PR Hit and Miss, 520 lb High Bar Squat 1RM and Stuff You Should Read

October 20, 2013 — Leave a comment

I missed more than I hit when it came to PRs this past week. Not sure why. Maybe it was because my primary source of meat was left over turkey from Th-thanksgiving (rather than the usual pork).

I did go out for sushi buffet on Friday, and then hit some PR's again on Saturday.

But it was probably because my body needed a bit of a break from the heavy lifting I've been doing.

Missed PR Attempts

  1. Front Squat: 420 lb
    • Wanted a +15 lb 1 rep max, but it was too big of a jump. Might try this again next week.
  2. OHP: 265 lb
    • Wanted a +5 lb PR. Felt light in my hands and easy coming out of the rack, but could only get it half way up before the bar came to a grinding halt. I think I'll have to build up strength via volume, hit some rep PRs, and then come back to try pressing 265 lb over my head.
  3. Low Bar Squat (no belt): 500 lb
    • Wanted 2 reps for a beltless 2RM, but couldn't even get 1! Dammit.

Well, things turned around yesterday and I was able to score a couple of high bar squat PR's:

High Bar Squat: 510 lb x 1

+5 lb PR. I don't think I needed to engage my squat face for this one, because the bar pretty much flew up and I did a partial calf-raise at the top.

High Bar Squat: 520 lb x 1 (1RM)

Decided to take 520 lb for a ride after feeling how easy 510 lb felt.

+10 lb PR from about 5 minutes earlier!

Tough, but I fought through the sticking point and stood up with it.

By the way, I used a wider stance than normal for HB squatting, which allowed me to get a bigger bounce out of the hole (but less depth). I might stick with this wider stance for HB squats (and maybe front squats) in the future.

Stuff You Should Read

  1. Navigating The Thin Ice Of Science Translation by Ross Tucker, Ph.D.

 

John Phung

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Ever since I started taking strength training seriously, I was bitten by the Iron Bug. Then it burrowed under my skin and laid eggs in my heart. Now those eggs are hatching and I... the feeling is indescribable.




Quick Stats
Height: 5'4" on non-squat days
Weight: 200 lb 210 lb ~220 lb (FOREVER BULK BRAH)

Credentials


Programs
  • Texas Method: March 4, 2011 - April 28, 2013
  • Smolov Jr for Bench Press: June 4 - 22, 2012
  • Starting Strength: Nov 29, 2010 - March 4, 2011