I don't know what I'm doing but I know what I've done

Alf Veedersane

Dtp1979 wrote: »

.

Exactemundo.

Dtp1979

When Is your next comp and what kind of numbers are you hoping for?

Alf Veedersane

Dtp1979 wrote: »

When Is your next comp and what kind of numbers are you hoping for?

Saturday week.

I'd like a squat of 185 (maybe more...we'll see); bench of 107.5 is the goal but that's probably the limit so I'd settle for 105; deadlift...who knows. It felt great last week and I could have gone north of 215 again and not looked like a dog taking a sh*t.

So, yeah that's the plan and that's what the numbers point to so now we'll see.

Supposed to go to physio tomorrow to get a few niggles addressed but apocalypse so won't happen now.

Alf Veedersane

Saturday 3/3/2018

A) Bench
97.5kg x 5

Deadlift
210kg x 1 (@9)
190kg x 2


C) Block Pull
195kg x 1 (@8)
190kg x 2  (@9)
172.5kg x 2 x 2


D) Chest-supported Dumbell Row
37.5kg DBs x 3 x 5



Gym was jammed cos only one open in the area. Even Flyefit was closed...so the Gymshark gear was everywhere. Some amount or spas that have no idea of anything resembling gym etiquette. "Oh, you're deadlifting there? I'll just do my push ups under the end of the bar when you're going to deadlift".

Timed my entrance to perfection as someone was stripping the bar on the bench. Woof! Top set was supposed to be @9 but 4th rep was @8/8.5 so went again. Misgrooved so was @10 in the end. Not a long slow grind but wouldn't have gone for another. Still, felt way better than last week with 95. And wrist felt grand!

Felt a twinge in my hip halfway up on single at 160. Thought about stopping there but said I'd give it a go at 180 after some stretching and call it then if no change. Didn't feel it but I was just waiting to feel something so every rep was verrrrrryyyy tentative after that. Was supposed to be three doubles at 190 after but I just did 1. Should I have just left it? Possibly. But I feel like I erred on the side of caution with how it was feeling ad I went and tested before every rep.

Block Pulls were fine. I was only feeling it when I was loading the bar, ie twisting but wasn't feeling anything when I was pulling.

Anyway, done and dusted. Now to drain the accumulated fatigue.

Alf Veedersane

Monday 5/3/2018

A) Bench
90kg x 1


Deadlift
175kg x 1



Up to a single with weight of last warm up for Saturday. As easy as it should be. The niggle from the weekend wasn't there this evening. All is good.

Blacktie.

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

Monday 5/3/2018

A) Bench
90kg x 1


Deadlift
175kg x 1



Up to a single with weight of last warm up for Saturday. As easy as it should be. The niggle from the weekend wasn't there this evening. All is good.

Nice. Hate those niggles you're not sure about. I usually get the opposite result you do .

Alf Veedersane

Blacktie. wrote: »

Nice. Hate those niggles you're not sure about. I usually get the opposite result you do .

You usually get bigger numbers

Blacktie.

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

You usually get bigger numbers

You're catching up fast now. Training's been cat the last few months.

Alf Veedersane

Blacktie. wrote: »

You're catching up fast now. Training's been cat the last few months.

You'll be grand. You did pretty well in November after an injury.

Training has been really good in so far as I know I'm stronger. So I'm really happy with that anyway. But I'd love to put it all together on the day for once. Feeling good about doing that (famous last words)

Alf Veedersane

Wednesday 7/3/2018

A) Squat
152.5kg x 1


Bench
82.5kg x 1



Tapering is so fûcking boring.

Pavel66

Best of luck Saturday!

Alf Veedersane

Pavel66 wrote: »

Best of luck Saturday!

Cheers lad!

Blacktie.

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

Cheers lad!

Ah I didn't realise you where peaking. Last few days make a lot more sense now. Good luck Saturday!

Deano7788

Best of luck tomorrow! Hopefully not having to cut will make a big difference.

BossArky

Good luck! Looking forward to hearing how you get on!

Alf Veedersane

Saturday 10/3/2018

Came into it with a really good training cycle under my belt and I had high hopes of finally breaking the 500kg total.

Weighed in at 84.4kg. I have made sure to eat more this last while and thought I'd have been a kg or so heavier. But anyway.

Squat

The flight beforehand was shorter than expexted so a less than ideal warm up that went 70 - 110 - 150.

Opened with 165. Fine. Moved well enough so called 175 as planned. That moved slowly and slower than I'd have liked cos I was looking at a 3rd lift of 185+. I had a talk with myself. My inclination is to be very conservative and go work in myself. Thought about 180. Finally decided to back myself. Based off the 175, 185 was about as much as would have been there. So, for once I backed myself and called 185. Didnt get it. Made it back up but slowed too much at the sticking point and couldn't drive through it. I would have made 180 but I'm happy enough with the attitude that made me call 185. Finally showing a bit of belief. Only took a few years.

So 175kg was a disappointing number to come out of squats with but was still a 5kg OR.

Bench

I called 95 as an opener to gauge things cos my shoulders had felt a bit hammy. Nothing serious but just said I'd see. Flew up. 102.5 was called - comp PR I ground out in November. Flew up. Called 107.5kg.

Leaked too much speed too quickly and hovered 6" off the chest for an eternity cos I was sure I'd drive through. In hindsight, I didn't get enough leg drive to help drive it off the chest. But I know I have the weight there. Which is a bit mad. My bench max has moved at the speed of a snail over the years and hit 100kg for the first time in August. So to be confident that I'll be having a crack at 110kg before too long is kinda mad to me.

Sub-total: 277.5kg

Deadlift

Had no idea what was gonna happen here though 210 moved well last week with a rep in the tank

190 opener was good. Called 205. Not so good. Not patient enough but recovered and it moved fine.

So called 215. In an ideal world, I would have had a handy enough 3rd at less than that just to make sure of the 500. 215 was slow. Very slow. But it came up and was locked out.

Total: 492.5kg. A 7.5kg total PR.


Am I happy? No. Not in the slightest. The training deserved better.

But it is what it is. On another day, I know I could have totalled 500+.

Because I know I'm a lot stronger for that training cycle. A lot.

So yeah, I'm disappointed becauseI didnt put it together in the day but I know I can so betterso back to training, get the head down and work hard and put it together the next time.

Aside from anything else, I have really enjoyed the training. It's been rough at times but I love it.

Alf Veedersane

Also, a Haribo and Wine Gums PR.

Will not be going near them again for some time....

Deano7788

Congrats on the PR, definitely think you'll break 500 next time. Looking at the videos the 185 and 107.5 really weren't far away at all.

Alf Veedersane

Deano7788 wrote: »

Congrats on the PR, definitely think you'll break 500 next time. Looking at the videos the 185 and 107.5 really weren't far away at all.

The missed bench was down to leg drive cos that's key in helping me drive the bar back and up. So a technical mistake really. But it's there. My bench has always been pants so it actually feels like it's moving a bit better now.

I came for 500+ so its disappointing in that regard but I'll take the positives and build on them.

coffee_cake

I know you're disappointed but i think you did awesome and congrats on the prs!

Alf Veedersane

bluewolf wrote: »

I know you're disappointed but i think you did awesome and congrats on the prs!

A little more sanguine about it than disappointed. I love the training - this past training cycle has reinforced how much I get from it - so I'll just go back, work harder this time than the last and try to put it all on the platform again the next time.

Mr. CooL ICE

Shame. Your 180 from a few weeks back made it look like 185 was in the bag.

Going to stay at 93kg from now on?

Alf Veedersane

Nicolas Cage wrote: »

Shame. Your 180 from a few weeks back made it look like 185 was in the bag.

Going to stay at 93kg from now on?

Yeah. Well, regardless of what I weighed in at, it was nice to not have the distraction of looking st the scales.

I never had to cut but I'm hovering about 84kg now anyway so I'm not really interested in cutting. I won't be in the running for winning in the 83s or 93s so doesn't matter.

Was a great time to do it this time...would be in Sligo til about 5/6 this evening if I'd stayed in 83s. That's enough reason to stay in my book!

Edit to add: Also, if Id been cutting to 83, I wouldn't have been able to have the lovely cod and chips in the hotel last night followed by half a pack of fig rolls for dessert.

coffee_cake

Aw yeah. Fig rolls

Alf Veedersane

Tuesday 13/3/2018

A1) Pull Ups
5 x 12

A2) Seated Calf Raises
70kg x 5 x 15


B1) Tricep Pressdown
5 x 10

B2) Reverse Flys
8kgs x 5 x 10


C1) Hamstring Curls
82.5kg x 5 x 10

C2) Hammer Curls
5 x 12



Nothing to see here. Back in and getting moving. Nothing taxing but was nice to get back at it.

Alf Veedersane

Thursday 15/3/2018

A1) Lateral Raises
10kg x 5 x 10

A2) OH Tricep Cable  Extensions
5 x 10


Bench
105kg x 1


C1) Wide-Grip Seated Rows
110kg x 5 x 10

C2) Leg Extension
75kg x 5 x 10

C3) Hammer Curls
10kg x 5 x 12



Went in to do some of the stuff I used do in my lunchtime workouts.

Wound up benching up to a single at 105 sans wrist wraps. Not sure if wrist wraps made a difference but it seems my wrist has gone back to normal after that double-clunk when I forced it into flexion the other week. Woof. I guess it was a PR as well.

Then some more pumpy stuff.

Alf Veedersane

Had a look at my deadlift today to see why it's not going up despite every other relevant strength marker going up.

My approach and how I address the bar when I get to 200+ seems to change. To be slower and with less intensity.

I'm not sure exactly where things changed but the first time I pulled 220, I just did it. First comp, the same. Even the shít show I put on in the comp in May, I just went and pulled it.

Ever since then, not sure why, but when I have been up at 95%+ I seem to over think it and lifts have been slower. Then that makes me question if I'm going to make the lift and it has just become one big negative feedback loop.

Henry Ford said "Whether you think you can or you can, you're right". Over thinking and doubt over a heavy deadlift is a prime example.

Thinking back to the meet last week, the difference in mindset between going for a squat I'd never gone as high as and a deadlift I'd done multiple times were night and day.

Long story short, there's a mental issue there I need to address. A nice whack of volume on deadlifts will help...The intention being that I address the bar with the same mindset whether it's 160 or 230 and that the execution looks the same.

In some ways, it seems like an easy fix. It doesn't always work that way but I'm sick of building and building my squat and bench and then being a pùssy and questioning whether I can make a pull I should absolutely be making so time to fix it.

Alf Veedersane

Wednesday 21/3/2018

A) Pause Squat
142.5kg x 6 (@8)
107.5kg x 8, 8, 13


Wide-Grip SLDL
110kg x 8, 8, 18


C) Hamstring Curl
80kg x 5 x 15


D) Chest-Supported DB Row
22kgs x 3 x 20


E) 3-Way Plank
10 rounds: 40s on, 20s rest



We back at it. Needed to dig out the abacus for counting above 4, let alone double figures, for first time in ages.

Last 2 squats were a bit loose...switched off. Still, was just about right. Found the back off sets heavier than expected but last set felt the best. Except for pins and needles in my hand that cost me a couple of reps.

SG SLDL felt solid. Still feeling the 3 AMRAP sets of deadlift with 160kg I did on Monday though.

Hamstrings and lats fairly burned

Blacktie.

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

Wednesday 21/3/2018

A) Pause Squat
142.5kg x 6 (@8)
107.5kg x 8, 8, 13

175kg max doing pauses at 142.5kg!? Jesus man.

Alf Veedersane

Blacktie. wrote: »

175kg max doing pauses at 142.5kg!? Jesus man.

Well, max is 180 so its only 79%.

But my paused squats were good in the run up to the comp. Little bit off tonight but that's a fine-tuning thing.