[DrEvil] One Thousand Pounds! [/DrEvil]

[andygates]

Decided to double up deadlifts and bench today, for an Epic Session Of Epicness (and 1500 Fitocracy points! ). It's 531's 3 week. Deadlifts to a good grindy-strong 162.5kg x 10 (reps PR: lots of resets, rechalks, puffing and blowing, and that last rep was a leg-shaker that only got up because of the roar). Bench to 77.5kg x6. Then accessories: dumbbell rows, dumbbell bench, good mornings to a maxing 80kg 5x5, finishing with curls 'n' decline situps. Great big long workout, and my whole back feels like a giant mech or a suit of Spartan armour: way too thick out there. Yay silly pumps.

I've bene mithering over whether I was making progress or stalling on 531. I think I was just taking up the change-over slack before getting down to some level grind.

[ETFnerd]

resets, rechalks, puffing and blowing...

I'm a big believer in rituals to get "in the zone" to push past what you can normally do. I love LeBron James blowing the chalk dust in order get psyched up for a game. For me, before starting a long set of pullups, I will take a series of long, deep, loud, obnoxious breaths to get max oxygen in my system. Sometimes you can fool your body into believing it feels better than it actually does. Mostly people think I'm having a panic attack. Great job on the workout Andy.

http-~~-//www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkAz_SP4TCE

Probably gets you tossed out of the gym, spreading chalk all over the place though...

[andygates]

That might get a look.

[andygates]

Okay, after a brief interruption for the plague, 531 "3" week squats. Again double warm-up sets, then 112.5, 127.5 and 142.5kg x3. No big rep-out push here as I'm nursing my lungs and cortisol levels.

Toss in some popcorn lifts to bag new Fitocracy quests.

[andygates]

Stupid cough. Missing a workout here, can't get warmed up without a full smoker hawk.

This is what I get for fire-breathing again.

Don't swallow, kids.

[andygates]

Stupid to the max: the wild coughing overpressures my trunk which (thanks to half a year of religious training) has a Valsalva like you wouldn't believe. The overpressure trips my vagus nerve, which spazzes out and I pass out with a buzzing in my ears. Cough syncope.

Off to the doc to get industrial grade antitussives tomorrow. Obv no lifting til sorted.

[andygates]

Still nada. Stupid cough. I have renamed it cough synchropope, as is required by the Rule of Cool. The Synchropope is keeping me away from getting my breath up, so gentle walks it is.

Am trying to sit on ye olde gym angst, but it's been a while now. Marf.

Still, one thing made me smile: in one of the heats for World's Strongest Man, the young athlete picked up the huge Conan's Wheel weight (200kg in the crook of the elbows!) and immediately passed out. That vagus nerve's a bitch, but I'm in good company.

[ETFnerd]

Don't swallow, kids.

Andygates with wholly inappropriate advice... ;-)

[This is Seth]

At least he used appropriate punctuation, otherwise it would have been awkward.

p.s. Buck up, old chap. Vitamin C up the wazoo. Otherwise I'm gonna rock you in the muscle off.

[scotticus]

This is brilliant - big numbers with a touch of whimsy. Love it.

[andygates]

More whimsy than muscle, over the holidays, but the Cough That Ate Christmas is fading, I've got my #1 bike fixed up, and I'm going to go for a little test ride tomorrow. Might even get back to the gym this week.

[andygates]

Okay, I was able to move a bicycle around without death. Gymside tomorrow for a light barbell session to see if my innards all stay in.

Meanwhile, in the Future, the new year fitness resolution? 70's Big. I will not sweat the waistband, but I will keep enough condition to swim/bike/run. It's all about more strong.

[Hemi]

YESSSSS!!! MORE STRONG! GET IT!

[andygates]

Damn right. I just spent a fortnight watching World's Strongest Man. I wanna lift stones and pull trucks, dammit!

For now though, it's recovery. Today was a deliberately light session in the gym doing a whole-body barbell kinda thing, just my warm-up sets to see what sort of shape I'm in. Up to 100kg x 5 squat, 60kg x 5 bench, 25kg dumbbell row, 40kg OHP, and a mile jog on ye treadmille.

It was GHASTLY. Slow and stiff and weak and with no punch or power at all. But my lungs stayed in my ribcage until the end of the jog and I didn't freaking pass out, so we're looking at a winner. Even that horrid, it's good to be back.

I'm going to programme in the recovery week from my December 531, then re-run December, before pressing on. Still undecided about the Muscle Madness -- sometimes when you feel crap, you perform well.

When are you playing, Hemi?

[Hemi]

ah i think we may be in a similar place. during my travels, i had no access to a gym. when i got back, i reset to a lower weight (guessing, really) which seemed okay, but about a week later i caught a nasty chest cold. the coughing was nonstop (my coworkers were scared) and i had no energy. i tried to lift, but it was useless so i decided that rest was the way. after it was mostly gone, i went back into the gym at the reset weight. i was super happy to be back under the bar, excited actually, and did my squat sets at the reset weight. then i felt a twitch...and a tweak...and voila, it hurts to get out of bed, tie my shoes...i seem to have hurt the things that connect around my sacrum, and my left hamstring. so...ice, rest, very gentle stretching and movement...it's a lot better now, but still there, so lifting lightly.

i tested some heavy singles at squat, dead, and bench early this week. they felt great, although my numbers are disappointing to me considering what i was pushing before my travels. i was slightly sore in the ouchy spots, but not disabled. i too am debating whether to go for it in muscle madness. perhaps i will, but this time around it will just have to be my gimpy numbers, pride be damned. then i'll rest some more until my ass fully heals. *sigh*

what's most worrying to me is that this is what always happens...i travel...i get sick...good habit is broken...progress stalled...i never recover the good habit...fitness goal fail. add an injury, and ya know, i don't really heal as fast as i used to...anyway, i love lifting and this community is really helpful, so i am really hopeful that this time around i can make it happen. i'm really stoked to see you pushing on through the ickiness to get back to amazingness.

with luck i will post my numbers tomorrow, whatever they are.

[andygates]

Nice numbers! You've got the women's squat lead at the moment. Well worth the burnout.

I had a catass day - overslept hugely, did sweet FA - but am psyched for tomorrow morning's attack. I really really want the 200kg deadlift that I should have in the bank. Just set my little heart on it. Like a puppy. Only a big clanky metal puppy.

[Hemi]

thanks, andy! it was fun and a little scary. the fail at 275lbs was my first total fail where i had to leave it on the crash bars. i think i did okay in all the lifts, even though my deadlift was weak. also, does everyone know to post in KGs?

glad to hear ya got that swagger back. see you soon in the midwinter madness thread. use that momentum and get it like a BOSS...errr PUPPY.

[This is Seth]

TIL that Hemi is a chick. I obviously don't mean that in a bad way, as you put up awesome numbers for MMM and that's regardless of sex. Congrats on that. I always saw the hockey avatar and didn't think twice about the pony tail/pink color...

Anywho, I'm guessing you figured out the kg formula, but it's ={your number}/2.2 as the cell entry.

[Hemi]

TIL that Hemi is a chick. I obviously don't mean that in a bad way, as you put up awesome numbers for MMM and that's regardless of sex. Congrats on that. I always saw the hockey avatar and didn't think twice about the pony tail/pink color...

Anywho, I'm guessing you figured out the kg formula, but it's ={your number}/2.2 as the cell entry.

Cheers, Seth!

I can see how you might be confused, especially with all the little pony avatars around these days.

I just cheat and use an online converter for lbs to kgs. i just brought it up because i noticed that some of the numbers on the spreadsheet match what some folks posted in lbs on the thread, i.e. they're not converted. just want to be sure we're comparing apples to apples.

[andygates]

Right, today in a bit more detail. Cough's abated some, but I wasn't sure if this would be a total clusterfail or a surprise glory. Squat warmup felt okay -- a little out of the "groove" but okay -- but 165 still folded me like a can. Again with bench it felt okay until it got to 95% of pb, and then there was just no punch. Aaaand again with deadlift, and no amount of chalk and ammonia and 90s disco made that 190 come off the floor. Glad I did it, and I'm coming to terms with the shame and turmoil, but annoying!

Maybe we'll use lbs next time on the sheet

[andygates]

Deload week (or gentle-restart week): OHP and deadlift at 60% 1RM, plus some accessories. Slept badly and had a heinous trapped nerve that made me abort the end of the accessories. Really must do that damn warmup, but I was on the clock...

[andygates]

BACK ON THE BIKE!

First day was slow and apparently hard - how hard? fish supper and snickers hard! - but gods, it's good to be back. 21 miles, commute, at super-easy pace.

BACK ON THE BIKE! :D

[bigm141414]

BACK ON THE BIKE!

First day was slow and apparently hard - how hard? fish supper and snickers hard! - but gods, it's good to be back. 21 miles, commute, at super-easy pace.

BACK ON THE BIKE! :D

Very jealous. My bike has been put up for months because I can't ride in the dark without getting hit. Stupid Dallas drivers.

[andygates]

Bigger lights.

Of course the bike has sad parts so it's been ... FIXED. Booyah. The original mech is now 10 years and 20,000 miles old and its springs just had no muscle left.

Back to the gym! Deload week got a bit concatenated: Bench to 60kg x 5, Squats to 100 x 5, accessorized with leg press, dumbbell bench, dips, lunges in the car park.

Got to play with a NEW TOY too! I was so tired of the ratty bent-wire barbell collars that I ordered a pair of Lock-Jaws and they're awesome sauce. Not a movement. Not a rattle. Bliss.

[andygates]

531, 5-week, overhead press 50kg x6; accessorized with dips, pullups, decline crunches and dumbbell curls to finish. All my Beautiful Spreadsheets [tm] have a horrible dip over the winter break, so it's time to rip it up.

As for the bike, it's got a newfangled reverse spring, so the controls are reversed. It works perfectly but GAH I keep misshifting!