5(4)3(2)1...Go.

Sangre

I've decided to start a fitness log to track my progress and have everything in one place. I won't have to worry about losing or destroying a tatty old notebook. It will also, hopefully, allow others to comment on my routine, videos and progress.

I'm currently a member of WW Leopardstown, having recently moved from TF Sandyford. In the past my workout routines have been interrupted my exams (usually) and travel. I'm now working and this has allowed me a more predictable routine. In the short term I want to be in good nick, strength and appearance wise, for April where I'll return to education for 11 weeks or so and I will also go on a rugby trip to Italy. My main motivation though is increased strength. A lot easier to track!

I'm currently doing 5/3/1 and have done SS in the past. I'm enjoying 5/3/1 a lot as it lets me do more assistance work and I don't have to face max squats every session! Its also more flexible about two days in a row.

Current stats:
Height: 5'9'
Weight: ? (80kgish - need to check, no scales and have to pay in WW ffs!)

DL: 125kg
Squat: 117.5kg
OHP: 42.5kg
DB Bench: 30kg

Hopefully I'll be able to keep this updated. I'm unsure if I'll add my old workouts since I started 5/3/1. I'll see how time allows me.

Sangre

Today: C2W1D4

Warm Up:
Foam rolling
BW squats
Low body stretches - did bird dogs for first time. Hopefully these will help squat and DL

Squats:
Warm-up

71.5kg x 5
82.5kg x 5
94kg x 12 (more than I thought I'd get when unracking the bar - was aiming for 9)

I assume having trouble keeping back up is an AB issue? May need to work on this for BBB especially.

55kg x 5 x 10
These were tough going. This is my first week of Boring but Big and my first squat session. Ran into a guy from school I haven't seen much over years (and didn't particularly like) and he got to watch me shake and groan with 55kg on the bar. D'oh!

SLDL:
52.5kg 3x10 - fine - will move up next session.

Chin ups - random
BW x 6 - full extension

I usually do lunges as well but couldn't face them after BBB. Anyone else have any other suggestions

Finish:
foam roll shoulders - so painful
stretching

First day had a whey after work out. Very handy but think container was damp as it was very gloopy with some water. Had no carb snack either. Just had some milk at home (slightly choc whey flavoured). Any suggestion on PWO whey amount? Used a 34g scoop.

Sangre

Bloody hell, BBB and squats = mega DOMS!

Sangre

C2W2D1

Warm-up:
BW squats
Foam rolling - foam roller in WW Leop is in pieces!
Stretches - mostly upper body

OHP:
Brief warm-up
27.5kg x 3
32.5kg x 3
36.5kg x 9
20kg x 10 x 5

Parallel Grip Chin-ups
BWx7, BWx5,BWx4

Tricep Dips
BWx3x8

Face-pull
34kgx3x10

Through out exercises I did shoulder dislocates and band face-pulls.

Was a bit lazy with rolling and stretches at end as it was late. Only did upper body, no lower. PWO snack - 50g whey and a banana.

Tried to use one of the balanced scales with the slider. Think I was 13 stone (82kg) in runners and shorts/tshirt. Will try and find digital scale.

Sangre

C2W2D2

This one got cut short. Gym closed at half eight, thought it was nine!

Warm-up:
BW suqats x 20
Foam rolling lower body
Stretches

Deadlift:
Warm-up
82.5kg x 3
94kg x 3
105 x 10 - think my form went a bit at end and used my back too much. Think my stance was too narrow.

57.5kgx4x10 - Stopped by closing. Widen stance towards end and felt it a lot less in back.

No stretching.

PWO - Brown bread/cheese and 50g whey.

jaggiebunnet

Hey - how you finding it, planning on changing on to 5/3/1 at the end of the month myself - are you doing 3 or 4 days?

Sangre

I usually go 4 times a week (80% of the time). Obviously its not a huge deal if you don't as you just continue on when you next can go.

So far the pros I think (vs. SS) are:

• More flexible - you can go twice in a row (even 3 times in an emergency). SS doesn't allow this.
• Greater variety of exercises
• No squats every day! I found that very tough when I was hitting the high 90s
• Focus on overhead press - a big weak point I had and often ignored with SS.
• Effort flexibility - you can hit the minimum required e.g. 5/3/1 or try and beat your old records e.g. 110 x 8 (or whatever). This allows for days when you just feel crap.
• Assistance work for weak spots
• Fixed targets gives you set goals - not add X if you think you can.
• Proper deadlift sessions
• Better warm-up/stretching imo - you can focus on the target areas that day

Overall, at my current level I prefer 5/3/1. Although SS was a great introduction to squats/deadlifts. I may be unfair on SS as my last session with it tailed off due to study, exams and social life. I think I was under eating/sleeping too for the lifting I was doing.

jaggiebunnet

Yeah those reasons you listed are very similar to mine. Looking forward to the change now - good luck with it, will be keeping an eye on your progress

Sangre

Likewise.

Make sure you figure out your 1rm properly as they'll form the basis for your whole workout.

Sangre

18 January - C2W2D3

Standard Warmup: stretch, squat BW and foam roll

Bench - DB
20kgx3
22.5kgx3
25kgx12

15kgx5x10 - easy enough

Pendlay Row
40kgx3x10 - move up small bit

Incline BP
20kgx2x10
20kgx1x8 - fail

Chin up - BWx5 - very strict

Face Pull - 34kgx3x10

20 January - C2W2D4

Warm up - BW squat and stretch - no foam (gone)

Squat
77.5kgx3
87.5kgx3
99kgx10 - happy with this

55kgx5x10

SLDL
55kgx3x10

Pull up - BWx3 - random - crap at these

Decline Situp - 10kgx3x10

Warm-down - stretch and jacuzzi!

Edit - my new 6e argos scales said I weighed 82kg this evening.

Molly

Just curious, how come you're doing db bench?

jaggiebunnet

nice 99kg x 10!

Sangre

I started the program when I first joined WW and I thought they'd only one bench and it seemed to be always busy. I've noticed they've actually two and it doesn't seem as bad as when I joined.

I'm debating testing my bench max on my next deload week and switching. I am enjoying the freedom to go to failure though with the DBs. I'll probably switch.

Thanks jaggie! It was a PR.

Sangre

C2WD1 - 21 Jan

Warm-up

OHP:
33kgx3 (mistake)
30kgx5
34kgx4
39kgx7
20kgx5x10

Chin-up:
BWx7, BWx5, BWx4
Dip:
BWx8, BWx8, BWx9
Face pull:
34kgx3x10

Warm-down

C2W3D2 - 23 Jan

Warm-up

Deadlift:
87.5kgx5
99kgx3
115.5kgx6 (then another one straight after for some reason)
Back felt tight during this and didn't like it. I don't think I was driving through the heels enough or resetting weight close enough to me. Sorted it towards end of BBB
57.5kgx5x10

Gym closed and had to finished

C2W3D3 - 25 Jan
Felt really tired and didn't want to go. Didn't feel much better for it after.

Warm up

DB Bench:
20kgx5
25kgx3
27.5kgx9
15kgx5x10
I'm testing my barbell max next week and resetting with this.

Pendlay Row:
42.5kgx3x10 - think I'll drop rep numbers. I don't think higher reps suits pendlays

Incline BP:
20kgx2x10
20kgx1x9 - fail

Face Pull:
34kgx3x10

Sangre

C2W3D4 27 Jan

Warm-up:
BW squats
Stretches - focus on flexors
Glute activation
Damn foam roller in WW is AWOL

Squat:
warm-up
82.5kgx5
94kgx3
105kgx1, x4, x1 (quick sucessioN)
Big break (10-15 minutes) between last two sets due to a man collapsing in WW. Due to the gap/cool=down I didn't have any confidence doing last set and my first attempt felt very heavy. Fairly annoying as 1st two sets felt good.

SLDL
55kgx3x10
Didn't hit ground much. I really watched I kept back straight. Grip struggled at end.

Decline sit up: 10kgx3x10

Pull-up: BWx4 (random) - probably PR as I'm awful at these.

Stretch warm-down, PWO/banana and jacuzzi.

Sangre

C2W4D1 28 Jan

Warm-up
BW squats
upper and lower body work - really worked psoas
foam roller seems awol

OHP:
15kgx5
20kgx5
25kgx5

Chin up (parallel grip):
BWx8
BWx6
BWx3

Dips:
BWx3x8 - last one or two are tough but doable- will add weight soonish

Face pull:
34kgx3x10

Warm-down stretch and more psoas work.

Mum mentioned that she'd lost 6 pounds. I mentioned BMI has me overweight at 26.6 (82kg at 5'9'). She told me my face had got fatter and it couldn't be muscle. Guess I need to up my game: the gym 4 times a week and an hours walk 5 times a week aren't cutting it! In fairness, she knows her stuff - she walks an hour a day!

Sangre

C2W4D2 1 Feb 2010

Warm-up
BW squats
Stretches - lower and upper. Focus on psoas and legs

DL:
No warm-up
57.5kgx5
60kgx5
70kgx5
Miscalculation here. Did more on 1st set than should have

Good morning:
45kgx2x10, 1x5, 1x10
Left hamstring felt a bit odd in 3rd set - I think I had been leaning on it more. Seemed to be ok on 4th

Wide Pull-up: BWx2
Pull-up:BWx2
Chin-up:BWx4
-all done quickly

Bicep curls DB:
10kgx3x10
Haven't done these in about a year I'd say

Warm-down:
Stretch
Bird dog
quick plank
jacuzzi

Sangre

C2W4D1 2 Feb 2010

Decided to test my barbell bench 1rm today. 1rm = 90kg. Below average according to topendsports.com...better work on that!

Warm-up:
dynamic stretches

Bench

Rows:
42.5kgx3x8

DB incline bench:
17.5kgx3x10

Stretches

My figures for cycle 3 next week will be:
Bench: 81kg
Squat: 115.75kg
Deadlift: 122.5kg
Press: 43.25kg

Think I've lost my notepad. Annoying.

Sangre

C2W4D4 3 February 2010

Warm-up
3 min rowing
BW squats
dynamic stretches

Squats:
45kgx5
55kgx5
65kgx5

SLDL:
barbellx10
50kgx3x10
Hams felt very stiff today so went a bit easy on these. Warmed up by end.

Situp:
10kgx3x10

Stretches+jacuzzi

Why did my deload week fall on my week off? I'm eating myself silly but I'm not pushing it in the gym. The exact same thing happened over xmas..ffs!

Lost my notepad, extremely annoying. Will be hard to beat PRs when I won't know exactly what I'm aiming for.

Sangre

C3W1D1 4 February

Warm-up:
dynamic stretches
band pulls/shoulder dislocates

Press:
Warm-up
27.5kgx5
32.5kgx5
36.5kgx11

20kgx5x10

Chin-up BW:
9,6,4
Forgot to stop at 8 on my first set (I'm aiming for 3x8)

Dips BW:
3x8
Handy enough - adding weight this time

Face-pull:
34kgx3x10
Might drop this slightly and hold pull a bit longer.

C3W1D2 10 February

Gap because of long weekend in Edinburgh. Very heavy drinking with very little sleep. Still felt tired this morning.

Warm-up:
Walk to gym
dynamic stretch
Forgot glute activation!

Deadlift:
warm-up
80kgx5
91.5kgx5 - lower back started to feel tight
104kgx11
Lower back felt very tight through out last and set and this felt very heavy. I was unhappy with last few reps - I think my form dropped and my back rounded too much. I also tored open my right leg again and added to the damage.

60kgx3x10
Stopped early. My back didn't feel right and my leg was being ripped to pieces. psoas/hips felt tight too. The weights were driving my insane too. The stupid gym 20kg plates would not stay on bar with clips and were wobblying all over the place giving me an uneven bar height.

Good morning:
20kgx15
40kgx3x10
Kept this light because of back

My back has started to tighten up quite early since I've made a bigger effort to keep back straight and chest up. It also causes me to drag the bar up my shin more and rip it apart. Blood all over my pants today. I was wearing a pair of loose cargo pants - they were annoying as they kept bunching up and tightening around my ass impeding movement.

I am going to add back extensions to this day. I will also try to film my next DL session.

Warm down:
stretches
whey/banana
walk home

Molly

Wear football socks under your pants and pull them up high as though you're covering a pair of shin guards. I find that helps with the shin scrapping.

Sangre

Yeah I know. Might buy a pair of heavy sweat pants. I can't be reopening my legs every week. I think I've been dragging them up too much too, might try and reduce it a bit. The front of both my shins are raw red.

Sangre

C3W1D3 11 February 2010

Forgot my notepad so this is from memory

Warm-up:
dynamic stretches
Band pulls
Shoulder dislocates
STILL NO SIGN OF FOAM ROLLERS IN GYM - GAH!!

Bench press: 1st day with barbell
Didn't do as much warm-up as I'd like as I was working in with someone
50kgx5
60kgx5
67.5kgx11
40kgx5x10
This was all done fairly quickly

Barbell row (change from pendlay i.e. dead from ground)
45kgx8 -felt heavy
40kgx2x10
40kgx1x5
Will adjust next week - wasn't letting bar hit ground. Will do next week.

DB incline press - 30 degrees:
20kgx2x10
20kgx1x8

Bicep curl - both same time:
13kgx1x10
13kgx1x8
13kgx1x6

Warm down.

Sangre

I think I need to watch my eating. Been eating a lot, and quite poorly, in last 3 weeks or so.

Sangre

C3W1D4 14 February

Warm-up:
walk to gym
dynamic stretches

Squats:
warm-up
75kgx5
86kgx5
97.5kgx8
I really tried to get deep with these. Felt my right knee buckling in towards end. My shoes aren't helping, they're so old the sole doesn't cover all my foot. Will get a new pair with flat, hard soles. I also think I'm narrowing my stance too much and not spreading my feet. Meant to film but forgot.
60kgx5x10

SLDL:
20kgx10
55kgx3x10
Will move up to 57.5kg next week

Decline situp:
10kgx3x10

Warm-down and whey. My hamstring flexibility has improved a lot. I'm working on my psoas and groin now.

Sangre

C3W2D1 15 February 2010

Warm-up
BW squats
Dynamic stretching (did this through-out work-out too)

OHP:
Warm-up
30kgx3
34kgx3
39kgx9
20kgx5x10

Chin-up:
BW - 8,6,4

Dips:
BW+5kg - 8,8,3
First time adding weight. I justed use a dumbbell between my legs. It was tough but in a good way. I was getting a full ROM.

Face-pull: 1 rung from top
27kgx3x10 (slowly)

Warm-down:
stretches
whey+shake

Sangre

Just bought some 3e canvas shoes in Dunnes for the gym. They'll give me a flatter base than my absolutely wrecked reeboks where my inner foot is coming over the sole.

Also got 1kg Peanut Butter and 200g Almon butter for 8.90e in H&B. Feel like going to gym tonight but that would be 3 days in a row and my quads were very stiff from squats on Sunday (it would be DL today).

Sangre

C3W2D2 17 February 2010

Got 8 hours sleep last night but today was the tiredest I've ever felt in work for some reason. I also feel like I'm coming down with a cold. I dragged myself to the gym though as I might not be able to go for a few days because of social committments.

Warm-up:
BW squats
dynamic stretches
forgot bird-dogs-again!!

Deadlift:
warm-up
85kgx3
97.5kgx3
110kgx7 (probably hitched last reps)
60kgx5x10 - last 2 reps were tough and I think I rounded my back too much.

DLs were much better today. They had really been bugging me last 2 sessions. My lower back had tightened up a lot and my shins were getting wrecked. Back was tightening up a bit in warm-up but I think I've sorted out my form a lot and I felt much better with these. I had the bar too close to my shins, it stopped me getting leverage and I was rounding my back. I spread my feet slightly, had my hands closer to my feet and really focused on driving through the heels with my chest up. Shins weren't as scrapped as much either. Meant to film but camera battery was dead. This was the first time I was happy with my form in high rep DLs too.

Good mornings
20kgx1x10
50kgx3x10 - need to focus on getting ass out and back to hit hamstrings. will stay same weight.

Back extensions:
BWx3x10 - pretty tiring after today's session

Warm-down
whey + banana.

Sangre

C3W2D3 20 February 2010

Warm-up:
BW squats
foam rolling - brand new opens - hurt like hell
dynamic stretches

Bench Press
Warm-up
56.5kgx3
65kgx3
73kgx8 - Think spotter touched bar on last rep
40kgx5x10

Bent Over Row:
45kgx3x10 - stay same

DB BP Incline -20kgs
10,10,7

Curls - 13kgs
10,10,6 (or something)

Warm-down

C3W2D4 22 February 2010

Warm-up:
BW squats
foam roller
dynamic stretches
glute activation

Squats
Warm-up
81.5kgx3
92.5kgx3
104kgx5
60kgx5x10
Confidence is a bit off on squats - second guessing form/stance. Inner hip is at me a bit too. That said I'm fairly happy with the depth/drive I'm getting. Keep forgetting to video.

SLDL:
20kgx10
57.5kgx3x10

Crunch machine - due to other equip in use
3x10 - didn't like this

Warm-down

Sangre

C3W3D1 24 Feb 2010

Warm-up

OHP
warm-up
32.5kgx5
36.5kgx3
40kgx9 (prob got 10 but not 100%)
21.5kgx5x10
Tried to get elbows under a lot more and touched bar off lower neck not upper chest. seems to give straighted ROM

Chin-up:
8,6,5

Dips+5kg:
8,8,5

Face-pull:
29.5kgx3x10

Warm-down:
foam roll
stretch
whey

Sangre

C3W3D2 25 February 2010

This was my last session for over a week as I'm off to New York.

Warm-up:
BW squats
foam rolling
dynamic stretches

Deadlift
These felt heavier than I thought they should have. I realised my stance was slightly too narrow once I finished and moved onto the BBB. I managed to film them as well. All deadlift comments sought and welcome.

91.5kgx5

104kgx3 - I hadn't chalked or switched grip so had to re-adjust for last rep.

116.5kg - slightly disappointed with this - I think my narrow stance affected me. Don't think I was driving through hips enough and as a result I don't think I kept chest up enough.

Good Morning:
50kgx3x10
not sure if I'm getting depth on these

Back extension:
3x10

Warm-down