Frank (5/18): RTS, Volume 3, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225, 1x255
3x285 @ 10-
3x285 @ 10
3x285 @ 9+
3x285 @ 10


Cable Row: 4x8 @ 220
Dumbbell Incline Bench: 4x8 @ 90
JM Press: 2x8 @ 95
Dumbbell Curl: 2x6 @ 50
Tricep Pushdown: 2x10 @ 80
Hercules Cable Curl: 2x10 @ 70
Yes: 2x20 @ 80
Yow, that's a lot of volume, but most of it was with fru-fru exercises, so it doesn't count.

Frank (5/11): RTS, Volume 2, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225, 1x255
2x285 @ 9
2x285 @ 9
2x285 @ 9+
2x285 @ 9+
2x285 @ 10-
2x285 @ 10-

Cable Row: 4x8 @ 220
Dumbbell Incline Bench: 4x8 @ 90
Dumbbell Curl: 2x7 @ 50
Hercules Cable Curl: 2x10 @ 70
Sprints: 8x55m

Frank (5/4): RTS, Volume 1, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225
4x270 @ 9
4x270 @ 9+
4x270 @ 9+
4x270 @ 9+
4x270 @ 10

Cable Row: 4x8 @ 220
Dumbbell Incline Bench: 8, 8, 8, 6 @ 90
Dumbbell Curl: 2x6 @ 50
Hercules Cable Curl: 2x10 @ 80

My plan will be as follows:
Friday: Bench, Bench Assistance, Biceps
Sunday: Squat, Squat Assistance
Monday: Press, Lockout Assistance, Triceps
Wednesday: Deadlift, More Squatting, Abs

For the main lifts, I will do 3 weeks of volume (4s, 2s, 3s) and 3 weeks of intensity (singles, doubles, or triples, depending on how I feel), except for squatting, where I will be doing volume on Wednesdays and progressively heavier triples on Sunday, but multiple sets.  This is primarily because I'm changing my technique and want to get in both volume and heavy work right away, though "heavy" is relative (starting at 365/375 this Sunday).

Frank (4/23): RTS, Intensity 3, Full Bro

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225, 1x275
1x295
1x315
FUCK YES.  This was smooth and relatively fast.  I didn't pause it for very long, if at all, though.  Other than that, my form was rock solid.
0.99x325
I got this quickly off my chest but stalled, as usual, about 2/3 of the way up.  JC says he didn't give any help, but hands on the bar mean no lift for me, so this was a no go, but I'm sure I'll get it next time.

Q 4/19/12 Bench

Haven't been posting in a while, because I've been training with Andrey and he already has everything written down in a notebook.
But for some reason, my phone cannot receive his texts for my plan, so I did my own thing today.
Bench:
185lbs
x5 @9
x3.5 @F. Changed bench
x4.5 @F.
I need to pay attention to have a good bar path.

Dumbbell Fly:
40lbs x8 x3

Assisted muscle ups:
5 x3
Used 4 steps + the platform.

Messed with front lever and dip variations.

Frank (4/16): RTS, Intensity 2, Bench

Bench
5x45, 5x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225, 1x275
1x295 @ 9
1x300 @ 10-
Surprisingly easy.  Andrey said that my arms tremble when I do heavy bench, which means I need to do more direct arm work.  Time to pump up those guns.

Cable Row: 4x8 @ 220
Dumbbell Incline Bench: 4x8 @ 85
Dumbbell Curl: 2x6 @ 50
"Hercules" Cable Curl: 12x60, 10x80
I have no idea what these are really called, but that's what JC calls them, so that name works for me.

Sprints: 8x50m
I contemplated skipping conditioning for the next two weeks as I work up to heavy singles, but that would leave me with only 5 out of 7 weeks with conditioning, which I don't think is enough.  I did shorten the distance, but I increased the speed.  On balance, I don't know what sort of effect this will have.

Frank (4/9): RTS, Intensity 1, Bench

My shoulders, elbows, and wrists felt all achey today.  Training today also sucked, which was probably a side effect of too little food and sleep and too much stress.

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225, 1x275
1x295 @ F
1x295 @ 10
8x225
8x225
My left elbow flares too early.  The bar also fell out of the groove on the second single.

Cable Row: 4x8 @ 220
Dumbbell Incline Bench: 4x8 @ 85
Dumbbell Curl: 2x6 @ 50
I was going to do some intervals, but my Achilles tendons were kind of painful.  I probably pushed the sprinting a little too hard on the past two weeks.

If training continues to suck, I may consider taking an unplanned week off to recover.

Frank (4/2): RTS, Volume 3, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225
3x275 @ 10-
3x275 @ 9
3x275 @ 9-
3x275 @ 10
I got a bad handoff on the first set (I forgive you, Paul). On the second and third set, I took Andrey's advice to push the bar toward my head on the way up and use more leg drive, which really helped. On the fourth set, the bar came down unevenly on each rep (I flared my left elbow), which made it awkward and very hard. I was contemplating a fifth since I thought the fourth set was hard mainly because of poor technique but eventually decided to pass.

Cable Row: 4x8 @ 220
Dumbbell Incline Bench: 4x8 @ 85
Dumbbell Curl: 2x6 @ 50
"Sprints": 4x200m
Ugh. My legs felt like lead today.

Dee: 3/28

Wed:
Amped warmup
Kneeling jump medball throws: 6x3@12lbs
Bench: 45x5, 65x5, 75x3, 85x3, 95x3, 105x3
Prowler: 4x60m@+50lbs, 90s rest between trips, low grips down, high grips back
Time: 50 mins

Not enough time for my assistance, I need to get better about that. Prowler destroyed my quads. I wonder if that's related to the medball-jump-throws.

Frank (3/26): RTS, Volume 2, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225
2x275 @ 9+
2x275 @ 9+
2x275 @ 9
2x275 @ 9
2x275 @ 9
2x275 @ 9+
I played with my technique a little bit for the first two sets (lower arch, feet more forward and further apart), but reverted to the form that Carlos taught me for the last four sets. Andrey noted that I hardly have any leg drive, which has been a problem for me for a long time.

Dumbbell Incline Bench: 3x8 @ 85
Cable Row: 3x8 @ 220
Pec Deck: 3x10 @ 160
Dumbbell Curl: 2x6 @ 50
"Sprints": 4x200m

Frank (3/19): RTS, Volume 1, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225
4x265 @ 10
3x265 @ 10
4x245 @ 8+
4x245 @ 8+
4x245 @ 9
4x255 @ 9
I moved my grip in a bit for everything up until the first working set (pinkies on rings instead of ring finger on rings). It felt a little unnatural. Benching overall felt completely awful, and I knew I wouldn't be able to finish my second set, so I bumped everything down a bit, then back up. My last set was my best by far, so I'll chalk up today's performance to a lack of focus.

Cable Row: 3x8 @ 200
Dumbbell Incline Bench: 3x8 @ 85
Pec Deck: 3x10 @ 120
Dumbbell Curl: 2x6 @ 50

Then I went to the track and did some conditioning. Most of the articles I've read about conditioning for powerlifting basically say to (1) not go too hard, (2) do it 2 to 3 times per week, and (3) never before a squat or deadlift day. For now, I'm basically flying blind, though, so any advice would be appreciated. Today was intervals, which for me was alternating between 200m at a walk and 200m at a fast amble, four times.

Intervals: 4x200+200 (no idea how to log this)

Frank (2/27): RTS, Intensity 1, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225, 1x275
1x295 @ 9+
1x295 @ 9+
1x295 @ 10
5x225
5x225
Warmup sets felt a little odd today, as if I were already fatigued. The singles were solid, though, except for the first one, which I lost a little toward my belly before pushing it back onto the proper path. All reps paused, but I should get someone to give me a press command next time (might be too late for that).

Cable Row: 3x8 @ 200
Military Press: 3x8 @ 135

Frank (2/21): RTS, Volume 3, Bench

I switched around my bench and lockout days. I should have done that at the beginning of this cycle.

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225, 1x255
3x280 @ 10-
3x280 @ 10

Incline Bench
5x45, 5x95, 5x135, 3x185
3x225 @ 10-
3x225 @ 10

Cable Row: 4x8 @ 200
Pec Deck: 4x10 @ 120
Dumbbell Curl: 2x5 @ 50

Long day at work after a long weekend where I traveled. On a scale of 1 to 10 where 10 is great and 7 is average (grade inflation, y'know), today was around a 3. At least I didn't fail anything.

Frank (2/16): RTS, Volume 2, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225
2x280 @ 8+
2x280 @ 9-
2x280 @ 9
2x280 @ 9+
2x280 @ 9+

Incline Bench
5x45, 5x95, 5x135, 3x185
2x225 @ 8
2x225 @ 8
2x225 @ 8+
2x225 @ 9-

Cable Row: 4x8 @ 200
Pec Deck: 4x10 @ 120
Dumbbell Curl: 2x5 @ 50

I'll be away for the long weekend but will try to catch a training session on Sunday regardless.

Frank (2/9): RTS, Volume 1, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225
4x265 @ 8+
4x265 @ 8+
4x265 @ 9-
4x265 @ 9
4x265 @ 9+
I flared too early on the last rep of the last set and lost some tightness in my shoulders, which felt a little weird, but the rest were fine. The last rep of every set was a bit slow but perfectly doable.

Incline Bench
5x45, 5x95, 5x135, 3x185
3x225 @ F
4x205 @ 8
4x205 @ 8
4x205 @ 8
4x205 @ 9
It's been a while since I've done these. For the first set, I brought the bar too low on my chest, which made it really hard to press it back up. Apparently, it's more natural for the bar to touch around where I touch on military presses, which is right at the top of my chest.

Cable Row: 4x8 @ 200
Pec Deck: 2x10 @ 120, 2x10 @ 140
Dumbbell Curl: 2x5 @ 50

Also, I got my scale today and weighed myself before lifting and came in at 188. After lifting, I was 186.6. Yikes. I'll need to watch my diet if I want to compete at 181 (181.9, really) in March.

Frank (1/27): RTS, Intensity Week 3, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225, 1x275, 1x295
Fx315
Mark sat on my face as he tried to rescue me. I feel much closer to him now.
Fx315
Got it to about 3" from lockout, which is a few inches higher than my old sticking point, then failed. Very frustrating.
1x315 @ 10
Woohoo! I didn't pause, and my butt came off the bench a bit at my new sticking point, but I got it from A to B back to A. This has been a huge goal (and mental block) for me for a long time.

Cable Row: 2x8 @ 200
Seated Press: 2x8 @ 145
Cable Fly: 2x10 @ 60
Rear Delt Fly: 2x10 @ 100
Dumbbell Curl: 2x6 @ 50

Frank (1/20): RTS, Intensity Week 2, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225, 1x275
1x295 @ 9
1x295 @ 9
1x295 @ 10-

Cable Row: 3x8 @ 200
Seated Press: 3x8 @ 145
Cable Fly: 3x10 @ 60
Rear Delt Fly: 3x10 @ 100
Dumbbell Curl: 3x6 @ 60

Frank (1/13): RTS, Intensity Week 1, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225, 1x265
2x295 @ F
2x295 @ 10
8x225
I was going for a triple on the first set but got stuck on the third at my normal place. 3x295 would have put me comfortably in 3-plate territory. 2x2x295 is still within scratching distance. We'll see what happens in two weeks.

Cable Row: 4x8 @ 200
Seated Dumbbell Press: 3x8 @ 70
Cable Fly: 3x8 @ 60
Rear Delt Fly: 3x8 @ 100
Dumbbell Curl: 3x5 @ 50

Frank (1/6): RTS, Volume Week 3, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225
3x265 @ 8
3x265 @ 8
3x265 @ 8
3x265 @ 8+
3x265 @ 9-
3x265 @ 9+
My shoulders "popped" (hard to describe) and I lost the groove on the very last rep of the last set. I also paused the first rep of every triple.

Barbell Row
5x135, 5x185
5x225 @ 8
5x225 @ 8
5x225 @ 8
5x225 @ 8
5x225 @ 8

Seated Press: 3x8 @ 145
Cable Fly: 3x10 @ 60
Rear Delt Fly: 3x10 @ 120
Dumbbell Curl: 3x5 @ 50

Frank (12/29): RTS, Volume Week 2, Bench

Bench
10x45, 10x95, 5x135, 5x185, 3x225
2x265 @ 9
2x265 @ 8
2x265 @ 8
2x265 @ 8
2x265 @ 8
2x265 @ 9

Barbell Row
5x135, 5x185
5x225 @ 8
5x225 @ 8
5x225 @ 8
5x225 @ 8
5x225 @ 8

Seated Press: 3x8 @ 145
Cable Fly: 3x10 @ 60
Rear Delt Fly: 3x10 @ 110
Dumbbell Curl: 3x5 @ 50