Myosynthesis Forums

http://powerandbulk.com/phpBB2/viewtopic...ba382a1c7d

Lots of good stuff in this thread. Basically - is the constant push to progressively increase load in strength training, or for that matter weight training, a bad thing in the long-haul? There are a couple of other threads where musulman addresses that very question on powerandbulk. I know consensus isn't king, but I'd be dishonest if the commentary isn't a catalyst in rethinking my approach to training. I've had changes of gears in training modes for the past 15 years (martial arts, to weight training), and although all were exciting as a new Christmas toy or a transformers toy as a kid, their suck factor really made me question my own sanity in joining them. I notice I have a lot less patience for sticking with annoying things - things that make me want to crawl under my bedsheets and lie there to avoid - as I get older. In some ways I regret not having known about strength training till now, and not taking advantage of being young dumb and determined when I was doing karate (did that shit for 8-9 years) and swapping in strength training itself. No direction from my adult male peers sucks. At least that time I would have a strength base, and probably would have met my strength needs outright. I'm kind of a late starter (really, 26-27 is a late start to training hard period). Learning all sorts of shit (exercise, importance of social competence, ability to be more proactive) that I should have learned when I was younger, and more willing to take abuse. Never actively pushed to make mistakes, and now am having to make the mistakes I should have made years ago. There IS a societal expectation of having gone through that process, persevered and succeeded, in my age. Otherwise you're just an immature baby.

Warmup (yes...)
Clean and Jerk
45x5
95x2
145x1
155x1
165x1
175x1
185x1
195x1
205x1x2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tv2Ixx1Tkz4

Deadlift
225x3 (overhand)
275x3 (overhand - good sign)

305x5
345x3
385x2 **PR**
385x2 **PR** (uglier than a mandrill's butt)
(all 5/3/1 deadlifts http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9MOM_Wm8Pw)

315x3,2,3 (felt like pulling something that wouldn't destroy me, high as a kite from the 385 pull)

Today was a good day. By good I mean I was able to break a PR in reps for the deadlift, and do so twice. Also, the clean and jerk I was able to do twice in row was 205 - a feat I have not been able to do in a while.

The warmup consisted of clean & jerks going up by 10 pounds from 145-205. I wanted to capture at least my top clean and jerk for posterity since it was the only way to satiate the narcissist gremlin currently residing in the left side of my brain. The gremlin decided that it would place the camera in a high traffic area (a bicep curl/arm pull machine), and have people stop so it could capture the clean and jerk for eternity. The gremlin got it's wish and I got a clean and jerk - pressed out, to piss off the gremlin.

The gremlin got wise to my interrupting its narcissistic tendencies and we came to a compromise - it chose a non high-traffic film area, and I chose to actually complete my deadlifts. Of course when the gremlin got greedy after a pretty good double of 385lbs, and wanted to attempt a second set for 385lbs, I chose to punish the gremlin by lifting 385lbs in such an ugly manner it would turn the Kraken to stone. I put the gremlin in its place, and the gremlin whipped me up by having me do 315 in the most tired state I've ever been.

I throttled the gremlin's self serving behaviour by leaving the gym and not doing any accessories. The gremlin will be back. Hopefully it won't screw me on the bench, since I suck at it.

Bench is up next.

Youtube videos will come up tomorrow.

Warmup

Snatch
45x5x4

Bench Press
115x5
135x3

160x5
185x3
205x1,2

Today was a decent day. I managed to meet the schedule for the bench today, in spite of a pretty crappy morning and afternoon.

Going to work in the morning was a pain - it was pouring here in T.O., and I got splashed 3 TIMES crossing streets. I felt like a drunkard at sea, trying to navigate while getting splashed in the face of a storm.

Afternoon was no better as work caught up to me, and a bug found ended up costing a day's worth of work, and doubled up a day's worth of work for me. Felt like moist crap on a stick getting beaten down on a mangy rat's hide.

The evening picked up with the bench workout - except I suddenly got a dose of ADD and forgot to film about 50% of my workout - including the double on the 205. Not film-worthy, let alone Oscar-worthy, let alone sponge-worthy, but I wanted something better than the single I achieved on film.

The good part of today was helping a budding lifter with details on the deadlift, as well as planning goals and using strength training to augment his goals. In turn he helped me on the bench liftoffs. I like the camaraderie I've experienced ever since I've decided to be a bit more social this past year. It's so DYSFUNCTIONAL seeing people but not talking to them, especially because of your own hangups. In my case, I enjoyed helping someone, and likewise was able to enjoy getting helped (the liftoff).

The squat is up next. I forgot to ask this morning about the U of T schedule, hopefully I can reach someone tomorrow and get started on Friday.

Snatch
40kgx3x2
50kgx2x2
55kgx2
60kgx1x3
65kgx1x2 (143lbs - felt good)

Squat
135x5
225x3

260x5
295x3 (heavy...)
330x0 (AURGH)
330x1 (TOUGH!!)
330x0 (ehhh...)

260x1/2/3/1/2/3/1/2/3

Clean & Jerk
60kgx1
70kgx1
80kgx1x2
85kgx1x2
90kgx1 (just clean)
90kgx1 (just clean - missed jerk)
90kgx1 (just clean - missed jerk)
95kgx0x2 (missed clean)

Today was a good day although the squat was more full of crap than gas station toilet. I made a beeline from work to the U of T Athletic Center and kind of felt as giddy as a 13 year old dude getting his first kiss at arriving at my first training center with REAL Olympic platforms and bumpers.

First thing I went for as I finished changing was to test out the platforms. The snatch was my test and surprisingly actually did as commanded and went up. Even though I was as tired as a shiftman working morning and evenings on the same day, I was able to demonstrate good strength here with the 65kg snatches. I didn't go for 70kgs but a little voice in my head went 'you'll regret it, things will go south from here, HERE'. Turns out that voice was right.

The squats were unusually tough today. Now, no doubt a lack of sleep on my end (I'm not living up to my bargain and that's my stupid crap behavior - which is stupid like a bear eating tree bark) is partially to blame, but I persevere on less sleep. The 330lb squat was a pain in the ass today. I failed the first one and felt as though I had broken up with a hot girl. I made the second attempt at a 330lb squat, although had it been any slower we'd have to capture it with elapsed time cameras. The third fail felt like a kick in the balls and an ex having a makeout session with some dude right in front of me.

I broke my rule about doing a ladder, mostly because it was my catharsis for performing craptacular on the 5/3/1 squat. Me breaking the rule was my way of trying to reclaim some sort of victory on the squat, which bitch slapped me like I owed it money. I shall do it no longer.

The clean and jerk session was me getting OCD on a sugar high - I just HAD to test motion while I had my limited time at the athletic center. I'm like a little kid wanting to play on all the equipment, I didn't want to leave not knowing how it felt to drop a bar. Boy did it feel good, although my 95kg clean should have been a sure thing, but instead it was Major fail and I was Private suck, and I had to march 20 miles and fail to rack the bar as punishment.

I didn't videotape as I haven't been able to convince the staff to let me just yet. Once the G20 summit in Toronto is over I'm considering an extended stay at the Athletic Center, and see if I can continue my video journal there. If I can, as much as I like the amenities at Adelaide Club (like SOAP!), it will be my backup gym.

Powerclean
115x3
135x3

C&J
135x1x2

Press
45x5 (warmup shoulders)

80x5
95x5
110x5

Deadlift
200x5 (overhand)
245x5 (overhand for first 2 reps)
285x5

Bench
45x6
65x5
95x5 (all shoulder warmups)

105x5
130x5
150x5

Squat
170x5
205x5
240x5x2 (practising form from last week and week before)

Push Press
45x5x2
115x3x2 (hmmm..)

It's been about a week since I was last at the gym. My bad time management coupled with increased responsibility has pretty much kept me sequestered at work. I snuck a bit of time today to workout, but at Eclipse at yonge and eglinton, because of the protest rallies in downtown. The G20 summit has made going downtown feel like visiting Detroit, with cop cars set ablaze and people rioting. That environment is more suited towards fantasy Double Dragon or Contra, not working out. Pumping lead is a viciously painful method of working out, more so than pumping iron.

I made it a chore today to do all exercises. My main goal was to just do the prescribed weights, using light Olympic exercises to remove my amnesia of pulling and squatting without feeling like my joints belong to a 90 year old whose never exercised before.

My main goals today were to investigate
- shoulder issues
- hip issues squatting

Last week I noticed that on the eccentric, my left elbow would be less supportive coming down, and the arm felt almost like it would lose control. Today, I felt that on the push press (115 is a relatively light weight). The width of my grip was a culprit but eccentric felt like night and day with a wider (thumb and a half) grip with forearm vertical. Felt very unstable as though my left elbow would sway inwards, such that it was behind the bar, and I'd have to keep it shoved forwards. My muscles supporting the left bar were more on their own, and I felt like my normal supports (lats) decided to take a long vacation. I don't notice this if my grip is half to a 3/4 thumb away from the beginning of the knurl.

Hip issues to me mean the following - being unable to detect that I've reached proper depth and not attempting to get there by rounding or shoving knees forward. I was able to detect the height, but I had to use mirrors - e.g. my kinesthetic sense was crappier than baby's diaper after breastfeeding. After a few I decided I'd just worry more about being on my heels and shoving the butt back, with a bit of forward knee movement. It fixed the depth and no rounding showed up, but I don't feel a bounce at all. This suck worse than a $2 ho because I'll need that bounce for heavier lifts. What's worse is in my attempt to measure depth and control my lower back from rounding, I had to slow down the squatting motion which increased the time under tension, and used up more energy. I felt like I had a thorough workout and I was only doing 240lbs. Also, my uneven hip came back a bit. I felt like the squatting was a big /facepalm, like the more I tried to control it, the more it made it rebel, cause destruction and set cars aflame.

Either way I finished the 6th cycle. Everything from here on in will be PRs. I'm planning on going conservative now. Here are the training maxes for next cycle:

Press 160->165 (5+)
Bench 215->220 (5+)
Squat 345->350 (5+ given the difficulty in pulling off the 330lb squat)
Deadlift 405->415 (10+ deads are going good - no misses in any week so far, and I don't think that I'm slowing down still.)

I think the deadlift has been thriving more in this program, than the squat has. The bench is as bad as the squat. The press is good as well.

It probably has to do with the part of the week they're allocated. Presses and Deads are placed at the beginning of the week. Plus I practice pulling and overhead pressing way more than squats and benches. The incline is not helping. And I should high-bar more often than low bar. I'll increase rowing and squatting more (front, high bar). Let's see if that works.

C&J
45x7
95
135
155
175
185
195

Press
65x7
95x3
110x5
125x5
140x3 (!!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTMa7kyVhHE

It's been a while since I last trained, and I felt anxious coming into the gym. My first few thoughts coming into the gym were frustration at my inability to stick to the schedule because of erratic work schedules. Yet entering the gym felt like such a calming experience, like visiting relatives. I felt a rush of confidence come in that was sorely lacking at work.

The warm up was a ramp up of C&J. Except for the 45's everything was a single, as I was looking forward to trying out a new jerk technique. The technique was more successful when I wasn't trying to do it with heavy weight. When I went heavy (185lbs and up) I crept back to my old way of approaching the jerk, which depended highly on shoulder push. There was little push through of the head, and it felt more like a push press, with a lot of upper arm emphasis. Naturally I pressed out the jerks for the 185 and 195 instead of it being a lock at once. This was a setup for disappointment to come later on.

At the beginning the press felt promising, as if I was going to be conquering big weight for reps today. As I got to my first work set, it dawned on me that I could actually fail. The last rep of my first workset was a struggle between man and bar that felt like an omen of things to come. The last rep of the second set got me swaying like a weeping willow with my arms. This got me worried about being unable to complete my reps, so much so that I took a 7 min break. A futile effort, as I was only able to grind out 3 reps for 140lbs, before I slammed into the brick wall of failure.

Because my gym in its infinite wisdom decided that they'd cut down hours from 6AM-11PM to 6AM-10PM, I was forced to vacate the premises earlier than expected. I felt betrayed, as though someone had given me a free drink coupon, on the condition that I buy a happy meal. Given my hectic work schedule I usually arrive at the gym around 8-9PM so basically my training time is now at a premium.

Anyways with this week being a crap week (I'm going to have to work Canada Day and my floater day), I may revisit this wave next week. Tomorrow I'm planning on deadlifting, and Saturday get in Bench and Squat.

I've decided as of today that I want to focus training the Olympic lifts and am now attending a gym that allows me to fulfill that training (the UofT Athletic Centre in downtown Toronto). The lifts provide me miles and miles of entertainment, not only appealing to my OCD side (I OCD on the weirdest crap like a dog sniffing nuclear waste sites and getting high on finding the next green glowing radioactive canister), but also appealing to my fondness of novelty (like Godzilla, BJJ and the UFC, Database programming and now iPhone development). This is also inline with a challenge I have for myself:

Press overhead my weight or more.

I can clean and jerk it, and given Olympic lifts emphasize overhead exercises more than anything else, I decided to give it a go. The training I'll follow is listed in the beginner guide from Greg Everett's Olympic Weightlifting: A Complete Guide for Athletes & Coaches. I'm starting off on Week 2, Day 1 of the guide, and will alternate day off/day on (basically i'm always skipping a day). Basically there'll be weeks were I train 4 times a week and ones were I train 3 times a week. I'm not binding myself to the week as a unit of time for progression.

The training

Today was a great day and an interesting day. The great part was the PR I pulled off TWICE!! 70 kg and then 75 kg snatch. That's a 10kg INCREASE after a layoff of serious training for about 4 weeks. What's even more interesting is the lack of correlation between my deadlift (now in decline at 365x1) and the Snatch (which I thought followed the deadlift) - I guess that correlation is about as certain as my future in iPhone development. The interesting part was me finally succumbing to the injury plaguing anyone who pulls on a bar - my callus tore off just under my left ring finger OUCH!! It bled a bit, then I bandaged it up. Feels like someone stabbed my hand with a hot poker.

Snatch
20kgx1x5
40kgx1x2
50kgx2x1
60kgx2x1
65kgx2x1
70kgx1x1 *PR*
75kgx2x0
75kgx1x1 ***PPPPPRRRRRR***
63kgx1x3

Clean & Jerk
60kgx3x1
70kgx1x1
80kgx1x1
85kgx1x1
90kgx1x1
95kgx2x0 *missed jerk on both attempts*
75kgx1x3

Ran out of time to do pull-ups, as the gym girl kicked us out sharp at 9PM. Unfortunately none of this was filmed, as this gym currently does not allow video recording so my PR wasn't caught for posterity, fame, narcissism etc. Met up with some good folks there that train hard and heavy, and share a positive interest in Olympic weightlifting so I'm feeling warm and fuzzy that I made the right decision coming here.

Today was an interesting day. I start off by being almost cock-blocked from using the Olympic squat rack - because I'm not on a list of officially endorsed competent lifters LOL as per U of T Athletic Centre rules. Anywhooo I manage to make a deal with one of the strength and conditioning staff members there (a lady who's nice and trains there). If I could show her I wasn't a complete ditz with using the rack, I would be allowed to use the rack for that day without needing to apply to the exclusive list. Note, the power racks are fine for the general public, but the Olympic squat rack, OH NOES!!!111! that can't be made for the commoner's use. I understand their thought process, but it only illuminates the bad state training is in - I mean aren't you supposed to provide a service by TEACHING PEOPLE HOW TO USE EQUIPMENT SAFELY?!?! ISN'T THERE A WAIVER ANYWAYS? I guess I at least know why Olympic equipment isn't prevalent in other gyms around Toronto. People need to cover their ass from lawsuit-trigger happy clientele looking for a quick buck. And now I have to pay for that state of the nation. URGE TO KILL RISING!!! Plus some mofo member over there gave me a snide remark asking if I could squat my bodyweight as a way of validating my usage of the Olympic rack - I shot back that I could do 315 for reps. That shut 'em up, but I shouldn't have to validate myself for this shit. It's just a squat rack. I'm starting to think downtown Toronto's filled with a bunch of whiners who're looking to cause trouble at gyms and ensure that every gym implement processes that cover asses, to the point where I'm sure at some point I'll have to hand in a TPS report, stamped triplicate, and if I miss a signature there'll be a waiting list of which I'll be number 9999 - and they'll have just started serving number 81. Anyways now I have to email the head honcho to get the OK to go on the VIP listing; I'll throw in if I can videotape my session as well. If everything goes well I should be able to squat IN THE OLYMPIC SQUAT RACK!!!!111!! AW3S0M3N3SSS!!!!!!

Either way I got the OK to use the squat rack for that day (thanks nice lady giving me the pass, you are awesome!!!), but eventually near the end of my training session, good ol' callus rip started bleeding everywhere. Had to get the ladies to clean that off the Olympic bar. I'm going to put a solution together for this, since my next training session is on Tuesday.

The training

Other than the callus tear AGAIN, nothing exciting but that's what training's about. *LOL stupid me can't read and I did clean pulls instead of a clean DL until the 95kg pull (that was actually performed as a clean deadlift). ** I snatched it up before actually performing the snatch push press.

Front Squat
20kgx1x5
40kgx1x5
60kgx1x3
70kgx1x3
80kgx1x1
85kgx3x5

Clean DL *
60kgx1x3
70kgx1x3
80kgx1x2
90kgx1x1
95kgx2x2

Snatch Push Press **
20kgx5
30kgx3
35kgx1
40kgx5x5

Me being dumb - JUST FUCKING AROUND AND NOT TRAINING AND HURTING MY POOR WIDDLE CALLUS TEAR. NOT GOING TO DO SNATCH BALANCE OUT OF NOWHERE NEXT TIME!!!!
Snatch Balance
40kgx2x2
60kgx2x0 (TEAR!!!!!!!!!! BLOOD!!!)

The training

So I get to the gym in a hurry since I decided that I'd leave my self about 50 mins to train in total. It's a good thing I decided to train since I managed to get close to a PR in the clean and jerk and managed to do so while training the Jerk part twice. I got tips from one of the other girl gym staff who actually is a lifter in the 58kg class. Glad I was able to meet her since she helped see things that I couldn't see all those times I've recorded in my camera. The jerk was one of those things - I wasn't sitting down enough and I was springing forward. With the cue "sit down" I was able to get the jerk up, and me under the bar quicker and stronger and steadier. It felt like I had taken a shortcut, or heck even a wormhole, in the movement and somehow managed to get a good jerk. On the whole, my clean was approved of by her, no mean feat considering she's seen it all as she was a competitor; granted I've power cleaned so I've at least got positive transfer from that.

She also observed my rendition of the snatch and found that I swung the bar WAY too forward on the second pull, and circle it around behind me on the catch. These mistakes manifested in the first 70kg miss and second 70kg miss, highlighting my erroneous pattern. I got to readjust movements or I'll never get to bodyweight in the snatch. Glad I got another lifter on my side. She was also gracious enough to give me a ride home, which speaks beautifully to the class of the staff at the gym. It is an awesome gym and I'm glad I'm finally here.

Part of the ride back home was a subway ride. I demonstrated my other lifts on the camcorder I stowed away in may bag. These lifts were from previous recordings, the purpose of which was to demonstrate I've done stuff other than the Olympic lifts and to get feedback from someone experienced in lifting (at 56kg she deadlifts 125kg). Needless to say she was unimpressed, and in fact called me a pussy for failing on the 320 lb. squat, saying that it was "easy" for me and I quit too soon. Also my eating was apparently NOTHING compared to hers. Either way, I've got a long way towards my goals, and if harsh criticism is part of the path there, so be it.

Clean and Jerk
20kgx1x5
60kgx1x1
70kgx1x1
80kgx1x1
85kgx1x1
90kgx1x1
95kgx1x1 (iffy jerk)
95kgx1x1 (wayyy better jerk)
80kgx3x1 (~85% of heaviest C&J for that day)

Snatch
40kgx1x1
50kgx1x1
60kgx1x1
70kgx1x0 (missed behind)
70kgx1x0 (missed in front)
70kgx1x1
60kgx3x1 (~85% of heaviest snatch for that day)

Ran out of time to do pull-ups - jeez don't I sound like an excuse maker. I come to the gym way too late.

Today was supposed to be a day where I would be video taping online. However I did a disservice to myself and the staff that was waiting there by oversleeping. I missed an important opportunity to show the staff that the camcording would not be a bother, and I apologize to them when I came in. Sucks, but it's my fault. I suck, and made a bad first impression. Sorry team.


The training
The training was a mixed bag. The snatch balance felt good, but also felt slow on the elbow lock. The back squat was a change of pace I haven't had in a while, not to mention being done high bar. It was much tougher than I thought for something that should have been easy (110kg == 242lbs). I'll be loading this at 2% increases to adjust to the volume and the form of lifting - there were some slow reps near the end. What was cool though was being able to drop the loaded bar behind me to prep the bar for the snatch pulls - can't do that in a regular gym!

I don't know how to do snatch pulls, and it's apparent in what transpired in my training. I was doing something along the lines of how I start the snatch below my waist, but once it got to waist level, the pull did not seem to mimic the appropriate mechanics. The reason I say that is because I decided to actually snatch 63kg aftward with those same mechanics, and it was a no go for 3 lifts before I modifed the mechanics and was more on my heels (and perceived to be leaning back a bit more) before the lift became natural with no misses.

I use the squat down version to grip. My start position is entered by me breathing in and tensing the torso straight, and raising my hips in line with the barbell. The above two sentences sound out of place, but I'm describing how I enter the snatch position.

Snatch Balance
20kgx1x3
25kgx1x3
30kgx1x3
35kgx1x3
40kgx2x3

Back Squat (High Bar)
60kgx1x5
70kgx1x5
80kgx1x3
90kgx1x3
100kgx1x1
110kgx3x5

Snatch Pull
40kgx1x2
50kgx1x2
55kgx1x2
60kgx1x1
63kgx3x2

Snatch
63kgx1x0 (behind)
63kgx1x0 (forward)
63kgx1x0 (forward)
63kgx1x1 (alright)
63kgx1x1 (BETTER)