February 2015 – 6th March 2015
Took a week off after the Welsh Championships and now started the next 8 weeks training leading to the BPO British. Still trying to train with The Pembrokeshire Powerlifters where I can as I get more from the sessions than when I’m on my own, but training almost always has to fit around my work & family commitments. For the next 8 weeks at least I’m loosely following Wendlers 5/3/1 for Powerlifting, with the last deload week leading to the British.
Got in a couple of sessions before starting the 8 week plan, Deadlifts with the Pembs boys with Chiropractors Nightmares, Bench session up to 120kg x5 and 140kg x4 (equipped) and Squats up to 200kg x3 (equipped), then backed off to 180 x6 (equipped, straps down). Then began with 3’s week + equipped singles.
Deadlift up to 170kg x3, then a single at 182.5kg – Was supposed to pull 197.5kg as well, but just wasn’t up to it and form was breaking down so left it and chased up with Good Mornings, Bent Over Rows and some abs
Bench up to 125kg x4 (raw), then equipped 140kg x4, and 152.5kg x3 (Was only supposed to be a single but was feeling strong so went for it!) – followed up with DB Bench, Press-ups, Chest Supported Rows and Rear Raises
Squats up to 170kg x3, then equipped 195kg and 215kg – Then Leg Press, Glute/Ham Raises and Captains Chair Knee Raises
Vids:
Chiropractors Nightmares 180kg x4
Squat 200kg x3, Squat 180kg x6, Squat 215kg
Bench 140kg x4, Bench 152.5kg x3
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Saturday 4th October – Saturday 11th October 2014
5 Weeks to the Worlds!
Week 4 – Rather than deload with only 4 weeks of training left, I’m going to revert to the Mendelson routine I followed leading to the UK’s and whatever coach puts me through when we meet up! I wouldn’t normally advocate changing routines especially leading up to a meet, however it was successful for me and I need to work at certain parts of my lifts (i.e. lockout strength), which were included in this.
Deadlift – Worked up to 170kg x5, assistance was some Defecit Deadlifts, Rack Pulls, Pulldowns, Farmers Walks and Chin-ups.
Bench – Up to 110kg x8, then Close-Grip Bench, Pause Bench, Pulldowns, Lat Raises and Chin-ups
Squat – Up to 142.5kg x5, then a single at 150kg, 160kg and 170kg, then Front Squats, Pause Squats, Leg Press and Captains Chair Knee Raises
Back Session – Pullovers, V Grip Pulldowns, T Bar Rows, Wide Grip Pulldowns, Straight Arm Pulldowns, Power Cleans and DB Rows
A hard week this time, kids have been ill from early in the week so not slept as much as I’d like! Struggled a little on the heavy squats, although blasted the assistance work. It was also my weekend to work so couldn’t meet up with the Pembrokeshire Powerlifters for usual Saturday session so did a back session after work instead. Fell ill myself on Sunday so will see how I fare this week, it’s getting far too close to take time off!
Vids:
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Saturday 27th September – Friday 3rd October
6 Weeks to the Worlds
Week 3 – 531 week
Deadlift up to 160kg x5, then singles 187.5kg and 210kg (questionable form!) – Followed up with Lever Deadlifts, Ab Wheel and chins
Bench up to 115kg x7, then singles 120kg and 137.5kg (fail) – then equipped for 160kg – Then Close Grip Bench, Chins & Face Pulls
Squat up to 160kg x6, then singles at 170kg, 180kg and 190kg (fail) – Then Front Squats & Pause Squats
Dead Bench up to 110kg x7, then single at 130kg – Followed by Pendlay Rows, weighted Dips, Cable Reverse Flye, Pulldowns & Chins
Finished the week with a session with the Pembrokeshire Powerlifters and an equipped Squat & Bench session – Squats up to 210kg on the box, but couldn’t stop sitting on it so coach took it away and then I got a 220kg 🙂 – Bench up to 165kg, Also tried a few different shirts to see if it made a difference. Definitely prefer the Titan Katana, the Super Katana just didn’t feel right!
Changing up training a little, I’m not going to take a deload week as only got a few weeks of training left and will be taking a week off before the meet. Going to go back to 3’s again as per week 1
Vids:
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Monday 9th June 2014
13 Weeks out from meet – I’ll be using Wendlers 531 for powerlifting template. Following the Off-Season for mass template until 8 weeks out, then 8 weeks to prep!
Bench 90kg x3, 100kg x3, 122.5kg x7, followed by 90kg x9 (after 60 secs) – Was meant to be only 112.5kg on last set, but hadn’t realised I’d used 10’s instead of 5’s on the bar! though it felt heavy today:-)
DB Bench 30kg x10x10x10x9x9 (60s rest)
Lever Row 75kg x12x12x12x12x10 (60s)
Pushdowns (5) x100 (65+25+10 RP)
Face Pulls (5) x100 (56+17+15+12 RP)
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Saturday 7th June 2014
Deadlift 140kg x5, 160kg x2, 180kg x1, 185kg x1, 190kg x1
Good Morning 40kg x10x10x10x10 (60s rest)
Yates Row 80kg x10x10x10x10 (30s)
Explosive Shrugs 130kg x40 (rest-pause in hang position) followed by DB Shrug & Hold 3 secs 42kg x10x10x8 (90s rest)
Seated Leg Curls 50kg x12, 45 x12x12, 40kg x12 (60s rest)
Ab Sling Knee to Elbows x12x12x12x12 (60s)
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Monday 2nd June 2014
Bench 130kg x3x3x3, 60s rest then 100kg x10 – Went for an extra one but ended up leaving the bar on the pins, see vid! And that’s why I use the cage 🙂
DB Bench 30kg x10x10x10x9x8 (60s rest)
Lever Row 75kg x12x12x12x11x9 (60s)
Pushdowns (5) x100 (60+25+15)
Face Pulls (5) x100 (55+15+15+15)
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Friday 30th May 2014
Deadlift 100kg x5, 120kg x5, 140kg x5, 150kg x2, 160kg x4 (2 mins)
Cable Row 75kg x12x12, 70kg x12, 60kg x12x9 (60s)
V Grip Pulldowns (10) x12x12x12x12x11 (Superset with Viking Press)
Viking Press 70kg x10x8, 60kg x9x7x7 (Superset with Pulldowns)
Explosive Shrugs 140kg x40
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Wednesday 28th May
Bench 127.5kg x4x3x5 (2mins rest), followed by a dropset of 100kg x8 (60s)
DB Bench Press 30kg x10x10x10x10 (superset with Lever Row)
Lever Row 70kg x12x12x12x12 (superset with DB Bench)
Tricep Pushdowns (5) x100 (50+20+20+10)
Face Pulls (5) x100 (50+20+15+15)
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Friday 23rd May 2014
DB Pullover 40kg x12x12 (2 mins rest)
Weighted Chins 28kg x7 (2 mins), 24kg x7 (60s), Bodyweight x11 followed by Reverse Grip Pulldown (8) x14x12 (60s)
T Bar Row 62.5kg x8x8x8, 40kg x10x9 (30s)
Deadlift & Sumo Deadlift up to 140kg – technique practice
Rack Pull 220kg x5
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Wednesday 21st May 2014
Cable Row 90kg x10x10x10x10 (90secs rest)
Bench 125kg x4x3x5, 60s rest then 100kg x9
Face Pulls (7) x25x25 (between bench sets)
Seated Alt. DB Curl 15kg x12, 12.5kg x11 (between bench)
Viking Press 92.5kg x5, 60s rest then 40kg x15, 60s then Lat. Raise x7.5kg x17, 5kg x19 (60s)
Squat practice, heavy singles up to 170kg
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Wednesday 14th May 2014
Cable Row 90kg x10x10x9x8 (90s rest)
Bench 122.5kg x5x5x6, then 100kg x8
Seated Alt. DB Curls 15kg x11, 12.5kg x14 (After each bench set)
Face Pulls (7) x20x20 (After each bench set)
Viking Press 90kg x6, (60s rest) 40kg x14
Squat 165kg x4
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Monday 12th May 2014 – Back Focus Week 8
T Bar Row 62.5kg x10x10x10x9 (60s rest)
Shrugs (Explosive) 130kg x40 (22 done, then the remainder in a rest pause style, no letting go of the bar), 105kg x40 (2 mins)
DB Shrugs (with 3s hold) 40kg x10x10 (90s rest)
Standing Calf Raise 127.5kg x12x10x8 (60s rest)
Leg Press Toe Press 230kg x12x10 (60s)
Seated Calf Raise 145kg x20, 165kg x10 (90s rest)
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Friday 9th May 2014
DB Pullover 40kg x12x12 (2 mins rest)
V Grip Pulldown (15) x9, (11) x12 (60s rest)
Bent Over Row 95kg x12, 80kg x11, 70kg x12x10 (30s)
Rack Pull 205kg x15
Standing 1-Arm DB External Rotation 7.5kg x20x17 (rest each side as long as it took to perform the set on opposite side)
Cuban Rotation 20kg EZ Bar x10, 10kg x15 (60s)
Pullovers feeling much better, slower and more controlled than with the 50’s last time. PR’d on the Rack Pull so a good day all round!
🙂 🙂 🙂
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Wednesday 7th May 2014
Lever Row 80kg x15x14x10x9 (90s rest)
Shrugs (Explosive) 127.5kg x40 (25 done, then the remainder in a rest pause style, no letting go of the bar), 105kg x40 (2 mins)
DB Shrugs (with 3s hold) 40kg x10x10 (90s rest)
Standing Calf Raise 125kg x11x9x7 (60s rest)
Leg Press Toe Press 220kg x12x10 (60s)
Seated Calf Raise 145kg x20, 160kg x10 (90s rest)
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Monday 5th May 2014 – Back Focus Week 7
Cable Row 90kg x9x9x8x8 (90s rest)
Bench 117.5kg x3x3x6, then 100kg x6
Machine Preacher Curl 20kg x10, 15kg x13x12 (After each bench set)
Viking Press 85kg x8, (60s rest) 40kg x13
Did a quick upper body session today, bit sore from yesterday and hip flexor really tight and painful when trying to squat so called it a day and will mobilise it over next few days
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Sunday 4th May 2014
DB Pullover 50kg x10, 40kg x10 (2 mins rest) – reduced weight as technique suffering. I may drop again and slow reps down some more as still didn’t feel quite right
Weighted Chins 28kg x6, (2 mins) 24kg x7, (60s) BW x12
DB Row To Hip 35kg x15x13 (60s)
Deadlift 155kg x7
Lying Leg Curl (6) x9+4+2 RP
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Sunday 27th April 2014 – Back Focus Week 6
Crazy week! Moved house on Friday so gym sessions been a little sporadic last week/this weekend and have been a bit run down when I have hit the gym. This is where the log book has been a great help – Even though I didn’t feel up to it, I pushed to achieve at least the same reps as previous sessions and found that despite the tiredness I was still able to increase on some of my lifts through sheer willpower. This links back to a post I wrote a while back about intensity link here – Don’t let that little voice in your head control your training!
DB Pullover 50kg x12x10 (2 mins rest)
Weighted Chins 28kg x6 (2 mins), 24kg x6 (60s) Bodyweight x12
DB Row To Hip 35kg x15x12 (60s)
G Row 45kg x5x5 (90s) – Dropped weight back down as this is more about technique than weight
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Thursday 24th April 2014
Cable Row 85kg x10x10x10x8 (90s rest)
Shrugs (Explosive) 122.5kg x40 (24 done, then the remainder in a rest pause style, no letting go of the bar), 105kg x40 (2 mins)
DB Shrugs (with 3s hold) 40kg x10x10 (90s rest)
Standing Calf Raise 115kg x12x10x9 (60s rest)
Leg Press Toe Press 210kg x11x10 (60s)
Seated Calf Raise 140kg x20, 160kg x9 (90s rest)
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Monday 21st April 2014 – Back Focus Week 5
DB Pullover 50kg x10x9 (2 mins rest)
Reverse Grip Pulldown (14) x10, (11) x12 (60s rest)
T Bar Row 60kg x8x8x8x8x8 (60s)
Deadlift 145kg x8
Lying Leg Curl (6) x11+4+3 (rest pause)
Leg Raise (captains chair) x15x15x10+5 (30s rest)
GHD sit-ups x10x10 (60s)
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Saturday 19th April 2014
Cable Row 85kg x8x8x8x8 (90s rest)
Shrugs (Explosive) 122.5kg x40 (18 done, then the remainder in a rest pause style, no letting go of the bar), 105kg x37 (2 mins)
DB Shrugs (with 3s hold) 40kg x10x8 (90s rest)
Standing Calf Raise 115kg x12x9x7 (60s rest)
Leg Press Toe Press 210kg x10x9 (60s)
Seated Calf Raise 140kg x19, 160kg x10 (90s rest)
Face Pulls (5) x60+20 RP
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Sunday 13th April 2014
DB Prone Row 30kg DB’s x8x8x8x8 (60s rest)
Shrugs (Explosive) 122.5kg x40 (15 done, then the remainder in a rest pause style, no letting go of the bar), 105kg x40 (2 mins)
DB Shrugs (with 3s hold) 38kg x10x10 (90s rest)
Smith Standing Calf Raise 112.5kg x12x10x10 (60s rest)
Leg Press Toe Press 200kg x10x10 (60s)
Prone Rear Raise 10kg DB’s x15x15x13 (60s)
Dips x20x17x11x8 (30s)
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Friday 11th April 2014
DB Pullover 45kg x12x12 (2 mins rest)
V Grip Pulldown (14) x9, (11) x11 (60s rest)
Bent Over Row 92.5kg x12, 62.5kg x12x12x12 (30s)
Rack Pull (below knee) 160kg x11 – Felt really heavy again today, I think I’ve been doing too much recently, including my spin I trained 6 days last week. With a focus on back training I think it’s just taking it’s toll, so will ease back a bit and see if that helps.
G Row 47.5kg x5x3 (90s) – Bit weak from rack pulls and lower back was tight as hell so gave up on second set. Will drop back down to 40kg next time and try and focus on technique.
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Saturday 5th April 2014
Cable Row 85kg x8x8, 80kg x8x7 (90s rest)
Shrugs (Explosive) 120kg x40 (14 done, then the remainder in a rest pause style, no letting go of the bar), 102.5kg x40 (2 mins)
DB Shrugs (with 3s hold) 35kg x10x10 (90s rest)
Standing Calf Raise 110kg x12x10x10 (60s rest)
Leg Press Toe Press 200kg x10x9 (60s)
Seated Calf Raise 140kg x18, 160kg x9 (90s rest)
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Thursday 4th April 2014
DB Pullover 45kg x12x9 (2 mins rest)
V Grip Pulldown (13) x9, (11) x11 (60s rest)
Bent Over Row 90kg x10, 60kg x12x12x12 (30s)
Power Cleans up to 100kg
Deadlift – Went for 160kg but it felt really heavy, think I overdid it on the leg press yesterday! dropped to 120kg and did 6 good reps instead.
G Row 42.5kg x5x5 (60s)
Still struggling on both Squat and Deadlift since coming back from illness, Bench is coming back nicely thankfully! This is partly due to lack of sleep recently, got a lot on at home, moving house etc, so I will keep it up best I can for now and just try and get to bed earlier!!!
BE HENCH 