Getting the Fig Rolls Out of Figsy

Figsy32

Hi guys, long time reader of the logs here and deciding to start posting one of my own to help keep the training on track now that I am back in college.

Quick background. I probably enjoyed the first couple years of college a little bit too much and lost a lot of fitness and a significant belly ensued. I started the 5x5 Stronglifts program and returned to hurling to try and get back in a decent shape and have seen a nice bit of progress in a change in body shape and increased strength, albeit from a very poor starting point. I've also been doing bits and pieces of additional work such as core work and additional bits for arms, calves etc.

Still plenty of work to be done to be honest. Looking to increase fitness levels, lower the body fat and weight.

I feel like I am coming to the end of benefiting from the 5x5 programme. I've read here and other places that it's benefits are limited after a while? I am finding progression harder and slower, having to take steps backwards to go forwards. I don't know if there is a consensus programme to progress onto that would suit my stats but any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Stats are as follows:

Age: 21
Height: 189cm (6'2 and change in old money)
Weight: 87kg

5x5 stats:

Squat - 57.5kg (Single of 72.5)
Deadlift - 80kg (1x5)
Bench - 42.5kg
OH press - 30kg
Row - 37.5kg

Goals

- Initial target of a 1x5 of BP/Squat/Dead of 60/80/100 by Week 7 of college. (We are starting back this Monday.)
- There's a 10K race in the middle of April which I am hoping to run a sub-52 time, so I'll be out running twice a week.
- Get the weight down further with an ideal target of 82kg.

Figsy32

Saturday - 24/01/15

Squat
52.5kg x 5 x 5

Bench
40 x 5 x 5

Row
32.5 x 5 x 5

Calf Raises
12.5kg e/s 3 x 10

Core
Plank - 3 x 1 minute
Mountain Climbers 40 x 3
Leg raises
Deadbugs

Everything was quite decent but the bench was a bit of a struggle after physical hurling session last night.

Figsy32

Squat
55kg x 5 x 5

Deadlift
80kg x 5

Overhead Press
30 x 4 x 5 - Missed 2 reps on the last set

Front squat
30kg x 3 x 5

A lot of stretching and foam rolling.

Figsy32

Had a light hurling training Thursday and did a comfortable enough 5 x 200 metre swim afterwards.

Was supposed to have a match last night but it was called off. Decided to go for a run to compensate but managed to strain my ankle ligaments. It's a common problem going back years from playing on torn ligaments that keeps reoccuring in niggles. Annoying.

Saturday 31/1/15

Got to the gym this morning but left out the squats. I'd no confidence The ankle could take the weight or keep my balance so I stayed away from the squat rack. Keeping it rested will get t right quicker.

Bench
42.5kg x 5 x 5

Row
35kg x 5 x 5

Dumbell Curls
10kg x 10 x 3
8kg x 10 x 2

Flys
7kg x 10 x 3

There was a lot of core work and foam rolling thrown in also.

It all felt a bit half-assed without the squats to be honest. I was wondering if there are any alternatives that might work the same muscles in such a situation?

Figsy32

Ankle was still at me yesterday so did the first upper body workout of Candito to see what it was like. Based it off a 52kg 1RM using the calculator.

Bench Press
25 x 10
35 x 10
37.5 x 8
40 x 6

Dumbbell Row
16kgs x 10 x 2
18ks x 8
20 kg x 6

Standing Dumbell OHP
8kgs (All I had the strength for!!) x 12 x 3

Lat Pulldown
45kg x 12 x 3
45kg x 8

Lateral Raises
7kg x 10 x 4

Curls
10kg x 10 x 3
8 kg x 12

Trying to decide appropriate weights for accessory exercises was the only real problem. Not sure what happened with the OHPs but I couldnt take any weight. Bench was pretty comfortable.

Figsy32

Decided to keep going with Candito as I enjoyed it the last day.

04/02/2015

Squats
52.5kg x 6 x 4

Deadlift
72.5kg x 6 x 2

Calf Raises
49.5kg x 10 x 3

Leg Press
103.5 x 10 x 3

Stretched and went for a light swim. Felt comfortable. I'm presuming the first week is meant to be like that?

Went for a 6km run @11.5km/h this morning.

papu

Figsy32 wrote: »

Decided to keep going with Candito as I enjoyed it the last day.

04/02/2015

Squats
52.5kg x 6 x 4

Deadlift
72.5kg x 6 x 2

Calf Raises
49.5kg x 10 x 3

Leg Press
103.5 x 10 x 3

Stretched and went for a light swim. Felt comfortable. I'm presuming the first week is meant to be like that?

Went for a 6km run @11.5km/h this morning.

This is the Linear Program?
It'll get more difficult over time , eventually you'll be putting max effort into your working sets. It's a great program for building strength. What version of it are you doing? power , control , hypertrophy?

Figsy32

papu wrote: »

This is the Linear Program?
It'll get more difficult over time , eventually you'll be putting max effort into your working sets. It's a great program for building strength. What version of it are you doing? power , control , hypertrophy?

Starting with the 6 Week strength program to hopefully get a bit of a base before going on to the linear control!

papu

In that case , week 1 is grand alright , week 2 is a bit of a pig. look to progress on your accessory lifts aswell!

Figsy32

06/02/15

Bench
25 x 10
35 x 10
37.5 x 8
40 x 6

Dumbbell Row
17.5s x 10 x 2
17.5s x 8
20 x 6

Standing Dumbbell OHP
8s x 12 x 2
8s x 10
8s x 8

Lat Pulldown
54 x 12 x 2
45 x 10
45 x 8

Lateral Raises
7 x 10 x 3

Dumbbell Curls
10 x 10 x 3
8 x 12

Figsy32

08/02/15

Squats
45 x 8 x 4

Deadlifts
65 x 8 x 2

Calf Raises
63.5 x 10 x 3

Leg Press
113.5 x 10 x 3

Hamstring Curls
45.3 x 10
54 x 10
63.5 x 10
(Trying to work out the right weight)

Went out to the pitch and did 10 x 40m sprints with a 20s break. Headed back in and stretched and did some painful rolling.

Figsy32

10/02/15

Bench
40xMR
Was on my own so was leaving one rep in the tank. I had no real idea what to expect, guessed I'd hit 10 or 11 but managed 13. I probably could have done another but the ego wasn't quite worth the risk.

Dumbbell Row
20 x 10
18 x 10
18 x 8
20 x 6

Dumbbell OHP
8s x 12 x 2
8s x 10
10s x 4
8s x 8

Lat Pulldown
54 x 12 x 2
54 x 10
54 x 8

Lateral Raises
8 x 8 x 3

That's week 1 finished. As Papu said week 2 looks a bit more full on but i'm looking forward to it.

papu

Benching 3 times a week will really improve your bench! I modified it a bit so I squat 3 times a week. Good Luck with W2!

Figsy32

11/02/2015

Was supposed to have a day off but match Friday means I had to rejig things a little.

Squats
52.5 x MR10
Managed the full 10, although the tenth rep was filthy.

55 x 3 x 5
Tough at the end but enjoyable.

Deadlift
65 x 8 x 3

Calf Raises
63.5 x 8 x 3

Leg Curls
63.5 x 10 x 3

Figsy32

12/02/2015

Bench Press
37.5 x 10
40 x 8
42.5 x 7
Needed 6-8 in the last set. Happy enough with that.

Dumbbell Row
20s x 10
20s x 8 x 2

Standing Dumbbell OHP
10 x 10
10 x 8
10 x 6

Dumbbell Curls
10 x 10 x 2
8 x 12

Lateral Raises
8 x 10 x 3

papu

Bet you're looking forward to the 11set squat sesh coming up :P

Figsy32

papu wrote: »

Bet you're looking forward to the 11set squat sesh coming up :P

It looks horrendous.

Figsy32

Had a match Friday and Sunday so the session which was supposed to be Saturday only happened today unfortunately. Quite banged up too which doesn't help matters.

16/02/15

Squat
55 x MR10
50 x 3 x 10

The last two sets were torture. Form kept good throughout though so I was happy.

Deadlift
65kg x 8 x 3

Leg Curls
8 x 3

Calf Raises
10 x 3

The combination of the matches and all those sets of squats has me SORE.

Figsy32

17/02/2015

Bench Press
37.5 x 10
40 x 8
42.5 x 8

Dumbbell Row
20 x 10 e/s
20 x 8 e/s
22 x 8 e/s

Dumbbell OHP
12s x 10
12s x 8
12s x 6 (getting there)

Lat Pulldown
54 x 10
54 x 8 x 2

Lateral Raises
8 x 8 x 3

Dumbbell Curls
10 x 3 x 3

Went well. Feeling like good progress is being made.

Figsy32

19/02/15

Bench Press
37.5 x MR
Ht 16. Going in I thought I might have managed 1 or 2 more, but even doing 10 this time two weeks ago would have been ridiculous so I'll take it!

Dumbbell Row
22 e/s x 10 x 2
22 e/s x 8

OHP
12 x 10
12 x 8
10 x 6

Lat Pulldown
10 x 3

Curls
10 x 8 x 3
8 x 10

Lateral Raises
8 x 8 x 3

Figsy32

20/02/2015

Squats
57.5 x (4-6) x 3
Hit 6 each time. Big difference in my form at the end of the sets recently.

Deadlift
80 x 5 x 3
Going in on Monday so that somebody can take a look at my form because I find it hard to tell.

Calf Raises
58.5 x 8 x 4

Hamstring Curls
68 x 8 x 3

Did some core work which I've neglected recently.
Planks 3 x 1 minute with 1 minute rest
Side Planks 2 x 30 e/s with 30 second rest
Mountain Climbers 3 x 30 seconds
Deadbugs
Bridges.

Figsy32

21/02/2015

Long enough wait for a bench which was annoying but got some core work in while waiting.

Bench
42.5 x (4-6) x 3
Hit 6 each time.

Dumbbell Row
22s x 6 x 3

Standing Dumbbell OHP
12s x 6 x 3

Lat Pulldown
6 x 3

Figsy32

Because the legs day was so short and missed a session yesterday, I decided to combine the two.

24/02/2015

Squat
60 x (4-6)
Hit the 6 but the 6th took a long time to come up.

RDL
60 x 8 x 3

Bench Press
45 x (4-6) x 3
Hit 6 the first two times, only had enough strength for 4 on the last.

Dumbbell Row
22e/s x 6 x 3

Dumbbell OHP
14 x 6
12 x 6 x 2

Lat Pulldown
49 x 6
42 x 6 x 2

Plank
30 sec x 3

Russian Twists (stolen from Cereal Rapper)
30 x 3

Bridges

Figsy32

26/02/2015

Bench Press
40 x 3 x 2
45 x 3
Felt a little strange doing so little after doing 45 x 6 x 3 last time out but I suppose the programme knows what it's doing.

Dumbbell Row
24e/s x 10 (too heavy and form wasn't good.)
22e/s x 10 x 2
22e/s x 8

Dumbbell OHP
14s x 12
12s x 10 x 2
12s x 8

Lat Pull Down
115lbs x 12
115lbs x 10
100lbs x 10
100lbs x 8

Dumbbell Curls
10 x 8 x 3
8 x 12

Lat Raises
8 x 8 x 3

Mr. Manager

Do you have a link to the program you're doing?

Figsy32

Cereal Rapper wrote: »

Do you have a link to the program you're doing?

http://www.canditotraininghq.com/free-strength-programs/

It's the 6 week program. Just started Week 4. I had hit a wall with the Stronglift program tbh. Have to say I'm enjoying the change and the accessory exercises that comes with it!

Mr. Manager

Figsy32 wrote: »

http://www.canditotraininghq.com/free-strength-programs/

It's the 6 week program. Just started Week 4. I had hit a wall with the Stronglift program tbh. Have to say I'm enjoying the change and the accessory exercises that comes with it!

Thought it looked familiar. I just finished it and have moved back to 5x5. After this I'll either go back to Candito or try GVT again.

Figsy32

Bit of an odd session this morning. I was in the club gym, half watching a match in between sets. Wasn't as tuned in as usual and squats weren't as good they should have been. Was still able to complete it but quality wasn't great.

Squat
57.5 x 3
60 x 3
62.5 x 3

Deadlift
70 x 6 x 2

Calf Raises
No machine so held two 20kg dumbbells
12 x 3

Leg Curls
10 x 3

Figsy32

Bench Press
45 x 3
45 x (2-4) - Did 4
47.5 x (1-2) - Managed a heavy 3rd

Dumbbell Row
22s x 12 x 2
22s x 10
22s x 8

Dumbbell OHP
12s x 10 x 2
12s x 8
12s x 6

Lat Pulldown
49.5 x 10 x 2
x 8
x 6

Figsy32

Haven't posted in nearly a week, been up the walls with college/matches.

Basically, finished the 5th week without a problem and spent yesterday morning doing test lifts on the 3 main lifts to see what progress was made.

Squat
66(per 1rm calculator)

---

> 72.5

I was able to get 75 and 77.5 up and down but they were with appalling form so will keep it at 72.5 for the next round of Candito. Small bit disappointed if i'm honest but if I keep progressing at that rate I should be well able for a body weight squat by the end of the college year.

Bench:
50

---

> 60

Was very very close to 62.5 but couldn't quite get it over the line. Still very happy with this though.

Deadlift
90

---

> 105

Chuffed to bits with getting 100 and more!

I'll restart the candito with the new 1RMs tomorrow. If it ain't broke, don't fix it I suppose!

Going to try and start incorporating hip and ankle flexibility into my routines. Talking to a couple of people yesterday, that may be what is holding the squat back compared to the others.

papu

Figsy32 wrote: »

Haven't posted in nearly a week, been up the walls with college/matches.

Basically, finished the 5th week without a problem and spent yesterday morning doing test lifts on the 3 main lifts to see what progress was made.

Squat
66(per 1rm calculator)

---

> 72.5

I was able to get 75 and 77.5 up and down but they were with appalling form so will keep it at 72.5 for the next round of Candito. Small bit disappointed if i'm honest but if I keep progressing at that rate I should be well able for a body weight squat by the end of the college year.

Bench:
50

---

> 60

Was very very close to 62.5 but couldn't quite get it over the line. Still very happy with this though.

Deadlift
90

---

> 105

Chuffed to bits with getting 100 and more!

I'll restart the candito with the new 1RMs tomorrow. If it ain't broke, don't fix it I suppose!

Going to try and start incorporating hip and ankle flexibility into my routines. Talking to a couple of people yesterday, that may be what is holding the squat back compared to the others.

Good gains after 5 weeks!
Decent idea to work on mobility , I do lower body mobility on upper days and upper on lower days.Don't forget shoulder mobility too! Ankle flexibility till you can do pistol squats!