Archives For reverse grip bench press

400 lb Bench Press, 550 lb Squat, The Perfect Rep And Stuff You Should Read

September 28, 2013 — Leave a comment

I hit two big PR's this past week (among many).

Got a 550 lb low bar squat, which was a goal I wanted to reach for my new years resolution.

Also nailed a very smooth 400 lb reverse grip bench press, which is a milestone weight and puts in the 400 lb bench press club!

Here they are:

Low Bar Squat: 550 lb x 1 (1RM)

Reverse Grip Bench Press: 400 lb x 1 (1RM)

Really surprised at how super smooth this went!

LMAO4PLATE...YOU ARE NEX!!1!

The Perfect Rep

With the 550 lb squat and the 400 lb bench press I did a few days ago, they both felt like the perfect rep.

It felt like the bar moved perfectly inside the groove during the rep, everything is "on", and I just nail it.

No struggle, no missteps, no grind.

Just a perfectly executed rep from beginning to end, using a load that I've never successfully completed before.

Feels good.

I'm not very articulate today, but maybe this feeling is similar to Dwight Schrute's "Perfectenschlag":

Actually, it's probably more similar to Samuel Ander's description of "perfection" from Battlestar Galactica (Season 4, Episode 19: "Daybreak" Part 1:

If you want to know the truth...I don't really care about the stats. Or the cup, or the trophy, or anything like that. Um, in fact, even the games aren't that important to me, not really. What matters to me is the perfect throw...making the perfect catch...the perfect stepping block.

Perfection is what it's about.

It's about those moments when... you can feel the perfection of creation. The beauty of physics, the wonder of mathematics. And all the relation of action and reaction. And that is the kind of perfection I want to be connected to.

I want to experience more perfect reps.

Other PRs

Reverse Grip Bench Press: 300 lb x 9 (9RM)

Pecs and shoulders feeling sore and worn out, so I decided to do my warm up (missed at 370 lb though; usually it's no problem) and then rep out as many as I could with 300 lb.

Previous max number of reps at 300 lb was 7. Would have settled for 8 reps for an 8RM, but I went for 10. But after the shaky 9th rep, I was pretty sure I would have failed the 10th rep, so I re-racked the bar. NEX TIME.

Front Squat: 330 lb (Paused, No Belt 3RM)

EZPZ

Overhead Press: 230 lb x 4 (4RM)

Pretty tough! Shaky last rep, but I stuck with it and locked it out.

Pretty happy with this PR. OHP PRs are rare to come by these days.

Low Bar Squat: 500 lb x 3 (3RM)

3 reps with 500 lb FINALLY! I attempted 3 reps many times with 500 lb, but missed on the 3rd rep in the past.

Prior to this, I attempted a 555.5 lb squat to, but missed. Hit the uprights while walking back, and the bar didn't seem to sit in the right position during the lift.

Certificates

Got my CPF record certificates in the mail this past week. They look a lot better than an Excel spreadsheet!

Stuff You Should Read

  1. Powerbuilding: You Don't Grow In The Gym by Stan "Rhino" Efferding
  2. Assessments are Not Complicated by Alexander Cortes
  3. Wisdom from a Master (Notes From A Training Session With Dan Green) by Brian Hill
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Training Log: Sunday September 22, 2013

September 22, 2013 — Leave a comment

Dragon Flags

  • 7

Heavy Bag

  • Punches: 3 minutes
  • Right kicks: 3 minutes
  • Left kicks: 3 minutes

Ab Wheel

  • 6

Band Pull Aparts

Shoulder Dislocations

  • 10

L-Sit Pull Ups

Fat Gripz

  • Body weight (~205 lb): 7

Breathing Paused Low Bar Squat

No belt.

  • 45 lb: 10
  • 140 lb: 10
  • 230 lb: 5
  • 320 lb: 3

Paused Low Bar Squat

Belted up at 460 lb.

  • 410 lb: 1
  • 460 lb: 1

Low Bar/High Bar Squat

Alternating low bar and high bar squats, so first set is LB, 2nd set is HB, etc.

  • 420 lb: 3,3,3,3,3,3
    • +2.5 from 2 weeks ago

Reverse Grip Bench Press

Pecs and shoulders feeling sore and worn out, so I'm just going to do my warm up, and then rep out as many as I can with 300 lb.

Paused until work sets.

  • 45 lb: 10
  • 140 lb: 5
  • 230 lb: 3
  • 280 lb: 1
  • 330 lb: 1
  • 370 lb: X
    • Pecs and shoulders sore. Controlled negative though.
  • 300 lb: 9 * PR!
    • Previous max number of reps at 300 lb was 7.
    • Would have settled for 8 reps for an 8RM, but I went for 10. But after the 9th rep, I was pretty sure I would have failed the 10th rep, so I re-racked the bar. NEX TIME.
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Training Log: Thursday September 19, 2013

September 19, 2013 — Leave a comment

Hips were feeling a little tight, so had to spend some extra time warming it up. Used the Rogue Monster Bands (Green) to do some hip stretches.

Dragon Flags

  • 7

Foam Rolling

Ab Wheel

  • 6

Band Pull Aparts

Shoulder Dislocations

  • 10

L-Sit Chin Ups

With Fat Gripz.

  • Body weight (~205 lb): 6

Breathing Paused Low Bar Squat

  • 45 lb: 10
  • 140 lb: 10
  • 230 lb: 5
  • 320 lb: 3

Paused Low Bar Squat

Belted up at 460 lb.

  • 410 lb: 1
  • 460 lb: 1

Low Bar Squat

  • 490 lb: 4 * PR!
    • Would have settled for 3 reps, but I went ahead and did 4 anyway.

Reverse Grip Bench Press

Paused until work sets.

Experimented with a different way of gripping the bar. Basically instead of my thumb gripping around the bar and crossing on top of my index finger, it was in line with the bar. Felt more stable at first...

  • 45 lb: 10
  • 140 lb: 5
  • 230 lb: 3
  • 280 lb: 1
  • 330 lb: 1
  • 365 lb: 2
    • Missed on the 3rd rep.
  • 365 lb: 3 * PR!
    • 3 rep max by +10 lb!
    • Changed back to my regular grip on the bar. Less scary.

Regular Grip Bench Press

  • 365 lb: X
    • Felt a sharp pain in my forearms and shoulders :/
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Training Log: Thursday September 12, 2013

September 12, 2013 — Leave a comment

Dragon Flags

  • 7

Foam Rolling

Ab Wheel

  • 6

Band Pull Aparts

Shoulder Dislocations

  • 10

L-Sit Chin Ups

With Fat Gripz.

  • Body weight (~205 lb): 6

Breathing Paused Low Bar Squat

  • 45 lb: 10
  • 140 lb: 10
  • 230 lb: 5
  • 320 lb: 3

Paused Low Bar Squat

Belted up at 460 lb.

  • 410 lb: 1
  • 460 lb: 1

Low Bar Squat

  • 500 lb: 1
  • 440 lb: 8 * PR!
    • 8 rep max
    • Last rep was tough. Felt like I was on my toes.

Reverse Grip Bench Press

Paused until work sets.

  • 45 lb: 10
  • 140 lb: 5
  • 230 lb: 3
  • 280 lb: 1
  • 330 lb: 1
  • 370 lb: 1
  • 335 lb: 5 * PR!
    • +5 lb 5 rep max!

Regular Grip Bench Press

  • 350 lb: 1 * PR!
    • 1 rep max using a REGULAR grip
    • Had to use neoprene padding for my palms. Still not used to the pressure of the bar in my hands. Weird.
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Training Log: Sunday September 8, 2013

September 8, 2013 — Leave a comment

Dragon Flags

  • 7

Foam Rolling

Behind The Neck Lat Pulldown

  • 70 lb: 15

Ab Wheel

  • 6

Band Pull Aparts

Shoulder Dislocations

  • 10

L-Sit Pull Ups

With Rogue Cannon balls.

  • Body weight (~205 lb): 6

Breathing Paused Low Bar Squat

No belt.

  • 45 lb: 10
  • 140 lb: 10
  • 230 lb: 5
  • 320 lb: 3

Paused Low Bar Squat

No belt.

  • 410 lb: 1

High Bar Squat

  • 460 lb: X,X
    • Tried to go for a paused beltless, followed by a beltless PR. NOPE.

Low Bar/High Bar Squat

Alternating low bar and high bar squats, so first set is LB, 2nd set is HB, etc.

  • 417.5 lb: 3,3,3,3,3,3
  • 377.5 lb: 5,8

Reverse Grip Bench Press

Paused.

  • 45 lb: 10
  • 140 lb: 5
  • 230 lb: 3
  • 280 lb: 1
  • 330 lb: 1
  • 370 lb: 1

Reverse Band Reverse Grip Bench Press

  • 410 lb: X
    • Black bands
    • About 55 lb of resistance (assistance?) at the bottom. So the the weight ranges from ~360 lb at the bottom to 410 lb at the top.

Reverse Grip Bench Press

  • 320 lb: 3,3,3,3,3
    • Last week 4 sets, this week 5 sets.
  • 300 lb: 5,7
    • Wanted 8 on the last set, but couldn't get it.
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