Gym regimen - April 2011

FRIDAY, 15 April 2011

Even Keel Workout 2

50 mins, 99kg

WARMUP

CIRCUIT

Squat: 10, 8, 6 @ 90kg, 110kg, 120kg

[I felt a bit "woozy" on the penultimate rep or so of set 2 or 3. Good effort. 90kg really felt like a warmup. Next week I'll go for 11, 9, 7 at the same weight. I like deadlifting and squatting twice a week, with sufficient rest between workouts.]

Incline BP: 10, 8, 6 @ 70kg, 75kg, 80kg

[Felt good on these: "resorted" to closed grip on the bar only the last reps of sets 2 and 3. My grip training is having an effect.]

Lever bench row: 10, 8, 6 @ 90kg, 110kg, 120kg

[I could have done more on these, but I wanted to save some juice for my deadlift.]

Tricep pushdown: 10, 8, 6 @ 30kg, 40kg, 45kg

[45kg did not actually feel unwieldy, though 30kg certainly like a "mere" warmup. Progress!]

DL: 10, 8, 5 @ 110kg, 130kg, 150kg

[I tucked my feet in closer to the bar and used a narrower grip than usual (just outside the sides of my feet), as per Rippetoe's tips in this video, and boy did I feel these much more in my hamstrings. I "resorted" to a thumb-lock grip on the last 3 reps of set 3 and that last set took me some time. Dead, from the ground, every rep. Hoorah.]

DB curl: 10, 8, 7 @ 18kg, 18kg, 22kg

[I tried set 1 on the curl-bench but didn't like the rest at the top or the focus on the inner head, so I just went for standing curls, alternating every other rep or so between neutral grip and crossbody hammer curls.]

***

It may sound silly, but after some research while cobbling together this post, I am of a mind to zig when I said I would zag. Meaning: contrary to my original intention to add reps at the same week next week, I think I will drop reps and increase the weight. E.g.:

Squat: 8, 6, 4 @ 100kg, 120kg, 130kg

Incline BP: 8, 6, 4 @ 75kg, 80kg, 85kg

Lever bench row: 10, 8, 6 @ 90kg, 110kg, 120kg

[Well, actually, I like high volume on this! So… as is.]

Tricep pushdown: 10, 8, 6 @ 30kg, 40kg, 45kg

[As is again: volume is good.]

DL: 8, 6, 4 @ 115kg, 135kg, 155kg

DB curl: 8, 6, 4 @ 22kg, 22kg, 26kg

For my Even Keel workout 1, it would be something like the following:

Pullup: 14, 13, 13

[As is.]

Bench press: 8, 6, 4 @ 80kg, 85kg, 90kg

[Really? Well, something like that…]

Snatch DL: 8, 6, 4 @ 100kg, 110kg, 120kg

Military press: 8, 6, 4 @ 45kg, 50kg, 55kg

Spider curl: 12, 9, 6 @ 40kg, 42.5kg, 45kg

[Since I want to maintain good form on these, I will go for greater volume. We'll see… Tweaking…]

Front squat 10, 8, 6 @ 70kg, 80kg, 90kg

[I actually have no idea how to calculate for these. I'll be trying them for the first time next week. I reckon it's a (significant) loss in "weighted power", akin to going from the DL to the snatch DL: at least 1/6th lighter.]

The nice thing is, my current regimen is rooted in the Big Three: benching, squatting and deadlifting twice a week! Hard to go wrong, I'd say. Patience, Humility, Confidence…