Disciple Barbell

Follow Jesus Lift Heavy

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I’m BACK!

After an extended break (kids born, house bought, sales territory expanded), I’m back in the gym. Finally got my garage set up in a way that I can use, it’s been a lot of fun. 

A friend and I have been meeting 3x per week to train in the mornings. We’re both mid thirties, kids, and demanding jobs, so neither of us are planning on competing in the Arnold any time soon. We just love to lift and enjoy the benefits of feeling better, looking better, and having an outlet for stress. 

After lifting, we’ve been working our way through random conditioning workouts. I hate cardio and will do just about anything to make it interesting. To that end, I got a sandbag trainer from Fringe Sport and, believe it or not, I really enjoy it! 

This complex that I put together gives me a real love/hate feeling. Maybe it’ll do the same for you. 

60# Sandbag

3 rounds / 5 reps - for time

Burpee

Clean

OHP

Front Squat

If you’re not familiar with complexes, the idea is to do all of these movements in a row without ever letting go of the sandbag. It doesn’t look like a lot, but this will have your heart pounding and lungs bursting in no time. 

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Big Three - 8/15/2015

Went with some friends yesterday to check out a new (to me) gym in the area. It turned out to be a really good time with some decent results. I'm still waiting on delivery for my belt from Beast Genetics, but I've been needing to continue beltless work anyway. Squat: Worked up to 295 beltless. Matches beltless PR. Missed it once and punched the rack -- not smart! Bench: Worked up to 195 and it went up no problem. Jumped to 205 and I have a serious mental block. I've got to work on getting my head in the game and knowing I can press that weight. Deadlift: Worked up to a beltless 335. Nowhere near a beltless PR. Did most of the session sumo but switched to conventional after 315 because I'm most comfortable. Finished the day with a DL 225 AMRAP. Hit 27 and felt good. Might have been able to eek out a couple more but my form would have deteriorated quick. Overall, good day with good friends.

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Form check. Very light weight because of hurting my back a little. Taking it easy on my lumbar for a bit.

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Trying 1 1/4 Squats

Tried something new today. If you've never tried 1 1/4 squats, you may want to. Basically, you get in the hole, come up 1/4 of the way, back into the hole, then up. It's not an easy move and feels pretty unnatural. But it'll tax your quads and back pretty good. Not sure if I'll incorporate them regularly. Added a pause on each trip to the hole for a little added back load. Felt good, but unsure of the real benefit. We'll see. Finished with some OHP @ 115 (5x5) and deadlift up to 245x5 and 315x3. Overall a good day. I'm in a caloric deficit so it's feeling heavier than it should. But the form is coming along nicely and the lift is feeling cleaner. My hip hinge is getting better with my back getting stronger throughout the movement. Lats thickening up and getting wider. Love that.

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Good stuff. Know your why. Connect to the people and resources around you. You make your own lunch.

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Trying out a new tracking app. Stronglifts 5x5. I’ve heard good things. This was a pretty decent go today. I went pretty conservative with my weight. Felt incredibly weak in my squat, which I really don’t like. But I guess the only bad workout is the one that didn’t happen.

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Out of town visiting the in-laws for the 4th. In the past, I’ve always gone to one of the chain gyms in town, but this time I wanted to do something different. Tracked down this powerlifting/strongman facility and loved it.

Texas Power, Squat and Deadlift bars, with PowerMax (local fabricator of equipment) racks and a ton of strongman equipment: farmers walk bars, yokes, atlas stones, etc. Great time.

It’s a $10 one day visitor pass and definitely worth the drive.

If you’re in the Champaign area, check out Silverback Barbell Club.

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Squat - 6/25/15

Brought my stance in a little today and felt so much better. I'm learning it's the little things that make or break a lift. #lifelesson Still working on thoracic spine flexibility, though it's getting better. Sitting in the hole for a bit with my back tight is more feasible now. I looked in the mirror today and I think my legs are too small. Trying to figure out if it's reality or perception. My wife says I'm fine. Which means it's probably reality. Project wheels is underway.

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Sunday Funday

Quick deadlift session this Father's Day. Pretty much running on empty after a VERY busy week at work (and life), but figured I'd see where I could take it. I've been avoiding the lifting belt lately- I'd rather get my unassisted lifts up a little higher before I start with the help- and it felt pretty good. Lifted from the floor today. I've been doing blocks/raised/whatever to work on my thoracic spine flexibility. Making some good progress there, but it could be better. Ultimately, I worked my way up to a belt-less 385 deadlift that I felt pretty good about. Then did some speed/conditioning work on the way down. Ended with some bent over rows, then threw some pause squats in because I was feeling good. Wasn't feeling all that strong walking in. So I guess it's true: feelings lie. I feel much better walking out.

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Last Friday- got to do some work on the log. Only 13 reps in the video- came down weird on the last one and set it down- but finished my last two later.

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Visited a new gym today while out of town on business. Pretty good setup, nice equipment and staff. Definitely better equipped than my local gym. I might have to come back sometime. Bench Day: 45x10x2 95x10x2 135x5x3 155x5x2 165x5x1 175x5x1 175x3x2 165x5x1 155x5x1 135x5x3 Did some incline press to end the day. Felt good. Getting my form cleaned up is really helping my shoulder problems I had developed. Thankful for some good coaching. Still need to work on my arch and keeping my upper back tight.

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SKWAAAAAT! - 6/8/15

Today was all about technique and speed. Working with a coach is taking me back to square 1 and making me rework the mechanics of my lifting. I'm trusting it will help me in the long run. 45x10x2 95x5x3 135x5 185x5 225x5 245x5 275x1 245x3 225x3x2 (1 s pause) 185x3x2 (1 s pause) 135x5x3 (1, 1, 3 s pause)

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Bench Deload - 6/3/15

Spent some time on my weakest lift (bench press) yesterday. I had mixed results. 

First off, it was better than my bench pressing in the past. I really believe I had a little improvement with only one training session showing me what a bench press is supposed to feel like. It probably took me longer than necessary, but I finally found that groove and knocked out some decent presses. 

On the other hand, the benches at my gym are a bit annoying. I never knew there was a difference from one bench to another, but there is. At the gym, the bench is low, narrow and slick. It’s very difficult (not impossible, but difficult) to get a good arch in your back when you can’t get any grip to push against! Overall, it was a good day. Apart from the guy who blocked me from doing squats. But he’s another story for another day. It’s too soon. 

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Squat deload - 6/1/15

My program called for a pretty significant deload this week. It was so much that I didn't really even keep track of every set. I know that I worked up to 245x5 but other than that, it was just getting light weight to depth. I'm also pretty sure I wasn't supposed to get as heavy as I did, but it felt too weird to keep everything so light.

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Day 1 with Jeremy Hartman coaching. Basically it was an assessment and work on technique.

Squat- decent form and flexibility. Remember to keep hips under me on unrack and walk out. Lead with hips, keep upper back tight.

Bench- my worst lift. Got much better today using blocks to train back arch. I was able to arch over 2 blocks, bend the bar and keep upper back tight/shoulders under me. Finished with good set.

Deadlift- setup is difficult. Currently need to work on tightening upper back, firing lats and bringing chest up. I tend to drop my hips to raise my chest. Need to stop that. You can see the hip movement and back rounding in the video above.

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Deadlift Singles - 5/29/15

Today felt pretty good. I was able to get to 355 with no belt, overhand grip and felt pretty strong.

1 set each unless noted

135x5 185x5 225x5 275x3 315x1 325x1 335x1 345x1 355 365 375 385x1x2 315x1x3

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Bench Single - 5/27/15

The bench press is BY FAR my weakest lift. It seems like I can never find the right plane of movement. Always uneven, always unstable. This is my primary focal point right now. 1x15@45 1x15@95 1x10@135 1x5@145 1x5@155 1x3@165 1x3@175 3x1@185 Uneven loaded bar - fail