Tag: Back Squat

Building the Body

Was nice to have a rest day yesterday. I got a massage that made me exhausted the rest of the day. I did manage to get in 5 bottom squats holds of 6:00 for my half hour on the day even though I debated resting from them too. Excited to finish out week 1 of Smolov programming.

Out in the garage just after 10 and started with CS Activation.

Warm-up

3 Rounds

  • 50 DU
  • 1:00 Squat Hold

Back Squats

  • 10×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 5×205#
  • 3×235#
  • 3×265#
  • 10x3x290#

I rested about 2:30 between the 10 sets and it wasn’t really that bad. I was expecting much worse. Did a 5:00 squat hold right after. Up 10# for the next week of Smolov lifts.

Time for some bodybuilding!!

7 Rounds
* Keep moving, no real rest

  • 10 Incline DB Bench Press (20-25-30-35-40-45-50)
  • 8/8 Kroc Rows (3×53# KB, 4×70# KB)

4 Rounds

  • 10 Incline Flyes (15-15-20-25)
  • 10 Band Pulldowns (like pull-up motion, green, kneeling)
  • Rest 1:00

4 Rounds

  • 12 Skull Crushers (45#)
  • 12 Barbell Curls (45#)
  • Rest 1:00

3 Rounds

  • MAX Ring Dips (Strict, then kipping)
  • MAX C2D Push-ups
  • MAX Speed Band Curls (red)
  • 2:00 Squat Hold

I haven’t felt an arm pump like that in ages.

Call an Ambulance

I just killed this workout! Was up later than normal, so slept in a bit. Headed out to the garage around 11 to sweat. Knocked out CS Activation to start. Still not having any aggravation in the shoulder so I’ll keep working it slowly. Getting a massage tomorrow and will have Cora focus a lot of time on it.

Warm-up

  • 300 DU
  • 5:00 Bottom Squat Hold

Set a new record with 3:59 for the double unders.

OLY

Muscle Cleans

  • 3×95#
  • 3×115#
  • 3×135#

Rested about a minute between each set.

Cleans (blocks at knee)

  • 2×135#
  • 2×155#
  • 2×175#
  • 2×195#
  • 2×205#
  • 2x2x215#
  • 2×225#

Took 90 seconds of rest between each set like clockwork. Last time doing these on the blocks I kept hesitating with 225# and I did it for a double without a problem today. Confidence is rising!

Strength

Back Squats

  • 5×225#
  • 3×255#
  • 7x5x270#

Not a lot of warm-up was needed since I’d been squatting every clean. Kept to 2 minute of rest between each set. Those 7 sets were a challenge. This was the 3rd squat session from the Smolov program. I’ll probably finish out week 1 on Saturday, slightly over a week since I started last Friday. Went right into a 5:00 squat hold.

10 Rounds NFT

  • 10 Incline DB Bench Press (20# DBs)
  • 10 GHD Sit-ups

The first set hurt my shoulder holding the dumbbells oriented as if they were a barbell. I rotated them so my palms were facing for the rest of the sets and had no problem. GHD sit-ups are no issue anymore since I’ve been doing at least 100 a week.

4 Rounds

  • 50 Bicep Band Speed Curls
  • 60s Squat hold

I started out with the thin blue, which was death, so I switched to the red band for the last 3. I switched up the type of curl each round. I got the idea from this video.

Finished off with CS Recovery and just in time because it was started to get pretty warm. I had opened the garage door during the squats for some fresh air. Supposed to be 80° today.

Eat Up

Got up and made a nice little breakfast this morning before the gym. Trying something new to try to kick this fat loss back into gear. I always used to eat before the gym but stopped for some reason. I have also been wondering if not eating enough has been affecting my fat loss goal. I’m enjoying the no high intensity work on weekends and it should help the squats do their magic. Rarely am I ever feeling beat up anymore. CS Activation before going to the gym.

Warm-up

  • 3:00 Bottom Squat Hold
  • Leg Swings
  • Shoulder Stretches

Strength

7×2 Back Squats @ 80-96%

  • 10×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 5×225#
  • 3×255#
  • 2×280#
  • 2×285#
  • 2×290#
  • 2×300#
  • 2×305#
  • 2×310#
  • 2×320#

Wasn’t sure how it would go so I played it a little safe. Felt good and was a lot of heavy volume.

Conditioning

20:00 EMOM

  • 20 Russian KBS (71# KB)
  • 20 Box Jumps (24″)

I guess I could have been doing kettlebell swings all around since my arm doesn’t really even get up to shoulder height with the elbow bend. Was taking about 32 seconds for the swings and 37 seconds for the jumps each round.

Accessory

  • 5×10 Seated Shoulder DB Presses on the floor (15# DBs)

Really light, but I’m easing in.

Knocked out 5, 3, and 3 minute squat holds along with some other stretching before heading home.

30 In The Hole

Took a complete rest day yesterday, even from the squat holds. I did do Crossover Symmetry Recovery though since I hadn’t done it on Friday.  Got in some squat holds this morning and then took the sled around the neighborhood.

1.43 miles in 29:13 with 70# on the 25# sled.

Did Crossover Symmetry Activation and then hit up the Survival Fitness Barbell Club in the afternoon for some lifting. Did a 3:00 squat hold and some other stretching.

Snatch Deadlifts

  • Several sets of 3×75#
  • 2x2x105#
  • 2x2x135#
  • 2x2x165#
  • 5x2x195#

In between sets starting at 105# I was doing 30s overhead holds with the 15# training bar. I started off trying to do some snatch grip presses, but they were bothering my shoulder.

Back Squats

  • 10×135#
  • 5×205#
  • 3×235#
  • 5x7x255#

Second pick from Smolov. Wasn’t too bad. Legs felt fresh after the rest day. One more 3 minute squat hold shortly after finishing my sets.

5 Rounds NFT

  • 10 Weighted GHD Sit-ups (holding 15-15-25-25-25 pound plate)
  • 1:00 Bottom Squat Hold

Knocked out the CS Recovery at home and finished off my first 30 minute day of squat holds with a 4:00 one.

Hundreds of ’em, Fifty Two

Have been resting on Fridays, but really wanted to get in another squat session today, so I’ll rest tomorrow or maybe drag the sled.

Warm-up

  • 200 DU
  • 3:00 Bottom Squat Hold
  • 200 DU
  • 3:00 Bottom Squat Hold
  • Crossover Symmetry Activation

I guess I left my RPM rope at Survival Fitness, so had to use my backup, the RX rope. Managed to get 70+ and then 100 unbroken during the first 200. That got me to 1,508 for the final week of my personal Double Under Challenge. In 4 weeks I racked up 5,200+ double unders!

OLY

Muscle Clean

  • 3×95#
  • 3×115#
  • 3×135#

Hip Clean

  • 2x3x135#
  • 3x2x155#
  • 3x2x175#

Trying to work on speed under the bar. Kevin also pointed out that I was banging some instead of driving the bar up so I tried to work on pulling the bar in to me and driving it up off the legs.

Strength

Back Squats

  • 5×155#
  • 5×205#
  • 4x9x245#

I’m going to start pulling some of my extra squat days from a Smolov squat cycle, so that’s where the 4×9 came from. It was supposed to be at 240#, but I didn’t feel like messing with the little plates. Wasn’t as hard as I was expecting.

Good Mornings

  • 5×135#
  • 5×155#
  • 2x5x175#
  • 5×185#

In between some of the good mornings I knocked out 3 sets of 50 band pulls. Finished with another 3:00 squat hold. Ended up with 29 total minutes in the squat hold today, so tomorrow and the rest of the 30 days will be 30 minutes a day.

3 Days of Back Squats

Can feel a deep soreness in my hamstrings, especially easing out of bed over the edge of the mattress.

Warm-up

Various footwork drills.

OLY

Cleans

  • 2×135#
  • 2×165#
  • 2×185#
  • 5x2x205#

Snatch Deadlifts

  • 3x2x205#

Didn’t have a lot of time and didn’t have straps so didn’t stop at the positions like I normally do.

Strength

Back Squats

  • 5×205#
  • 3×245#
  • 4×280#
  • 1×300#
  • 4×280#
  • 1×310#
  • 4×280#
  • 1×325#

Disappointed to have the strength program keep changing all the time. 😦 Was looking forward to seeing progress with the 5×3. This series was fun though. Was my third day in a row of back squats and wasn’t that tough to get through. I bet all of the squat holds are helping a lot.

Conditioning

8:00 AMRAP

  • 10 Burpees
  • 10 Pistols
  • 10 GHD Sit-ups

Finally have a real GHD at Survival Fitness now! Matt brought his in from home. I did completed 4+20.

2014-04-28-ghds

Mobility & Skills

  • 5:00 Bottom Squat Hold
  • 6:00 EMOM of 50 DU
  • 5:00 Bottom Squat Hold

Too many screw ups on dubs, but puts me at 808 for the final week of my Double Under Challenge, so 700 left to go before Saturday.

Head Case

My hamstrings are a little sore from the good mornings. Was up at 5:30 to take Mom and Dad to the airport. Hit up Open Gym in Bay City to lift.

Warm-up

  • 5:00 Bottom Squat Hold
  • 3×50 Band Pulls
  • Stretching

OLY

  • 45# Position Work
  • 4x3x95# Muscle Cleans
  • Cleans w/ blocks at the knee
    • 2x2x135#
    • 2x3x155#
    • 2x2x185#
    • 2x2x205#
    • 2×215#
    • 5x1x225#

I started to hit that mental barrier at 225#. So stupid! I just did a 255# power clean from the hang too weeks ago and I’m afraid of 225#. After a couple of false starts and iffy attempts, I convinced myself to stop being a pussy, pull, and drop under the bar. Last few reps were much better with confidence. I hadn’t done 225# from the blocks before so that was good. I am such a head case though and still think about those near-disaster PR cleans of the past. I need to get comfortable dropping under the bar to squat them and today was a good step back to it.

Back Squats

I didn’t plan on squatting, but Kevin was doing some and it was nothing crazy, so I jumped in with him.

  • 5×205#
  • 5×235#
  • 3x5x262.5#

That 2 hours flew by! Finished up with another 5:00 bottom squat.

Conditioning

Got out the sled when I got home. 140# total after adding 115# of bumpers and I also wore the 20# weight vest. Went 0.51 miles in 13:01.

Did a final squat hold of 3:00 to make 23 minutes on the day since I had done a couple of 5s in the morning.

Gut It Out

Needed that rest day yesterday. I got a massage from Cora and had laser therapy on my shoulder. I also did 4 sets of a 5:00 bottom squat hold throughout the day and some hip/couch stretching at night. Knees feel a little “creaky” this morning.

Out in the garage this morning to attack the plan early.

Warm-up

3:00 Bottom Squat Hold

Back Squats

chest-up

  • 10×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 5×225#
  • 3×245#
  • 3×275#
  • 10:00 EMOM 2×295# (Rapid Fire!)

After I got through the 5th rapid fire set I figured there was no way I was finishing unless I increased the rest. Finished without making adjustments, but it was one hell of a grind. Writing a nice reminder on the board right in front of me helped a lot since I didn’t have anyone there to yell at me.

I went immediately into a 5:00 squat hold. :-/ Felt really good actually.

Good Mornings

E2M 12:00

  • 6×135#

Really focused on driving up be engaging the hamstrings and glutes. Did another squat hold of 3:00.

Double Under Challenge

7 Rounds

  • MAX Unbroken DU (Only count 30+ as a set)
  • 1:30 Rest

I got 60-69-75-69-90-45-71 with only 2 misses. I dad a 24 going for the 2nd set and a 5 going for the 6th set. Was good work on larger sets instead of always hitting that 30-40 range and artificially stopping. Good way to start the final week of 1,000+ double unders with 508! I’m aiming for 1,500+ this week.

Yep, another 2:00 squat hold.

Conditioning

3 Rounds

  • 1:00 Air Dyne (AD2)
  • 2:00 Rest

Short and sweet, but very intense! I got 60, 57, and 56 calories. Finished with one more 2:00 squat hold for a total of 15 minutes. I’ll try for a 6:00 one later to get over 20 and set a single set time record.

Lighter & Stronger

Hips and legs are a little sore. Hips probably from the long sled drag and legs probably from the Landford Couplets. I’m down 10# in the first two weeks of the challenge, with about a month to go. I’m the lightest I’ve been since last June. Weighed in at 192.5# this morning, so the 180s are right around the corner. I’m feeling good too.

Warm-up

5 Round Tabata Mash-up

  • Jingle Jangles
  • Air Squats

Strength

5×5 Back Squats @ 70-80%

  • 10×45#
  • 5×135#
  • 3×205#
  • 5×255#
  • 5×265#
  • 5×275#
  • 5×280#
  • 5×285#

Bumped up past the 80%. 🙂 Grind, but a good grind. Don’t want them to be easy. Glad to see the strength is still there at the lower body weight. That was 35# more (counting each set as just the weight used) for the 5 sets than I used last month. Matt kept reminding me to keep my chest up, which really helped.

Conditioning

25:00 AMRAP

  • 3 Rounds
    • 10 Burpees
    • 30 DU
  • 1:1 Rest

My goal was consistency since 25:00 is a long time. Sure, the built-in rest helps, but there is still a chance of completely blowing out. My round times were 2:59-2:48-3:02-2:55 and then I got 1 round plus 10 burpees and 16 dubs before time ran out. So that was 140 burpees and 406 double unders. Good workout for my DU Quest. Brings me to 706 for week 3. Another strand of the cable broke off on my jump rope, so I guess I’ll just use the replacement cable now. I may have to invest in a coated cable if this keeps happening.

After class, I stayed for some heavy sled drags.

  • 50m with 200#
  • 50m with 245#
  • 50m with 270#
  • 50m with 270#
  • 50m with 270#

It was about 25m down and then back. I didn’t time anything and probably rested a couple of minutes between each effort.

Is Spring Here?

With the forecast calling for highs around 70° Sunday and Monday I think spring may finally be here! My traps are still really sore. My weight was down to 194.3 pounds, which was surprising with all of the fried fish and beer I had yesterday for lunch. I’ve lost all of the vacation weight and more in less than 2 weeks. Onwards to 185-188 now!

2014-04-19-withings-chart

I hit a workout in the garage around 10:30.

Conditioning

5 Rounds

  • 200m Run (20# Weight Vest)
  • 10 GHD Sit-ups (20# Weight Vest)

Damn, running really sucks with that extra weight. When I took off from the garage my body really wanted to heel strike. Kept up a pretty consistent pace and finished in 7:50.

Skill

I rested 5 minutes and then did 300 double unders for time. Took me 4:30, which is 5 seconds slower than the last time. I contacted RPM about the cable issue and they are sending me a replacement. I was able to remove the loose strand and the cable didn’t seem to act any different, so I’ll probably keep the replacement until I need it. Good start to week 3 of 1,000+ DU.

Midline

5:00 E30S

  • Hollow Hold Feet/Hands

Much harder with only that 30 seconds of rest.

Accessory

3×50 Band Pulls (Red)

Trying to get a little scap work in.

Went to Survival Fitness at 1:30 for weightlifting club.

Muscle Cleans

  • 3x3x95#

Cleans

  • 2×125#
  • 2×155#
  • 2×185#
  • 1×195#
  • 1×205#
  • 5x1x215#

Concentrated on getting the bar to the power position, which I completely missed with that hang power clean this week. Took all cleans into the full squat too so I can get comfortable dropping under the weight again. Should have taken a video or two.

Langford Couplet Squats

Do 2 front squats, rack it, and immediately do 5 back squats. I did 205-225-245-265-275. I chickened out and didn’t go for 285 on the last set like I planned. Probably a good thing though because it was rough to finish as it was.

Clean Deadlifts

  • 2x3x285#
  • 3x3x305#

Lost feeling in my left thumb on the final set. That has never happened before.