10 minutes on the black Rumble Roller and lacrosse ball.
L-Sit V-Grip Pull Ups
Hook grip.
Body weight (~200 lb): 8
Front Squat
45 lb: 10
100 lb: 10
140 lb: 5
230 lb: 3
280 lb: 1
330 lb: 1
370 lb: 1 * PR!
New 1RM...by 20 lb! Not too bad...but still not double body weight.
255 lb: 3,3,3,3,3
+5 lb from last week
5 sets instead of 3
Started to pause these squats at the 2nd set
Beltless starting on the 3rd set
Overhead Press
45 lb: 10
75 lb: 8
100 lb: 5
140 lb: 3
190 lb: 1
210 lb: 1
240 lb: 2 * PR!
2RM! I think. I feel like I've done this weight for 2 reps before, but I cannot find any record of it through a Google search. Time to fill out an empty box in my personal records table!
200 lb: 5,5
Barbell Curl
I think curls would be more fun to do if I had a mirror.
For some reason, during my warm up sets, I touched the bar just underneath my chin before unracking. I tilted my head back before taking it off the rack, and the bar was at a higher starting position than normal (around the Adam's apple level, as described in my article "3 Ways To Increase Your Overhead Pressing Strength". The higher starting position lead to a greater stretch reflex.
Also, I've been focusing on driving the bar backwards and flaring out my elbows after the bar clears my head. This makes it easier to keep the bar balanced to press the weight straight up.
385 lb Reverse Grip Bench Press
An ice storm in my area lead to a power outage on Friday, so I had no electricity from around 8AM-6PM, with the exception of whatever power that was left in the battery in my phone.
My home gym is in the basement, and there's only one small window. Not much sunlight shinning in that day, so the lighting was horrible.
I missed the first try at 385 lb, likely because of not enough leg drive. The 2nd attempt, I focused more on leg drive and pressed the bar up. Legs are important in the bench press.
Initially I was planning on doing a 460 lb over warm-up, then dropping down for a triple at 440 lb.
But 460 lb went up without much struggle, so I added 10 lb to the bar.
470 lb went up without much struggle, so I added ANOTHER 10 lb to the bar.
480 lb wasn't too bad, so I thought, "heck, let's see if I can high bar squat 500 lb. The worst that can happen is that I get injured again...not the end of the world..."
And I did it!
Last time I attempted 500 was sometime in September/October 2012, and my last 1RM high bar squat PR was late September, so I'm pretty happy with this.
Also, 500 lb high bar squat is a milestone that I've been wanting for a while. Previous best was 495 lb. I've low bar squatted over 500 lb before, but high bar is a little more difficult, and a little more satisfying to get.
10 minutes on the black Rumble Roller and lacrosse ball.
L-Sit V-Grip Pull Ups
Body weight (~200 lb): 8
Front Squat
Used straps, but no Fat Gripz this time. Instead, I positioned the neoprene padding part of the straps so that it was in between my shoulders and the bar.
10 minutes on the black Rumble Roller and lacrosse ball.
L-Sit V-Grip Pull Ups
Body weight (~200 lb): 8
Low Bar Squat (Paused)
Exhaled and inhaled at the bottom (1 breath).
45 lb: 20
140 lb: 10
230 lb: 5
320 lb: 3,3,3
Overhead Press
ARGH 260 lb was so close!
My back (low and middle) was feeling a bit sore, probably from maxing out on front squats yesterday. For some reason, the left side was a bit more sore than my right. This might have caused my core to be weak on one side.
Maybe I'll try again next week.
45 lb: 10
75 lb: 8
100 lb: 5
140 lb: 3
190 lb: 1
230 lb: 1
260 lb: MISSED
Dammit almost had it. Left arm did not want to extend.
260 lb: MISSED
Not even close.
230 lb: 1
Wanted 3, but out of energy from attempting 260 lb.
