Tag: Back Squat

Heavy Singles

Made it in early before the 9am to squat since they switched to Monday in the Intuition programming for a while.

Back Squat

  • 20×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 5×225#
  • 3×265#
  • 2×295#
  • 1×315#
  • 6x1x335#

Set with 135# was done shoeless and it was quite an interesting feel. I did the 7 singles by the clock, every 2 minutes. Was harder than I expected. Haven’t done a bunch of heavy singles in quite some time.

Push Press

  • 10×45#
  • 4×95#
  • 4×115#
  • 4×135#

8:00 EMOM

  • 4 Push Press 155#
  • 10s OH Hold

DAMN! Started getting rough after round 3. Held for about 20 seconds on the last round.

Conditioning

2 Rounds

  • 30 Russian KBS (70#)
  • 30 Burpees
  • 30 Air Squats

Tried to keep a steady pace on the burpees. Finished in 6:56.

Midline

3 Rounds

  • 20 Russian Twists (53#)
  • 20 GHD Sit-ups

Didn’t go for time today, especially with the bigger sets of GHDs than I’m used to. Haven’t been doing enough of them lately so I substituted for AbMat sit-ups.

Run Every Day

Around 7pm I ran 3.1 miles in 27:53 for right at a 9 min/mile pace. Exactly one week left.

Like Butta

Got up and was laced up by 8. Went 2.01 miles in 19:06. I don’t really enjoy the morning runs like I enjoyed getting up and squatting every morning. I definitely felt like I was still sleeping out there.

Gym at 6 after an appointment at the chiro, which I’m not sure I need anymore. My back has been good to go. Warmed up with 100 walking lunges.

Back Squat

  • 10×45#
  • 8×135#
  • 5×225#
  • 5x5x265#

Tried to focus on driving up with the back again. Didn’t wear a belt for any sets. Now that my squat is back and everything is feeling good, it’s time for some structure. First day of a Rippletoe squat program.

No B.S. Bench Press

  • 10×45#
  • 4×135#
  • 4×185#
  • 4×215#
  • 3x4x235#

That’s a PR for a set of 4 and then 2 more sets of the same. Doubles next week and then max out. Will probably take a little break from bench since I have a couple of weeks of vacation coming up next month.

Snatch

  • 3×45#
  • 3×95#
  • 2×135#
  • 155#
  • 165#
  • 175#
  • 185#
  • 190#
  • 195#
  • 200#
  • 205#

I took 8 minutes to warm up through the 175#, rested 2 minutes, and then did the last 5 lifts going every 2 minutes to simulate what we’ll be doing on Saturday. Didn’t lift with the weightlifting bars or bumpers either. Lifts felt smooth and everything was locked in solid. No misses. Wasn’t afraid of the weight at all like I was last week. Most I’ve put up since the 210# PR in October. Looking forward to seeing what I can do on Saturday with the adrenaline pumping.

Accessory

5 Rounds NFT

  • 10 Reverse Hypers (210#)
  • 10 GHD Sit-ups
  • 5 Strict C2B Pull-ups

Seemed like I hadn’t done a strict pull-up in months since I’m always hitting muscle-ups.

On the 12th Day of Running

Not a great night of sleep, but HRV went from a red 89 to green 107. I actually felt better yesterday. Rained out for golf today so I went it to lift with Alex at 5:30. Warmed up with Crossover Symmetry Activation, bottom squat holds, and a lot more empty bar snatch work than usual.

Snatch

  • 2x2x40kg
  • 2x2x50kg
  • 2x60kg
  • 2x70kg
  • 2x75kg
  • 1x80kg
  • 1x85kg
  • 1x88kg
  • 2 misses 92kg
  • 1x92kg

I wasn’t feeling crisp from the get go. Either the 85 or 88 was pretty forward, so I stopped my descent, pulled the bar back and it ended up being a power snatch. I was in my head on the attempts with 92, I think because it just wasn’t feeling as good as it has been. I’ve been hitting 90 no problem. Committed and the bar locked into place nice and smooth after a nice rest. Stopped on the success. That’s about 203#, which I think is the most I’ve done since setting my PR of 210# in October. Four workout days in a row could have something to do with how I felt too.

Pause Back Squat

  • 5x20kg
  • 5x70kg
  • 5x90kg
  • 5x105kg
  • 3x120kg
  • 3x130kg
  • 3x135kg

Just a short pause in the hole to make it harder. Tried out some adjustments I picked up from a video with Ed Coan. Could really feel a difference. Squatting kilos seems so weird because I don’t know the jumps or have a good feel for what’s on the bar. Reps felt solid. I wore the belt for the last two sets. That was almost 298# for the final set, so I’m happy with that.

Run Every Day

Got home and headed out for my run. Rain had stopped earlier in the day, though I did get a little mist when I was starting out. It was a great temperature for running. Around a mile and a half my stomach was not agreeing with the protein shake I drank during squats. I was actually feeling pretty good before that too. Once I hit the stoplight I decided to walk home from there. Ran 2.13 miles in 20:32 and walked about 3/5 of a mile.

Even Pace

Between the run and walking the golf course, I went almost 10 miles on foot yesterday. My hips are feeling a little weird today. Didn’t want to run this morning so that I could save my legs for squatting at the 9am class. Didn’t warm up with much, which may have been part of my problem today. Did some bottom squat hold and that’s about it.

Strength

2 Front Squats + 3 Back Squats

  • 45#
  • 135#
  • 225#
  • 255#
  • 275#
  • 295#

Fuck! The bar felt heavy today. How did I do 2+5 with 315#? Oh yeah, I got hurt.

Conditioning

7:00 AMRAP

  • 10 Wall Balls (20#, 10′)
  • 10 OH Walking Lunges (45#)

Paced myself early. Broke the 4th (?) round of lunges in half with a short breather. Pushed hard in the last round plus. Finished with 6+10.

We rested 3:00 and right into…

10 Rounds

  • 15 American KBS (44#)
  • 5 Push-ups

I knew I didn’t want 150 swings with a 53 pounder. I managed to go unbroken the entire way even though my hands kept wanted to slip off the bell in the last half. I had to push hard in the last 3 rounds to get them done in about 2:30, finishing at 9:54.

That was a tough one!

Run Every Day

Around 5 I headed out for a run. Went 3.12 miles in 30:46. Pacing was pretty even through the run, never over 10:00/mile.

Time to Squat Heavy Again

Got to the gym at about 9am and knocked out 100 walking lunges to warm-up.

Back Squat

  • 10×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 3×225#
  • 3×265#
  • 3×295#
  • 3×320#
  • 3×340#
  • 3×345# (PR match)

My first rep with 340 was ugly from not concentrating and it through off the entire set. Made me scared then. I was going to hit the same weight again, but added 5# at the last minute and glad I did. Felt better with more focus. Really wanted to hit 350 or 355 but today wasn’t that day. Felt good to be back under a heavy barbell!

Accessory

5 Super Sets

  • 12 Incline DB Bench Press (60° – 40# DBs each set)
  • 12 JM Press (45-55-60-65-70#)

Since there weren’t heavier dumbbells to increase to and I didn’t want to use kettlebells, I tried to be explosive on my incline reps. The JM presses actually felt pretty good today, even being second with that fatigue. Must be working. My bench sets sure seem to agree.

Snatch

  • 2x20kg
  • 2x40kg
  • 2x60kg
  • 2x70kg
  • 2x75kg
  • 2x80kg

Other than a rep with 60 being forward that I had to pull in, the lifts felt solid today. Don’t think I’ve done a double with that much before.

Conditioning

  • Partner A: Run 200m
  • Partner B: Work on 20 rounds of
    • 5 Burpees
    • 10 American KBS (53#)
    • 15 Air Squats

Paired up with Bryan and everyone did the work outside in the sun. We basically just did a round per run and paced it out that way. So essentially we each did 10 rounds. Finished in 21:50.

Played some half-court basketball and shot around for about 90 minutes.

Run Every Day

Didn’t feel like it at all, but laced up the shoes and ran a mile before the Belmont came on.

7 Weeks of Squats

Had everyone warm-up with 100 walking lunges today since it’s been so beneficial for me.

Squat Every Day

2 Front Squats + 5 Back Squats

  • 45#
  • 135#
  • 205#
  • 245#
  • 275#
  • 295#
  • 315# (PR)

That ends 7 complete weeks of squatting every day. 49 days! Planned to go 310# for 5# over last week but bumped to 315# and I don’t think it was a great idea. Tweaked my SI joint on the very last rep. Fuck! Made it all the way through 7 weeks with the back feeling great and on the last rep gets me. Hopefully won’t be anything serious. Chiro Dan was just to roll it out a bunch and get some movement in there. The 315# is 20# more than I had done for this complex when I started this “program” or whatever you want to call it, since I was making things up as I went. 315# used to be my max front squat too.

Squatting every day sure was interesting and I think it paid off for me big time. Lifting more than 300,000 pounds over the 7 weeks. These last two weeks were fucking heavy with PRs on 14 of the last 15 days and a Murph PR on that other day. More than ready for a deload!

Gymnastics

I was planning to do some muscle-ups but not with the way my back was feeling. I did 4 sets of 5 strict ring dips every 30 seconds. Then thought that was dumb with 100 push-ups coming up. So I did a 1:30 plank, rested 30 seconds, and did a 1 minute plank.

Conditioning

  • 1,000m Run
  • 100 Push-ups
  • 10 Snatches (135#)

Went hard on the running, finishing at 3:38. Caught my breath a little and then starting doing sets of 5 push-ups at a time. Somewhere around 60-70 I had to cut back to 3s and 4s. Did all singles on the snatches but was pretty quick to get back on the bar. Finished in 9:29.

Almost Done

In to the gym at 9am for a squat session. Warmed up with 100 walking lunges.

Back Squat

  • 10×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 4×225#
  • 4×265#
  • 4×290#
  • 4×310#
  • 4×325#
  • 4×340# (PR)

Reps felt really good even though my legs are feeling trashed. Last set was a grind, but solid. I’m thrilled with the improvements I’m seeing in my squat positions. Didn’t have any forward lean at all when it got heavy. Ankles, knees, and leg muscles really starting to feel all of the volume though. One more day!

Didn’t have time to get in my bench accessory work so took the rest before class started.

Weightlifting

Worked on snatch stuff with complexes. Combination of 3 position pause snatch deadlifts, snatch pulls, power snatches, and an OHS here and there. Weights were 45-75-95-115-125-147#.

Conditioning

  • 21-15-9
    • Deadlifts (225#)
    • Push Press (95#)
  • 75 Wall Balls (20#, 10′)

It was “Diane” but I just got stitches out of my head on Thursday so bouncing on my head isn’t a good idea yet. The push presses were a good substitute and that weight allowed me to go unbroken with some hurt. A heavier weight would have been more comparable to HSPU, but that’s ok. I did the deadlifts unbroken too. Finished the 9s in 4:10. Going into the wall balls was a bit of a surprise with dead arms. I did 3 reps and dropped the ball to rest. Got to 10, then lets of 10 until finishing with 13-12. Total time was 9:49, which is pretty damn slow for wall balls.

Three and a Half

Squat day 47. Still can’t believe it’s come this far. Out in the garage by 7:30 since it’s a golf day. Warmed up with 4:00 Air Dyne (1.91 km).

Coffee Squats

Back Squat

  • 10×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 5×225#
  • 3×265#
  • 2×295#
  • 2×320#
  • 2×340#
  • 2×350# (PR)

Legs feel even more beat up today. I could really feel it, especially in my knees during the set with the empty bar. I put on the belt starting with 295#. I should have went for 355# at the end like I had planned, but 340# didn’t feel awesome. Still a PR double though and the most I’ve had on my back in a year. Two more squat days and then these legs can rest! 🙂

Golf this morning and nothing else tonight. Rest!

Fifteen From Three Hundo

Legs, knees, and hips all are starting to feel beat up. I think I was already stalling last night by going to bed later so I wouldn’t want to wake up. Finally out to the garage after 8am. Warmed up with 5:00 Air Dyne (2.36 km).

Coffee Super Squats

Back Squat

  • 20×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 5×205#
  • 5×255#
  • 20×285# (PR)

Fuck my life! That was horrible. Hard to believe just two weeks ago 260# felt “easy” as far as a set of Super Squats can go. Think “Murph” on Monday and a week and a half of squat PRs is taking its toll? It started to get really hard after rep 7, not even half way through. This is the only time I’ve seriously thought about stopping during a set. It crossed my mind before but as a joke. Today I was considering it, thinking I might fail. Made it though. Bar was on my back for a total 2:12. Splits every 5 reps (including step out and in times) were 0:23, 0:28, 0:40, and 0:41.

After laying on the ground for a solid three minutes I put away the weights and figured it would be a good idea for a cool down. Jumped on the Air Dyne for 5:00 (2.04 km).

Went to the 4:30 class. Warm-up was various stuff with a training bar.

Deadlift

  • 5×45#
  • 4×135#
  • 5×225#
  • 5×295#
  • 2x5x325#

Keeping it light and easy. My back is under enough stress lately. Don’t need to fuck it up with deadlifts now.

Conditioning

4 Rounds

  • 20 American KBS (53#)
  • 15 Burpees
  • 400m Run

All unbroken. Was outside so runs were a little short and didn’t have the clock for an exact time. Took about 14:30.

Midline

2 Rounds

  • 30s Plank
  • 30s Side Plank (L)
  • 30s Side Plank (R)
  • 30s Plank
  • 30s Side Plank (L)
  • 30s Side Plank (R)
  • 30s Rest

Was tabata rounds, but I didn’t use the 10 second rest periods. I guess I screwed up, setting the clock for only 6 rounds, so we started up another one after a short break.

PR Triple

Slept well and feel good. Out to the garage around 8:30. Warmed up with 5:00 Air Dyne (2.32 km).

Coffee Squats

Back Squats

  • 10×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 3×225#
  • 3×265#
  • 3×295#
  • 3×315#
  • 3×335#
  • 3×345# (PR)

Was definitely time to start lifting inside the squat cage to be safer since I’m alone at home. I feel like the confined space also forces you to concentrate more so that you don’t bang into the rack. I did 3×340# back in January when I was getting back into squatting frequently, but then shortly after took the 2 month break for my quad. Oh, by the way, I haven’t really noticed the quad much lately, so I think all of the squatting and lunging has helped it heal. Probably had some muscle imbalances.

I haven’t had 345# on my back since setting the 360# PR last June, so really happy with this. Was definitely heavy, but looks pretty good in the video. 45 days in, 4 to go.

Lunge University

Strapped on the vest, fired up the latest Barbell Shrugged episode on adding mass to the ass, and headed down the street. Fuck doing laps inside the closed garage. I went out down the road 130 steps and then had 120 back. It was much more “enjoyable” that way. Took me 13:09. Fifty more steps than I’ve done with the 40# and maybe even 20# too.

At the gym at 6:30 for bench and weightlifting night. Warmed up with Crossover Symmetry Activation and a 500m row.

No B.S. Bench Press

  • 10×45#
  • 4×135#
  • 4×175#
  • 4×205#
  • 4x4x225#

Weight felt light in the warm-up sets. I actually paused for a split second on my chest with 135# and 175#. No danger of missing any of the work sets.

Tall Snatch

  • 5×45#
  • 5×65#
  • 3×95#
  • 3×105#
  • 3×115#
  • 3×125#
  • 3×135#

Felt pretty good. Tried to get good lockouts when it was getting heavy on the last two sets. I somehow did 145# for a triple back in December. Maybe could have done the same today, but didn’t want to push it since I was starting to feel these in my low back.

Push Press

  • 5×95#
  • 5×135#
  • 3×165#
  • 3×185#
  • 2×205#
  • 2×215#
  • 2×225# (PR)

Would have liked to go one more 10# jump, but my low back was feeling tight from the snatches after squatting heavy this morning. I knew I’d start to overextend with any more on the bar.

Reverse Hyper

  • 2x20x210#

Huge back pump with that big of sets! I haven’t been doing these at all lately. Haven’t been stretching either. :-/ My back hasn’t had any issues, but I do think it’s looking forward to the end of Squat Every Day.

Did a round of Crossover Symmetry Iron Scap before leaving.