getting really heavy but am still able to grind out 3x5. form is good, breathing into the belly is getting better.


ohp: barely got 5 reps up. that last rep was ugly, but it got up.

DL: 315 felt good, so i went ahead and bumped it up 10 lbs from last week. I'm keeping my grip between reps, but am letting the weight come to a complete stop, i exhale, take a breathe, and pull. trying to make each rep the same like the last. My grip strength has dropped quite a bit.

left hamstring is getting better, still tight but getting better. I brought along a lacrosse ball to work, so I can work on it while i'm sitting at my desk.

 

[48mpg]

March 19:

squat: 260
bench: 180
row:165

squats are working out well, 3x5, heavy but doable

bench: something is wrong in my setup/confidence. I only got 2 reps and i reracked it. something wasnt right in the whole thing

rows: nothing to report.

 

[48mpg]

March 22:

squat: 265
bench: 175
row: 165

squats: only did 1 set. I was beat after that set.

bench: am redoing the last week since I missed 3 reps at 180 on my last workout.

row: the high level math required to figure out what plates to put on stumped me. got 165x5 done eventually

 

[48mpg]

March 24:

squat: 205
ohp: 120 x 0
DL: 375

just felt really off and tired today. I think I'm going to switch my squats to madcow. been getting hungrier than usual during the day, so I'll need to up the food intake.

OHP: i couldnt even get 125 off my shoulders more than a few inches.

DL: at 330, something wasnt right, i think i was getting too loose between reps and it threw everything off. when the weight rested on the floor, it would roll away and i didnt do a good job pulling it back in and against my shins. 375 was heavy but doable though.

I need to make a new spreadsheet since I'm back onto madcow. I'll start it up on Sunday.

 

[48mpg]

march 26

squat: 270 x 5
bench: 180 x 3
row: 170 x 3

i walked into the gym feeling beat from work. I didnt know what I was actually going to do and was just trying to get a little bit done.

well, a few warmup sets in and I was able to get a set of 5 at 270. was pretty doable. I may keep plowing along and see what I can come up with.

bench: just felt strong today. I felt like i could've gotten 5 reps if I went for it. working on my grip and setup.

row: 3 reps, big breathe before each rep.

walked in feeling like crap, but I got it all done, walked in the house feling like crap again. tired and beat. 2 days off from the gym. so hopefully i can get some good rest in.

early bed time tonight.

 

[48mpg]

march 29

squat: 270x5
bench: 180 x4 + 1 roll of shame
row: 170

squat: figured I start on madcow this week. something wasnt right, I was coming up more on my toes. i think my hips/glutes are a bit tight. maybe lacking glute activiation.

bench: i only got 4. i tried for 5, got it half way up, and couldnt get it up any more. got 3 up quickly, rested at the top, did #4, stopped for a breathe again, then got stuck. had to roll it down.

row: i'm jerking it up for some reason.

weekends really throw off my sleep & eating. I need to try to keep it kind of normal, eating schedule, sleep schedule,

 

[48mpg]

March 31

Squat: 205
OHP: 125
DL: 385


light squat day always feels good

OHP: at 115, it felt really heavy. at 125, got myself up for it, and grinded it out. I got all 5 up, it was tough though.

DL: psyching myself up for 385, i always take a bunch of deep breathes, get my heart pumping and go. well, went I went down to grab the bar, i kind of burped up a tiny bit of vomit in my mouth a few times right after another. was kind of gross. but i already had my grip on the bar and had it in there tight and didnt want to give it up. so i just held it, burped it up, swallowed, bupred, swallow, burp, swallow, took a big breathe, and pulled. 5 reps to a dead stop. felt good. was exhausted though.

felt good though.

 

[48mpg]

April 2

Squat: 280
Bench: 180
ROw: 175

squats felt good. the bottom third was a bit slow, but the rest of it felt good and fast

Bench: i dont know what my issue is. i got the 3 reps, but it was tougher than it should have been.

row: 2nd week at 175. went well

these next two weeks will be tough to get to the gym, hopefully i can swing it.