Sheiko#37- W2 D3- 9/18- Friday

1 Hour 30 Minutes

Energy- +1

1)Bench Press (touch and go)(w/19lbs chains)
(50%)140x6
(60%)170x5
(70%)200x4 x4
(80%)215x3 x3
(85%)245x1 x1
(80%)230x2 x2
(75%)215x3 x3
(65%)185x5
(55%)165x7

2a)DB Tricep Extension
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

2b)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

3)Squat
(50%)215x5
(60%)260x4 x4
(70%)300x3 x3
(80%)325x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

4)Goodmornings
140x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Notes: Pretty easy session today. I was (and still am) running on 3 hours of sleep though. I can't wait to get some solid sleep next week.

I'm glad I dropped the bar weight on the chains. I might try dropping it 5 rather than 10lbs next time.

This week was my busiest in a long while. Sleep was very off starting from a weekend of too much late night partying and continuing because of 7AM clients and evening events that I had to attend which kept me awake longer than I should have been.

Wednesday's session was probably that which made me want to quit in the middle more than any other Sheiko session I've done...and it wasn't even really a hard one.

I shifted training forward a day this week because I'm heading to the Ryan Lee Bootcamp on Friday and Saturday. This threw me off a bit during the week on top of everything else

I've made 2 recent decisions in my training;

1) I'm going to reduce the bar weight on chain benching by 5-10lbs to account for the extra chain weight. I felt incredibly beat up the first day of this training week.

2) During deadlift workouts, if it calls for 2 or 3 sets at a given weight in the workup to my top sets, I will only do 1 if I am feeling fatigued. I simply don't feel comfortable rounding my low back as much as I do during some of these sessions. I'll come back to do those sets after the top ones...pyramid style.

Sheiko#29- W4 D3- Friday- 9/12/08

2 Hours 30 Min

+1

1)Squats
(50%)215x5
(60%)260x4 x4
(70%)300(belt)x3 x3
(80%)345x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Bench Press w/ Chains (19lbs)(touch and go)
(50%)150x6
(60%)180x5
(70%)210x4 x4
(80%)240x3 x3
(85%)255x2 x2
(80%)240x3 x3
(70%)210x4
(60%)180x6
(50%)150x8

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4a)Dips
BWx5 x5 x5 x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

4b)Prone Grip Fat Bar Pullups
BWx6 x6 x6

5a)Good Mornings
140x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

5b)Hanging Leg Raises
Straightx10 Slightly Bentx10 x10

Contrast Shower- 30sx60s x4

Notes: Pretty good session today. Was a bit sleep deprived due to a 7AM client (which is now M,W,F), but the speed on squats on bench press was still pretty good.

It was strange doing touch and go bench after not having done it in probably 9 months, but it was good to be a little bit outside of my comfort zone.

-Matt

Sheiko#29- W4 D2- Wed- 9/10/08

2 Hours 20 Min

Energy- +1

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x3 x3
(85%)255x2 x2 x2

2)Deadlift
(50%)285x3
(60%)340x6
(70%)395(belt)x3 x3
(80%)450x3 x3
(85%)480x2 x2 x2
(80%)450x2 x2 x2

3)Narrow Grip Bench Press
(paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x5
(touch and go)
(70%)210x5 x5 x5 x5

4)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Flat DB Tri Extension
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

Contrast Shower- 20/45s x4

Notes: Deadlifting was pretty tough today. Back was definitely rounding a bit more than what makes me comfortable. I took a video on the last set just to see how bad it was...it was about what I thought.

Benching felt alright. It'll be interesting to see how the 2 board work and chains affect it. I may also play around with doing touch-and-go benching once a week.

Apparently, enough people complained about my deadlifting that the manager came to talk to me. This was at the "bodybuilding" gym that is usually fine. Usually it's not an issue, but it was during prime time in the evening. He said he's actually ordering a dl platform on Oct 1st, so that'll be nice. :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzkd-FM9U6w

Sheiko#29- W3 D2- 9/3/08- Wednesday

2 Hours 25 Minutes

+2

1)Deficit Deadlifts
--- 4" aerobic step---
(50%)285x3 x3
(60%)340x3 x3
(70%)365(belt)x3
---- Ditched step for 45lb plate---
x3 x3 x3

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x2 x2 x2
(85%)255x2 x2
(80%)240x3 x3

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Rack Pulls (weight on aerobic steps- 1" below knees)
(60%)340x4
(70%)395(belt)x4 x4
(80%)450x3 x3
(90%)510x2 x2 x2

5)DB Alt Reverse Lunges
50x5/side x5 x5 x5 x5

Contrast Shower- 25s/60s (cold/hot) x4

Notes: Today was very difficult. I was in a different gym than usual which always stresses me. Last thing I want it to be harassed about chalk or making noise, but everything was fine in this regard.

I started pulling off of an aerobic step for the deficit deadlifts, but it was too high up so I dropped to standing on a plate for the last few steps. Unfortunately, their plates have holes in them so the front third of my foot was in a hole. Tore 2 callouses on these, but luckily no bleeding or pain.

Bench felt faster at lockout and a bit slower off the chest due to the board presses most likely. Elbows were really sore and throbbing, so I decided not to do any tricep work.

Rack pulls were brutal. I did them from an inch below the knee. On the top sets, I would pull for a good 3 seconds before the bar even budged. Second rep is always better but that first just feels like I might as well be trying to pick up 800lbs.

-Matt

9/2/08- Tuesday- GPP

1a)Dual Axis Cable Row
65x10 72.5x10 80x10 85x10

1b)Standing Lateral Raise
35x12 x10 30x15

1c)VMO Ext Rotation
15x12 10x12 x12 x12

2a)Band Pushdown
lightx25 x20 x15

2b)DB Hammer Curl
30x10 x8 x10 x8


Notes: I need to start getting back to the treadmill walking, I've been letting myself off the hook with it a bit too much. I'm trying to walk more outside of the gym to balance it out.

I discovered two great things recently. The I-FAST seminar DVD series with Mike Robertson and Bill Hartman. Great stuff for any of you guys in the fitness and performance field.

And White Chocolate Peanut Butter. Why I bought this shit is beyond me, but after I eat the whole jar in 2 days, I'm never buying it again.

Sheiko#29- W3 D1- Monday- 9/1/08

1 Hour 45 Minutes

Energy- +1

1)Squats
(55%)235x5
(65%)280x4
(75%)325(belt)x3 x3
(85%)365x2 x2 x2 x2

2)2 Board Bench Press (paused)
(50%)160x5
(60%)190x4
(70%)220x3 x3
(80%)250x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Pushups (feet elevated)
BWx10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Squats
(50%)215x3
(60%)260x3
(70%)300(belt)x3
(80%)345x3 x3 x3 x3

6)Good Mornings
140x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Contrast Shower- 20s/45s x3

Notes: My gym was closed today so I had to train at another gym; it made me realize how much I hate squatting with a mirror. I can't help but try to look at my depth and feel that it is inadequate.

Anyway, session wasn't too bad. It's funny that my 85% is only 10lbs behind my 1RM from about 8 months ago...feels gooooood.

Sheiko#29- W2 D2- 8/27/08- Wednesday

2 Hours

Energy- +1

1)Deadlifts to Knees
(50%)285x3
(60%)340x3
(70%)395(belt) x3 x3
(75%)425x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Close Grip Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x6
(60%)180x6 x6
(65%)195x6 x6 x6 x6

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Deadlift from Pins
(50%)285x4
(60%)340x4
(70%)395(belt) x4 x4
(80%)450x4 x4 x4 x4

5)DB Reverse Lunges
55x5/side x5 x5 x5 x5

6)Lying DB Tricep Extension
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10


Notes: The deadlift to knees were extremely slow today with more back rounding than I'm really comfortable with. I think that had I done a few weeks of conditioning to ease myself back into things, then this would not be so extreme. I will probably do this next time around.

Deadlifts from pins were a walk in the park compared to last weeks with 85%.

Added in some DB Tricep Extensions for some extra tricep work.

8/26/08- Tuesday- GPP/Active Recovery

1a)Prone Med Grip Pullups
BWx10 x7

1b)VMO External Rotation
15x15 x15 x12

1c)DB Lateral Raise
35x12 x10 x8

2a)Cable External Rotation (supine grip)
20x12 x12 x12

2b)DB Curl
30x10 x8

31 Minutes Incline Treadmill- 2 miles

Contrast Shower- 20s/45s x4 (end on cold)

Notes: Slept 13 hours last night...guess I needed it, ha!

Sheiko#29- W2 D1- 8/25/08- Monday

2 Hours 5 Minutes

Energy- 0/-1

1)Squats
(50%)215x5
(60%)260x4
(70%)300x3 x3
(80%)345x2 x2 x2 x2 x2

2)2 Board Bench Press (paused)
(50%)160x5
(60%)190x4
(70%)220x2 x2
(80%)250x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Neutral Close Grip Pushups (w/handles)
30lb Vestx10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Front Squat
(45%)195x3 x3
(55%)235x3 x3
(65%)260(belt)x1 (miss on 2nd)
(dropped back in weight) 250x1 x1 x2
260x2

6)Good Mornings
140x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Notes: Today's session was a slaughter. Compared to the last 2 times on this program, I am increased my squat PB by double. So the work this time around is much more, and I can certainly feel it.

Board presses felt right at this weight rather than basing it off of a higher estimated max. They are now based off of a 315, 2 board max.

Front Squats were brutal. I was having a hard time finding the right width on my stance and making sure that I wasn't going unnecessarily deep. I dumped the second rep of the first set, dropped the weight back a bit and then on the last set, bumped it back up to 260. A nice big nap is in order.

Sheiko#29- W1 D3- Friday- 8/22/08

1 Hour 40 Minutes

Energy- +1

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x5
(70%)210x4
(75%)225x3 x3
(80%)240x2 x2
(75%)225x3 x3
(70%)210x4
(60%)180x6
(50%)150x8

2)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

3)Squat
(50%)215x5
(60%)260x4
(70%)300x3 x3
(75%)325x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

4)Lying DB Tricep Extension
15x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Good Mornings
140x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Power Plate lower body restoration

Notes: Today was not easy. Still sore quite a bit in the lower body. I know that the squats will get easier, but they were pretty difficult today. It's funny to now be using more weight on my 75% work this cycle than 80% last cycle. And by funny, I mean difficult.

8/21/08- Thursday- GPP

1a)Neutral Grip Chins
BWx8 x6 x6

1b)Cable Lateral Raise
x12 x12 x12

1c)Cable Ext Rotation
x12 x12 x15

2)DB Hammer Curl
30x10 x8 x8

Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x4

Sheiko#29- W1 D2- Wed

2 Hours 45 Minutes

Energy- 0

1)Deadlift Till Knees
(50%)285x3
(60%)340x3
(70%)395(belt)x3 x3
(75%)425x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Close Grip Incline Bench (paused)
180x6 x6 x6 x6

3)Dips
BWx5 x5 x5 x5 x5

4)Deadlifts from pins
(55%)310x4
(65%)365x4
(75%)425(belt)x4 x4
(85%)480x3 (.25' lower) x3 x3 x3

5)Good Mornings
140x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

6)Hanging Leg Raises
Straight Legx10 x10 x10


Notes: Today took a bit longer than usual because I met up with Max (aka Diesel Weasel) to help him with his Skills Eval. He kicked ass and took some names.

The deadlifts from pins in this session are probably the hardest deadlift part of all these cycles. The bar always feels literally welded to the pins and it seems like I'm pulling for an eternity before the thing actually moves.

Back, glutes, hamstrings, calves, and pecs all still sore from Monday's session.

8/19/08- Tuesday- Recovery/GPP

1a)Medium Grip Pullups
BWx10 x8 x6

1b)DB Lateral Raise
30x12 x12 x12

1c)VMO External Rotation
15x15 x12 x10

2a)Side Lying Ext Rotation
8x12 x13 x15

2b)Neutral Grip Cable Row
165x8 x8

30 Minutes Incline Treadmill

Foam Rolling Lower Body

Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x4 (end on cold)

Sheiko#29- W1 D1- Monday

1 Hour 40 Minutes

1)2 Board Bench Press (paused)
175x5
205x4 x4
240x3 x3
250x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Squat
(50%)215x5
(60%)260x5 x5
(70%)300(belt)x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

3)2 Board Bench Press (paused)
175x5
205x5
240x4 x4 x4 x3 (miss on last rep)

4)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)DB Alt Reverse Lunges
55x5 50x5 x5 x5 x5

Power Plate restoration- Glutes, Quads

Notes: Today's session was super-tough. I think that the board pressing work is just too heavy, or perhaps I'm not used to having so much weight in my hands for such a long period of time anymore. I think that I may have to base the board press work on a lower percentage. I'm also not so sure about these in regards to how they will affect my technique. Perhaps I would be better off using chains instead.

Did lunges instead of good mornings by accident.

I'm beat and off to bed.

SKILLS EVALUATION 7-8-08

SQUAT- Warmups felt fıne but not super-fast. Most of the warmup sets and even 95% was faster ın the skılls evaluatıon a few weeks before. Anyhow, I decıded to make a 15lb jump for my fırst PR. It felt quıte good and looked fast on tape so I bumped ıt up another 10lbs. At thıs poınt, I had defınıtely achıeved more than I had expected and was quıte happy. But I knew that I had somethıng left so I took another 5lbs for a 30lb PR.

I thınk that one of the maın reasons for such a huge PR ıs abılıty to get better and better at hıttıng depth wıthout goıng so deep that I have nothıng comıng out of the hole. I taped sıde depth wıth a second camera and each squat was defınıtely PLENTY deep. But ın the past, I have let the weıght pull me so far down that I cannot recovery. All ın all squat was extremely succesful as I achıeved more ın 3 months than the prevıous 5 months of traınıng.

BENCH- Warmups dıdnt feel too great here. I felt that ın the skılls evaluatıon a few weeks ago that I destroyed 285 and could have gotten 300 almost posıtıvely ıf not 305. Thıs tıme around 285 was slow and awkward. I felt lıke my rıght (ınjured) shoulder almost gave out on the 285 attempt and then agaın on the 300.

I need more trıcep work due to the early flarıng of the elbows and perhaps some dıfferent programıng to progress thıngs a bıt faster. I think that arranging things so that I peak at the right time may be good for some increases in and of itself, but I will also consider some differences in exercise selection as well.

DEADLIFT- Warmups felt pretty good but not especıally fast, so I decıded to start out wıth a 20lb PR attempt. As I was goıng down to the bar, I grıpped ıt probably half an ınch off off-center. The bar was movıng quıte fast off the ground so I decıded to stıck wıth ıt and try to fınısh the pull. The technıcal error left me wıth less than I should have had above the knees and I couldnt make ıt. I decıded that there was no way I was leavıng wıth a PR but that 570 would be too much to attempt for a second tıme.

I dropped ıt back 5lbs and had the slowest deadlıft of my lıfe, but I made ıt. I came very close to rampıng but I stuck ıt out and suprısed myself wıth a 15lb PR. I know for a fact that 570 would have been there had ıt not been for the technıcal error and that 575 could have been a possıbılıty as well. I thınk ıt makes the most sense to base the next traınıng cycle off of 570 or a 20lb PR.

TOTAL- 1280 up from 1230. 50lb PR in 3 months.


Some ınterestıng notes about Sheıko traınıng that I have observed wıth myself. Generally, my 95% lıfts tend to be faster on the fırst skılls evaluatıon day rather than the day that I am attemptıng my maxes. Perhaps there ıs somethıng to thıs and a better way that I mıght be able to peak on testıng day. Or perhaps the speed of the lıft doesnt really have a dırect correlatıon to the PRs that I wıll achıeve. Another ınterestıng thıng ıs that on test days, I rarely feel lıke ıt would be the day for some bıg PRs. If I had a random guess I wouldnt necessarıly thınk the days I test would be those where I hıt my bıggest PRs. But Im realızıng more and more that thıs can only really be determıned when handlıng the workup sets.

Sheiko #32- W3 D2 (LAST TRAINING DAY)- Wednesday- 7/6/08

30 Minutes

Energy- +1

1)Squat
(50%)200x3
(60%)240x3 x3
(70%)280(belt)x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)180x3 x3
(70%)210x2 x2 x2

Contrast Shower- 15s/45s x4

Notes: Last day of training today and easy session.

I'm retesting my maxes Friday morning and flying out of the US to Turkey at 5:40PM. I'll probably run home, throw up a video and haul ass to the airport. I'm spending 10 days there (no training) and jumping back into a 16 week cycle for a meet in early December.

I believe that I may not be able to deadlift at my gym. I am really not looking forward to squatting and benching then taking my shit, walking a few blocks over and having to start deadlifting from scratch. But we'll see what happens.

Sheiko#32- W4 D1- Monday- 7/4/08

50 Minutes

Energy- +1

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)180x3 x3
(70%)210x2 x2
(75%)225x1 x1 x1 x1

2)Deadlift
(50%)275x3
(60%)330(belt)x2 x2
(70%)385x1 x1 x1 x1

3)Hanging Leg Raises
Straightx10 x10 x10

Contrast Shower- 15s/45s x3

Notes: Bench didn't feel all that great, but it's all super easy here on out. I decided to opt for singles rather than doubles on deadlift and terminated the sets as soon as I felt the speed slow down a little.

I've got all week to sleep big. Last night was 10 hours, haha.

Attempts will likely be

Squat- 410-415 (10-15lb PR)
Bench- 300, 305 (5, 10lb PR)
Deadlift- 570-575 (20-25lb PR)

Squat should be good for 415, but I may stick with 410 just to play it safe. My last meet, I squatted a 10lb PR after my 95% lift, and the 95% took 4 seconds. In my last skills eval, my 95% took 2 seconds, so I should say that I'm safe for a 15lb PR. I may shut it down after that to save some for the deadlift.

Bench Press, I'll go for the 5lb PR and my first 300. The cycle was based off a 300 max, but I think it'd be smarter to hit the 300 and then attempt 305.

I'm really tempted to go 575 (25lb PR) on my first attempt on deadlift, but I'd be super pissed if I missed it and didn't get any PRs, so I might just start with 570 (20lb PR) and assess from there. I just don't want to tire myself out with the 570 and end up missing 575 as a result.

I suppose other than the bench, I'm leaving some things open-ended for the test day.

-Matt

Sheiko#32- W3 D3- Friday- 8/1/08

50 Minutes

Energy- 0

1)Squat
(50%)200x3
(60%)240x3 x3
(70%)280(belt)x2 x2
(75%)300x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)180x3
(70%)210x3 x3
(75%)225x2 x2 x2 x2

3)Hanging Leg Raises
Straightx8 x8 x8


Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x4

Notes: Squats and benches felt pretty much where they have by this point in past training cycles. Squats don't feel super fast and bench feels better. 1 week until the big day.

Sheiko#32- W3 D2- Wednesday- 7/30/08

1 Hour 10 Minutes

Energy- +2

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)180x3
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x2 x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10

3)Deadlift
(50%)275x3
(60%)330x3 x3
(70%)385(belt)x3 x3
**(80%)440x2 415x2 x2 x2
390x2

4)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5


Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x3

Next Day- Epsom Salt Bath- 20 minutes

Notes: Not too bad of a session. My energy all around is definitely feeling better than in the difficult parts of the training cycles.

I misloaded the first deadlift top set with an extra 25lbs so I took the last set down 25lbs to hopefully make up the difference.

Here on out is smooth sailing...

Sheiko#32- W3 D1- Monday- 7/29/08

1 Hour 5 Minutes

Energy- +1

1)Squats
(50%)200x3
(60%)240x3
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x2 x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)180x3 x3
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x2 x2 x2
(85%)255x1 x1 x1

3)Incline DB Flys
25x8 x8 x8 x8

4)Hanging Leg Raises
(Straight Leg)x8 x10 x10

Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x3 (end on cold)

Notes: Squats felt very fast and bench didn't feel too bad.

Sheiko#32- W2 D3- Friday- 6/25/08

1 Hour 30 Minutes

Energy- +1

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)180x3
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Squat
(50%)200x3
(60%)240x3 x3
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x4
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x4 x4 x4 x4

4)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Contrast Shower- 30s/60s x3

Epsom Salt Bath Yesterday- 2 cups/20 Minutes

Notes: Squats and bench were both relatively difficult today. Looking back at my previous logs however, this is always how it is during this workout. Shaved 20 minutes off this training session from last time though.

I had to squat in my "other" gym today. The J-Hooks are such that I can either tip-toe the weight out or quarter squat it out of the rack. I chose the former option, and felt numerous times that I was close to hurting my back from it. It feels a tiny bit tweaked on the left side. I think I'll stick with the lower setting next time.

Sheiko#32- W2 D2- Wed- 7/23/08

1 Hour 40 Minutes

Energy- +1

1)Deadlift to Knees
(50%)275x3
(60%)330x2 x2
(65%)360(belt)x2 x2
(70%)385x1 x1 x1

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)180x3
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x3 x3
~(85%)250x2 x2 x2*

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10

4)Deadlift
(50%)275x3
(60%)330x3 x3
(70%)385(belt)x3 x3
(80%)440x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

5)Hanging Leg Raises (straight)
BWx10 x10 x10

Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x3 (end on cold)

Notes: Deadlifts started a bit slow today, but they actually picked up speed and ended up being right on target for how fast they should have been today.

*I messed up and forgot an extra 5lbs on my top bench press sets. I force-fed myself 3 rotten eggs as punishment.

Actually, I didn't...but it would have made for a good story.

Sheiko#32- W2 D1- Monday- 7/21/08

1 Hour 25 Minutes

Energy- +1.5

1)Squats
(50%)200x3
(60%)240x3 x3
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)180x3
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Squat
(55%)220x3
(65%)260x3 x3
(75%)300(belt)x3 x3 x3 x3

Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x3 (end on cold)

Notes: Nothing special to report today...session felt alright. Energy levels were better before training.

I went to a seminar at my gym yesterday for the Power Plate, a vibration platform. I might experiment with some recovery/regeneration stuff on there and some protocols that have been used right before a vertical jump test with positive results.

7/17/08- Thurs- GPP/Active Recovery

1a)Fat Bar Pullups
BWx12 x8 x6

1b)DB Lateral Raise
35x10 x10 x10

1c)Cable Ext Rotation
5 sets

2a)DB Row
100x8 x6

2b)Band Pushdown
lightx20 x20 x20

3)DB Hammer Curls
40x8 30x8

Epsom Salt Bath- 20 Minutes

Sheiko#32- W1 D2- Wed- 7/16/08

SKILLS EVALUATION- Bodyweight- 202.7lb (morning)

2 Hours

1)Squat
(50%)200x3
(60%)240x3 x3
(70%)280(belt)x2 x2
(80%)320x2
(90%)360x1
(95%)380x1

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)180x3 x3
(70%)210x2 x2
(80%)240x2
(90%)270x1
(95%)285x1

3)Deadlift
(50%)275x3
(60%)330(belt)x3 x3
(70%)385x2
(80%)440x2
(90%)495x1
(95%)525x1

Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x4 (end on cold)

Notes: Skills evaluation went quite well today, especially for not getting a ton of rest and not feeling super-recovered today.

Squats were great and I sunk them way below parallel and the were fast as hell. I had another camera on the side taping depth but couldn't figure out how to load them onto my computer. The top set was a good 2.5-3" below parallel.

Bench press top sets were great as well. Elbows flared a little early on my last attempt and my butt came close to coming up, but I believe that it just moved and didn't leave contact with the bench. Hard to tell from the video though.

Deadlifts were right on target. The technique was a tad off on the last set, and my hot and sweaty thighs ( ;-) ) made the bar stick at the top a little, but that's nothing a little baby powder can't help next time.

All in all, rep speed was exactly where I wanted it, and especially good given that my work up sets didn't feel awesome. So I look forward to seeing what I can do once I'm fully recovered.

-Matt

Sheiko#32- W1 D1- Monday- 7/14/08

50 Minutes

1)Squats
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(75%)300x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(75%)225x2 x2 x2

3)Hanging Leg Raises
Straightx10 x10 Bentx10

Contrast Shower- 15s/30sx4

Notes: Easy session today...of course. Nothing moved particularly fast, so I definitely have some recovering to do before the true test, but it'll be interesting to see how things go on Wednesday while working up to 90-95%.

Sheiko#37- W4 D3- Friday- 7/11/08

1 Hour 35 Minutes

1)Squat
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x5
(70%)210x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Narrow Grip Pin Press
(3" off chest)x8 (7" off chest)x8 x8 x8 x8

5)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Contrast Showers- 20s/45sx4

Notes: Nothing moved super fast today. I'm looking forward to the weekend off, an easy Monday and working up to 95% on Wednesday. I'm a bit tired now, but it's all pretty much easier from here on out.

7/10/08- GPP/Recovery- Thursday

1a)Neutral Grip Chinups
BWx8 x8 x6

1b)DB Lateral Raises
35x15 x13 x10

1c)Cable Ext Rotation
5 sets 12-15

2)DB Hammer Curl
35x10 x8 x6

Contrast Shower- 15s/45s x3

60 Minute Fully Body Relaxation Massage :-D

Deadlift continued...8 hours later

Was depressed, went home, took a contrast shower and a nap and came back 8 hours later and finished it.

1)Deadlift
(50%)275(belt)x3
(60%)330x3
(70%)380x2
(80%)440x2
(85%)470x2 x2 x2

Sheiko#37 W4 D2- Wed- 7/9/08

1 Hour 50 Min

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x3 x3
(85%)255x2 x2 x2

2)Deadlift
(50%)275x4
(60%)330x4
(70%)385(belt)x3 x3
(80%)440x3 x3
(85%)470xMISS
455x2 (instead of planned 470x2 x2 x2)

3)Bench Press
(55%)165x5
(65%)195x5
(75%)225x4 x4 x4 x4

4)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)DB Reverse Alternate Lunges
45x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x4

Notes: First time since the first day of Sheiko (7 months ago) that I wasn't able to lift a weight as prescribed. I should have seen it coming since last week's deadlift session was tough as hell and the previous time doing it, I had "Everything felt strong today" in the log. I think my sleeping hasn't been as consistent as it should be. But anyway, I decided not to be stupid and risk injuring myself. I hope I can rest up enough to have a good showing on next weeks Skills Evaluation

Bench felt strong, however.

Sheiko#37- W4 D1- Monday- 7/7/08

2 Hours

1)Squat
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x3 x3
(85%)340x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Narrow Grip Pin Press (3" off chest)
210x8 x8 x8 x8 x8

5)Squat
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x2 x2 x2 x2

6)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Notes: Session felt pretty good today. I'm interested to see how next week's skills evaluation turns out.

Sheiko#37- W3 D3- Friday- 7/4/08

1 Hour 40 Minutes

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Squat
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x5
(70%)280(belt)x5 x5
(75%)300x4 x4 x4 x4 x4

3)Narrow Grip Bench Press (paused)
(55%)165x6
(65%)195x6 x6
(70%)210x6 x6 x6 x6

4)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Notes: Bench felt pretty decent and squats felt very easy for the most part. The last 2 sets of close grip benches were very near failure though. My shoulders started to ache by the time I got to flys and good mornings, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Decided to take yesterday off and go for an Epsom bath without GPP and cardio. My bodyweight is actually down a lb or two more than usual and I was feeling exhausted yesterday.

Sheiko#37 W3 D2- Wed- 7/2/08

2 Hours 30 Minutes

1)Deadlift to Knees
(50%)275x4
(60%)330x4
(70%)385x3 x3
(75%)415x4 x4 x4 x4

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x6
(60%)180x5
(70%)210x4 x4
(75%)225x3 x3
(80%)240x2 x2
(85%)255x1 x1
(80%)240x2 x2
(75%)225x3 x3
(70%)210x4
(65%)195x6
(55%)165x7

3)Incline DB Flys
30x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Rack Deadlifts
(3" below knees)
(60%)330x5
(70%)385(belt)x5 x5
(2.5" below knees)
(80%)440x4 x4 x4 x4

5)Reverse Alt Lunges
45x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Contrast Shower- 20s/60sx4

Notes: I felt like I wanted to die today. First session at a new gym so I had to get my bearings and spent a good 15 minutes trying to figure out where to do rack pulls. This session really kicked my ass and I can feel myself reaching beyond my recovery abilities, so I'm looking forward to the easier peaking phase coming up.

Bench moved decently fast and the deads from knees took a while to come off the ground for the top sets.

Sheiko#37- W3 D1- Monday- 6/30/08

1 Hour 50 Min

1)Squat
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4 x4
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Pushups (w/vest)
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Squat
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x5
(70%)280(belt)x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

6)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Notes: I was dreading this session the entire weekend. I felt tired Saturday and Sunday despite getting 8-9 hours of sleep and my legs were feeling very heavy. Once I got into it, the squatting felt great. I felt like I was right on target and like I was moving the weights like a piston. I even shortened most of the rest periods a bit.

Benching was a tad difficult and my hands are feeling a bit beat up. I might spring for those Iron Mind bands to start getting in some more extensor work.

Sheiko#37- W2 D3- Friday- 6/27/08

2 Hours

1)Squat
(50%)200x4
(60%)240x4
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(75%)300x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x6
(60%)180x5
(70%)210x4
(75%)225x3 x3 x3
(80%)240x2 x2
(85%)255x1 x1
(80%)240x2 x2
(75%)225x4
(70%)210x5
(60%)180x6
(50%)150x7

3)Squat
(55%)220x3
(65%)260x3
(75%)300(belt)x2 x2 x2 x2

4)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

---1 Hour later----

5)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

6)Rope Pushdowns
40x10 x10 x10 x10 x10


Notes: Today's benching was tough and it kind of kicked my ass. Squatting wasn't too bad, but there was a ton of bench volume at some relatively high intensities today. Same shoulder that I injured was bothering me a little, but more in a little bit of a different place. My arthritic wrist was giving me trouble since I woke up this morning. And for the first time in I can't remember how long, my triceps were sore...well the left one, haha.

I just applied tanning and oil to a friend of mine doing a bodybuilding show tomorrow. These are rare times when I will oil another grown man's body and apply tanning lotion to a black man. Good times tomorrow, I'm sure.

6/26/08- Thursday- GPP/Active Recovery

1a)Neutral Grip Chins
BWx10 x8 x6

1b)DB Lateral Raise
35x10 x10

1c)VMO External Rotation
15x15 x12 x15 x15 x15

2)DB Twisting Curl
30x10 x10

15 Minutes Incline Treadmill

Epsom Salt Bath- 2 cups/20 min

Sheiko#37- W2 D2- Wednesday- 6/25/08

1)Deadlift To Knees
(50%)275x4
(60%)330x4 x4
(70%)385(belt)x4 x4 x4 x4

2)Narrow Grip Bench Press (paused)
(55%)165x5
(65%)195x5
(70%)210x4 x4 x4 x4 x4

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Deadlift
(50%)275x4
(60%)330x4
(70%)385(belt)x3 x3
(75%)415x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

5)Reverse Alt Lunges
45x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Notes: Weights felt quite good today. Deadlift technique felt great.

Unfortunately, I can't deadlift at my place of work any longer. If I do it anywhere in the gym using thick rubber mats and metal plates, the people downstairs complain. If I do it on the bumper platforms, it's 5 feet from the office and gives people splitting headaches. Plus, I was told I freak out the gym members. :-) To be fair, I can understand this...there's really no place for it there. I believe that I know of a gym a few blocks away where I can get a day pass.

-Matt

6/24/08- GPP/Active Recovery- Tuesday

1a)Fat Bar Pullups
BWx15 x8

1b)Band Pushdown
lightx25 x25 x20

1c)DB Lateral Raise
35x8 x8

1d)Cable External Rotation
30x15 x15 x15 x10

2a)DB Hammer Curls
35x12 x8

2b)1 Arm DB Row
95x6 100x6

40 Minutes Incline Treadmill

Contrast Shower- 20s/60s (cold/hot- end on cold)

Notes: Shoulder back at 95% :-)

Sheiko#37 W2 D1- Monday- 6/23/08

2 Hours

1)Squat
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4 x4
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x2 x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x2 x2 x2 x2 x2 x2

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Pushups (neutral grip w/handles)
20lb Vestx10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Squat
(55%)220x3
(65%)260x3
(75%)300(belt)x3 x3 x3 x3

6)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Notes: Session wasn't too bad today. I definitely didn't get enough rest over the weekend, but I'm to make sure that I do this week. Woke up with the shoulder feeling fine, but it started bothering me a few hours after waking up and currently has a little pain.

I think I'm getting better at cutting depth. Once my elbow hits me thigh, I know I'm definitely below parallel. I think that I can go up until that point, but not quite that it's touching, and still make depth. Being able to judge this well will definitely give me some extra lbs once I come around to testing.

Sheiko#37- W1 D3- Friday- 6/20/08

1 Hour 40 Minutes

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x6
(60%)180x5
(70%)210x4 x4
(75%)225x3 x3
(80%)240x2 x2
(85%)255x1 x1
(80%)240x2 x2
(75%)225x3 x3
(65%)280x3 x3
(55%)165x7

2)Incline DB Flys
24x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

3)Squat
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4 x4
(70%)280x3 x3
(75%)300x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

4)Keiser Pushdowns
37.5x10 40x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Good Morning
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Notes: Pretty easy workout today. All of the sets had good speed and felt fine.

Shoulder was bothering me a little bit, but no more than yesterday, and actually probably less.

-Matt

Thursday- 6/19/08- GPP/Active Recovery

1a)Bilateral Cable Row
87.5x10 80x10 72.5x10

1b)Side Lying Ext Rotation
12x15 x15 x15 x15

1c)Band Pushdown
lightx25 x25 x25

1d)DB Hammer Curls
35x10 x10 30x8

45 Minutes incline treadmill

Foam Rolling

Evening- Hot Epsom Salt Bath- 20 minutes

Notes: Shoulder is still bothering me but perhaps a little less. I think I should be able to squat fine tomorrow.

Sheiko#37- W1 D2- Wednesday- 6/18/08

2 Hours

1)Deadlift
(50%)275x5
(60%)330x5 x5
(70%)385(belt)x4 x4
(75%)415x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Narrow Grip Bench Press (paused)
(55%)165x6
(65%)195x5
(70%)210x4 x4 x4 x4

3)Narrow Grip Pin Presses (4" off chest)
(70%)210x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

4)Rack Deadlift (2" below knees)
(50%)275x5
(60%)330x5 x5
(70%)385(belt)x4 x4
(80%)440x3 x3 x3 x3

5)Reverse Alt DB Lunges
45x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Contrast Shower- 20s/45s x4 (end on cold)

Notes: Today felt pretty good despite having royally messed up my shoulder yesterday. Weight was conveniently light and I made sure to make full use of the arch to limit my ROM in the bottom.

I made an effort to keep a neutral lumbar spine on the deadlifts from blocks (rack pulls). Towards my later sets it started to look better. I started with the bar a little further from my shins and made sure to bend the knees more and arch harder from the start. I think that this will serve me well in the long-run as long as I can keep it up.

I subbed dips for pin presses today. Dips would have killed the shoulder are probably aren't the best thing for a guy with shoddy shoulders like myself anyway. Pin presses were done nice and light.

Felt well rested today but of course that feeling will be gone in a week or two. :-)

-Matt

6/17/08- Tuesday- Recovery (yea right)/GPP

20-25 Minutes Grappling

Contrast Shower- 15s/45sx3

Notes: So I decided to roll with some of the other trainers from my gym, but I haven't grappled for the last 4 years. I was worried from the start about getting injured, specifically in regards to my shoulder. I had a lot of fun and tapped 3 guys out multiple times without tapping myself. But in my last match, I leaned on the shoulder the wrong way, relaxed it and the damn thing slid right out of the socket.

I'm used to this happening, but generally it's an in-and-out type of thing. This time, I laid on the mat with the shoulder probably completely out of the socket for a good few minutes, until I could be helped to sitting up, when the shoulder than slid back in.

It's pretty damn sore and it's a damn shame. I really do enjoy grappling and was looking forward to possibly getting into it once or twice a week again, but I think that the risk is just too high and if it puts me out of commission from lifting, I'd go crazy.

Hopefully it'll feel a bitter better by the morning and I'll be good to bench tomorrow. If not, I'll try to find a way to work around it.

-Matt

Sheiko#37 W1 D1 - Monday- 6/16/08

1 Hour 30 Minutes

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(75%)225x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Squat
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4 x5
(70%)280(belt)x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

3)Narrow Grip Bench Press (paused)
(55%)165x5
(65%)195x4 x4
(70%)210x4 x4 x4 x4 x4

4)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Contrast Shower- 15s/45s x3

Notes: Easy day today. It was a relief getting a break on the squats and benches today.

First day with the new bench programming.

-Matt

Sheiko#29- W4 D3- Friday- 6/13/08

1 Hour 50 Minutes

1)Squat
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)317.5x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 (misload by 2.5lb on one side)

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x6
(60%)180x5
(70%)210x4 x4
(80%)240x3 x3
(85%)255x2 x2
(80%)240x3 x3
(70%)210x4
(60%)180x6
(50%)150x8

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Dips
BWx5 x5 x5 x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

5)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x 3

Notes: Felt quite strong today. The bar had a lot of pop at the top of the squats. I played around with a slightly higher bar position today and I think that I may continue to do this in the future. With some video feedback I might be better able to determine if this is putting me in a better position.

I had the bar misloaded for squats by 2.5lb on one side for all the top sets, haha...oh well.

Bench felt good and strong with nothing being a huge struggle.

Onto the next phase of programming!

-Matt

Sheiko#29- W4 D2- Wednesday- 6/11/08

2 Hours

1)Bench Press
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x3 x3
(85%)255x2 x2 x2

2)Deadlift
(50%)275x3
(60%)330x3
(70%)385(belt)x3 x3
(80%)440x3 x3
(85%)470x2 x2 x2
(80%)440x2 x2 x2

3)Close Grip Bench (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x5
(70%)210x5 x5 x5 x5

4)Incline DB Fly
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10


Notes: Today felt pretty good. Bench moved pretty smoothly for the most part. Deadlifts weren't super-fast and I used a little more back than I would have liked, but overall they went pretty well. It seems that when I am under a bit of fatigue in a cycle, I tend to bend my knees less and use more back with the deadlifts.

-Matt

6/10/08- GPP/Active Recovery- Tuesday

1a)Medium Grip Pullups (fat bar)
BWx12 x9 x6

1b)Band Pushdown
lightx25 x25 x25

1c)VMO External Rotation
20x12 x12 x12 x12

2a)Seated Cable Row (independent arms)
80x10 x10 87.5x10

2b)DB Lateral Raise
35x8 x8

3)DB Hammer Curls
35x10

20 Minutes Incline Treadmill

Foam Rolling Lower Body

Sheiko#29- W4 D1- Monday- 6/9/08

2 Hours

1)Squat
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x3
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Bench Press (paused)
(55%)165x5
(65%)195x5
(75%)225x4 x4 x4 x4 x4

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Dips
BWx8 x8 x8 x8 x8

5)Front Squats
(40%)160x5 x5
(50%)200x4 x4
(60%)240x3 x3 (belt) x3

6)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Contrast Showers- 20s/60s x3

Notes: Felt like I was preparing to enter hell today with another session of many triples at 80% in the squat. In actuality, it wasn't all that bad and most of the sets has a bit of snap and stayed at around 3 minutes rest.

Bench felt pretty good too. It's kind of "neat" to be finally handling 225 as 75%. :-)

-Matt

Sheiko#29- W3 D3- Friday- 6/6/08

2 Hours 10 Minutes

1)Squats
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)Incline DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Fat Bar Close Grip Incline Press (paused)
178x4 x4 180x4 x4 x4

5)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Contrast Showers- 20s/60s x4

Notes: Very interesting day today. The session was incredibly difficult and I'm quite surprised that I didn't fail and drop the bar on bench or squat. Well...I did have a bench mishap, and it's on video, haha.

There is an older guy who teaches Olympic lifting to some people at my gym, but I never really thought twice about who he was. Well, he introduced himself to me when he saw me squatting, and his name is Issaac "Ike" Berger, and an Olympic lifting legend. I thought he might have been full of it, but he told me that he won the 1965 gold with a 336lb clean and jerk at 130lb. He told me he also squatted 530 at 130! Get this...he was good friends with Paul Anderson. I about shat myself.

http://www.jewishsports.net/BioPages/IsaacBerger.htm

I hope to pick his brain quite a bit. He was telling me that I should squat with the bar high, though. You know Olympic lifters... :-)

-Matt

6/5/08- Thursday- GPP/Active Recovery

1a)Neutral Grip Fat Bar Chinups
BWx15 x10 x10

1b)Band Pushdown
lightx25 x20 x20

1c)Prowler Push (High)
~250ftx1 x1 x1

1d)Keiser Cable Backhands
12x12 x15 x12

2a)Keiser Face Pull
43x12 x12 x12

2b)TKE
lightx15 x15 x15

2c)DB Hammer Curl
40x10 x7 35x8

2d)Side Bridge (feet under/over bench)
x20s x22s x30s (Left) x20s+10s (Right)


Foam Rolling

25 Minutes Incline Treadmill

20 Minute Epsom Salt Bath (2 cups)

Notes: I was feeling extremely tired today despite eight hours of sleep and an hour nap yesterday.

I need to make sure I don't get too behind on sleep this weekend.

Sheiko#29- W3 D2- 5/4/08- Wednesday

2 Hours 10 Minutes

1)Deficit Deadlifts (2-3" probably)
275x3 x3
330x3 x3
360x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x2 x2 x2
(85%)255x2 x2
(80%)240x3 x3

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 20x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Rack Deadlifts (2" below knees- rack setting "3", 4 mats, shoes)
(60%)330x4
(70%)385(belt)x4 x4
(80%)440x3 x3
(90%)495x2 x2 x1 x1 (broke it into 2 sets)

5)DB Reverse Alt Lunges
45x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x4

Notes: Today's session was very tough. The deficit deadlifts didn't feel as fast as they had been the first time through 29, but I have a feeling that getting stronger makes the training sessions harder, even though it is based on percentages.

My butt lifted up a tiny bit on bench on the top sets, but I had no spotter and really didn't want to have to roll the bar off of my chest if I missed.

Rack deadlifts were very very difficult. My hands are incredibly beat up and on the last set at 90% I had to do two singles rather than a double. I definitely need a nap.

-Matt

6/3/08- Tuesday- GPP/Active Recovery

1a)Fat Medium Grip Pullups
BWx12 x8 x6

1b)Band Pushdown
lightx25 x25 x25 x25

1c)Sandbag Alternating Stepup
50x10 x10 x10

1d)Cable Ext Rotation
10x12 x15 x15 x15

2a)1 Arm DB Row
100x10 x6 90x6

2b)Prowler High Handle Push
No Weightx300 ft x 2

2c)DB Hammer Curl
40x8 35x8

2d)DB Lateral Raise
35x8 x7

3)Keiser Pallof Press
30x12 35x12

25 Minutes Incline Treadmill Walking (up to 6 incline)

Foam Rolling

Sheiko#29- W3 D1- 6/2/08- Monday

1 Hour 55 Minutes

1)Squats
(55%)220x5
(65%)260x4
(75%)300(belt)x3 x3
(85%)340x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)45 Degree Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Pushups (handles and BW)
(semi-sup)x10 x10 x10 (neutral)x10 x10

5)Squats
(50%)200x3
(60%)240x3
(70%)280x3
(80%)320x3 x3 x3 x3

6)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x3 (ending on cold)

Notes: Well today's session was brutal. I felt a bit nauseas and only had breakfast in me by the time I had finished. Nonetheless, squats felt really strong for the most part all through the session.

Bench was a little slow at some points, but definitely felt solid. I'm feelings goooood....

-Matt

Sheiko#29- W2 D3- Friday- 5/30/08

2 Hours

1)Squats
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x2 x2 x2 x2x x2

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x3 x3
(80%)240x2 x2
(75%)225x3
(65%)195x5
(55%)165x7

3)45 Degree Incline Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Squats
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x5 x5
(70%)280(belt)x4 x4 x4 x4

5)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5x x5 x5

Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x4 (cold/hot)- ending on cold


Notes: The squats felt SUPER easy today. I honestly need to check my depth because they felt eerily easy. I have a hunch, however, that I am getting better at just making depth rather than sinking reps far beyond what is necessary. It would makes sense that this would transfer to some more speed.

I also tried a Kaiser power rack today...those things are crazy. I'm going to stick with Sheiko as long as it works, but if I need a change at some point, I have plenty of new tools at my disposal.

-Matt

5/30/08- Thursday- GPP/Recovery

1a)Neutral Close Grip Chinups
BWx8 x6 x6 x4

1b)Cable Backhands
15x10 x10 10x15 x15

2)DB 1-Arm Row
80x8 90x8 x8

3)DB Alt Curl
35x16

Epsom Salt Bath- 2 cups in hot water

Contrast Shower- 15s/45s (cold/hot) x 4 ending in cold

Notes: I couldn't be more happy. I booked what is basically a dream job for me today at one of the best private training facilities in NYC. I can't wait to phase commercial gyms out of my working environment! :-D

Sheiko#29- W2 D2- Wednesday- 5/28/08

1 Hour 35 Minutes

1)Deadlift To Knees
(50%)275x3
(60%)330x3
(70%)385(belt)x3 x3
(75%)415x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (narrow grip, shoulder width/paused)
(50%)150x6
(60%)180x6 x6
(65%)195x6 x6 x6 x6

3)Incline DB Flys
25x10 x10 20x10 x10 x10

4)Rack Deadlifts (3" below knees- aerobic steps and converse)
(50%)275x4
(60%)330x4
(70%)385(belt)x4 x4
(80%)440x4 x4 (2.5" below knees-shoes off) x4 x4

5)Reverse Alternating Lunge
45x10 x10 x10 x10 x10


Notes: Decent training session today...felt pretty strong throughout.

I've decided that I'm going aiming to do the rack pulls from 2" below the knees rather than 3". This is what is intended with the Sheiko program, or at least what my coach has been suggesting. That extra inch does make it quite a deal harder and forces me to round my back a little more than I'm comfortable with. I feel like this will be the smart decision down the line.

Decided to use a more dynamic lunge variation in order to hit some of the stabilizing musculature that's not being stimulated much in all of the repetitive limited motion work.

-Matt

5/28/08- Tuesday- GPP/Active Recovery

1a)Medium Grip Pullups
BWx8 x7 x6 x5

1b)VMO External Rotation
20x10 x10 x10 x10

2a)Face Pulls (with ropes that are way too short)
75x12 x12 x11

2b)DB Hammer Curl
35x8 x8

2c)DB Lateral Raise
30x12 x10


40 Minutes Incline Treadmill

Foam Rolling

Sheiko#29- W2 D1- Monday- 5/26/08

2 Hours 5 Minutes

1)Squats
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4
(70%)280(belt)x3 x3
(80%)320x2 x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4
(70%)210x2 x2
(80%)240x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)Incline DB Flys
20x10 25x10 x10 x10 20x10

4)Narrow Grip Pushups
BWx10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Front Squats
(45%)180x3 x3
(55%)220x3 x3
(65%)240(belt)x2 x2 x2 x2

6)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Recovery- Contrast Showers- 20s/60sx3

Notes: Great session today. To be honest, my bodyweight is too high right now though, hovering around 208 from my loose diet in my week off after the meet. I had to loosen the lever belt today, so I need to tighten things up again, haha.

Squatting felt very good. I cut the depth a bit from my usual, but I'm pretty sure they were all to acceptable depth.

Benching strong as well. Some of the later sets were slow, but definitely not too slow.

Front squats felt the best they ever have. I believe that the heeled shoes during back squats have contributed to strengthening my quads quite a bit. The last time I attempted this part of the workout, I felt like I could barely finish the front squats, but there as no question this time.

-Matt

Sheiko#29- W1 D3- Friday- 5/23/08

2 Hours 5 Minutes

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x5
(70%)210x4
(75%)225x3 x3
(80%)240x2 x2
(75%)225x3 x3
(70%)210x4
(60%)180x6
(50%)150x8

2)DB flys (slight incline)
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

3)Squats
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x4
(70%)280 (belt)x3 x3
(75%)300x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

4)V-Bar Pushdowns
40x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Contrast Shower- 20s/60s (cold/hot) x3

Notes: My lower body and lower back was still quite sore and stiff from the training earlier this week. Today definitely wasn't easy but it wasn't a killer either.

Bench and squat form is starting to come back, though.

-Matt

5/22/08- Thursday- Active Recovery/GPP

1a)Close Neutral Grip Chinups
BWx10 x7 x5

1b)Band Pushdown
lightx20 x20 x20

1c)Abd. Cable Ext Rotation
12.5x15 x15 x15 x15

2a)DB Lateral Raise
35x12 x9

2b)1 Arm DB Row
75x10 x10

40 Minutes Incline Treadmill

20 Minutes Epsom Salt Bath- 2 cups

Sheiko#29- W1 D2- 5/21/08- Wednesday

1 Hour 50 Minutes

1)Deadlift to Knees
(50%)275x3
(60%)330x3
(70%)385(belt)x3 x3
(75%)415x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Incline Bench Press (paused)
180 (narrow grip)x6 x6 x6 (regular grip) x6

3)Dips
BWx5 x5 x5 x5 x5

4)Rack Deadlifts
(55%)300x4
(65%)360x4
(75%)415 (belt) x4 x4
(85%)470 (aerobic steps and barefoot)x1 (w/chucks) x2 x3 x3 x3

5)Static DB Lunges
45x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

6)Hanging Leg Raises
Straightx10 x10 Bentx10


Notes: After the last workout, my legs were probably as sore as they've ever been. Walking was extremely uncomfortable, let alone sitting down and getting back up.

I was still sore when I went into today's programming, and as usual, this part of the program was pretty brutal. The gym I was at had shitty collars and they kept sliding off along with the weights during rack pulls, which made for a very tilted bar at lockout...certainly not ideal.

The incline bench was actually quite difficult. My triceps were certainly lagging and I was flaring quite quickly. The tricep assistance work in this program should be helpful.

-Matt

Sheiko#29- W1 D1- Monday- 5/18/08

1 Hour 25 Minutes

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x4 x3
(70%)210x3 x3
(75%)225x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Squat (Safe Squat Shoes)
(50%)200x5
(60%)240x5 x5
(70%)280(belt)x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

3)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)180x5
(70%)210x4 x4 x4 x4

4)Incline DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 (flat) x10

5)Good Mornings
130x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Recovery- Contrast Shower- 15s/45sx4 (ending on cold)

Notes: First training session today since the meet. It really kicked my ass. Even benching was difficult. The form of course felt a bit off having been awhile since I've done the movements.

The medial part of my right knee was bothering me when I was stepping over benches and setting up for the bench press, but it was fine on squatting and seems to be alright now.

It was my first day squatting in the Safe Squat Shoes. They felt pretty good and definitely more stable than the Nike Frees. The only thing I didn't like was that it was difficult to turn my feet out once I had my stance width set because of the grip on the bottom of the shoes.

The 45 degree incline flys bothered my shoulders a little, so I dropped down to the very slight incline.

Last workout in my Boston gym, graduation tomorrow and then I'm back to NYC!

-Matt

5/10/08- Albany Strength USAPL- Meet Recap

All in all, a very successful meet and a very successful 20 weeks of training between this and the last competition. I'll go piece by piece...

Making Weight
I really didn't have much weight to lose for this meet, so that made things quite easy. I was only coming down from around 203lb during the training cycle. The week before, I avoided the cheat meals that I occasionally have. I dropped the carbs back a bit, and drank 2 gallons of water a day starting the Monday of meet week. I got to step on the scale the day before, and weighed in at 201.4lb. 12 hours out from weigh-ins, I cut out water and food, only having drank a gallon the day before.

I went to bed the night before at 10PM, the earliest I have gone to bed in ages...and I slept almost all the way through until 6:15AM. I've never gotten more than a few hours of sleep before a meet due to nerves, but I seemed to be much more relaxed about it.

I was a bit worried that I wasn't dehydrated enough judging by the color of my piss. It was essentially clear, all they way up until the weigh-ins. I ended up being 197.4lb. Drank 2 cups of water, ate my first "meal", 2 more cups of water, and then Gatorade and more food.


Squat
To say that squat warmups were rushed would be an understatement. Too many people in the room and all of them trying to get warmed up as fast as possible. I was able to do the bar for 2 sets, 185x3, 235x2, 275x1 and then I realized that the flight before mine was ending. So I had to jump from 70% to 90% (my opener). This worried me but 350lb went up pretty easy. As planned, I jumped to 375lb. I sunk it way too deep and it threw me forward. I also forgot to force my elbows forward. The weight moved much more slowly than it should have, and I was pissed to have wasted the energy. 400lb was the plan, but I knew that I wouldn't be getting it up if I sunk it that deep. I decided that I would basically go to what felt like shallow depth and just try to make the lift. Well, what I thought was shallow was deep enough for the judges and on film, and I landed a 400lb squat. My first double bodyweight squat and first 400 to legit depth. A 25lb meet and 10lb gym PR. I have never fought that hard and long for a squat.

Bench Press
Warmups felt good. 260lb went up pretty easily. 280lb went up pretty easily, but slower than it should have. That is a 5lb meet PR. In hindsight, I should have played it safe with 285-290, but not big deal. I missed on 295lb.

Deadlift
Warmups felt great. I took one set of tripes at 50% and the rest were singles. 480lb was speedy. 515lb was a 2.5lb meet PR and broke the NY State Raw 198 USAPL deadlift record of 500. 550lb was smooth as hell and probably the prettiest max deadlift I have ever done. I also used baby powder on my thighs for the first time during my last attempt. This was a 37.5lb meet PR and a 15lb gym PR...very big improvements!

After the meet had ended, I decided that I wanted to take 555lb for a ride in the warmup room. After some ammonia and the blaring of "Thunderstruck" in my earphones, I ripped it off the ground. It came up, and past the knees, up the thigh and then the impossible happened...I was stuck 2 inches from lockout. I kept pulling and felt like my insides were going to shoot out of my ass. Then I dropped it. Then I almost passed out. Then I took the camera back to look over the video and deleted it by accident. I was pretty pissed, but I learned a hugely valuable lesson. I was going to take rack pulls out of my program because I had never, not once, ever, missed a deadlift above the knees. I think I know to keep them in now.

Total
I went 8/9 and got a 1,230lb total for a 67lb meet PR. Can't really ask for more than that. According to the 100% RAW Classification chart, that puts me at Class I. Next stop Master, then one day...Elite!

Sheiko#32- W4 D2 (Last Training Day) Wednesday- 5/7/08

BW- 201.4lb (3 days out)

35 Minutes

1)Squat
(50%)195x3
(60%)235x3 x3
(70%)275(belt) x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)(ring between middle and ring finger)
(50%)150x3
(60%)175x3 x3
(70%)205x3 x2 x1

Notes: Very easy. Form felt solid all throughout.

I’ll be down to 200 the morning before the meet and cut water 12 hours out. 2 gallons is starting to go a lot easier now as well.

I got to train and grab lunch with another USAPL guy whose been competing for quite a while. Got some good advice about powerlifting in general. He also told me that the bars at the meet will have wider ring spacings, so my grip in the gym here will probably be around pinkies at the rings at the meet.

3 nights rest and I should be all set to go.

5/6/08- Tuesday- Recovery

60 Minute Full Body Relaxation Massage

Sheiko#32- W4 D1- 5/5/08

(1 Week Out)

BW- 201.8lb

45 Minutes

1)Bench Press (paused)(ring btw middle and ring finger)
(50%)150x3
(60%)175x3 x3
(70%)205x2 x2
(75%)220x1 x1 x1 x1

2)Deadlift
(50%)270x3
(60%)320x2 x2
(70%)375 (belt)x2 x2 x2 x2

3)Lever Crunch
10x8 x8


Notes: Easy workout today. Bench felt super easy and deadlifts felt pretty good. I don't think the deadlifts were as fast as last time, but that's probably fine...I'm not setting up for as big of a PR this time around.

Started today drinking 2 gallons of water up until 7PM Friday night.

I've messed with my attempts for the last time (I think). Here they are...

Squat- 350, 375, 400 (25lb meet/10lb gym PR)
Bench- 260, 280, 295 (20lb meet/5lb gym PR)
Deadlift- 480, 515, 550 (37.5lb meet/15lb gym PR)
Total- 1,245 (83lb meet/30lb gym PR)

In the other version, I was going to attempt to match my gym PRs in my second attempt, so that if I failed on the third, at least I would have a meet PR. After giving it some consideration and taking advice into account, I realized that I would be wasting precious energy by taking attempts so close together for my second and third. There is certainly more pressure this way, but I think that it makes more sense. I will smoke my openers, strain a little bit on my second attempts, and grind through my thirds.

I'm a bit anxious about screwing up a technicality on my third attempt and getting redlighted for it without another chance to take a crack at it, especially if the strength is there. But...I suppose this is just part of the risk that goes with it.

I expect to hit some big urination PRs over the next week.

-Matt

Sheiko#32- W3 D3- Friday- 5/2/08

1 Hour

1)Squat
(50%)195x3
(60%)235x3 x3
(70%)275x2 x2
(75%)295 (belt)x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)(ring btw middle and ring finger)
(50%)150x3
(60%)175x3
(70%)205x3 x3
(75%)220x2 x2 x2 x2

3)Lever Crunch
10x10 x10 x10


Notes: Squats didn't feel super easy, but bench felt excellent.

I got to bed at 6AM yesterday for reasons that were my own fault, so I need to get my ass back on track. I plan to get some serious rest come next week.

GPP/Active Recovery- Thursday- 5/1/08

1a)Prone Grip Pullups
Ultra Widex8 Medx7 Closex6

1b)Cable Adduct Ext Rotation
25x15 x15 x15

2a)DB Lateral Raise
30x15 x12 x9

2b)Seated DB Twisting Curl
30x8 25x8 x8


30 Minutes Treadmill


Notes: Feeling a bit tired. This is my last GPP day before the meet. I'm off to take a nap and then write my last college paper.

Sheiko#32- W3 D2- Wednesday- 4/30/08

BW- 202.8

1 Hour 15 Minutes

1)Bench Press (paused)(ring btw middle and ring finger)
(50%)150x3
(60%)175x3
(70%)205x3 x3
(80%)235x2 x2 x2 x2 x2

2)DB Flys
20x8 x8 x8 x8

3)Deadlift
(50%)270x3
(60%)320x3 x3
(70%)375(belt) x3 x3
(75%)400x2 x2 x2 x2 x2

4)Good Mornings
125x5 x5 x5 x5


PWO Contrast Shower- 15s/60s x3

Notes: Benching felt awesome today. I found a sweet spot with the rings right between my middle and ring finger and reps were all fast as hell.

Deadlift felt a little slow, but this is normal at this part in the cycle. I reviewed my training log from the last time I was on this part of the program, and it felt the same way...bench felt great and deadlift was a little slow.

Everything here on out is easy. I'm officially done with classes (forever) and I've just got 2 papers left to write and a final exam Monday and I'm all done. Recovery should be quite well considering that my outside stress levels will have gone done dramatically. I can't wait to get back to NYC and start training people again. I'm most of my free time devouring training and business info right now. :-)

-Matt

Tuesday- 4/28/08- GPP/Active Recovery

Bodyweight- 200.3lb

1a)Wide Grip Pullups
BWx10 x8 x6

1b)Abducted Cable Ext Rotation
30x12 x12 x10

1c)Cable Lateral Raise
30x10 x8 x7

2a)DB Hammer Curl
35x8 x6 30x10

2b)Side Lying Ext Rotation
15x10 x10 10x10


30 Minutes Incline Treadmill

Notes: Recovery is certainly being pushed. I'm feeling tired and a bit worn out, but I'm getting some more sleep at more reasonable hours.

My legs are generally feeling quite heavy, but I have tomorrow off since the schedule got pushed forward a little bit so that I could train Sunday.

Bodyweight is right on track. I'll probably keep to 200 or so and then just water load the week before, cutting off intake at 12 hours out. I've just been spacing out my meals more and making my occasional cheats a bit non-existent.

-Matt

Sheiko#32- W3 D1- Monday- 4/27/08

(2 Weeks Out)

1 Hour 10 Minutes

1)Squat
(50%)195x3
(60%)235x3
(70%)275 (belt)x3 x3
(80%)310x2 x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)175x3
(70%)205 (wraps)x3 x3
(80%)235x2 x2
(85%)250x1 x1 x1

3)DB Flys
20x8 x8 x8 x8

4)Ab Roller (on knees)
BWx10 x10 x10


Notes: Finally got to train out at Cressey's place again (only the 2nd time this year) because I had a ride out. Was nice to train with some bars that had knurling and not have to put a blanket up in front of the mirror (since there are none anyway).

Squats felt fine considering I did 6x3 with the same load 2 days ago. Bench felt pretty decent as well. Technique is a little off on the latter.

I believe I was the first person to ever do DB Flys at Cressey Performance, and I'll probably be the last. :-)

-Matt

Sheiko#32- W2 D3- Friday- 4/25/08

1 Hour 50 Minutes

1)Bench Press (middle finger on ring)(paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)175x3
(70%)205 (wraps)x3 x3
(80%)235x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Squat
(50%)195x3
(60%)235x3 x3
(70%)275 (belt)x3 x3
(80%)310x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)Bench Press (same as above)
(50%)150x4
(60%)175x4
(70%)205x4 x4 x4 x4

4)DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Good Mornings
125x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Recovery- Contrast Showers- 20s/60s x4


Notes: Squats were pretty difficult today. Stress at the end of the school year because of being 1 credit short of graduation, combined with not great quality sleep due to allergies has been taking an effect. My knees were actually sore before the workout.

Bench felt pretty good. I think I might actually be stronger while letting my wrists cock back a little bit. I'm not sure why this is, but it feels more stable then when I try to keep my wrists straight the entire time. Maybe it makes sense to move back to this style just for the meet and then practice the "right way" afterwards. Not really sure.

-Matt

4/24/08- Thursday- GPP/Recovery

30 Minutes incline treadmill

1a)Neutral Close Grip Pullups
BWx8 x6 x6 x4 (far from failure)

1b)1-Arm Cable Lateral Raise
30x10 x10 x8

1c)Cable Ext Rotation
25x10 x10 x10

2a)Seated DB Twisting Curl
30x10 x8 x6

2b)VMO Ext Rotation
15x12 x12 x8

Foam rolling lower body

Notes: Went on a trip today with one of my classes to see some cadavers. Holding a human brain, heart, and other organs kind of puts things in perspective. Pretty amazing stuff.

Sheiko#32- W2 D2- Wednesday- 4/23/08

1 Hour 35 Minutes

1)Deadlift To Knees
(50%)270x3
(60%)320x2 x2
(65%)350x2 x2
(70%)375 (belt)x1 x1 x1

2)Bench Press (ring fingers on rings)(paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)175x3
(70%)205x3 x3
(80%)235x3 x3
(85%)250x2 x2 x2

3)DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Deadlift
(50%)270x3
(60%)320x3
(70%)375 (belt)x3 x3
(80%)430x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

5)Lever Crunch
10x10 x10 x10

Contrast Shower- 20s/60s x3 (cold/hot)

Notes: Training felt pretty good today. The bench definitely felt a bit narrower but I felt more stable in the bottom. Not sure if there was a strength drop-off as a result though. I think I’ll stick with the grip for one or two more sessions to see how it feels.

Deadlift felt good, and I felt like I was using more leg than usual. I think I may be getting some more quad strength from the heeled shoes as well.

-Matt

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NWpNUkWFUw

4/22/08- Tuesday- GPP/Recovery

1a)Pullups
BWx6 x6 x6 x6

1b)Side Lying Ext Rotation
15x10 x10 x10 x10

1c)DB Lateral Raise
3 sets

2a)Seated DB Hammer Curl
30x10 x8 x6

2b)Prone Single Arm 3 Pt. Trap Raise
3 sets

Foam Rolling Lower Body

35 Minutes treadmill (easy)

Notes: Was tired today, legs especially.

I'm going to have a hell of a time fitting in tomorrow's workout.

Sheiko#32- W2 D1- Monday- 4/21/08

(3 Weeks Out) BW- 205lb

1 Hour 35 Minutes

1)Squats
(50%)195x3
(60%)235x3 x3
(70%)275 (belt) x3 x3
(80%)310x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (played with different grips)(paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)175x3
(70%)205x3 x3
(80%)235x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Squats
(55%)215x3
(65%)255x3 x3
(75%)295 (belt)x3 x3 x3 x3


Recovery- Contrast Shower- 15s/60s x3 (cold/hot)


Notes: Interesting day today. I'm still in overreaching mode, so nothing felt too easy for sure.

On squats, I've been experiencing with getting my hands in closer as per the advice of a powerlifting coach whose been giving me feedback on my videos. Rather than middle finger on the rings, I've moved into pinky fingers on the rings, and it's keeping me a lot tighter and creating more of the upper back shelf. My elbows are now almost completely pointed down...I think the problem with the slightly wider grip is that it wasn't really pushing my flexibility so I felt like I'd have to "hold the bar up" if I pointed the elbows down.

I experimented with my Bench width a little bit. I used to use ring finger on the ring, and for some reason, I realized that I've been using middle finger on the ring recently. I'm not sure how long ago I started doing this, but I think it certainly may have contributed to a lack of tightness in the bottom and a little instability. I'm going to play with this and see what feels comfortable and strongest.

-Matt

Sheiko#32- W1 D3- Friday- 4/18/08

1 Hour 20 Minutes

1)Squat
(50%)195x3
(60%)235x3 x3
(70%)275 (belt)x3 x3
(75%)295x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press
(55%)160x3
(65%)190 (wrist wraps)x3 x3
(75%)220x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Good Mornings
125x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

5)Lever Crunch
10x10 x10 x10


Notes: Weights didn't move super fast today, but I think that's to be expected after working up to 95% 2 days ago.

The guy whose state deadlift record I'm going for is apparently going to be at the meet, so it should be fun to face off with him. He's got about 80lbs on my squat and 70lbs on my bench, so I clearly won't have him in those or the total, haha.

-Matt

4/17/08- Thurs- Active Recovery/GPP

40 Minutes Incline Treadmill

Notes: Didn't have time to do my other assitance stuff, I'll have to make it up tomorrow.

Sheiko#32- W1 D2- Wednesday- 4/16/08

SKILLS EVALUATION

Bodyweight 201.8lb

2 Hours

1)Squat
(50%)195x3
(60%)235x3 x3
(70%)275 (belt)x2 x2
(80%)310x2 (lost groove on first)
(90%)350x1
(95%)370x1 (depth was right on the border)

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x3
(60%)175 (wraps on)x3 x3
(70%)205x2 x2
(80%)235x2
(90%)265x1
(95%)280x1 (form was terrible...lost my lat tightness, flared early, and uneven press)

3)Deadlifts
(50%)270x3
(60%)320x2
(70%)375 (belt) x2 x2
(80%)430x1
(90%)480x1
(95%)510x1

Contrast Showers- 20s/60s x3 (cold/hot)

Notes: Things didn’t go exactly as I’d hoped today. Bodyweight was pretty much on target, and I even had some ice cream last night to make sure I wasn’t too light.

Squats were done for the second time with a blanket in front of the mirror. At 80%, I lost my balance a little on one of the reps and it wasn’t too smooth. When I worked up to 370, the depth was probably borderline and possibly questionable. If anyone wants to chime in, that’d be great.

Bench press went beautifully up until my 95% set. I think I was being lazy with my lats and I flared the hell out of the bar, started pressing unevenly and made the lift slowly and ugly. My left shoulder almost gave out, it was very strange and I’m not exactly sure why it happened.

Deadlifts felt fine, and I’m definitely using my legs more at the start which is good.

I might have to take these down 5-10lbs for my openers (at least on squat and bench) just to be safe. These weren’t as fast as my 95% during the last cycle, but I had also just gone through 8 weeks of Sheiko instead of 4, so it’s understandable.

Sheiko#32- W1 D1- Monday- 4/14/08

(4 Weeks Out)

1 Hour

1)Squats
(50%)195x3
(60%)235x3
(70%)275 (belt)x2 x2
(75%)295x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)175x4
(70%)205 (wrist wraps)x3 x3
(75%)220x2 x2 x2

3)Flat DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10

4)Lever Crunch
10x10 x10 x10


Notes: Easy session today (of course). I hung a blanket up on the rack today to cover the mirror for a better sense of simulating the meet environment. I videoed the sets and I hit depth pretty consistently and was consistent with form as well. I might make this a regular practice. At the suggestion of a powerlifting coach, I took more time with my squats and it felt pretty good.

1 more day until Skills Evaluation and I'll have a better idea of where I stand.

-Matt

Sheiko#37- W4 D3- 4/11/08- Friday

1 Hour 30 Minutes

1)Squat
(50%)195x5
(60%)235x4
(70%)275 (belt)x3 x3
(80%)310x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Close Grip Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)175x5
(70%)205x5 (wrist wrap)x5 x5 x5 x5

3)Slight Incline DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Dips
BWx8 x8 x8 x8 x8

5)Good Mornings
125x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Notes: Squats were pretty good today...Sank them all damn deep. Squatting in front of mirrors is really starting to get on my nerves.

Benching felt strong too.

4/9/08- Thursday- GPP/Active Recovery

Foam rolling lower body

1a)Wide Neutral Grip Pullup
BWx10 x7 (close grip)x6

1b)Band Pushdowns
lightx20 x20 x20 x20

1c)Cable Ext Rotation
35x12 x12 x10 30x12

2a)DB Lateral Raise
30x15 x8 x10

2b)TKE
lightx15 x15 x15

2c)Seated DB Twisting Curl
30x10 x8 x6

2d)3 Point Stance DB lower trap raise
15x10 x10 x10


45 Minutes incline treadmill walking

Sheiko#37- W4 D2- 4/9/08- Wednesday

2 Hours

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)175x4
(70%)205 (wrist wraps)x3 x3
(80%)235x3 x3
(85%)250x2 x2 x2

2)Deadlift
(50%)270x4
(60%)320x4
(70%)375 (belt on)x3 x3
(80%)430x3 x3
(85%)455x2 x2 x2

3)Bench Press (paused)
(55%)160x5
(65%)190 (wrist wraps)x5
(75%)220x4 x4 x4 x4

4)Slight Incline DB Fly
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Static DB Lunges
40x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Recovery- Contrast shower- cold/hot 20s/60s x 3

Notes: Benching felt pretty strong today for the most part.

I definitely wasn’t sinking my ass on deadlifts enough and I was using my back a bit much.

I need to get my mind right. For some reason, I’m having trouble focusing in training and I keep thinking about/worrying about injuries. My left oblique was particularly sore from decline crunches yesterday and I kept worrying that I was going to have a hernia. I kept worrying about my back, and I’ve been worrying about my knees. I honestly think it’s just me being neurotic, I’m just not sure why it’s creeping into my mind. I’ll work through it.

4/7/08- Tuesday- GPP/Active Recovery

4/7/08- Tuesday- GPP/Active Recovery

1a)Wide Grip Pullups
BWx10 x8 x6 x6

1b)Decline Situp
BWx10 x10 x10

1c)VMO Ext Rotation
20x12 x12 x12 x12

1d)Bulgarian Split Squat
BWx8 x5 x5

2a)DB Hammer Curl
35x10 x8 x6

2b)45 Degree Prone Y Raise
15x10 10x12 x12

2c)DB Lateral Raise
30x8 20x10

45 Minutes Incline Treadmill Walking (low incline and low intensity)

Foam Rolling lower body

Sheiko#37- W4 D1- Monday- 4/7/08

(5 Weeks Out)

1 Hour 45 Minutes

1)Squat
(50%)195x5
(60%)235x4
(70%)275 (Belt on) x3 x3
(80%)310x3 x3
(85%)330x2 x2 x2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrTgUSvzTH4

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)175x4
(70%)205x3 x3
(80%)235x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

3)Flat DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Dips
BWx8 x8 x8 x8 x8

5)Squat
(50%)195x5
(60%)235x4
(70%)275 (belt) x3 x3
(80%)310x2 x2 x2 x2

6)Good Mornings
125x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Recovery- Contrast Shower- 15s/60s (cold/hot) x 4

Notes: I realized that one of my wrist wraps had dropped out of my bag at home, so this made things more difficult than I would have expected. On the first round of squats, I tried to keep my wrists straight, and this led to a bar position a good half inch or an inch higher than normal. Most of the reps were overly slow on the first round of squats as a result. I thought that perhaps I was just weak today, but on the second round of squats I moved the bar to my normal position and the reps were MUCH easier.

Bench felt strong, and I’m getting the hang of keeping my wrists straighter.

I’m pretty sure that with my normal bar position, the heavier squats would have been quite a bit easier.

Sheiko#37- W3 D3- Friday- 4/4/08

1 Hour 35 Minutes

1)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x5
(60%)175x4
(70%)205 (wrist wraps on) x3 x3
(80%)235x2 x2 x2 x2 x2

2)Squat
(50%)195x5
(60%)235x5
(70%)275 (belt)x5 x5
(75%)295x4 x4 x4 x4 x4

3)Close Grip Bench Press (paused- pinkies on rings)(no wraps)
(50%)150x6
(60%)175x6 x6
(65%)190x6 x6 x6 x6

4)Flat DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Good Mornings
125x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


*60 Minute full body massage before training


Notes: Might not be a good idea to get the massage before training. I've done it before, and I feel like it actually makes me a little less stable in training because I'm used to a certain tightness in my muscles that ends up not being there.

Bench groove felt a little off as did squats, but I'm sure part of it is due to the higher volume of this week's training.

-Matt

Sheiko#37- W3 D2- Wednesday- 4/2/08

1 Hour 50 Minutes

1)Deadlift to Knees
(50%)270x4
(60%)320x4
(70%)375 (belt on)x4 x4
(75%)400x4 x4 x4 x4

2)Bench Press
(50%)150x6
(60%)175x5
(70%)205x4 x4
(75%)220x3 x3 (wrist wraps on)**
(80%)235x2 x2
(75%)220x3 x3
(70%)205x4
(65%)190 (wraps off) x5
(60%)175x6
(55%)160x7
(50%)150x8

3)Slight Incline DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Rack Deadlifts (3" below knees- 3rd pin from bottom + aerobic step)
(60%)320x5
(70%)375 (belt) x5 x5
(80%)430x4 x4 x4 x4

5)DB Static Lunges
40x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Recovery: Contrast shower (cold/hot) 15s/45s x4


Notes: **Today was the first day since last summer when I was able to bench anything over 135 without pain in my left "arthritic" wrist. At the suggestion of some of you guys and others, I've been working on keeping the wrists straighter rather than letting them get cocked back, and apparently this has been helping. Usually I use wrist wraps on every set, so I don't even bother noting it in my logs. I'll continue to work back into not using them for most sets....slowly, though.

Everything felt strong today.

Elbows were a little sore, but nothing I haven't felt before.

-Matt

4/1/08- Tuesday- GPP/Recovery

1a)Pullups (wide grip)
BWx10 x8 x6 x6

1b)DB Lateral Raise
25x15 x12 x10

1c)VMO Ext Rotation
20x10 x12 x10 15x12

2a)DB Hammer Curl
30x12 x10 x8

2b)45 Degree Prone Back Raise
15x10 x12 x12

Foam Rolling lower body

(2.5 Hours later)

45 Minutes incline treadmill

Sheiko#37- W3 D1- Monday- 3/31/08

2 Hours 15 Minutes

1)Squat
(50%)195x5
(60%)235x4 x4
(70%)275 (belt) x3 x3
(80%)310x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Bench Press
(50%)150x5
(60%)175x4
(70%)205x4 x4 (supposed to be 3s)
(80%)235x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 (extra set by accident)

3)Flat DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Pushups
BWx10 x10 x10 x10 x10

5)Squat
(50%)195x5
(60%)235x5
(70%)275 (belt)x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

6)Good Mornings
125x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Recovery- Contrast Shower 20s/60s (cold/hot) x4

Notes: First time using Rehbands today, and goddamn they feel like magic. I think they cause my core body temp to rise in addition to the elbows and knees. Definitely felt less soreness because of them.

Today was pretty big in volume, but I felt decently strong throughout. Was showing a MMA friend some stuff in the gym, so it cut into my rest a little bit, and I wasn’t quite as focused. Did an extra bench set and whatnot. I’ve been starving after.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yW1n5HTZPA

Sheiko#37- W2 D3- Friday- 3/28/09

(7 Weeks Out)

2 Hours 10 Minutes

1)Squat (Nike Frees)
(50%)195x4
(60%)235x4
(70%)275x3 (belt) x3
(75%)295x3 x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)150x6
(60%)177x5
(70%)205x4 x4
(75%)220x3 x3
(80%)235x2 x2
(75%)220x4
(70%)205x4 (forgot a rep)
(60%)175x6
(50%)150x7

3)Flat DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Cable Pushdowns
50x10 x10 60x10 x10 x10

5)Squat (Nike Frees)
(55%)215x3
(65%)255x3
(75%)295x2 x2 x2 x2

6)Good Mornings
125x5 x5 x5 x5 x5

Recovery- 20s/60s x3 (cold/hot) contrast shower

Notes: Lumbar erectors started feeling very sore once I began the squats. Residual soreness left over from Wednesdays workout no doubt...just strange that I didn't feel it until I started squatting. Squats didn't move too fast, but the bench felt fine. Made an effort to straighten my wrists a little more than usual.

Decided to take a little posing video to have a gauge for my bf levels and overall physique. Sometime within the next few months, I'll be making a concerted effort to improve body composition as I reenter personal training and begin auditioning.

-Matt

3/27/08- Wed- GPP/Recovery

Lower Body Foam Rolling

1a)Seated DB Twisting Curl
30x12 x10 x8

1b)VMO External Rotation
20x12 x10 x8

1c)45 Degree Prone DB Raises
10x15 15x12 x12 x10

2a)Side Lying Ext Rotation
15x10 x10

2b)DB Lateral Raise
25x12 12

40 Minutes incline treadmill walking (relatively low intensity)

Sheiko#37- W2 D2- 3/26/08- Wed

1 Hour 50 Minutes

1)Deadlift to Knees
(50%)270x4
(60%)320x4 x4
(70%)375x4 x4 x4 x4

2)Close Grip Bench Press (paused/pinkies on rings)
(50%)150x5
(60%)175x5 x5
(70%)205x4 x4 x4 x4 x4

3)Flat DB Flys
20x10 x10 x10 x10 x10

4)Deadlift
(50%)270x4
(60%)320x4
(70%)375(belt)x3 x3
(75%)400x3 x3 x3 x3 x3

5)DB Static Lunge
40x5 x5 x5 x5 x5


Recovery: Contrast Shower- 20s Cold/60s Hot x 4

Notes: Elbows were throbbing a bit for most of the workout. As a results, I probably didn't need to be doing close grip bench, especially since it wasn't in the program, but I went through with it anyway. The Rehband elbow and knee sleeves should be in by tomorrow...I'm excited.

I've been doing my best on my lighter deadlift sets, to keep the form very strict, as long as possible. As in, no spinal flexion. This is obviously not possible with the heavier weights or under fatigue.

-Matt

3/25/08- Tuesday- Recovery/GPP

Foam Rolling

45 Minutes Incline Treadmill

1a)Wide Neutral Grip Pullups
BWx12 x9 x8

1b)Cable Ext Rotation
35x12 x12 x12

1c)Band Pushdown
lightx25 x20 x15

2a)DB Lateral Raise
35x10 x12 x12 25x12

2b)DB Standing Ext Rotation
20x10 15x10 x8

2c)DB Hammer Curls
25x10 x8 30x10

2d)Terminal Knee Extensions (band)
lightx15 x12 x15


Notes: I need to start getting better with sleep. I'm generally getting 7 hours a night, but I'm still going to bed way too late when there's really no need to. I only ever have 1 cup of coffee or 1 caffeinated drink a day, but I needed half a Redline after my morning cup of coffee to get "up" for the gym.