John Phung

Training Log: Wednesday July 3, 2013

July 3, 2013 — Leave a comment

Today must be a PR for the most number of PR attempts that I missed in a day :/

Dragon Flag

3

Foam Rolling

10 minutes on the black Rumble Roller

Ab Wheel

5

Band Pull Aparts

A bunch of reps, multiple angles with the Voodoo Floss bands

Shoulder Dislocations

10

L-Sit V-Grip Pull Ups

Body weight (~200 lb): 6

Front Squat

Beltless and paused up to 280 lb.

Paused again at 275 lb.

45 lb: 10
140 lb: 5
190 lb: 3
230 lb: 3
280 lb: 2
330 lb: 1
370 lb: 1
- Knee wraps.
420 lb: X,X
- Knee wraps.
- First set, bar rolled off my shoulders coming up. 2nd set not enough strength.
410 lb: X
- Knee wraps.
- Blah.
275 lb: 3,3,3,3,3
- Paused.
- 5 sets instead of 3
- +2.5 lb from last week.

High Bar Squat

275 lb: 12
- Drop set. Performed after last set of front squats.

Overhead Press

45 lb: 10
100 lb: 5
140 lb: 3
190 lb: 1
230 lb: 1
265 lb: X,X
230 lb: 2
140 lb: 11

Barbell Curl

45 lb: 10
75 lb: 10
100 lb: 5
135 lb: X,X

In Workout Log barbell curl, front squat, high bar squat, ohp, overhead press

Training Log: Wednesday June 12, 2013

June 12, 2013 — Leave a comment

First post-competition training session.

I felt pretty beat up on Monday, still sore yesterday but feeling fresh today.

Felt so good I decided to go for PRs in the front squat and OHP, but maybe it wasn't such a good idea to max out a couple of days after maxing out at the meet :/

Foam Rolling

10 minutes on the black Rumble Roller

Band Pull Aparts

A bunch of reps, multiple angles with the Voodoo Floss bands

Shoulder Dislocations

10

L-Sit V-Grip Pull Ups

Body weight (~200 lb): 6

Front Squat

Beltless and paused up to 280 lb.

Paused again at 267.5 lb.

45 lb: 10
100 lb: 10
140 lb: 5
190 lb: 3
230 lb: 3
280 lb: 2
320 lb: 1
370 lb: 1
405 lb: MISSED
- Not enough power out of the hole.
410 lb: MISSED
- Knee wraps. Nope.
267.5 lb: 3,3,3
- Paused.
- +2.5 lb from a couple of weeks ago.

Overhead Press

45 lb: 10
75 lb: 8
100 lb: 5
140 lb: 3
190 lb: 2
230 lb: 1
265 lb: MISSED
230 lb: MISSED
- Was going to go for 230x3 after, but missed on the first rep! Might actually need rest after the meet lol.
140 lb: 10

Barbell Curl

45 lb: 10
75 lb: 10
100 lb: 6,6,6
45 lb: 10
- Drop set.

In Workout Log barbell curl, front squat, ohp, overhead press

Training Log: Wednesday May 29, 2013

May 29, 2013 — Leave a comment

I think low bar squatting yesterday made my shoulders and upper arms hurt for today.

Didn't affect front squats or OHP, but it did affect bench presses.

Foam Rolling

10 minutes on the black Rumble Roller

Band Pull Aparts

A bunch of reps, multiple angles with the Voodoo Floss bands

Shoulder Dislocations

10

L-Sit V-Grip Pull Ups

Body weight (~200 lb): 5

Front Squat

Beltless and paused up to 280 lb.

Knee wraps at 370 lb and 405 lb to see how they feel.

Paused again at 265 lb.

45 lb: 10
100 lb: 10
140 lb: 5
190 lb: 3
230 lb: 3
280 lb: 2
320 lb: 1
370 lb: 1
- knee wraps
405 lb: 1 * PR!
- 1RM, but used knee wraps, so maybe it doesn't count.
265 lb: 3,
- Paused.
- +5 lb from last week, but 3 sets instead of 5.

Overhead Press

Here's the aftermath:

Shin damage from OHP :/

45 lb: 10
75 lb: 8
100 lb: 5
140 lb: 3
190 lb: 2
235 lb: 2
- Grip was off, stance was off
235 lb: 3 * PR!
- Couldn't re-rack the bar. Ended up dropping it, which somehow ended up hitting both of my shins :/

Reverse Grip Bench Press

140 lb: 5
230 lb: 3
320 lb: X
- Some sort of pain in along the upper arm near the bottom of the rep. Going to shut it down for now.

In Workout Log Bench Press, front squat, ohp, overhead press

Training Log: Wednesday May 22, 2013

May 22, 2013 — Leave a comment

Foam Rolling

10 minutes on the black Rumble Roller

Band Pull Aparts

A bunch of reps, multiple angles with the Voodoo Floss bands

Shoulder Dislocations

10

L-Sit V-Grip Pull Ups

Body weight (~200 lb): 5

Front Squat

Beltless and paused up to 230 lb.

Paused again at 260 lb.

45 lb: 10
100 lb: 10
140 lb: 5
190 lb: 3
230 lb: 3
280 lb: 2
330 lb: 1
370 lb: 2 * PR!
- 2 rep max!
- Only got 1 rep last week due to tweaking something in my back.
260 lb: 3,3,3,3,3
- Paused.

Face Pulls

70 lb: 12
90 lb: 10

Reverse Grip Bench Press

All reps are paused.

45 lb: 10
140 lb: 5
230 lb: 3
320 lb: 1
355 lb: 1
320 lb: 3

Overhead Press

45 lb: 10
100 lb: 5
140 lb: 3
190 lb: 2
235 lb: 2,2
- Wanted 3 reps, but my left thigh (vastus lateralis probably) started to cramp up on the first set, 3rd rep. Tried it again, but no go.

Barbell Curl

45 lb: 10
100 lb: 8

In Workout Log Bench Press, face pulls, front squat, overhead press

"Using no way as way" & "Having no limitation as limitation"

End of The Texas Method, OHP and Front/High/Low Bar Squat PRs, Interval Timer and Stuff You Should Read

April 28, 2013 — Leave a comment

I was planning on 1 PR for this week, but ended up with 4!

Front Squat: 370 lb (1RM)

On Wednesday I got a 370 lb front squat, which is a +20 lb PR from last week. Not too shabby!

For the upcoming weeks, I'm going to fill out the "Front Squat" row in my personal records scoreboard starting with a new 2 rep max (I'm thinking 350'ish), then 3, and maybe 5.

Overhead Press: 240 lb x 2 (2RM)

Did this one on Wednesday. Could have sworn I had overhead pressed 240x2 before, but I couldn't find any record of it.

Low Bar Squat: 440 lb x 5 (5RM)

On Friday I did 440x5, which is a +10 lb PR from February. My form was pretty good for all reps I think. I am satisfied.

High Bar Squat: 440 lb x 5 (5RM)

The next day (Saturday), I managed a high bar squat for 440x5, which is also a +10 lb PR. The last time I got a 5RM was on the same day I did a low bar squat 5RM.

Also, I wanted to get in a training session of squats and deadlifts because I was going to have Chinese buffet for lunch (or in my case, a post-workout meal).

Gymboss Interval Timer Review

I wrote a review for the standalone interval timer known as the Gymboss.

TL;DR: It's a good interval timer.

Buy it if you want something that's compact, simple to use and has a vibration function.

Full review here.

End Of Texas Method

I'm going to stop calling what I'm doing "Texas Method" mainly because what I do now deviates a bit from the program, and I don't want to be confined to a "method" or a "system" if I want to alter my training somehow. (As I write this, I'm reminded of Bruce Lee's saying of, "Using no way as way" & "Having no limitation as limitation").

I've already made many changes. My training now contain some elements of the Texas Method, namely, a higher volume day and a higher intensity day, but sometimes I'll have 2 or 3 PR days per week (Wednesday, which is usually a "recovery day", Friday, and sometimes Saturdays like yesterday). My recovery days are usually "intense" ie. attempting 1 rep maxes, and sometimes they're high in volume. My "intensity days" are sometimes high in volume as well.

I think it's about time to stop calling it the "Texas Method".

In the end, it's just training to get stronger.