FivebyFive's beginner training log

[FiveByFive]

Congratz with the heavy DL!! I wish your shoulder gets better soon...

Thanks! So do I.

Today's workout:

Squats: 5x5 @ 210lbs - form much better except for the last two reps.
IR: 1x10 1x5 - I felt a twinge in my shoulder so I stopped these.
Close Grip Pushups: 3x12 - going easy b/c of the shoulder.
Rev. Crunch: 3x15

I find myself favoring my right side on squats occasionally, if i concentrate i can correct it without any problems, so I've just got to keep focused.

[Transformer]

I find myself favoring my right side on squats occasionally, if i concentrate i can correct it without any problems, so I've just got to keep focused.

I noticed I'm doing a slightly asymmetric squat too. I have to work on it...

[FatGuyNoMore]

I favor my "good" leg more than my "bad" when squat as well... its also my left leg (right handed)... which leg do you tend to favor? (im thinking the whole thing about the body being setup in an X pattern thingy here)

Otherwise... 210 for 5x5 is impressive in my book...

[FiveByFive]

I favor my "good" leg more than my "bad" when squat as well... its also my left leg (right handed)... which leg do you tend to favor? (im thinking the whole thing about the body being setup in an X pattern thingy here)

Otherwise... 210 for 5x5 is impressive in my book...

I favor my right knee and i'm right handed. I think I just do it b/c it's natural, if i concentrate i can get rid of it. Saw the news about your own knee, good news about the no surgery, bad news about it potentially being something that could nag you for a while. good luck with it!

[FiveByFive]

Out of town this weekend, but went to an awesome powerlifting gym on saturday. Really cool place, basically in a glorified garage. 2 olympic platforms w/ eleiko weights and bumper plates and a mess of olympic bars. 2 great power racks with york bars and weights. tons of dumbells, benches, a big bowl of chalk, and not a machine in sight save the c2 rowers. The guy next to me was squatting doubles and triples somewhere north of 450 pounds and a guy came in doing oly snatches as I was leaving. So anyway, the workout!

Squats: 5x5 @ 215 lbs
DL: 1x5 @ 248 lbs (really 112.5 kg) -The chalk was a huge help here, but i had to switch to a mixed grip anyway. LOVE the round plates!
Chins: 5-4-4
Prone Bridge: 3x60s
Cressey shoulder routine

[Wellhairedbeast]

Out of town this weekend, but went to an awesome powerlifting gym on saturday. Really cool place, basically in a glorified garage. 2 olympic platforms w/ eleiko weights and bumper plates and a mess of olympic bars. 2 great power racks with york bars and weights. tons of dumbells, benches, a big bowl of chalk, and not a machine in sight save the c2 rowers. The guy next to me was squatting doubles and triples somewhere north of 450 pounds and a guy came in doing oly snatches as I was leaving. So anyway, the workout!

Sounds awesome, somewhere like that must be really inspiring and get you in the right mood. Might be worth seeing if you can stay out of town for a bit longer so you can train there again.

Good squatting, how is the shoulder rehab working out?

[FiveByFive]

Sounds awesome, somewhere like that must be really inspiring and get you in the right mood. Might be worth seeing if you can stay out of town for a bit longer so you can train there again.

Good squatting, how is the shoulder rehab working out?

It really is good motivation. The gym is near my mother-in-law, so I'll be going back next saturday as we'll be there again then. Probably will try to make it a point to visit whenever I'm in the area actually.

The shoulder is strange, the pain has now moved from the front of my shoulder to the rear and my mobility has decreased, strange since i've been stretching. I will probably try to get the doctor to give me an MRI or refer me to a physical therapist if things aren't right in the next month, but it's tough getting student health to agree to spend any money. Fortunately it no longer causes me any discomfort doing squats or chinups (it used to), but it does hurt to do OHP (it didn't used to).

[Transformer]

Out of town this weekend, but went to an awesome powerlifting gym on saturday. Really cool place, basically in a glorified garage. 2 olympic platforms w/ eleiko weights and bumper plates and a mess of olympic bars. 2 great power racks with york bars and weights. tons of dumbells, benches, a big bowl of chalk, and not a machine in sight save the c2 rowers.

Woaw sounds like heaven that gym!!

[adamr]

That gym sounds awesome!

[Caphel]

Looks like your other lifts are coming along nicely again. Still not great news about your shoulder then. Still, at least you can squat with no shoulder pain now, though it is odd that it is now hurting on the Press.

[FiveByFive]

Looks like your other lifts are coming along nicely again. Still not great news about your shoulder then. Still, at least you can squat with no shoulder pain now, though it is odd that it is now hurting on the Press.

Yeah no idea, but i'll take the changing pain as a sign of healing to some extent. Being delusional makes me happier.

Today's workout:

Squats: 5x5 @ 220 lbs -almost back to my old weight, and tail tuck is getting more and more under control
Close Grip pushups- 12-12-12 - again went easy on the shoulder
N-grip Pullups - 4-4-4
Prone Bridge: 3x60s

I tried some neutral grip pullups today at the suggestion of the owner of the powerlifting gym I went to. He says they are better for people with lingering shoulder problems. They did feel better than pullups, but still more stress than chins, so i'll stick with the chins for now. My neck was incredibly sore from clinch work in MT yesterday so i did the bridges instead of crunches.

In other news, i somehow managed to gain 3 pounds since friday (boo), visiting family killed my diet. I probably should've mentioned earlier that since weight was not coming off i decided to change up my eating and try lowering my carbs. I'm targeting under 100g a day, which is not really that low. It's only my second week but i already fell off the wagon over the weekend due to some family gatherings and general laziness. I dread what thanksgiving will do to me.

[Wellhairedbeast]

. I dread what thanksgiving will do to me.

I wouldn't worry to be honest, at the end of the day we are entering the winter period and from autumn/winter our natural "cycle" is to put on weight particularly in terms of fat so its natural for this to occur anyway. Obviously don't let the fat gain go crazy but a little is not a problem this time of year.

[jfh26]

Or eat all you want at Thanksgiving, and then hibernate.

[FiveByFive]

Yesterday's session:
Squats: 3x5 @ 225lbs
DL: 1 @ 255lbs (yes 1)
N-Grip Pullups: 5-5-4

So today was what I'll call my first bad session in the gym. I couldn't make all 5 sets of squats and didn't even try, my form felt ok but i was feeling a lot of tightness in my lower back. I couldn't even get 255 to break from the floor on my second pull. And overall I just felt weak and tired.

I might chalk it up to a week off due to family/thanksgiving obligations. I might chalk it up to re-acclimating myself to lower carbs after a couple days off the wagon. I might chalk it up to fighting off a cold, or lack of sleep, or lack of PWO food. In fact, I am going to do that b/c the alternative is to let the idea creep into my head that I'm just not strong enough, that I'm hitting my natural wall, that it's too hard, or any number of other discouraging things. For the first time in my life I'm finding making excuses a good thing, because if i can believe all those excuses than I can keep doubt from creeping in and a lack of confidence seems to me to be the enemy of strength training. I will eat better, sleep better, and be tougher next session in the gym and I will hit all my reps and all my sets.

[FatGuyNoMore]

Sleep Better, Eat Better (more pre workout?), Kick Ass in gym, in that order.