Frank (9/5 and 9/6): Smolov Base Mesocycle, Week 1

Saturday (9/5)

I felt pretty good coming into this. Sleeping in Saturday morning probably helped.

Back Squat: 7x5@292
I always felt like I had a few more left in me, but these were still hard.

Speed Bench: 8x3@155
Military Press: 9@157
The last one was a real grinder. I'm usually able to get 8 at 155, so I was a little surprised at how heavy this one felt, but I'll chalk it up to fatigue from squats like the previous workouts.

Close-Grip Bench: 6, 6, 5 @225
There was no way I was going to get all 8, but I did manage a respectable number.

I actually felt pretty good after this session; I really think it is the higher reps that kills me. Of course, I felt so good that I went and did something stupid...I saw a free couch on the side of the road a little over half a mile from my apartment and thought it would be a good idea to move it back, by myself. The couch itself wasn't too heavy (100-150lbs, I would guess), but it was extremely unwieldy. I got it about half way home before I gave up, but by the end, my legs, back, and traps were fried.

Sunday (9/6)

I felt pretty crappy from yesterday's couch-moving session, but my plan said to go, so I went.

Back Squat: 10x3@310
This took me more than an hour to do because I rested so long between sets. There are no designated rest periods in Smolov, thankfully. Oddly enough, the later sets felt stronger than the first few.

Pullup: 4x6@65
Dumbbell Row: 5@120, 2x10@80
I swear I used to be able to do 120, but I couldn't do them this time without a significant amount of body English, so I went down to 80, which was stupidly light, but at least I was able to maintain proper form.