Brian's strength log

[Brian Stone]

Mon Nov 2: Week 6

I had v. little energy all day. I think it's a combination of too little sleep, daylight savings weirdness, and too much random BS GTG work over the weekend w/ chins and whatnot. Plus my last "heavy" day was Saturday, not Friday.

As mentioned previously, I think the volume of this program is starting to catch up with me. I think my calories are where they need to be, as well as macros and supplements, so the nutrition side of the house should be good. I've gained v. little but body comp has improved and I've continued to get stronger.

I may end up taking Wednesday off and use the 4 days for a fuller recovery. We'll see how I feel Wednesday. Not a full workout today, but got what I could.

BP: 45#x5, 95x5, 135x3, 165x2, 190x5,5,4
Using the PL form again, or my approximation of it. It's definitely sloppy at the moment.

BS: My knees were bothering me today, so I decided to see how I felt with these. Ultimately, my sluggishness was causing form issues, so I went w/ lesser weight.
45#x5, 135x5, 185x3, 205x2, 185x10

DB Rows (R/L): 55#x5, 75x5, 95x3, 100x2, 120x8 (R/L)

[Brian Stone]

Eating and sleeping like a professional for the last 3 days. Feeling great to get back into the gym 1 day sooner than anticipated. +cals and -activity FTW

[Brian Stone]

Thu Nov 5
Weight: 227 - My eating w/ purpose is finally paying off.

Felt great whole workout.

Press: 45#x5, 75x5, 95x5, 115x5, 135x5,5,5

BS: 45x5, 135x5, 185x5, 205x5, 215x5,5, 220x5

DL: 135x5, 185x5, 225x3, 255x2, 285x5
Had some curvature of the cervical spine on the last few - damn it. I didn't focus enough when setting them up.

Assorted pullups and chin-ups with varying grips.

[Brian Stone]

Fri Nov 6
Getting some tenderness just below the knees on both legs, mostly caused by squatting I think but made worse if I jump off my toes. I can really feel it if I squat down on my toes.

Walked several miles today.

Evening: Ice on left knee.

[Brian Stone]

Sat Nov 7
BP: 45#x5, 95x5, 135x3, 165x2, 190x5,5,6

Squat: 45x5, 135x5, 185x3, 205x2, 225x4,3,2
Will have to drop back to 220 next time.

PC: 45x5, 95x5, 115x3, 135x2, 155x2,3, 150x3.
I'm all over the place on this exercise. I'm going to have to incorporate some skill work into one of my days to get this movement right. I thought I was good with this last time, but I realized I was using a thicker than normal barbell, which I think contributed to my lack of coordination on this.
Just worked some hang power clean to shrug movement w/ 135 at the end.

Hammer PU: 6,5

A bit of shoulder mobility work. Getting sore lately. Need to find prehab/rehab stuff that targets what's bugging me.

[Brian Stone]

Mon Nov 9
Weight: 229

Press: 45#x5, 75x5, 95x3, 120x2, 140x4,4,3
I actually wish there were 1.25# weights at my gym, but there aren't. Seriously considering getting some, as I think they are better for linear improvements and sustained progress.

Squat: 45x5, 135x5, 185x3, 205x2, 220x5,5,6

DB Rows (R/L): 55x5, 75x5, 95x3, 110x2, 120x8,8, 130x4


Used knee wraps while squatting. Felt much better during the squat but still have persistent knee pain following, which has been a recurring theme. Ice a few times each day. Pain below both knees, specifically with both collateral ligaments, I suspect. Easing off squatting and icing daily until they feel significantly better on a workout day, but I think the SS volume of squatting might be a bit much for me.


Wed Nov 11

BP: 45x5, 95x5, 145x4, 175x2, 195x5,5,5
New pressing style starting to feel much better.

DL: 135x5, 185x5, 225x3, 265x2, 295x5
Backoff: 225x5

Chins: 7, 4


Double PR day today. Still showing linear gains; will stick w/ SS until things start to taper off. Original plan was 12 weeks. I hope that lasts.

[Brian Stone]

Thu Nov 12

Yoga class. Whopped my ass. Also a bunch of running around and playing with the nieces and nephews.

[Brian Stone]

Mon Nov 16
Got very little sleep last night in combination with horrendous eating the last few days and my energy level was shot. Went to the gym to do what I could but couldn't get much going.

Press: 45#x5, 75x5, 95x3, 120x2, 140x5,3,1
Terrible.

Did a few miles on the treadmill with a large incline, ate clean and sparingly to clean out my system, and did a bunch of pull-ups. Will probably do some more of the same tomorrow and then back for a normal day on Wed.

I'm also getting a bit fatter than I'd like so scaling back my eating somewhat for a bit, depending on effects on weight, energy, and progress. Will tweak as needed.

[Brian Stone]

Been sick and resting all week. Hoping to get back to it today, or at latest tomorrow morning. I plan to do the same worksets as 11/11/09, to hopefully more or less pick up where I left off.

[Brian Stone]

Sat Nov 21
BW: 230
Decided to mostly repeat workout from 11/11, squats from 11/9

BP: 45#x5, 95x5, 135x4, 175x2, 195x5,5,5

BS: Knees felt good enough to give another go at squatting.
45x5, 135x5, 185x3, 205x2, 220x3, 215x3,4
Backoff: 165x6
I'm having issues getting consistency in my form again. These were all over the place, and my issues w/ heavier weight were not muscular but were w/ form. Leaning forward on a lot of my heavier squats, which is what I think is exacerbating my knee issues. Tried to pull back but still can't get something consistent going. Will have to figure out a way to get coaching on these, particularly if they are aggravating my knees. Been using knee wraps, and my knees felt pretty ok after these sets.

DL: 135x5, 185x5, 225x3, 265x2, 300x5
Backoff: 245x5
I could have gone heavier. Noticed after this set that the inside of my knees, particularly right side, were sore. Not good. Can't say what this is, but I think my form is generally solid. Last rep of my workset I wasn't tight to my shins, which I think may have contributed, however.

Chins: 6, 7

Overall pretty good, but squats continue to plague me. V. frustrating