A Monkey with a Gun

[View 1]

Squats are strong as always, OH pressing is nice too.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Post a vid for the cleans.

Your squats are unstoppable man!

Not a bad idea, but it's hard for me to get a video in my gym. It's usually pretty packed.

I was very pleased with the squats, they went much easier than expected.


Nice squats lately dude...looking very good indeed. And I've had similar experience with the rack pulls...I think I've only tried them once and it wasnt very good (for me).

Thanks, John! Rack pulls are the devil.


Hey man, long time no post. You look like you're movin much better weight in here since I last posted. Squats are indeed torture, hah. They are the only thing that actually makes my deadlift go through the roof though. Doubt I could do 280x5 right now, let along three sets, yeesh.

That is definitely annoying about the douchers hogging the benches. I don't think I've ever had someone deny me working in, lol. I would have told them off too. You'll get the 365 rack pull next time. Squats, bench then racks is a lot of work remember. So no doubt your grip was tired, bro. I'm gonna try and catch you on squats, so keep pushin hard.

Thanks, Kiaran. It's good to see you back. Your squats aren't far behind, if they're behind at all.


Squats are strong as always, OH pressing is nice too.

Thanks, Jefe.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
135x5x2
185x3
225x1
265x1
290x5
290x4
290x3

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x2
220x5x3

Deads:
135x5
185x5
225x3
295x1
345x5

Notes: I had to work late again so no time for accessory work. Solid workout, everything's still increasing but I feel like I didn't push myself hard enough on the squats. I think I should have been good for the 3x5, but my squats are starting to get respectable so I'm still happy. 300x5 should be mine next week.

[fooz]

great benching and deadlifts man.

[ZenMonkey]

Really strong all around. Like I said, your squats are unstoppable

[Sidior]

Nice squatting buddy. Maybe time for some more epic PRs when we train together next.

[View 1]

Great squatting bro!!! 300 is yours next week for sure. 345 on the deads is nice too. Solid workout.

[Kiaran]

Man, some strong squatting again and solid deadlift work. You like pain doing all big three in one session. The thing I don't like about that routine is that you are bound to hold back on those squats knowing you got to leave some in the tank for the other two moves. But to each his own I suppose.

[CrazyK]

Great squatting and deadlifts. You're right, that squat is coming along quite well. Keep up what you're doing!

[Jorge Sanchez]

great benching and deadlifts man.

THanks, dude.


Really strong all around. Like I said, your squats are unstoppable

I hope you're right about the squats. THey're going very well right now.


Nice squatting buddy. Maybe time for some more epic PRs when we train together next.

Damn straight!


Great squatting bro!!! 300 is yours next week for sure. 345 on the deads is nice too. Solid workout.

Thanks, bud.


Man, some strong squatting again and solid deadlift work. You like pain doing all big three in one session. The thing I don't like about that routine is that you are bound to hold back on those squats knowing you got to leave some in the tank for the other two moves. But to each his own I suppose.

Actually I go all out on the squats because they're my favourite lift. It does hurt my other lifts sometimes.


Great squatting and deadlifts. You're right, that squat is coming along quite well. Keep up what you're doing!

Will do, big guy.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x1
265x1
295x4

OHP:
45x8
95x3
135x4

Pull ups:
BWx9

Notes: Very quick and easy workout. I've got to write the LSAT tomorrow morning at 8:30 so I didn't want to wear myself out. It was just about getting in the gym today. I should have had 295x5 on the squats, but I just lost my focus and loosened up after the 4 rep so I decided not to risk another one.

[Sidior]

Best of luck with the LSAT man, I'm sure you will ace it.

[ZenMonkey]

Good luck to you too bro. Ill have a drink for you(and a few for me) after its done.

What are you taking to eat?

[jbrin0tk]

Gettin' strong as heck in here, bro! Great work!

[View 1]

Good luck on the test bro, let us know how you did.

[ZenMonkey]

DONE!!!!! "F" all that noise.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Best of luck with the LSAT man, I'm sure you will ace it.

I'm sure I will too. :evillaugh:


Good luck to you too bro. Ill have a drink for you(and a few for me) after its done.

What are you taking to eat?

Good stuff, dude. I brought some peanuts.


Gettin' strong as heck in here, bro! Great work!

Thanks, buddy. I'm working on it.


Good luck on the test bro, let us know how you did.

I won't know my results for about another month, but I'm sure I did well.


DONE!!!!! "F" all that noise.

Yessir. I can't wait to see how I did.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x1
265x1
295x5
295x2

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x5x2
225x4

Deads:
135x5
185x5
225x3
275x1
315x5
355x3

Notes: Nothing special. I got greedy and tried to bump up my squats before completing my 3x5 at 290. I just couldn't do it, so I'm going to drop back to 290 next session. My left hamstring cramped up on my first set of bench, but it still went better than I expected - I think I would have been good for the 3x5 if it hadn't have been for the hammie killing my leg drive on my last two sets. Deads were strong but my grip failed :(

[Kiaran]

I assume you already have done this but if you haven't, get some chalk for those deads, use a mixed grip and squeeze the snot out of that bar before pulling it off the floor. The last thing I think about before I pull is "gonna leave an imprint of my hand on that steel..."

Don't worry bout those squats. You've been doing a lot of them lately. Might be time for a deload session just to leg that hammie catch up. Then you'll dust 295x5x3. Just out of curiosity, why 3 sets of 5 with the same weight? Also, your bench disgusts me. Some day I will catch you.

[fooz]

seriously, some sick benchin overall bro!

[borracho]

wow!

It has been a while since I've been on and you've made awesome progress on all your lifts, dude..keep it up..looking awesome!

[View 1]

Man your killing me on all your numbers jorge!!! Today I benched flat footed ( normally im up in my toes ) and I liked it better I got more leg drive, but I noticed it in my legs more too, so im sure in the future this will happen to me as well.

[ZenMonkey]

Wow, strong numbers man. Really strong

[CrazyK]

Don't worry about the grip failure my man. Grip strength will come along. If it continues to stall start adding in some power shrugs to your assistant exercises.

[Jorge Sanchez]

I assume you already have done this but if you haven't, get some chalk for those deads, use a mixed grip and squeeze the snot out of that bar before pulling it off the floor. The last thing I think about before I pull is "gonna leave an imprint of my hand on that steel..."

Don't worry bout those squats. You've been doing a lot of them lately. Might be time for a deload session just to leg that hammie catch up. Then you'll dust 295x5x3. Just out of curiosity, why 3 sets of 5 with the same weight? Also, your bench disgusts me. Some day I will catch you.

Thanks for the props, dude. I use chalk and a mixed grip for heavy sets. I'll have to tryyour other tricks, though.

I do a straight 3x5 so I can get some decent volume in. In the new year I think I'll probably start ramping the weights.


seriously, some sick benchin overall bro!

Thanks, fooz!


wow!

It has been a while since I've been on and you've made awesome progress on all your lifts, dude..keep it up..looking awesome!

Thanks, man. I've been making some solid progress lately.


Man your killing me on all your numbers jorge!!! Today I benched flat footed ( normally im up in my toes ) and I liked it better I got more leg drive, but I noticed it in my legs more too, so im sure in the future this will happen to me as well.

Thanks. The cramps happens to me every so often, but it's not usually too bad. You just have to stay good and hydrated.


Wow, strong numbers man. Really strong

Thanks, ZM.


Don't worry about the grip failure my man. Grip strength will come along. If it continues to stall start adding in some power shrugs to your assistant exercises.

Yeah, I was thinking about adding in some grip work if it continues to be an issue. Power shrugs are a good idea. Fortunately my grip strength usually increases pretty quickly.








I think I'm going to skip my workout today. We got 40cm (almost a foot and a half for you Americans) of snow last night. I usually take the bus to work, but there's a transit strike going on, so I had to wake up really early to shovel out my driveway this morning. I have an older couple that lives next door, so I shoveled their's out as well and now I feel pretty drained. I don't think I could put in the effort today.

The shovelling was some pretty good GPP, though, so maybe I'll just count today as a deload. I'll see how I feel after work.

[borracho]

I hear ya on the shoveling...it is a PITA.

That being said, stop being a bitch and get your ass to the gym! Dont make any excuses!

[Sidior]

I think I'm going to skip my workout today. We got 40cm (almost a foot and a half for you Americans) of snow last night. I usually take the bus to work, but there's a transit strike going on, so I had to wake up really early to shovel out my driveway this morning. I have an older couple that lives next door, so I shoveled their's out as well and now I feel pretty drained. I don't think I could put in the effort today.

The shovelling was some pretty good GPP, though, so maybe I'll just count today as a deload. I'll see how I feel after work.

Good call on not heading out to the gym, it's a ****ing ****show out there man. How long did it take you to get to work? Usually I can get to Carleton in 10-15 min and it took me 45 today. Walking into an exam late is always fun.

[Jorge Sanchez]

I hear ya on the shoveling...it is a PITA.

That being said, stop being a bitch and get your ass to the gym! Dont make any excuses!

Alright, you bastard, you convinced me to go.


Good call on not heading out to the gym, it's a ****ing ****show out there man. How long did it take you to get to work? Usually I can get to Carleton in 10-15 min and it took me 45 today. Walking into an exam late is always fun.

I decided to go for a quick session after all. I woke up an hour and a half early and got to work 5 minutes late. It only took me about 45 minutes to get to work (compared to 20-25 usually) but I spent over an hour shovelling.

That sucks that you were late for your exam. At least you've got a car or you would've had to walk. How'd the exam go?

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x5x3

DB Press:
20x8
35x5x3

And a bunch of accessory stuff

Notes: Borracho convinced me to go to the gym after all (that bastard). I'm feeling pretty beat up so I took it really easy. Squats were more cardio than anything - I took at most one minute between sets. I can't make it to the gym again until Saturday so I should be good to go heavy again, although I'm considering a unilateral day since I've been neglecting them.

I'll be getting lots of cardio this week because I have to walk halfway to work because of this ******ed transit strike.

[borracho]

Good job dude..

Now that I go back and read what you originally typed, 1.5ft of snow is no joke! You shoulda been making snow angels or whatever it is yall do up there!

:D



And a side thought, yes..yes I am a bastard!..well, not literally..but yea.

[View 1]

Shovel hella snow then work out = no fun what so ever. GPP work is always good though, I need to do some myself. I so dont miss living in the snow.

[Sidior]

Way to get in there man!

Exam went well btw.


So next week what works best to train for you wed-fri?

[Jorge Sanchez]

Good job dude..

Now that I go back and read what you originally typed, 1.5ft of snow is no joke! You shoulda been making snow angels or whatever it is yall do up there!

:D



And a side thought, yes..yes I am a bastard!..well, not literally..but yea.

Usually I just write my name in the snow using yellow ink.


Shovel hella snow then work out = no fun what so ever. GPP work is always good though, I need to do some myself. I so dont miss living in the snow.

I don't blame you. I'm applying to law school and I'm thinking I need to find one in a nice warm place. The only problem is you have to deal with natural disasters in most warm places.


Way to get in there man!

Exam went well btw.


So next week what works best to train for you wed-fri?


Glad to hear the exam went well. I think Friday would be best for me because my cousin is in town on the 16th and 17th. Does that fit your schedule?

[Kiaran]

Shoveling is awesome work for your back. Don't blame you for taking it easy, bro. A couple years ago we had about 3 feet fall. The sides of my driveway were stacked up to about 5 feet when I was done shoveling. I hate heavy snow. That's also lame about the transit strike. Don't you have a car?

[CrazyK]

Nice little recovery workout you had there. lol though...you guys are having a transit strike? That blows.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Shoveling is awesome work for your back. Don't blame you for taking it easy, bro. A couple years ago we had about 3 feet fall. The sides of my driveway were stacked up to about 5 feet when I was done shoveling. I hate heavy snow. That's also lame about the transit strike. Don't you have a car?

I drive a motorcycle in the summer, but in the winter I only have access to a car when I use my parents. Besides, parking is at a premium where I work, especially with the strike, and the traffic is so bad it's faster to walk.


Nice little recovery workout you had there. lol though...you guys are having a transit strike? That blows.

Tell me about it.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x1
265x1
290x3
290x5
290x3

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x2
225x4
225x3
225x2

Deads:
135x5
185x5
225x2
275x1
315x1

Pull ups:
BWx5

Renegade rows:
35x8

Notes: What a terrible workout. My form felt way off on every single lift, I had no energy, and I felt super weak. Everything went backwards today. I'm going to chalk it up to a really bad day and see how next week goes. I'm planning to switch to Starr's 5x5 in the new year, but if I keep having trouble I might start a week or so earlier.

Edit: I'd like to add one more thing:

****!!

[CrazyK]

Sometimes you just feel ****ty in the gym. Good job getting through the workout and making it productive.

[borracho]

Honestly the workout didnt seem bad at all..yes, you were down on reps but you were able to do the weight which is the important thing.

Interestingly, I was faced with a difficult decision earlier. We are getting hit pretty good with snow today/night/tomorrow. We were told to go home. I am still here. Why? Because this is where I lift!...and if you some how got word that I headed home because we had ~8in of snow on the high ways you'd call be a fat, useless pansy (or at least I hope you would).

Anyhow, here is to dead lifts, bench, squat and rows with the knowledge that as soon as I get home I am going to have to shovel all the snow out of the driveway. I guess I am getting mine for calling you a bitch :D

[ZenMonkey]

Numbers still look solid man. Hard work!

[Kiaran]

Same as everyone else has already said, man. Just keep on moving forward. This time of year sucks to workout anyway. Anything is better than nothing. Still some nice moves on those squats though.

[jbrin0tk]

Keep up the hard work, bud. You'll be at 315 x 3 x 5 before you know it!

[View 1]

We all have our off days, its sucks but its only one day. You know I look at what you did today and you say it sucks, and its still 99% better than what I see people do all day at the gym. Good luck on the 5x5 looking forward to see how it works for you.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Sometimes you just feel ****ty in the gym. Good job getting through the workout and making it productive.

Thanks, buddy.


Honestly the workout didnt seem bad at all..yes, you were down on reps but you were able to do the weight which is the important thing.

Interestingly, I was faced with a difficult decision earlier. We are getting hit pretty good with snow today/night/tomorrow. We were told to go home. I am still here. Why? Because this is where I lift!...and if you some how got word that I headed home because we had ~8in of snow on the high ways you'd call be a fat, useless pansy (or at least I hope you would).

Anyhow, here is to dead lifts, bench, squat and rows with the knowledge that as soon as I get home I am going to have to shovel all the snow out of the driveway. I guess I am getting mine for calling you a bitch :D

Good on you for making it to the gym. You're right, I would've called you a bitch if you didn't make it.


Numbers still look solid man. Hard work!

Thanks, ZM.


Same as everyone else has already said, man. Just keep on moving forward. This time of year sucks to workout anyway. Anything is better than nothing. Still some nice moves on those squats though.

Thanks, dude. You guys are really helping me keep it in perspective.


Keep up the hard work, bud. You'll be at 315 x 3 x 5 before you know it!

I know you're right. I just have to keep plugging away.


We all have our off days, its sucks but its only one day. You know I look at what you did today and you say it sucks, and its still 99% better than what I see people do all day at the gym. Good luck on the 5x5 looking forward to see how it works for you.

You're right, Jefe. I've got to keep that in mind. It's just frustrating when you regress.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x1
255x1
275x5x3

OHP:
45x8
95x3
130x5x3

Cleans:
95x5
135x5x3

Dips:
BWx8x3

Hypers:
BWx6 - the hyper machine I was using is definitely not fit for tall people so I had to give up :(

Notes: My back was feeling a little wonky yesterday, so I took the day off. I felt a lot better today, so I was good to go. I dropped the weight on the squat and I'm going to work my way back up in 10lbs increments. The second set flew up, but the first and last were harder than I expected. After the fact, I noticed the barbell was pretty significantly bent, so I hope that was contributing to it. OHP increased, so that's a really good sign. Cleans, well, I suck at them - way too much arms.

[CrazyK]

You're OHP is getting quite up there big man. Especially for your size.

[Sidior]

Nice call on resetting those squats. Any plans for a max single soon? ;)

[View 1]

Dropping the weight and working back up is a great idea, you'll come out stronger. Nice OH pressing, If that goes up so does your bench, and vice versa.

[borracho]

Good plan on the squats..I need to follow your lead and do the same.

On a related note...I cant get over this...all year long I do some stupid **** that a fat kid has no business doing..and yet I (normally) come out juuuust peachy. Yet, when it snows, and I have to pick up a shovel, I can just about guarantee that my back is going to be aaaall kinds-a-****ed up the next day.

This winter has been no different :D

stupid snow.

[Jorge Sanchez]

You're OHP is getting quite up there big man. Especially for your size.

Thanks, dude. It will be nice to move up to the big boy wheel next week.


Nice call on resetting those squats. Any plans for a max single soon? ;)

Thanks, dude.


Dropping the weight and working back up is a great idea, you'll come out stronger. Nice OH pressing, If that goes up so does your bench, and vice versa.

Yeah, that's what I was thinking with the OHP-bench, especially since my OHP is usually so slow to increase.


Good plan on the squats..I need to follow your lead and do the same.

On a related note...I cant get over this...all year long I do some stupid **** that a fat kid has no business doing..and yet I (normally) come out juuuust peachy. Yet, when it snows, and I have to pick up a shovel, I can just about guarantee that my back is going to be aaaall kinds-a-****ed up the next day.

This winter has been no different :D

stupid snow.

Shoveling is ridiculous. I read a quote somewhere and I think it can be applied equally to shoveling, but it goes along the lines of:

The human back is amazing. Someone can deadlift 900lbs in complete safety, but if you pick up a baby the wrong way you're sidelined for a month.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x2
185x1
225x1
245x1 5lb PR
260 miss
255 miss

Squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x10
275x1
295x2

Notes: Trained with Sidior today and decided to go for a bench max. 245 went up easily - I definitely had more in me - but 260 was not to be, unfortunately. It was nice to confirm that I'm back to, and beyond where I was before my last trip. I'm sure my squat is stronger and I think my deadlift is probably as well.

Dave also confirmed something that I have had my suspicions about for a little while now: that I shift my hips to the side when I squat. I have a feeling it started as a flexibility issue, since I have had a number of persistent injuries on the left side of my lower body, and has become a major strength imbalance. I'm going to talk to my aunt, who is a physiotherapist, over Christmas and see if she has any advice.

225x10 went well. I think I could bang out a pretty easy 20 repper with it, but even the 10 reps had me pretty winded - I don't think I've done 10 rep squats in more than a year. Overall, fun workout and it was good to train with Dave.

[mrelwooddowd]

Damn. Nice-looking workout. You're doing pretty good for a chronic start and stopper..LOL

[ZenMonkey]

Awesome work man... really kicking ass!

[Sidior]

Nice bench PR, 275 will drop as soon as you get some more pop off your chest.

[borracho]

Nice bench PR dude...and the thought of doing 20 reps of 225 is sickening my friend...SICKENING!

[Ben Moore]

What do weigh Jorge? Nice bench PR!

[Kiaran]

Dude, that is awesome that you have surpassed a previous milestone. 275 will be yours in a matter of a couple months. Sidior sounds like a cool dude to workout with. No doubt he brings the strength and intensity to the floor. Got to love the qwerks in all of our forms. My right knee caves in when I drive out of the hole on squats. Just got to find the accessory/warmup move that will fix the imbalance is all. You'll get it cleaned up, dude. And 20 reps with 225 on Squats? **** that, bang out 5 with 315, or a single at 365. Now that is strength well spent :D Keep crushin it, bro.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Damn. Nice-looking workout. You're doing pretty good for a chronic start and stopper..LOL

Thanks. I've been back at it pretty hard and consistently for the past few months.


Awesome work man... really kicking ass!

Thanks, Zen.


Nice bench PR, 275 will drop as soon as you get some more pop off your chest.

I hope you're right. 275 will be a nice feeling. I'm going to really focus on exploding off my chest from now on.


Nice bench PR dude...and the thought of doing 20 reps of 225 is sickening my friend...SICKENING!

Yeah, I felt pretty winded after the 10 reps, but I didn't feel like I was going to puke or fall over or anything, so I'm sure 20 is very doable.


What do weigh Jorge? Nice bench PR!

Thanks, Ben, I would have liked to hit something a little higher, but I'll have to save that for another time. I haven't weighed myself in about a week and a half, but I think I'm probably a couple pounds shy of 220, first thing in the morning.


Dude, that is awesome that you have surpassed a previous milestone. 275 will be yours in a matter of a couple months. Sidior sounds like a cool dude to workout with. No doubt he brings the strength and intensity to the floor. Got to love the qwerks in all of our forms. My right knee caves in when I drive out of the hole on squats. Just got to find the accessory/warmup move that will fix the imbalance is all. You'll get it cleaned up, dude. And 20 reps with 225 on Squats? **** that, bang out 5 with 315, or a single at 365. Now that is strength well spent :D Keep crushin it, bro.

I hope you're right about the imbalance. I'm going to throw in a lot more unilateral work until I leave for Christmas (which is only two more workouts) and I'm not going to squat heavy until after I speak to a physio/my aunt.

315x5 will be mine soon, though, don't you worry.

[jbrin0tk]

Good work, bud! That shifting thing with your hips sounds kinda crazy. Does it cause you any pain?

[View 1]

Nice PR jorge. I think with your hips moving to side, maybe its something you started doing without realizing it, could be just your body trying to protect itself ( the human body is built for survival ). Im no expert so I dont know how that will effect you in the long run, but hopefully its nothing, looking forward to see you bang out a new squat PR!!!!

[fooz]

some big benching man good job

[CrazyK]

Great job on the bench, you're good for 250-255 for sure.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Good work, bud! That shifting thing with your hips sounds kinda crazy. Does it cause you any pain?

No pain but I'm a little worried it might be setting me up for an injury down the road.


Nice PR jorge. I think with your hips moving to side, maybe its something you started doing without realizing it, could be just your body trying to protect itself ( the human body is built for survival ). Im no expert so I dont know how that will effect you in the long run, but hopefully its nothing, looking forward to see you bang out a new squat PR!!!!

Thanks, Jefe. I hope you're right about if being no big deal


some big benching man good job

Thanks, fooz.


Great job on the bench, you're good for 250-255 for sure.

Thanks, dude. I think you're right. Hopefully I'll be up around 275 before too long.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x10
95x5
135x5
185x3
EC92jrB8Ygs
225x10
9Ln77157IQs
275x3
IVmNynMibhw
285x4
wxLXEZfkVw0

OHP:
45x8
95x3
135x3x2
135x1

Deadlifts:
135x5
225x3
275x1
315x1
355x3

Dips:
35x8x3

Renegade rows:
35x8x2

Notes: Took some vids of my squats from behind to get a look at my hips shifting. I'll be posting them as soon as I can upload them to youtube.

Pretty ****ty workout. I seem to be getting weaker, which is really odd because I'm still gaining weight. I think it's because I've been getting about 10-12 hours less sleep for the past couple of weeks. I'm going to be taking a break over Christmas while visiting family out of town. Hopefully that will help me out.

[Jorge Sanchez]

285 to come.

As you can see my hips shift to the left slightly towards the bottom of the lift. If anyone has any pointer, I'd really appreciate it.

[CrazyK]

The hip shift...look in to your set up. You actually set up your feet uneven from the start, I'd try to get your feet as straight and even as possible. Arch is also a little bit of an issue on the heavier lifts. You have a great arch with 185 but by 285 you start leaning over and rounding, work on keeping your body as upright as the 185 attempt.

Most of all, are you doing mobility work pre-workout? I find doing some dynamic hip/hammy stretches really warm my joints up for squat days, and it alleviates a lot of these issues.

But...good work overall man. You're toughing through it and working on your form.

[Jorge Sanchez]

You're right about the feet - they definitely don't look even. I never noticed that before. I wonder if that's just the video angle or if it really is as simple as that. Well noted about the arch, as well, I noticed that too. 285 was definitely ugly. I'm going to drop the weight when I get back from visiting family over Christmas and really work on my for,.

I do do mobility work to warm up for my squats, but not as much lately as I have in the past. I should definitely stop slacking on that.

Thanks for your advice, Crazy. I think that's going to be helpful.

[borracho]

I dont know if it is just me, but it almost seems like your ass comes up before anything else...and then you end up almost GMing it at the top...sorta like your ass is too fast for the rest of your body and then your upper half tries to catch up to it.

I dont want to ask how strong your core is as I know it has to be strong to do those ******edly difficult pushup/rows with the DBs...but, how is your core? Is there any chance that you're trying to over compensate for a weak link in the front?


(take this all with a big fat grain of salt, squatting is def not my strong point..most likely its my weakest...and my form is def not correct.)

[Jorge Sanchez]

I noticed the ass coming up. I don't think that is a compensation - I think it is just a bad habit that I developed trying to make sure I'm getting proper hip drive. Either way, it's definitely something I intend to work on - along with depth.

I posted my videos on Rippetoe's Q&A and he told me that I need to go see a therapist to deal with an injury on my glute (which I was planning to do in the new year anyways). He seems to think that is the primary cause.

Keep the input coming. I've got lots of good pointers so far, and I always want to work on perfecting my form.

[borracho]

I posted my videos on Rippetoe's Q&A and he told me that I need to go see a therapist to deal with an injury on my glute (which I was planning to do in the new year anyways). He seems to think that is the primary cause.




What is this glute injury you speak of? I think I may have a glute-issue as well. At first it was only noticeable when I was doing box squats (VERY light weight)...but as of recently it is happening when ever I do normal back squats. Last session was particularly bad.

[Jorge Sanchez]

What is this glute injury you speak of? I think I may have a glute-issue as well. At first it was only noticeable when I was doing box squats (VERY light weight)...but as of recently it is happening when ever I do normal back squats. Last session was particularly bad.

It was a snowboarding injury. I was on a rail and slammed down really hard right on my ass (I'm lucky I didn't hit my head because I would probably be dead since I didn't wear a helmet at the time). Almost two years later, I still have a tennis ball sized lump where I landed, and I have absolutely no sensation. A doctor told me I had destroyed the nerve and the lump is scar tissue on the muscle.

What's your issue?

[Jorge Sanchez]

All done with 115

Circuit 1:
Split squats x10
OHP from knees x8
BO Rows x10

Circuit 2:
Front squat x10
Floor press x10
BO Rows x10

Circuit 3:
Lunges x10
OHP from knees x8
BO Rows x10

Circuit 4:
SLDL x10
Floor press x20
BO Rows x10

Circuit 5:
SLDL x10
OHP from knees x8
BO Rows x10

Notes: Was planning to hit the weights tomorrow after work but I had to move Wednesday morning's flight to Tomorrow evening because of a snow storm. Just did a quick little circuit with the little bit of weights I have at home. Really got my heart racing and my arms pumped. I won't be back in the gym for another week.

[ZenMonkey]

Looking strong bro! Fun looking circuits! Are these a new addition to your routine?

[CrazyK]

Have a good rest, eat up, and come back stronger! :)

[jbrin0tk]

Awesome circuits, man! Have fun on your trip, bud!

[View 1]

What is this??? Circuit training I see... Man I dont miss how brutal that **** is, great stuff bro. Have fun on your trip, merry christmas.

[Kiaran]

Very nice work on the circuit. That sucks about the injury from snowboarding. I'm sure Mark knows what he's talking about regarding the squat. From what I watched, your form actually looked pretty nice. Your hip shifts a little, but not that bad. To be honest it looks like your right knee caves in a little on the drive out of the hole. This caving creates a little shift in your pelvis. Is your left leg stronger than your right? This is my same problem, and to correct it I do band-abductions to warmup (like two sets of 20). You may also try a slightly wider squat stance and just focus on keeping those knees out. The hips rising up faster than the torso was the most evident thing I saw. I think this is common and if it bothers you, just work on keeping that core and upper back solid as a rock during the transition out of the hole. Overall, this is just very critical analysis, bro. You look great!

[jed]

lookin solid in here bro - that circuit would rape me :(

[Sidior]

Hope your time off has been enjoyable.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Looking strong bro! Fun looking circuits! Are these a new addition to your routine?

Naw. I just couldn't make it to the gym but I wanted to get a workout in. I don't have much weight at home, so I figured I might as well run a circuit if I couldn't lift heavy.


Have a good rest, eat up, and come back stronger! :)

Thanks, CK.


Awesome circuits, man! Have fun on your trip, bud!

Thanks, dude.


What is this??? Circuit training I see... Man I dont miss how brutal that **** is, great stuff bro. Have fun on your trip, merry christmas.

Yeah, it was definitely a tough session. I don't plan on doing that too often.


Very nice work on the circuit. That sucks about the injury from snowboarding. I'm sure Mark knows what he's talking about regarding the squat. From what I watched, your form actually looked pretty nice. Your hip shifts a little, but not that bad. To be honest it looks like your right knee caves in a little on the drive out of the hole. This caving creates a little shift in your pelvis. Is your left leg stronger than your right? This is my same problem, and to correct it I do band-abductions to warmup (like two sets of 20). You may also try a slightly wider squat stance and just focus on keeping those knees out. The hips rising up faster than the torso was the most evident thing I saw. I think this is common and if it bothers you, just work on keeping that core and upper back solid as a rock during the transition out of the hole. Overall, this is just very critical analysis, bro. You look great!

Thanks for the input and kind words, Kiaran. Actually, my right leg is stronger, or at least bigger, than my left leg.


lookin solid in here bro - that circuit would rape me :(

Thanks, Jed. It definitely had it's way with me too.


Hope your time off has been enjoyable.

It was a blast and same goes for you, although I know you're not back at school yet.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x5x3

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
165x2
205x5x3

Deads:
135x5
225x3
275x5

Notes: Took it easy today to get back into the swing of things. I really worked on my form today, especially with the squats. I narrowed my stance, as per Rippetoe's advice, and started dropping into the hole much quicker, which allowed me to get a lot deeper and really take advantage of the stretch reflex. I think this will help me squat a lot more in the long run. I had a hard time staying tight going into the hole for the first couple of sets, but by the last one I felt really good and natural. I could really feel the stretch in my hips, hamstrings and glutes. I also realized my hips shoot up too quickly when I deadlift, so I worked on that a bit. I'm going to work my way back up over the next couple of weeks while really focusing on my form.

On another note, I got my LSAT results back yesterday. I'm a little disappointed because I made some stupid mistakes and did worse than on my practice tests, but I can't be too upset because I scored in the 96th percentile and can get into any Canadian school and a lot of the T14 in the states - although I won't be able to get into Columbia, which I was hoping for.

[CrazyK]

Good job working on the form and narrowing the stance. I did that as well and it helped a lot.

The LSAT is a pretty mentally straining test imo. It's crazy that you're looking in to places like Columbia. I'm sure you'll still get in a great school, but remember even if you don't...Law schools are so strictly accredited that really any top 50 school is good enough to start you on your way to an outstanding career.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Thanks, dude. Actually, Columbia is a long shot right now since I didn't do as well as I thought I would on the LSAT - I only have about a 1 in 5 chance of being accepted, so I'm just going to save the application fee. It was a bit of dream anyways, since I don't think I could've ponied up the 40grand for tuition plus living expenses (in NYC :omg:) every year for three years, despite the large earning potential at the end. I'll probably end up going to the 1 or 2 school in Canada - I'm leaning towards McGill at this point.

[View 1]

I see you did what I did, start back a little lighter and work your way back up. Good idea about working on your form, now matter how good we may think it is we can always do it better.

Congrats on being in the 96% on the LSAT, even though I know you wanted 100% that is one hell of an accomplishment, good luck to you no matter which school you end up attending.

[ZenMonkey]

Awesome LSAT brotha-man. Mine is f*****. I got a 160. Thats what I get for doing next to no prep work.

Congrats again- that is a great score. Either way it goes you are gonna get into a great school- good job.

[jed]

damn, you do the B/S/D stuff in one day too, thats crazy stuff. lookin good.

congrats on your score, bro. 96% is nothin to hang ur head about.

[Kiaran]

Nice work, man. Keepin it easy and smart. I'm gonna be right there with ya as I start back up here. Is the LSAT the same as the SAT? I'm a little confused, as I took the SAT over 10 years ago :( Anyhow, 96th percentile in anything on this planet is a fine job, bro. My SAT score sucked when I took it, lol (and I took it twice).

[Jorge Sanchez]

I see you did what I did, start back a little lighter and work your way back up. Good idea about working on your form, now matter how good we may think it is we can always do it better.

Congrats on being in the 96% on the LSAT, even though I know you wanted 100% that is one hell of an accomplishment, good luck to you no matter which school you end up attending.

Thanks, Jefe.

Resetting is frustrating sometimes but it helps in the long run.


Awesome LSAT brotha-man. Mine is f*****. I got a 160. Thats what I get for doing next to no prep work.

Congrats again- that is a great score. Either way it goes you are gonna get into a great school- good job.

Congrats to you too! 160 is a solid score (and didn't you do better the first time around?). I'm sure you'll be able to get into a good school as well.


damn, you do the B/S/D stuff in one day too, thats crazy stuff. lookin good.

congrats on your score, bro. 96% is nothin to hang ur head about.

Thanks, jed.


Nice work, man. Keepin it easy and smart. I'm gonna be right there with ya as I start back up here. Is the LSAT the same as the SAT? I'm a little confused, as I took the SAT over 10 years ago :( Anyhow, 96th percentile in anything on this planet is a fine job, bro. My SAT score sucked when I took it, lol (and I took it twice).

Thanks, K. The LSAT is a little different than the SAT and it's for entrance into law school.





I'm coming down with something so I won't be heading to the gym. It is really frustrating, but it seems like things often pile up all at once to keep my out of the gym. With the holidays and now this, I won't have had a heavy workout in a couple of weeks and even before the holidays things weren't going great. All I can do is get back at it as quickly as I can.

[Sidior]

Great LSAT score man! At least if you stay in Canada you will save a lot of money

[Jorge Sanchez]

Thanks, dude.


Time to dust this thing off.

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
235x5x3

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x2
210x5x3

Deads:
135x5
225x3
305x5

Chins:
BWx5x2
BWx3

Notes: Still working on getting a lot deeper on my squats. Everything felt really good. Last set of bench was really explosive.

[jed]

yeesh, solid work man. what do you need to get lower on your squats? flexibility? just some form work?

[View 1]

See you took everything up a little this week, soon you'll be passing up all your old PR's. How did the squats feel going lower?

[Jorge Sanchez]

yeesh, solid work man. what do you need to get lower on your squats? flexibility? just some form work?

Thanks, jed. A little bit of both, I think. If I work on the form, the squats should stretch me out and improve my flexibility.


See you took everything up a little this week, soon you'll be passing up all your old PR's. How did the squats feel going lower?

That's the plan. They're definitely a bit harder and different - I can't quite sit back as far as I used to and I'm using a narrower stance so both of those things are taking my hips out of it a little bit.






I just got accepted to U of T law!! What a great way to start the day. It's the top school in Canada and rivals some of the best (outside of HSY) in the States. Now I just have to wait to hear back from the number 2 school which is my number 1 choice.

I've also been getting a lot of unsolicited emails from American schools urging me to apply, but I think my heart is set on staying in Canada.

[Kiaran]

Good stuff working out the kinks in that squat. You numbers are gonna fly up, bro. Bench is insane. Three sets of 5 with 210. I could maybe do one set, lol. Definitely bump that ****. Nice moves, dude.

Also, congrats on the acceptance in law. I know that ain't easy to get into, bro. Definitely getting things right on track. How many more years of school will that be?

[ZenMonkey]

Congrats friend! Good work lifting too!

[Sidior]

Congrats man!

[View 1]

Congrats on the school acceptance, hopefully you get excepted in at your number one choice.

[jbrin0tk]

Congrats on getting accepted to U of T, and solid training the other day!

[mrelwooddowd]

Congratulations!

There's nothing wrong with the U.S, though! There's some cool people that live here.


My little sister has an internet boyfriend she met on PS2, and he's in Canada. He laughed when she called University "college." He said college is for plumbers and stupid people.

I say he's stupid. He's got a girlfriend like..5,000 miles away he'll never meet (unless he wants an ass-kicking by two older brothers). And, since he's 19 and she's almost 16, he better keep his ass in Canada. :)

[Jorge Sanchez]

Good stuff working out the kinks in that squat. You numbers are gonna fly up, bro. Bench is insane. Three sets of 5 with 210. I could maybe do one set, lol. Definitely bump that ****. Nice moves, dude.

Also, congrats on the acceptance in law. I know that ain't easy to get into, bro. Definitely getting things right on track. How many more years of school will that be?

Thanks, dude. Law school will be 3 years (3.5 if I go to McGill, but I'll get two degrees). The bench is definitely going up on Friday.


Congrats friend! Good work lifting too!


Congrats man!


Congrats on the school acceptance, hopefully you get excepted in at your number one choice.


Congrats on getting accepted to U of T, and solid training the other day!

Thanks, guys.


Congratulations!

There's nothing wrong with the U.S, though! There's some cool people that live here.


My little sister has an internet boyfriend she met on PS2, and he's in Canada. He laughed when she called University "college." He said college is for plumbers and stupid people.

I say he's stupid. He's got a girlfriend like..5,000 miles away he'll never meet (unless he wants an ass-kicking by two older brothers). And, since he's 19 and she's almost 16, he better keep his ass in Canada. :)

I have nothing against the US and I'd be a lot more inclined to go to school there if I could return to Canada to practice law immediately. As it is, I'd have to wait at least 8 years to practice in Canada with an American degree, whereas I can go straight to the States with a Canadian degree.

Besides, age of consent is 16 in Canada. Maybe your sister should come visit her boyfriend. ;)

[CrazyK]

Solid work in here. Your dead's always impress me.

The deep squats will come, just have to keep training mobility through the warmups and the lift itself as you're doing.

[borracho]

As it is, I'd have to wait at least 8 years to practice in Canada with an American degree

Why is that?

[Jorge Sanchez]

Solid work in here. Your dead's always impress me.

The deep squats will come, just have to keep training mobility through the warmups and the lift itself as you're doing.

Thanks, dude. I would actually believe you if you didn't row more than those DLs. ;)


Why is that?

The legal systems are slightly different and American degrees aren't recognized as equivalent in Canada, but some Canadian degrees are recognized as equivalent in certain states. If you have enough work experience with an American degree, you can practice in Canada. Without the work experience it takes about another year and a half of school.






Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
195x3
245x5x3

OHP:
45x8
85x3
125x5x3

Pendlay Rows:
125x5
155x5x3

Notes: Solid workout. I'm starting to get a lot more comfortable with the deeper squats. I'm able to stay a lot tighter in the bottom position. I tweaked my shoulder and tricep a little bit with the OHP. I should have warmed up more and started at a lower weight. It's not bad so I expect it will be better in time for next session.

[View 1]

Squats are getting back up there. I know since you narrowed your stance you said your knee isnt shifting as much, does it feel the same way now that the weights are getting a little heavier?

And be careful you dont want to mess up your rotator cuff and end up with a ****y bench like me!!!:(

[Kiaran]

Where did you hurt your shoulder (front/side/back)? ****ing hate injuries. Nice moves on the Pendlays, bro.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Squats are getting back up there. I know since you narrowed your stance you said your knee isnt shifting as much, does it feel the same way now that the weights are getting a little heavier?

And be careful you dont want to mess up your rotator cuff and end up with a ****y bench like me!!!:(

Thanks, Jefe. My hips still shift a bit, but I'm trying to focus on correcting it.


Where did you hurt your shoulder (front/side/back)? ****ing hate injuries. Nice moves on the Pendlays, bro.

Thanks, dude. My shoulder/tricep was just a little tweaked right where they meet. It's all better now.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x1
255x5x3

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
175x2
215x5x3

Notes: Rough workout. Felt like **** and called it a day after the bench.

[CrazyK]

Some days you just have to throw in the towel. Why'd you feel so bad?

And I'm impressed by progress and relativism. Your DL is solid big man.

[ZenMonkey]

Nice squatting man! Its a good feeling going deeper on squats

[jbrin0tk]

Good work today, brother.

[View 1]

Good effort even though you weren't feeling it. Next workout will be better!

[borracho]

wow...squats are climbing daily, it looks.

Keep it up dude...you'll be passing your old spot in no time.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Some days you just have to throw in the towel. Why'd you feel so bad?

And I'm impressed by progress and relativism. Your DL is solid big man.


I had way too much to eat for lunch and I rushed through my workout. I really felt as though I was going to puke.


Nice squatting man! Its a good feeling going deeper on squats

Sure is. It takes some work, though.


Good work today, brother.

Thanks for the support, J.


Good effort even though you weren't feeling it. Next workout will be better!

Thanks, Jefe!


wow...squats are climbing daily, it looks.

Keep it up dude...you'll be passing your old spot in no time.

That's the plan.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
135x5
185x3
225x1
265x5x3

OHP:
45x8
95x3
125x5x3

Pendlay Rows:
125x5
165x5x3

Notes: My hips were really loose today. I think squatting deeper is really helping out my flexibility. Squats felt good, but I've still got to get used to squatting deeper. I have to find the happy medium for my hips - if I push them too far back, I lose my balance below parallel and lose my back extension to maintain my balance, but if I don't go back far enough I get up on my toes too much. Overall, I had a pretty good balance between the two, and my last set felt pretty spot on. I didn't increase OHP because of the shoulder issue last time, but it felt good, so onto 130 next week.

I started a cut today. I'm going to Mexico in 5 weeks and I want to be beach ready. I'm going low carb on off days and moderate carb, focused around my workouts, on training days.

[Kiaran]

Really solid on those squat numbers, bro. Actually really solid on all your numbers. Good call on being patient with OHPs. When's your next 1RM for squats going to be? I'll bet you got a PR in you.

[View 1]

Solid squating. Im in the same boat as you as I dont have my squat form to where I want it to be. I narrowed my stance but still I have the balance issues you have as well. Sometimes I wonder if ill ever have the form down 100%?

[borracho]

Super squats dude..where is your BW sitting at now?

[Jorge Sanchez]

Really solid on those squat numbers, bro. Actually really solid on all your numbers. Good call on being patient with OHPs. When's your next 1RM for squats going to be? I'll bet you got a PR in you.

Thanks, dude. I'm not planning to PR on the squats anytime soon, but I'm probably still a little bit shy of my best at 355.


Solid squating. Im in the same boat as you as I dont have my squat form to where I want it to be. I narrowed my stance but still I have the balance issues you have as well. Sometimes I wonder if ill ever have the form down 100%?

I doubt mine will ever be 100%, but that doesn't mean I can't keep working on them.


Super squats dude..where is your BW sitting at now?

Last time I weighed myself (on Saturday, I think) I was sitting at 218. I have a stomach flu and puked up almost everything I ate yesterday, so I'm probably a lot lower at the moment. I literally hadn't puked in years before that and I forgot how much it sucks.

I'm not feeling nauseous today, but I still have pains in my stomach, so I'm going to skip my session today and hope to be back tomorrow or Friday.

[Sidior]

Everything seems really solid in here. What are your calories looking like through the cut?

[ZenMonkey]

Nice squats man!!

[Keith]

Damn, solid numbers in here since I've been gone! Impressive. Keep it up, duder. Starting a cut too I see? What's your body weight at now and what are you aiming for?

[mrelwooddowd]

What's your bodyfat pre-cut? Based on your lifts, I'm guessing somewhere in the 20% range?

[CrazyK]

You're doing it right if your hips are starting to feel looser. It means they're stretching and taking the load. A lot of people just end up leaning forward more to get the bar lower and that won't help their flexibility at all.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Everything seems really solid in here. What are your calories looking like through the cut?

Thanks, dude.

Off days approx: 2700kcals, 140F, 75C, 280P
Lifting days approx:3200kcals, 145F, 140C, 310P

The numbers might not add up exactly, it's just a rough calculation


Nice squats man!!

Thanks, dude.


Damn, solid numbers in here since I've been gone! Impressive. Keep it up, duder. Starting a cut too I see? What's your body weight at now and what are you aiming for?

Thanks, Keith. I'd like to get back to where I was at the beginning of December. X-mas and various sicknesses have slowed me down a bit.

About a week ago I was sitting just under 220, but I'm probably a lot lower now because I've had a stomach flu this week. In the past 3 days I've eaten less than I usually do in a day. I have no goal weight. I'm just going to cut fairly aggressively for the next 4.5 weeks and see where that gets me. I'll likely bulk again after the vacation.

Good to see you back.


What's your bodyfat pre-cut? Based on your lifts, I'm guessing somewhere in the 20% range?

:omg: I hope not. I'm probably sitting at about 16-17% max right now.


You're doing it right if your hips are starting to feel looser. It means they're stretching and taking the load. A lot of people just end up leaning forward more to get the bar lower and that won't help their flexibility at all.

Yeah, that's what I figured. Squatting is starting to feel a lot better, actually. Thanks, dude.







I'm still sick with the stomach flu :(. But, I'm feeling a lot better. I hope to be back in the gym tomorrow. I'm going to put the cut on hold for the weekend to get some food in me to keep my metabolism from crashing and to hopefully salvage some strength. If all goes according to plan, I'll be back to cutting on Monday.

[Keith]

220 eh? Not quite 100 lbs heavier than me, but thanks for the kick to the balls, LOL. Sick again? It seems as if people who are heavy into training get sick more often than people who don't. I guess it's the training that temporarily weakens the immune system...

[Kiaran]

Bleh, I had the stomach flu a few weeks ago. Stay hydrated, bro, hope you feel better. Don't expect to be 100% until you've got at least 1 full normal workout week under your belt.

[Jorge Sanchez]

220 eh? Not quite 100 lbs heavier than me, but thanks for the kick to the balls, LOL. Sick again? It seems as if people who are heavy into training get sick more often than people who don't. I guess it's the training that temporarily weakens the immune system...

Ha, sorry Keith, you mentioned in your journal that you were 118 and I didn't want to call bull**** on it in case you were serious. I don't usually get sick very often, but it's been a bad couple of weeks for me. I always get it from my girlfriend, though. :mad:


Bleh, I had the stomach flu a few weeks ago. Stay hydrated, bro, hope you feel better. Don't expect to be 100% until you've got at least 1 full normal workout week under your belt.

Thanks for the pointers. I hate being set back like this. I should easily be squatting 3pps for reps at this point. :confused:

[Keith]

Ha, sorry Keith, you mentioned in your journal that you were 118 and I didn't want to call bull**** on it in case you were serious. I don't usually get sick very often, but it's been a bad couple of weeks for me. I always get it from my girlfriend, though. :mad:

LOL. God no. I would never reach 118. That's basically where I started and I'll never reach anywhere close to that again. I usually get sick from girlfriend or someone in the family and there's 5 of us here so it's tough to get away.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x5x3

Bench:
45x8
115x5
155x3
185x5x3

Deads:
135x5
225x3
275x5

Pull ups:
BWx3 - had to stop because of elbow pain

Notes: I'm finally over the Norwalk virus I had. I felt incredibly weak and stiff today, but I guess that's to be expected. My training has been really frustrating lately. I feel like I've been taking one step forward and then two steps back ever since the beginning of December. I need to get that trend turned around, fast.

[jbrin0tk]

Good to see you sticking with it, though, man. All that hard work and determination will pay off big time one day soon.

[View 1]

Glad your feeling better, never heard of that virus but if it has a name attached to it, then I can imagine its all bad. As for the workouts I think you were on the right track by deloading and working your way back up, getting sick just messes everything up. Your lifts will get back up soon.

[ZenMonkey]

Good luck working through this. I ran into a plateau recently and I really changed how I get ready for lifting. I stopped getting "pumped up" and made it more...zen like. This might help with everything but the DLs. My .02.

[Sidior]

Something like Norwalk is entirely out of your control. You will bounce back fast now that you don't feel like death.

[CrazyK]

I don't know what that virus is but telling by how bad you've sounded lately, I guess it's a doozey. Good work getting back in to it. As a man who's had many set backs (2 season ending football injuries in undergrad) I know how it feels. As my coaches used to say, "When the blade starts to wear down you just have to keep chopping wood".

[borracho]

Nice job on getting in there and doing your thing..thats 90% of it..for me anyway. You'll be back up there in no time, dude.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Good to see you sticking with it, though, man. All that hard work and determination will pay off big time one day soon.

I know you're right. My strength will come back quickly, it just seems like I've been spinning my wheels lately.


Glad your feeling better, never heard of that virus but if it has a name attached to it, then I can imagine its all bad. As for the workouts I think you were on the right track by deloading and working your way back up, getting sick just messes everything up. Your lifts will get back up soon.

It's basically just the stomach flu. Everything I ate (which wasn't a lot because I didn't have much of an appetite) came out one end or the other for the past week or so. I know you're right. Thanks for the encouragement.


Good luck working through this. I ran into a plateau recently and I really changed how I get ready for lifting. I stopped getting "pumped up" and made it more...zen like. This might help with everything but the DLs. My .02.

I don't usually get too pumped up when I lift. Maybe that's the problem...


Something like Norwalk is entirely out of your control. You will bounce back fast now that you don't feel like death.

It still sucks, though. I hope to bounce back really quickly.


I don't know what that virus is but telling by how bad you've sounded lately, I guess it's a doozey. Good work getting back in to it. As a man who's had many set backs (2 season ending football injuries in undergrad) I know how it feels. As my coaches used to say, "When the blade starts to wear down you just have to keep chopping wood".

I like that saying. I don't plan on stopping, it's just a little frustrating. I'm sure I'll be back on top of my game in another couple of weeks.


Nice job on getting in there and doing your thing..thats 90% of it..for me anyway. You'll be back up there in no time, dude.

Yeah, for sure. Thanks for stopping in, buddy.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
65x8
155x5
185x3
245x5x3

OHP:
45x8
95x3
115x5x3

One arm DB Row:
45x8
75x5x3

Notes: Still felt pretty weak but it's getting better. On the bright side, my squat form was really on point. Something about squatting deep just clicked and my hips are starting to stay nice and loose.

I just got an offer to write a guest column for a local newspaper, so I'm pretty stoked about that. I always thought I'd like to write for a living and this just might be a foot in the door.

[mrelwooddowd]

What kind of column will it be?

I've always wanted to do that as well. My mom has been doing it for years.

[borracho]

Wow..thats pretty neat...what sorta writing would you be doing?

And congrats on the squats..I hope one of these days its going to click for myself..I see you and zenmonkey are having good luck, so hopefully I will too, soon.

[Kiaran]

Dude, that's awesome about getting a foot in the door with the writing. In the beginning of any career that is all you really need. Glad you're feeling better, don't worry about the strength just yet. Like I said, give it a week or two. Aren't you going on vacation here pretty soon?

[Sidior]

What local paper? Ace squatting as well.

[Jorge Sanchez]

What kind of column will it be?

I've always wanted to do that as well. My mom has been doing it for years.


Wow..thats pretty neat...what sorta writing would you be doing?


I'm not too sure. I wrote a letter to the editor last week and I guess he liked it because he asked me if I'd be interested in writing a column. I don't know too many details yet so I'm trying no to get my hopes up.


And congrats on the squats..I hope one of these days its going to click for myself..I see you and zenmonkey are having good luck, so hopefully I will too, soon.

I hope so, dude. It has made a huge difference. I'm not moving as much weight, but I think that's a result of other issues. I've completely stopped stretching (bad I know) but I'm way more flexible and my hips feel so much looser. I hardly feel like I need to warm up anymore.


Dude, that's awesome about getting a foot in the door with the writing. In the beginning of any career that is all you really need. Glad you're feeling better, don't worry about the strength just yet. Like I said, give it a week or two. Aren't you going on vacation here pretty soon?

Yeah, I'll be going to Mexico in three weeks to the day. I'm just going to try to get my strength back up as much as I can before then and Hopefully the week of drinking doesn't hurt me too much.


What local paper? Ace squatting as well.

If it works out, it will be for the Sun. It wouldn't be my first choice, but I can't afford to be picky. Thanks, dude.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
255x5x3

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
175x2
205x5x3

Deads:
135x5
225x3
275x1
315x5x3

Pull ups:
BWx6

Hypers:
25x10

Notes: Everything felt way heavier than it should have, but I've just got to work my way back up. I was planning to do a little more accessory work but I ran out of time.

[View 1]

Workout looks good, all the numbers are climbing back up week by week and thats all that matters. Good luck on the paper thing, let us know how it turns out.

[Kiaran]

Bleh, squats, bench and deads in the same day. That takes some serious focus. Nice moves, bro. Oh, and I found this thing laying all the way on page three *gasp*

[borracho]

We all have those days where everything feels heavier than it should...even 135 on warm ups feels heavy some times. But, you got 315 5x3 for DLs which is awesome..and the bench and squats look pretty good, as well. Nice job buddy.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Workout looks good, all the numbers are climbing back up week by week and thats all that matters. Good luck on the paper thing, let us know how it turns out.

Thanks.


Bleh, squats, bench and deads in the same day. That takes some serious focus. Nice moves, bro. Oh, and I found this thing laying all the way on page three *gasp*

I know, where's the journal love. I guess if mine was as cool as yours I'd get some more. ;)


We all have those days where everything feels heavier than it should...even 135 on warm ups feels heavy some times. But, you got 315 5x3 for DLs which is awesome..and the bench and squats look pretty good, as well. Nice job buddy.

Thanks, b.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x1
265x5x2
265x2

OHP:
45x8
95x3
120x5x3

Pendlay Rows:
120x5
160x5x3

Dips:
25x5x3

Hypers:
35x10x2

Notes: I'm weak. ****ty diet today - I got almost no carbs in before my workout which was a big mistake. My squat always seems to suffer big time when I run a calories deficit. I was surprised to nail the OHP.

[View 1]

Still a solid workout like always even though you felt weak. If I dont get some carbs in me before I work out ( low GI like oats or a banana ) then yeah the workouts are wayyyyy harder.

[jbrin0tk]

Looks good in here, man. Glad to see things are starting to get back on track for ya.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Looks good in here, man. Glad to see things are starting to get back on track for ya.


Still a solid workout like always even though you felt weak. If I dont get some carbs in me before I work out ( low GI like oats or a banana ) then yeah the workouts are wayyyyy harder.

Thanks for the support, guys.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x1
260x5x2
245x5

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
175x2
210x5x3

Deads:
135x5
225x3
275x1
315x5

Pull ups:
BWx5x3

Renegade Rows:
40x8x2

DB Curls:
35x8

Notes: Squats and deadlifts sucked, but my bench felt really good. I just don't think I can recover fast enough squatting heavy three times a week and pulling heavy once every 4-5 days while I'm on such an aggressive cut. I'm going to have to switch up my program to accommodate this. I'm either going to replace every other squat and every other deadlift with light variations or move to an upper/lower split. Any suggestions are welcome.

[ZenMonkey]

Have you thought about something simpler like squatting in waves of intensity or DE squat to replace a heavy session?

For how long do you plan on cutting?

[Jorge Sanchez]

Have you thought about something simpler like squatting in waves of intensity or DE squat to replace a heavy session?

For how long do you plan on cutting?

I was thinking about incorporating some DE work, but I think I'm leaning towards and upper/lower split at the moment, just because it would allow me to devote more energy to the main movement.

I'll only be cutting for another couple of weeks. I'm going to Mexico for a week and I want to get as lean as I can - the leaning down is going pretty well so far.

[Keith]

If you're on an aggressive cut, yeah I agree, I don't think you'd be able to recover quick enough... especially when you're already a sissy. I'd switch it up and probably train for size while you're cutting. We need to talk training places when you come to Toronto. You should talk about it in Detard's journal as WORLD and Detard don't come here. Would Dave be in, too? Where will he be at then? Heck, I may even get Rusty to come, too.

[borracho]

Looks like you just had a bad day. Considering you're on a cut, just chalk it up to that and get some rest...you're doing awesome, cut/no cut. I know when I was trying to squat/DL heavy twice a week it took its toll on me..and I was not cutting.

It is nice to see the bench creeping up.

[View 1]

We all have our off days, just shrug it off. As for the routine upper/lower always work great. Or you could just do one heavy lift per day and fallow it by complexes, but trust me its brutal!!!

[Jorge Sanchez]

If you're on an aggressive cut, yeah I agree, I don't think you'd be able to recover quick enough... especially when you're already a sissy. I'd switch it up and probably train for size while you're cutting. We need to talk training places when you come to Toronto. You should talk about it in Detard's journal as WORLD and Detard don't come here. Would Dave be in, too? Where will he be at then? Heck, I may even get Rusty to come, too.

I'll only be able to train someplace downtown, either early morning or after 7pm on the 13th. I'd prefer to check out the U of T gym, but I'm open to other suggestions. I'll drop into Detards log in a few days.


Looks like you just had a bad day. Considering you're on a cut, just chalk it up to that and get some rest...you're doing awesome, cut/no cut. I know when I was trying to squat/DL heavy twice a week it took its toll on me..and I was not cutting.

It is nice to see the bench creeping up.

Thanks, dude.


We all have our off days, just shrug it off. As for the routine upper/lower always work great. Or you could just do one heavy lift per day and fallow it by complexes, but trust me its brutal!!!

I'll have to take your word on the complexes. I would probably give it a shot if my gym weren't so busy. There's no way I could get all the necessary equipment at once.

[Jorge Sanchez]

OHP:
45x8
95x3
120x5x5

Dips:
25x8x3

Pull ups:
BWx5x5 (with some jumping pull ups towards the end)

One arm DB row:
50x8x2 (though it was a 60lb DB :bang:)
60x8

Renegade Rows:
35x8x2

Notes: So I decided to give an upper lower split a go, at least until I'm done this cut. I haven't had a pump like after this workout in a long time. I'm really starting to lean down nicely - I'm down to 210 and my abs are starting to poke through again. We'll see how much farther I can go in the next two weeks.

[Sidior]

Abs already eh, nice work! I think the routine change was a good idea.

[borracho]

Haha...Mr Monkey will be in fine shape to go frolicking on the beaches of mexico in no time. Good luck dude...looks like you're on your way.

[Kiaran]

Abs, pfff. Mine are on their way out. Lol @ "frolicking" on the beaches. Bench is looking solid, bro. Sounds like your cut went really well also.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Abs already eh, nice work! I think the routine change was a good idea.

Well they're not super defined or anything, just visible enough to remind me that I have them. I did fit into a pair of pants I had retired a few months ago, though. They were still a bit tight around the thigh, especially after my leg session, but I figure that's a good thing.


Haha...Mr Monkey will be in fine shape to go frolicking on the beaches of mexico in no time. Good luck dude...looks like you're on your way.

Thanks, dude.


Abs, pfff. Mine are on their way out. Lol @ "frolicking" on the beaches. Bench is looking solid, bro. Sounds like your cut went really well also.

It's going alright. My upper body strength seems to be doing well, but my lower body strength is going right down the ****ter.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x5x5

Lunges:
90x8x2

SLDL:
135x8
185x8x2

Notes: **** my squats are really pissing me off. 185 felt ridiculously heavy, so I decided to do my working sets at 225 and those felt like 275. I didn't have much food in my house today, so my diet was really off. I'm almost positive that's all it was because I started feeling much stronger about 30 mins in after I had been drinking my gatorade/whey drink, but still that's ****ing annoying. I can't seem to hold onto any leg strength when I cut, which is weird because my upper body strength continues to climb. I've got to make sure to get some good food and some carbs in before my next lower session. The volume was also pretty low due to the lack of energy.

[ZenMonkey]

Same thing with me man! Since cutting my squat numbers have fallen so far down but my upper numbers remain strong and growing. I decided to start a 12 week bulk next week cause Im tired of my squat numbers going to ****e. Are you bulking again when you get back from mexico?

[View 1]

Upper / lower spilts are always great. Well I see im not the only one with squat issues, its ****ing annoying isnt it:bang:

[Jorge Sanchez]

Same thing with me man! Since cutting my squat numbers have fallen so far down but my upper numbers remain strong and growing. I decided to start a 12 week bulk next week cause Im tired of my squat numbers going to ****e. Are you bulking again when you get back from mexico?

I'm not sure at this point. Part of my wants to get nice and lean and go on a long sustained bulk. Another part of me wants my strength back now.


Upper / lower spilts are always great. Well I see im not the only one with squat issues, its ****ing annoying isnt it:bang:

So annoying.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Bench:
45x10
95x5
135x5
175x2
215x5x4
215x4

DB Incline Press:
70x6
65x6
55x8

Pendlay Rows:
45x8
135x3
175x3 - I had a twinge in my left forearm, so I decided to lower the weight
155x5x4

Lat pull downs:
130x8
160x8

Hypers:
45x10x2

[Sidior]

Lat pull downs...a machine :O

Looking solid in here. What happened with the forearm?

[View 1]

I forgot you went to the upper/lower routine I looked and I was like hey where is the wheel work at??? Strong pendlay rows, I need to try those again one of these days.

[jbrin0tk]

Bench is looking solid man. I hope your squat picks up for you soon. Perhaps the routine change will help. I know I couldn't squat heavy 3x a week! I give you props for that, man!

[fooz]

some pretty nice benching going on in here Mr. Sanchez.

[Kiaran]

Interesting that the weight was feeling heavy on your squats. Sounds like you were probably calorie/sleep/water deprived. Good work getting things in regardless, bro. Strong bench in there. Almost got a 5x5 on that ****. You bumping to 220 next time? Pendlay's always mess with my wrists and forearms. I don't like the angle it puts your wrists at with all that weight hanging from them. That's why I do the TBars instead, with a neutral grip. No more forearm problems. You're doing great, bro. Just keep pushing forward on that squat.

[borracho]

Dont worry about the squats, dude. It seems like once you get going with them, your squat numbers climb pretty steady. You just gotta find your nitch.

and...at least you're still squatting! It has been quite a while since I've been under the bar, myself. :(

[Jorge Sanchez]

Lat pull downs...a machine :O

Looking solid in here. What happened with the forearm?

Yeah, it's been a while since I've used a machine. I initially loaded the bar unevenly and I tweaked something in my arm. Feels fine now, though.


I forgot you went to the upper/lower routine I looked and I was like hey where is the wheel work at??? Strong pendlay rows, I need to try those again one of these days.

Yeah, it's a big change of routine, we'll see how it works out for me. If I'm making good progress I think I'll stick with it for a while.


Bench is looking solid man. I hope your squat picks up for you soon. Perhaps the routine change will help. I know I couldn't squat heavy 3x a week! I give you props for that, man!

Thanks, dude. Squatting 3x/week seems to work well for me for a while, but then I just hit a wall and it starts to regress.


some pretty nice benching going on in here Mr. Sanchez.

Thanks, fooz.


Interesting that the weight was feeling heavy on your squats. Sounds like you were probably calorie/sleep/water deprived. Good work getting things in regardless, bro. Strong bench in there. Almost got a 5x5 on that ****. You bumping to 220 next time? Pendlay's always mess with my wrists and forearms. I don't like the angle it puts your wrists at with all that weight hanging from them. That's why I do the TBars instead, with a neutral grip. No more forearm problems. You're doing great, bro. Just keep pushing forward on that squat.

I don't know if I'm going to get another bench session in before my trip, but if I do, I'll be going for 220. Interesting about the pendlay rows - I might have to try a different rowing movement to see how it goes.


Dont worry about the squats, dude. It seems like once you get going with them, your squat numbers climb pretty steady. You just gotta find your nitch.

and...at least you're still squatting! It has been quite a while since I've been under the bar, myself. :(

You're right about the squats, but it's never fun to go backwards.

It's been a while since I've squatted too. And now I'm sick again, for the third time in a little over a month. I don't know what the hell is wrong with me, but it's really starting to get frustrating. I want to hit the weights, but it always just extends my sickness and I don't want to be sick in Mexico. Hopefully I'll be able to get back under the iron at least once before I go. If not, I think they have some sort of exercise facility at the resort I'm staying at, so I might hit that up if they have anything worthwhile.

[Sidior]

Have a great trip man. Drink lots and don't do much!

[ZenMonkey]

http://wwwdelivery.superstock.com/WI/223/3159/PreviewComp/SuperStock_3159-514246.jpg

[Keith]

That sucks about being sick again. That happens way too often to you, man. I'd be pissed and probably look into it. We still training together on Friday? Did you find out if we can train there with you and how much it would be?

[View 1]

Sucks your sick again, hope you feel better before the trip. Just take a couple shots of patron you'll feel better lol... ( plus just think of it is as ummm training for your mexico trip ).

[Kiaran]

Hope you feel better bro. I know how frustrating that **** can be. I used to get strep throat or a cold about once every three weeks when I was 20. Doc cut out my tonsols and I'v only had about 3-4 sore throats/colds in the last 8 years. But yeah, rest up and the iron will be waiting for you when you get back, bro.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Thanks for the support, guys.

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x5x3

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x2
220x3+1
220x3
220x2+1

Deads:
135x5
225x3
275x5

Notes: The good news is I feel almost 100% better. The bad news is my bench wasn't as strong as I would have expected after my last bench session, but I guess that's to be expected after a week off sick. I also don't know what happened to my lower body strength. I can't believe it disappeared so quickly. Squats and deads both felt really tough. I was super tight so my form was a bit off too. When I get back from my trip I'm just going to have to start from the ground up again. :bang:

[ZenMonkey]

Dont worry about it man. You have it in you and itll come back easy. The trip/break will do you alot of good.

[View 1]

Ive noticed that my leg strength goes away pretty quick as well not sure why? As for the trip will I took 3 months off and came back stronger than before, so I wouldnt worry to much about it.

[borracho]

I think the trip will serve you well, actually. It'll give you time to clear your head and your body time to heal...and most importantly it'll give you time to get that hunger for lifting. I know I sorta lose that intense desire that I get after not lifting for a week or something like that.

When are you leaving, anyway?

[Kiaran]

Even though it wasn't all you expected, that's still a strong bench, bro. Glad to hear you are feeling almost 100% better. I hear ya on strength disappearing so quickly. If I take a couple weeks off, everything feels twice as heavy when I come back.

[CrazyK]

I know your pain Jorge. Just keep bouncing back from the set backs and you'll find yourself a step ahead, even if you had to take two steps forward and a step back to get there :)

[Jorge Sanchez]

Dont worry about it man. You have it in you and itll come back easy. The trip/break will do you alot of good.


Ive noticed that my leg strength goes away pretty quick as well not sure why? As for the trip will I took 3 months off and came back stronger than before, so I wouldnt worry to much about it.


Even though it wasn't all you expected, that's still a strong bench, bro. Glad to hear you are feeling almost 100% better. I hear ya on strength disappearing so quickly. If I take a couple weeks off, everything feels twice as heavy when I come back.


I know your pain Jorge. Just keep bouncing back from the set backs and you'll find yourself a step ahead, even if you had to take two steps forward and a step back to get there :)

Thanks, guys. The trip was awesome - it was really hard to head back to work on Monday, but I've got to make a living. I think I've lifted twice, maybe three times this month so it will take a while to get my strength back up, but I've just got to work my way back up again.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
85x5
135x5
185x5x3

Bench:
45x10
95x5
135x5
185x5x3

Deads:
135x5
185x3
225x5x2

Pull ups:
BWx5x3

Notes: Easing back into it. The weight felt really heavy, but light at the same time. It's kind of hard to explain the feeling, but it's sort of like doing a light weight after a heavy set - your muscles feel like they can't possibly lift the weight, but it feels like it just floats up anyways. It'll probably take me a couple of sessions before I feel like I can really push myself again. I was super tight, but I loosened up nicely after a few warm up sets. Form felt really good on everything, which I was a little concerned about going in.

On a side note, a bought a new suit for an important meeting tomorrow. I brought it into the tailor and they didn't have it done in time. Fortunately, I got an awesome deal on the suit so all is not lost. I'm still really pissed with the tailor, though.

[jbrin0tk]

Gettin' back into the groove. Good stuff, man.

[ZenMonkey]

Youll be back to normal in no time!!

Have you heard back from any schools yet?

[CrazyK]

Good feeling in a way. You didn't lose any strength just some mobility and and getting your CNS to recognize the movements again (already happened with this one workout).

[View 1]

Smart thing to ease back into it, give it a couple weeks and you'll be back to where you were before. Sucks about the tailor, at least you got the other suit though. I got sick of wearing dress shows to work so I wore my vans today the managers just looked at me but didnt say anything...

[Keith]

Since you're right about where I am for strength and we seem to follow each others strength pattern, why don't you start training like I will be. Look into Jim Wendler's RAW program. The link with a lot of details is in my journal. The official book isn't out but a lot of the principals are from his Training 3 Days a Week book. I've heard far too many things about it and I'm really excited to start. I say **** Ripptoe's program or whatever you're doing, and look into that. Unless of course you're really enjoying it and it's working for you...

[Jorge Sanchez]

Gettin' back into the groove. Good stuff, man.

Thanks, dude.


Youll be back to normal in no time!!

Have you heard back from any schools yet?

Thanks, ZM. I've heard from 3/5 schools I applied too. All acceptances so far. How about you?


Good feeling in a way. You didn't lose any strength just some mobility and and getting your CNS to recognize the movements again (already happened with this one workout).

I think you're right. Today felt much much better already.


Smart thing to ease back into it, give it a couple weeks and you'll be back to where you were before. Sucks about the tailor, at least you got the other suit though. I got sick of wearing dress shows to work so I wore my vans today the managers just looked at me but didnt say anything...

Thanks, Jefe. Was it the same guy that gave you **** about not wearing a belt?


Since you're right about where I am for strength and we seem to follow each others strength pattern, why don't you start training like I will be. Look into Jim Wendler's RAW program. The link with a lot of details is in my journal. The official book isn't out but a lot of the principals are from his Training 3 Days a Week book. I've heard far too many things about it and I'm really excited to start. I say **** Ripptoe's program or whatever you're doing, and look into that. Unless of course you're really enjoying it and it's working for you...

Sounds tempting. The plan right now is to follow SS until I'm squatting 275ishx5x3. I always seem to stall and regress when I'm 10-20lbs heavier than that using SS, so I'm going to switch it up this time to try to keep the progress going. I'll give Wendler some serious thought when that rolls around. It shouldn't be too long. And there's a very good chance I"m going to be coming to Toronto in September, so we better be beastly strong when we actually start training together.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
195x5x3

OHP:
45x8
65x3
95x5x3

Pendlay Rows:
45x8
95x5
135x5x3

Dips:
BWx8x3

Hypers:
25x10x2

Skull crushers:
65x8x2

EZ bar curls:
65x8x2

Notes: Still keeping it light, but I felt a lot stronger this time. My hips were so loose when I started warming up on my squats, I honestly thought my form must be off but they just felt really good.

[ZenMonkey]

Lookin good. Are you getting bad DOMS?

Ive heard back from 0/4. But most of them said Id be hearing late March.

[Kiaran]

Sounds like the rest did your hips some good then. Welcome back to the daily ball-n-chain. I hate the first week back at work after a vacation. Always feel all lost and stupid, like you don't remember how to do your job.

[CrazyK]

Loose hips are where it's at. Your glutes engage so much better. Good work.

[View 1]

Are you going to go back to the full body routine? I know you just started the upper / lower split so you could drop some weight before mexico then you got sick. As for the manger, no it was a different one, we can wear any kind of shoes as long as they are a solid color, I wear my dress shoes to keep it as professional as possible, I guess there just use to me dressing nicer. They do treat me better, and all my numbers are higher than the store average so there all happy, but im still looking elsewhere for another job.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Lookin good. Are you getting bad DOMS?

Ive heard back from 0/4. But most of them said Id be hearing late March.

I got moderate DOMS after the first workout and hardly any after the second. I don't usually get DOMS, except when I come back from a layoff.

It sounds like you're a lock if they're telling you you'll hear in March. Good luck, dude.


Sounds like the rest did your hips some good then. Welcome back to the daily ball-n-chain. I hate the first week back at work after a vacation. Always feel all lost and stupid, like you don't remember how to do your job.

Yeah, my hips and everything feel great. And work sucks. Period.


Loose hips are where it's at. Your glutes engage so much better. Good work.

Definitely, I can really feel them at the bottom of the lift. I also feel like I'm getting deeper than ever before. I wish I had brought a camera today to check it out.


Are you going to go back to the full body routine? I know you just started the upper / lower split so you could drop some weight before mexico then you got sick. As for the manger, no it was a different one, we can wear any kind of shoes as long as they are a solid color, I wear my dress shoes to keep it as professional as possible, I guess there just use to me dressing nicer. They do treat me better, and all my numbers are higher than the store average so there all happy, but im still looking elsewhere for another job.

I'm going to use SS for maybe 3-4 weeks just to get my strength back up quickly and then switch to something else. I tend to stall and regress pretty quickly if I follow SS for too long.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x10
95x5
135x5
205x5x3

Bench:
45x10
95x5
135x5
165x2
195x5x3

Deads:
135x5
225x3
245x5

Pull ups:
BWx5x3

Overhead Incline Sit Ups:
10x10x2

CGBP:
135x8x2

DB Curl:
35x8x2

Notes: I'm feeling way stronger every time I get under the bar. I feel so loose, my squats feel great.

[ZenMonkey]

Great WO. Good to see those numbers climbing so quickly. Are you still cutting?

[mrelwooddowd]

looks like you've had a lot going on lately. i feel ya on the being sick. after my ridiculous multiple back strains, i got bronchitis. it's pretty frustrating.

good job staying motivated and getting some work in!

[borracho]

Nice to see you getting back into the swing dude...looking good. And I am happy to hear about the squat form working better for you, too.

[CrazyK]

It's nice to see you making some good progress. Sometimes a vacation and relaxation is all it takes.

[Sidior]

Glad to hear all is well. Your stance still narrower and deeper then it was before?

[View 1]

Looks good as always, by the end of the month you should be almost back to where you were, who knows you may come out even stronger, sometimes time off is a good thing.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Great WO. Good to see those numbers climbing so quickly. Are you still cutting?

Well it's easy to progress when you start so light. Hopefully I can keep it up for a while. I am cutting, but I'm not being anal about it. I'm just minimizing my carb intake and upping my protein intake. If I'm invited to a nice dinner, I'll try to pick something high protein, but I'm not crazy about it.


looks like you've had a lot going on lately. i feel ya on the being sick. after my ridiculous multiple back strains, i got bronchitis. it's pretty frustrating.

good job staying motivated and getting some work in!

It sounds like you've got it worse than me, but I do know how you feel. Thanks, dude.


Nice to see you getting back into the swing dude...looking good. And I am happy to hear about the squat form working better for you, too.

Thanks, borracho. We'll see how it holds up when the weight starts to get heavier, but my squats feel really good right now.


It's nice to see you making some good progress. Sometimes a vacation and relaxation is all it takes.

It would be nice if I didn't take a huge step back, but I think the vacation did me some good and not just physically.


Glad to hear all is well. Your stance still narrower and deeper then it was before?

Sure is. It feels a little more smooth and natural and my hips feel way better so far. Hopefully that stays the case once the weight starts getting heavy(ier)


Looks good as always, by the end of the month you should be almost back to where you were, who knows you may come out even stronger, sometimes time off is a good thing.

That's the plan. I'm hoping to shed a few pounds of fat in the meantime too. But I figure another 2-3 weeks and I should be right about back where I was.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
175x3
215x5x3

OHP:
45x8
85x3
105x5x3

Pendlay rows:
45x8
95x3
145x5x3

Dips:
25x8x3

Hypers:
35x10x2

Notes: I got to the gym and realized I forgot my shorts. I ended up having to buy a new pair. Apart from that everything was good.

[ZenMonkey]

Nice squatting! How do you compare pendlay rows to BO rows? Whcih do you prefer and why?

Your gym sells shorts?

[Jorge Sanchez]

To be honest, I haven't tried BO rows in quite some time. I find they put less strain on my lower back than Pendlay rows, but they don't feel like they hit my upper back as well so I stick to Pendlays whenever my back is feeling good.

I go to a university gym, which also has a couple hockey rinks and a football field. They have a little store that sells a limited amount of sports equipment, so that's where I got the shorts. But come to think of it, a gym selling shorts and t-shirts would probably be a good business move.

[Al19067]

Glad to see that ur making progress again

[Kiaran]

Nice benching, dude. Glad to hear your strength is on the rise. That's a great feeling for sure. Squats are on the move as well. Pendlays are the **** and 145 is solid, bro. Just make sure to touch the weight to the ground between reps. Do not try to do all reps in a hang with the weight. Rippetoe talks about this in SS.

[View 1]

Everything looks good, I need to try those pendlay rows again, they are a great back builder.

[Sidior]

Those squats seem to be steadily increasing again. You up for training together soon?

[Jorge Sanchez]

Glad to see that ur making progress again

Thanks. It's easy when you start out so low.


Nice benching, dude. Glad to hear your strength is on the rise. That's a great feeling for sure. Squats are on the move as well. Pendlays are the **** and 145 is solid, bro. Just make sure to touch the weight to the ground between reps. Do not try to do all reps in a hang with the weight. Rippetoe talks about this in SS.

Thanks, K. I fully deweight between reps.


Everything looks good, I need to try those pendlay rows again, they are a great back builder.

Thanks, Jefe. They're good stuff. I felt like my upper back was lacking so I switched the cleans for the rows.


Those squats seem to be steadily increasing again. You up for training together soon?

Hopefully they'll keep going that way. I'm up for training anytime after 5.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x5x3

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
175x2
205x5x3

Deads:
135x5
225x3
265x5

Pull ups:
BWx5x3

Overhead decline pullups:
10x10x2

Notes: Felt good. Squats were a bit heavier than I would have liked, but I'm still good to bump up 10lbs next time. I always have trouble holding onto leg strength when things aren't going well.

[borracho]

Notes: I got to the gym and realized I forgot my shorts. I ended up having to buy a new pair. Apart from that everything was good.

:D Glad you didnt let that become an excuse to not work out...good on you.

Also, glad to see your squats on the rise, despite what your body feels it weighs..still going in an upward trend.

[View 1]

Good to see things climbing, and sometimes going a little heavier is a good thing your body will adapt to it.

[Jorge Sanchez]

:D Glad you didnt let that become an excuse to not work out...good on you.

Also, glad to see your squats on the rise, despite what your body feels it weighs..still going in an upward trend.

Damn right. It would've been easy to go home, but I really need to get some consistency going. Thanks, buddy.


Good to see things climbing, and sometimes going a little heavier is a good thing your body will adapt to it.

Thanks for the encouragement, dude.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
235x5x3

OHP:
45x8
85x3
115x5x3

Pendlay rows:
45x8
115x3
155x5x3

Hypers:
35x10x2

Dips:
35x5x2
35x6

Skull crushers:
75x8x2

EZ bar curls:
75x8x2

Notes: Decent workout. I think I really need to work on my conditioning.

[ZenMonkey]

Whoa! Helluva day man! Where did your squats leave off? before the break

[borracho]

Looking good buddy..seems like you're continuing on in the right direction. What are you hoping to do as far as conditioning? In the last month, I've been working out at a different gym (the one at work) and decided to save the $40/mo fee at my normal gym at home. The main difference is elevation...the gym at work is almost 2kft higher than that at home...and I've yet to get consistent enough to adjust to the elevation while working out...makes DLs a bee-yotch.

[jbrin0tk]

Good work in here recently, man.

[fooz]

big numbers in your last couple of workouts bro, lookin solid.

[View 1]

Good to see everything going up 10lbs, it sucks having to work back up but you'll get there. And I agree 100% on the conditioning, I think I just accept that mine sucks and always will lol... oh well

[Kiaran]

Man I hear ya on holding on to your leg strength. Seems like if I take even a week off then my legs give me the finger. I like your warmup progression. I'm doing almost exactly the same with a 5/5/3/2 for warmup and the 5x3 for working sets. Took it out of Rippetoe's SS book. I like it quite a bit.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Whoa! Helluva day man! Where did your squats leave off? before the break

Thanks, Zen. I squatted either 290 or 295 for 4 at the beginning of December. It's been pretty much downhill since then. I feel like I'm squatting much deeper now, though, so it's a small concilation.


Looking good buddy..seems like you're continuing on in the right direction. What are you hoping to do as far as conditioning? In the last month, I've been working out at a different gym (the one at work) and decided to save the $40/mo fee at my normal gym at home. The main difference is elevation...the gym at work is almost 2kft higher than that at home...and I've yet to get consistent enough to adjust to the elevation while working out...makes DLs a bee-yotch.

For whatever reason I really haven't done any exercise other than lifting this year - I haven't played hockey at all and I've only been snowboarding one - and I can really notice a difference. Once the snow is off the ground I'll be able to ride my bike to work, which will help. I'm thinking about starting some HIIT as well.


Good work in here recently, man.

Thanks, dude.


big numbers in your last couple of workouts bro, lookin solid.

I don't know if I would say that, but thanks anyways.


Good to see everything going up 10lbs, it sucks having to work back up but you'll get there. And I agree 100% on the conditioning, I think I just accept that mine sucks and always will lol... oh well

Thanks, View. Mines not usually so bad, I just haven't been doing much for the past couple of months. Once the weather warms up it should start to get better.


Man I hear ya on holding on to your leg strength. Seems like if I take even a week off then my legs give me the finger. I like your warmup progression. I'm doing almost exactly the same with a 5/5/3/2 for warmup and the 5x3 for working sets. Took it out of Rippetoe's SS book. I like it quite a bit.

Yeah, I like that kind of warm up a lot. Thanks, K.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
245x5x3

Bench:
45x8
85x5
135x5
185x2
210x5x3

Deads:
135x5
225x5
285x5

Pull ups:
BWx5x3

Overhead decline sit ups:
12x10x2

Notes: Bench felt a little off today, but I managed to squeeze out the reps. Everything else was fine. I wish I could actually increase my pull ups every once in a while, but they give me such a hard time.

[Keith]

Notes: Bench felt a little off today, but I managed to squeeze out the reps. Everything else was fine. I wish I could actually increase my pull ups every once in a while, but they give me such a hard time.

Ever try a wave progression with added weight or kipping pull-ups? Pull-ups are difficult to increase but trying different things like that helped for me. In case you're wondering, I'm training but the numbers are very low right now which is what the program asks me to do. Once things get interesting, I'll start posting my workouts again. Things still look nice in here, dude. Keep at it.

[View 1]

Looking at that makes me kinda miss the full body stuff. I gave up on pull ups, I suck at them, maybe if I lost 50 pounds I could knock them out...

[ZenMonkey]

Jorge, have you tried kipping?

[Jorge Sanchez]

Ever try a wave progression with added weight or kipping pull-ups? Pull-ups are difficult to increase but trying different things like that helped for me. In case you're wondering, I'm training but the numbers are very low right now which is what the program asks me to do. Once things get interesting, I'll start posting my workouts again. Things still look nice in here, dude. Keep at it.

I've tried weighted pull ups and weighted negatives, but they don't really seem to help too much. I might give the other things a try.

You should definitely post up your workouts. Mine aren't too exciting and I still do it. Besides, I'm really interested in the Wendler program so I'd like to see what it's all about.


Looking at that makes me kinda miss the full body stuff. I gave up on pull ups, I suck at them, maybe if I lost 50 pounds I could knock them out...

Yeah, losing weight always helps my pull ups. Not much else, though.


Jorge, have you tried kipping?

I haven't tried them before, but maybe I'll give them a shot. Do you find you can improve more quickly?

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x1
255x5x3

OHP:
45x8
95x5
120x5x2
120x3

Pendlay Rows:
45x8
120x5
165x5x3

Dips:
35x5
35x6

Hypers:
35x10x2

Notes: I really had to drag myself into the gym today. My form definitely slipped on the last set of squats and I just lost my groove on the OHP. Still should be able to progress for a little longer. I don't think I'll be following SS for much more than another week or two.

[Sidior]

What routine are you looking at after SS? Also have you tried varying grips for pullups (like chins or just neutral grip even)?

[borracho]

Squats are looking good. It seems like they're coming back steadily...and the bench looked solid as well.

[Kiaran]

Nice squatting, bro. Squatting when you're tired is...among the worst. What are you gonna do after SS?

[CrazyK]

SS is a good start and a great base. However one does "grow out" of it. Good job keeping at it.

[Keith]

Jim Wendler's 5/3/1!

[ZenMonkey]

TX Method or Bill Starrs 5x5 are great afterwrd options to SS. But you know that.

I think a new split will do you good. Im sure your #s will go up with a good change


On the kipping: Ive never done them, but it would be a good way to develop some endurance on the pullups. Im sure it will also augment strict pullups really well too.

[Jorge Sanchez]

What routine are you looking at after SS? Also have you tried varying grips for pullups (like chins or just neutral grip even)?

Keith has really been trying to pimp Wendler's 531 and it looks like it could be fun. I think that's probably the direction I'll go. I usually do neutral grip, but I mix it up every once in a while. I don't really find the grips have much impact on the number of pull ups I can do.


Squats are looking good. It seems like they're coming back steadily...and the bench looked solid as well.

THanks, dude.


Nice squatting, bro. Squatting when you're tired is...among the worst. What are you gonna do after SS?

Thanks, K. I'll probably hit up Wendler in another week or so. I've got to look into the routine a little more first.


SS is a good start and a great base. However one does "grow out" of it. Good job keeping at it.

For sure. I've been on it for a long time, but only because I keep hitting set backs. It's a little addictive to see your numbers climb so quickly so it can be hard to switch it up, but I think it's finally time.


Jim Wendler's 5/3/1!

I think you convinced me, buddy.


TX Method or Bill Starrs 5x5 are great afterwrd options to SS. But you know that.

I think a new split will do you good. Im sure your #s will go up with a good change


On the kipping: Ive never done them, but it would be a good way to develop some endurance on the pullups. Im sure it will also augment strict pullups really well too.

I've made really good gains with Madcows 5x5 before, especially on bench, but I think I'd like to switch away from a full body routine for a little bit to see how I respond.

I'll have to give the kipping pull ups a go.

[jed]

i reccomend wendlers too. i know i just came to you asking advice, but keith just put together a routine for me using some of wendlers stuff, and it looks like an awesome routine. try it out n let us know how it goes dude.

[Jorge Sanchez]

Back squat:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x3
225x1
275x1
295x1
315x1

Bench:
45x8
95x5
135x5
185x2
225x1
250x0

Deads:
135x5
225x3
275x1
315x1
365x1

Pull ups:
BWx8

Skull crushers:
80x10x2

EZ bar curls:
80x10
80x6

Notes: Everyone around me is sick and I was feeling a little worn down so I went in planning to take it fairly easy. Once I got there I decided that was boring and went for some heavy singles instead, just to see where I'm at. It was really nice to put up a 315 squat again - I've never squatted that heavy without a belt in the past and I think that's the heaviest DL without a belt as well. The 225 bench went up so easily I decided to shoot for a PR at 250, but I guess I was a little greedy. I'm not too far off, though. Now I just hope I don't get sick... again.

[Jorge Sanchez]

i reccomend wendlers too. i know i just came to you asking advice, but keith just put together a routine for me using some of wendlers stuff, and it looks like an awesome routine. try it out n let us know how it goes dude.

I will. I'm going to research it this week and probably start it up next week/weekend.

[Keith]

That's what I wanted to see! Nice to see where you're at. You're definitely up on me on all lifts right now but we'll see what I can do with this program within the year and NO cutting.

[View 1]

Nice singles, good to see they havent slipped away to much. I do the same thing, I may feel sick or just a bad day and ill still go in and give it 110%, sometimes you have the best workouts that way. Good luck on what you decide to switch your routine to next, mixing things up always will help you out.

[borracho]

Nice singles..super envious of the squat...*******!

And I am sure you'll hit the 250 in no time...health taken into account. Maybe start walking around in a big bubble to avoid germs??

[Kiaran]

Nice squatting, bro. Glad to see you hittin the 3pps again. And no belt too, crazy bastard. Don't worry about getting sick again, just try and keep it out of your mind and you'll stay healthy, bro. It's like me and stupid injuries :D Deads at 365 with no belt ain't no joke either. How did the 250 feel at the top? Feel like you could handle it no problem or was it a tad heavy?

[Jorge Sanchez]

That's what I wanted to see! Nice to see where you're at. You're definitely up on me on all lifts right now but we'll see what I can do with this program within the year and NO cutting.

I'm sure you're not too far behind.


Nice singles, good to see they havent slipped away to much. I do the same thing, I may feel sick or just a bad day and ill still go in and give it 110%, sometimes you have the best workouts that way. Good luck on what you decide to switch your routine to next, mixing things up always will help you out.

Thanks, View.


Nice singles..super envious of the squat...*******!

And I am sure you'll hit the 250 in no time...health taken into account. Maybe start walking around in a big bubble to avoid germs??

Yeah, the bubble is a good idea. I feel great today so hopefully I won't get sick for a little while.


Nice squatting, bro. Glad to see you hittin the 3pps again. And no belt too, crazy bastard. Don't worry about getting sick again, just try and keep it out of your mind and you'll stay healthy, bro. It's like me and stupid injuries :D Deads at 365 with no belt ain't no joke either. How did the 250 feel at the top? Feel like you could handle it no problem or was it a tad heavy?

My bench is strongest at the top so holding the 250 was fine. Anything I can get 6 inches off my chest I can lock out. I just need to work on my strength from the bottom and 250 will be flying up with no problem.







I just finished reading Wendler's recently released 5-3-1. I'm a little hesitant to switch to it because the weight increases are so modest, but that might be a good thing for me. I always increase really aggressively and end up stalling and regressing. Hopefully I can have more sustained progress with a more conservative routine and end up stronger in the end. It's going to be hard to resist the temptation to push it so much because I can still make relatively quick progress for the next little while, but it's time for me to try something different.

I'll be starting the program up on the weekend or next Monday.

[Sidior]

The 5/3/1 looks like fun. Next time I take a break from gear I may give it a shot as well.