MONDAY- DEADLIFT DAY
Monday I met with my trainer for deadlift day. We did deficit speed pulls but without bands this time. After that we did pause deadlifts, which I had never done before. The way we did it, it's basically a deadlift, but instead of lowering all the way down to the ground, you stop a couple inches below the knee and pause for a second before pulling back up. Almost like an RDL but with a little more knee bend. It was hard! Hoping to work on my sticking point strength. We also did band hip thrusts for the first time, which I really LOVED! Great booty burn, especially after the single leg reverse hypers! Too bad they are a pain to set up and I don't have access to bands at the gym where I train. :( I struggled through the stupid hanging knee raises again, this time using the straps, which I think actually made it harder!
1)Deficit speed deadlifts: 145x7x1
2)Pause deadlifts: 175x3x5
3)Single leg reverse hyper: 70x3x12
4)Band hip thrusts: 4x15
5a)Hanging knee raises w/straps: 4x15
5b)Forward/backwards band walks: 3x10 each way
WEDNESDAY -BENCH DAY
Because of the mock meet Sunday, my trainer suggested that I do like 90% of what I would normally do for the prescribed reps on my workouts this week. So as much as I hated it, I didn't push the weights and went a little lighter than what I could actually do and did the same with squats on Friday. For bench press, I did a slight pause at the bottom, just to practice for the meet Saturday. It definitely makes it harder, so it should be interesting to see how I do on those at the meet. The rolling dumbbell extensions are an exercise I had never done before this program, but I really like them! They are a great tricep exercise to help on the bench lockout. I was also super excited to do 1 arm rows today, one of my favorite back exercises! And don't underestimate those band pullaparts. If done correctly, they are super challenging and a terrific exercise for the shoulders. I love them. Finished up with some Farmer's walks and Lsits.
1)Bench press: 115x3x2 (w/pause)
2)Rolling db extension(on the floor):20x8/22.5x2x8
3)DB 1 arm rows: 50x8/55x8/60x8
4)Single arm lat pulldown: 3x12
5)Band pull-aparts: 3x20
Finisher:
Off set farmer's walks(60/70lb kbs x30seconds)
+L-sit holds(x12 seconds)
4 sets each
FRIDAY- SQUAT DAY
This workout was a little different from the last month, which I enjoyed. I went a tad lighter on box squats today than the previous weeks, and it was only 3 sets of 2 but with an added pause. Then I did box jumps, which was a little weird since I normally do them before squats. Next was walking lunges for just 2 sets of 5, which was probably a good thing so that I wouldn't be super sore for squatting again 2 days later! I was advised to take Saturday off from training, so I did my sled drags/pushes after this workout. Still keeping the prowler pushes much lighter than normal, but it's still enough to get a major quad burn!
1)Pause box squat: 165x3x2
2)Box jump: 5x3 @30"
3)Walking lunge: 35x2x5
4)GHR: 10lbsx3x8
5a)Ab wheel: 3x10(negatives)
5b)Seated abductions: 3x20
Finisher:
Sled push down and back high&low handles x5
Reverse sled drags down &back x5
SATURDAY -OFF
SUNDAY-MOCK MEET
Results:
Squat-205
Bench-135
Deadlift-250
The meet was good, and all the girls were super nice and encouraging. It was just very humbling to be the smallest and one of the weakest-and that's only out of like 8 girls, so I can't imagine what the real meet will be like. I'll definitely be the little weakling! But everyone made an effort to talk to me and ask questions, so that was nice.
So we started with squats, and they felt good-hit 205 pretty easy for my second attempt, so my coach had me jump to 225, which is my all time PR. Haven't hit that in a couple of years though, and I ended up failing it. :( It was disappointing, because I feel that I could've gotten it! But that will be my goal now, to get that 225! He did say my depth was like 3 inches lower than it has to be, so maybe if I don't go so low, I can get it for sure. I guess that's a good problem to have!
Next was bench. This was my first time doing bench with the press command and with a wider grip. I got 135 pretty easy, which I was happy about because I wasn't sure how much the pause would limit my weight. Then I failed my next attempt at 145, but I was okay with that. I have to work a little more on my upper back tightness and keeping my chest up more...and keep my butt down! but he said I should be able to get 150.
Deadlifts went good-got 205 and 225 easily...and then he told me we were going for 250 for my last attempt. I was NOT expecting that! But...I got it!!! It was an ugly grinder, but I don't even care because that has been my goal for years now! I definitely didn't expect to get that, so it was a good way to end the day, especially because I was disappointed with squats. I did hitch a little, so I don't know if it would've counted at a real meet, but oh well!!
Did I have fun? Well, don't think fun is the right word...just because of my nerves and being around new people and failing a lift I feel I should've had-that never makes me happy. I"m not someone to say, "Oh, I did my best, and that's all I can do." No-I don't like to mess up, I don't like to miss lifts! I also don't like the feeling of being the "newbie" and not being the best at something! But it's only going to make me want to work harder. If you only stick to what you're good at, what you know you CAN do, you'll never grow!
Overall, it was a good experience getting to meet everyone and practice the commands, so that now I'll somewhat know what to expect going into the real thing. And now I have some goals to hit for the meet!
Monday I met with my trainer for deadlift day. We did deficit speed pulls but without bands this time. After that we did pause deadlifts, which I had never done before. The way we did it, it's basically a deadlift, but instead of lowering all the way down to the ground, you stop a couple inches below the knee and pause for a second before pulling back up. Almost like an RDL but with a little more knee bend. It was hard! Hoping to work on my sticking point strength. We also did band hip thrusts for the first time, which I really LOVED! Great booty burn, especially after the single leg reverse hypers! Too bad they are a pain to set up and I don't have access to bands at the gym where I train. :( I struggled through the stupid hanging knee raises again, this time using the straps, which I think actually made it harder!
1)Deficit speed deadlifts: 145x7x1
2)Pause deadlifts: 175x3x5
3)Single leg reverse hyper: 70x3x12
4)Band hip thrusts: 4x15
5a)Hanging knee raises w/straps: 4x15
5b)Forward/backwards band walks: 3x10 each way
WEDNESDAY -BENCH DAY
Because of the mock meet Sunday, my trainer suggested that I do like 90% of what I would normally do for the prescribed reps on my workouts this week. So as much as I hated it, I didn't push the weights and went a little lighter than what I could actually do and did the same with squats on Friday. For bench press, I did a slight pause at the bottom, just to practice for the meet Saturday. It definitely makes it harder, so it should be interesting to see how I do on those at the meet. The rolling dumbbell extensions are an exercise I had never done before this program, but I really like them! They are a great tricep exercise to help on the bench lockout. I was also super excited to do 1 arm rows today, one of my favorite back exercises! And don't underestimate those band pullaparts. If done correctly, they are super challenging and a terrific exercise for the shoulders. I love them. Finished up with some Farmer's walks and Lsits.
1)Bench press: 115x3x2 (w/pause)
2)Rolling db extension(on the floor):20x8/22.5x2x8
3)DB 1 arm rows: 50x8/55x8/60x8
4)Single arm lat pulldown: 3x12
5)Band pull-aparts: 3x20
Finisher:
Off set farmer's walks(60/70lb kbs x30seconds)
+L-sit holds(x12 seconds)
4 sets each
FRIDAY- SQUAT DAY
This workout was a little different from the last month, which I enjoyed. I went a tad lighter on box squats today than the previous weeks, and it was only 3 sets of 2 but with an added pause. Then I did box jumps, which was a little weird since I normally do them before squats. Next was walking lunges for just 2 sets of 5, which was probably a good thing so that I wouldn't be super sore for squatting again 2 days later! I was advised to take Saturday off from training, so I did my sled drags/pushes after this workout. Still keeping the prowler pushes much lighter than normal, but it's still enough to get a major quad burn!
1)Pause box squat: 165x3x2
2)Box jump: 5x3 @30"
3)Walking lunge: 35x2x5
4)GHR: 10lbsx3x8
5a)Ab wheel: 3x10(negatives)
5b)Seated abductions: 3x20
Finisher:
Sled push down and back high&low handles x5
Reverse sled drags down &back x5
SATURDAY -OFF
SUNDAY-MOCK MEET
 |
| Not cute. Not cute at all. |
Squat-205
Bench-135
Deadlift-250
The meet was good, and all the girls were super nice and encouraging. It was just very humbling to be the smallest and one of the weakest-and that's only out of like 8 girls, so I can't imagine what the real meet will be like. I'll definitely be the little weakling! But everyone made an effort to talk to me and ask questions, so that was nice.
So we started with squats, and they felt good-hit 205 pretty easy for my second attempt, so my coach had me jump to 225, which is my all time PR. Haven't hit that in a couple of years though, and I ended up failing it. :( It was disappointing, because I feel that I could've gotten it! But that will be my goal now, to get that 225! He did say my depth was like 3 inches lower than it has to be, so maybe if I don't go so low, I can get it for sure. I guess that's a good problem to have!
Next was bench. This was my first time doing bench with the press command and with a wider grip. I got 135 pretty easy, which I was happy about because I wasn't sure how much the pause would limit my weight. Then I failed my next attempt at 145, but I was okay with that. I have to work a little more on my upper back tightness and keeping my chest up more...and keep my butt down! but he said I should be able to get 150.
Deadlifts went good-got 205 and 225 easily...and then he told me we were going for 250 for my last attempt. I was NOT expecting that! But...I got it!!! It was an ugly grinder, but I don't even care because that has been my goal for years now! I definitely didn't expect to get that, so it was a good way to end the day, especially because I was disappointed with squats. I did hitch a little, so I don't know if it would've counted at a real meet, but oh well!!
Did I have fun? Well, don't think fun is the right word...just because of my nerves and being around new people and failing a lift I feel I should've had-that never makes me happy. I"m not someone to say, "Oh, I did my best, and that's all I can do." No-I don't like to mess up, I don't like to miss lifts! I also don't like the feeling of being the "newbie" and not being the best at something! But it's only going to make me want to work harder. If you only stick to what you're good at, what you know you CAN do, you'll never grow!
Overall, it was a good experience getting to meet everyone and practice the commands, so that now I'll somewhat know what to expect going into the real thing. And now I have some goals to hit for the meet!
Look at you getting a 250lb deadlift after all that talk about your plateauing strength! I think you look very cute in your suit :)
ReplyDeleteThanks! It was ugly and I hitched a little, but I'm hoping I can get it come meet day. I was pretty happy about it, but of course, I focus on all that I did wrong and the lifts I missed!
DeleteWAY TO GO! Wow...I love seeing people put themselves out there and get uncomfortable - I need to do things like that more often too. Sounds like it was as great a first experience as it could be - nice work!
ReplyDeleteThanks! It was a good experience. The more I think about it, the better I feel about it, actually. Things can only go up from here! Of course, the first time trying something new is going to be a little uncomfortable, but it's good to do things that scare you for sure! Hopefully this will apply to other areas of my life as well!
DeleteReally a great article! I truly got inspired to lose weight by doing regular exercise. I will definitely join a good gym or a yoga class for that and will prefer Green supplements for instant energy and healthy weight loss.
ReplyDelete