I weighed 180.6lbs this morning, so I risked eating some breakfast with sodium (for later rehydration) before hitching a ride with Andrey to the meet. At the meet, I weighed in at 82kgs exactly (180.8lbs).
Squat
190kgs (419lbs), good, pretty easy
207.5kgs (457lbs), no good, I pitched forward coming out of the hole
207.5kgs (457lbs), no good, my back angle was fine, and I got out of the hole, but couldn't finish
Bench
132.5kgs (292lbs), good, easy-ish
137.5kgs (303lbs), no good, lost it a few inches from lockout, I guess that means more tricep work
137.5kgs (303lbs), no good, lost it a few inches off my chest
Deadlift
265kgs (584lbs), good, pretty fast
290kgs (639lbs), no good, lost it a few inches above my knee, perhaps an inch from lockout
290kgs (639lbs), no good, it left the floor by about 2 inches, but I was too tired by then
So I thought my December 10 meet was bad. This one was worse! 3/9, which is just enough to not bomb out. I still managed to take first in my weight class, beating three other people, but that was mainly because they were quite a bit older, and hey, I'm not that weak.
Andrey did quite well. He squatted 190/205/220/225, benched 120/130/140, and deadlifted 240/255/265. He took first in the 90kg class, beating out 6 other people, some of whom were also in their lifting prime.
Anyway, one bad meet is a coincidence. Two bad meets (in a row!) means that I'm doing something seriously wrong with my training or meet prep. I think it's mostly the latter because my gym maxes have been good. Anyway, I'm going to eat (and sleep) for now and will follow up later with a list of what I think I'm doing wrong.
Showing posts with label meet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label meet. Show all posts
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Monday, December 12, 2011
Frank: USAPL Meet Report
So I think I'm going to start posting again. This is in large part because at the meet yesterday, I realized that most people in the New England powerlifting community still think I'm the go-to guy for MIT powerlifting, so I should at least help out. I'm not going to remove that original post, though. It never hurts to remind myself that I can act like a little bitch sometimes.
So, onward.
One thing I will change, though, is that I'll occasionally write longer posts about random lifting-related stuff (i.e. good cues for the lifts, programming variants, deadlifting, etc.). Feel free to comment, praise, or mock as you see fit.
Now for the meet report.
I went down to Johnston, RI with the Northeastern Powerlifting team coached by Mike Zawilinski. They have quite a large crew. I think around 15 people attended, about a third of whom were girls. Their president, Alex, said that that was a little less than half of the overall team. In any case, they're a great bunch to be around.
My lifting itself went pretty poorly. I actually wasn't feeling great by the time we arrived, so I dropped my openers by about 10-20 lbs each, depending on the lift.
Squat
185 kgs (407 lbs) - Missed when I lost tightness at the bottom and ended up doing something like a 1-1/4 squat. I actually completed the lift, but it was a bit of a grinder and took way more out of me than it should have.
185 kgs (407 lbs) - Got it. It was slow. This shouldn't be slow.
Passed on the third. I mainly wanted to get a total so I could compete at USAPL Raw Nationals next year.
Bench
125 kgs (275 lbs) - Got it. Nothing major.
132.5 kgs (292 lbs) - Failed half-way up.
132.5 kgs (292 lbs) - Failed again. Yikes.
Deadlift
255 kgs (562 lbs) - Got it.
275 kgs (606 lbs) - Got it. I faltered a bit at the top.
290 kgs (639 lbs) - Failed. It felt stapled to the ground.
My lifting was crap, but the overall meet experience was great. As with all meets, I made a bunch of new friends and met some old ones. I also saw some extremely impressive lifting, including a 207-pounder who lifted something like 550/385/730. The Northeastern team had a bit of a struggle at the meet as well, but I think they still did great overall.
The next USAPL meet is at the end of January, right at the end of IAP. I will add the entry form to the sidebar once I dig it out of my inbox.
So, onward.
One thing I will change, though, is that I'll occasionally write longer posts about random lifting-related stuff (i.e. good cues for the lifts, programming variants, deadlifting, etc.). Feel free to comment, praise, or mock as you see fit.
Now for the meet report.
I went down to Johnston, RI with the Northeastern Powerlifting team coached by Mike Zawilinski. They have quite a large crew. I think around 15 people attended, about a third of whom were girls. Their president, Alex, said that that was a little less than half of the overall team. In any case, they're a great bunch to be around.
My lifting itself went pretty poorly. I actually wasn't feeling great by the time we arrived, so I dropped my openers by about 10-20 lbs each, depending on the lift.
Squat
185 kgs (407 lbs) - Missed when I lost tightness at the bottom and ended up doing something like a 1-1/4 squat. I actually completed the lift, but it was a bit of a grinder and took way more out of me than it should have.
185 kgs (407 lbs) - Got it. It was slow. This shouldn't be slow.
Passed on the third. I mainly wanted to get a total so I could compete at USAPL Raw Nationals next year.
Bench
125 kgs (275 lbs) - Got it. Nothing major.
132.5 kgs (292 lbs) - Failed half-way up.
132.5 kgs (292 lbs) - Failed again. Yikes.
Deadlift
255 kgs (562 lbs) - Got it.
275 kgs (606 lbs) - Got it. I faltered a bit at the top.
290 kgs (639 lbs) - Failed. It felt stapled to the ground.
My lifting was crap, but the overall meet experience was great. As with all meets, I made a bunch of new friends and met some old ones. I also saw some extremely impressive lifting, including a 207-pounder who lifted something like 550/385/730. The Northeastern team had a bit of a struggle at the meet as well, but I think they still did great overall.
The next USAPL meet is at the end of January, right at the end of IAP. I will add the entry form to the sidebar once I dig it out of my inbox.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Frank (5/7): Meet Results, AAU Raw Nationals
The stars were semi-aligned today.
Squat
192.5 kgs (424.4 lbs) - 3 whites
Easy.
205 kgs (451.9 lbs) - 2 whites
I didn't actually realize I got a red until Ying told me well after the attempt itself. I suspect it's because I good-morninged it quite atrociously.
212.5 kgs (468.5 lbs) - 3 reds
This went straight down and stayed there.
Bench
130 kgs (286.6 lbs) - 3 whites
A little slow.
135 kgs (297.6 lbs) - 3 reds
Lost it at the same place as always (a few inches off the chest).
135 kgs (297.6 lbs) - 3 reds
Same thing.
Deadlift
255 kgs (562.2 lbs) - 3 whites
270 kgs (595.2 lbs) - 3 whites
285 kgs (628.3 lbs) - 3 whites
Same old. Same old. :)
My total was 620 kgs (1366.9 lbs), which is a healthy improvement over my last meet and the most I've ever totaled in a single day. I also set a squat meet PR, a bench meet PR in this fed (with the longer pauses), and an all-time deadlift PR. My third squat and bench attempts were long shots anyway, so this went about as well as I could have wanted without a miracle happening.
The rest of the gang did quite well. Xiao went 147.5/90/190 for a 427.5 total, Michael (Longfei) went 162.5/100/200 for a 462.5 total, and Sheng went 205/152.5/255 for a 612.5 total. Thanks also to Ying for coming along as photographer and moral support.
The competition for this meet was really great with over 40 competitors total across all weight classes (all raw). There were lots of amazing lifters, but two of the highlights were a 140+ guy who went roughly 730/460/710 (in lbs) for an enormous 1900+ raw total and an HBS professor(!) who went roughly 520/370/600 at 90. For those of you who didn't go...I think you missed out! This was definitely one of the best meets -- in terms of competition and atmosphere -- that I've been to.
Squat
192.5 kgs (424.4 lbs) - 3 whites
Easy.
205 kgs (451.9 lbs) - 2 whites
I didn't actually realize I got a red until Ying told me well after the attempt itself. I suspect it's because I good-morninged it quite atrociously.
212.5 kgs (468.5 lbs) - 3 reds
This went straight down and stayed there.
Bench
130 kgs (286.6 lbs) - 3 whites
A little slow.
135 kgs (297.6 lbs) - 3 reds
Lost it at the same place as always (a few inches off the chest).
135 kgs (297.6 lbs) - 3 reds
Same thing.
Deadlift
255 kgs (562.2 lbs) - 3 whites
270 kgs (595.2 lbs) - 3 whites
285 kgs (628.3 lbs) - 3 whites
Same old. Same old. :)
My total was 620 kgs (1366.9 lbs), which is a healthy improvement over my last meet and the most I've ever totaled in a single day. I also set a squat meet PR, a bench meet PR in this fed (with the longer pauses), and an all-time deadlift PR. My third squat and bench attempts were long shots anyway, so this went about as well as I could have wanted without a miracle happening.
The rest of the gang did quite well. Xiao went 147.5/90/190 for a 427.5 total, Michael (Longfei) went 162.5/100/200 for a 462.5 total, and Sheng went 205/152.5/255 for a 612.5 total. Thanks also to Ying for coming along as photographer and moral support.
The competition for this meet was really great with over 40 competitors total across all weight classes (all raw). There were lots of amazing lifters, but two of the highlights were a 140+ guy who went roughly 730/460/710 (in lbs) for an enormous 1900+ raw total and an HBS professor(!) who went roughly 520/370/600 at 90. For those of you who didn't go...I think you missed out! This was definitely one of the best meets -- in terms of competition and atmosphere -- that I've been to.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Saturday (2/5) Meet Prep
A couple other meet veterans and I will be at the Z at 3 PM this Saturday, February 5 in order to go over meet rules and commands so that the new people who are competing won't walk into the meet blind. I'm doing this primarily for the people who intend to compete on February 12 (Aaron, Keone, JC, Sheng, maybe Chris), but feel free to show up if you want to know what all of the hullabaloo is about.
Please post below if you're planning on showing up so I can figure out how many other veterans to try to rope into this.
Please post below if you're planning on showing up so I can figure out how many other veterans to try to rope into this.
Monday, June 14, 2010
Meet videos
Meet videos are in the process of uploading here. We only started taking videos somewhere in the second bench attempts. I think Perry has more videos?
It might take a couple hours for them to be live, though ... Oh, and shout out to Dee for taking the videos.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Frank (6/12): Meet Results
I weighed in at exactly 181. Hooray.
Back Squat
182.5 kgs - 402.3 lbs (3 whites)
Easy opener.
192.5 kgs - 424.4 lbs (2 whites, PR + 19.4 lbs, Meet PR + 38.6 lbs)
Didn't feel too hard.
202.5 kgs - 446.4 lbs (3 reds)
Stapled.
Bench Press
125 kgs - 275.6 lbs (3 whites)
Easy opener.
132.5 kgs - 292.1 lbs (3 reds)
Got it about half way up, then failed the lockout.
132.5 kgs - 292.1 lbs (3 reds)
Failed lockout again.
Deadlift
247.5 kgs - 545.6 lbs (3 whites)
Easy opener.
262.5 kgs - 578.7 lbs (3 whites)
Not too hard.
277.5 kgs - 611.8 lbs (3 whites, PR + 11 lbs)
Yeehaw. I had a little trouble locking it out at the top, but managed to square my shoulders somehow.
This gives me a 595 kg (1311.8 lb) total, which puts me comfortably in Masters territory at 181. The meet director actually initially missed my second squat in my total, so I originally came in at 585 kgs (1289.7 lbs), but I'm Masters regardless, which was my original goal. I'm happy about finally hitting a squat PR at a meet but a little less happy about my bench suckiness. I'll need to work on that.
Thanks to Shanker for giving me a ride to the meet and Gordon, Rene, and Shanker for some good lifting. Thanks to Dee and Nate for the ride back and Eric for giving some awesome handoffs. Eric gets a special round of kudos for being willing to help other lifters at the meet. Thanks also to Brian, Jon, and Perry for showing up and giving their support.
Shanker will probably post his results, but since Gordon and Rene probably won't post theirs, here are their results:
Gordon: 192.5 (424.4), 120 (264.6), 200 (440.9) for a 512.5 (1129.9) total.
Rene: 195 (429.9), 137.5 (303.1), 210 (463.0) for a 542.5 (1196.0) total.
I'm actually feeling a little woozy right now, probably from a combination of lifting and Joe's American Bar & Grill. That sounds like a good reason to rest for now, but I'll put up some more anecdotes as I remember them.
Back Squat
182.5 kgs - 402.3 lbs (3 whites)
Easy opener.
192.5 kgs - 424.4 lbs (2 whites, PR + 19.4 lbs, Meet PR + 38.6 lbs)
Didn't feel too hard.
202.5 kgs - 446.4 lbs (3 reds)
Stapled.
Bench Press
125 kgs - 275.6 lbs (3 whites)
Easy opener.
132.5 kgs - 292.1 lbs (3 reds)
Got it about half way up, then failed the lockout.
132.5 kgs - 292.1 lbs (3 reds)
Failed lockout again.
Deadlift
247.5 kgs - 545.6 lbs (3 whites)
Easy opener.
262.5 kgs - 578.7 lbs (3 whites)
Not too hard.
277.5 kgs - 611.8 lbs (3 whites, PR + 11 lbs)
Yeehaw. I had a little trouble locking it out at the top, but managed to square my shoulders somehow.
This gives me a 595 kg (1311.8 lb) total, which puts me comfortably in Masters territory at 181. The meet director actually initially missed my second squat in my total, so I originally came in at 585 kgs (1289.7 lbs), but I'm Masters regardless, which was my original goal. I'm happy about finally hitting a squat PR at a meet but a little less happy about my bench suckiness. I'll need to work on that.
Thanks to Shanker for giving me a ride to the meet and Gordon, Rene, and Shanker for some good lifting. Thanks to Dee and Nate for the ride back and Eric for giving some awesome handoffs. Eric gets a special round of kudos for being willing to help other lifters at the meet. Thanks also to Brian, Jon, and Perry for showing up and giving their support.
Shanker will probably post his results, but since Gordon and Rene probably won't post theirs, here are their results:
Gordon: 192.5 (424.4), 120 (264.6), 200 (440.9) for a 512.5 (1129.9) total.
Rene: 195 (429.9), 137.5 (303.1), 210 (463.0) for a 542.5 (1196.0) total.
I'm actually feeling a little woozy right now, probably from a combination of lifting and Joe's American Bar & Grill. That sounds like a good reason to rest for now, but I'll put up some more anecdotes as I remember them.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
Meet: AAU New England States
During the last meet, people expressed interest in going to the AAU New England States Championships. The meet is on Saturday, June 12 in Scituate, MA, at the Bay State Athletic Club, which was the location of our last meet in February. That meet was extremely well run, and I (and I'm sure the other lifters as well) highly recommend that anyone who can go, go.
The cost of the meet is $60. Those of you without AAU memberships will have to sign up for one, which costs about $40. The links are below.
AAU New England States Entry Form
AAU Membership Form
You will also need gear for the meet, so be sure to purchase it in advance. You will need a singlet, shoes for deadlifting (no socks, unfortunately...anyone with size M feet can use my deadlift slippers), and briefs (not boxers). Most of the other stuff they will either have there or we can share amongst the team.
Please post below or email me directly (frank.z.wu@gmail.com) if you would like to compete or attend as a guest. We will need a final headcount so that we can coordinate logistics and egg each other on in training =).
Current lineup
Dee
Frank
Gordon
Jon (who has no excuses)
Nate (as coach)
Rene
Shanker
The cost of the meet is $60. Those of you without AAU memberships will have to sign up for one, which costs about $40. The links are below.
AAU New England States Entry Form
AAU Membership Form
You will also need gear for the meet, so be sure to purchase it in advance. You will need a singlet, shoes for deadlifting (no socks, unfortunately...anyone with size M feet can use my deadlift slippers), and briefs (not boxers). Most of the other stuff they will either have there or we can share amongst the team.
Please post below or email me directly (frank.z.wu@gmail.com) if you would like to compete or attend as a guest. We will need a final headcount so that we can coordinate logistics and egg each other on in training =).
Current lineup
Dee
Frank
Gordon
Jon (who has no excuses)
Nate (as coach)
Rene
Shanker
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Potential Competitions
Hey guys,
I know a few of us expressed interest in doing another competition this year. I was thinking maybe early summer, although I heard some people that want to go sooner. Kik found this meet that's in the same location as our first one:
http://www.powerliftingwatch.com/powerlifting-meets/aau/2010/ne-states
I'm not sure if this is the same one (it has the same name?) from last year, but they got a pretty great turnout:
http://www.newenglandusapl.com/Results_files/2008%20USAPL%20NE%20States%20Meet%20Results.htm
Any other ideas? I'd like to get a rough timeframe if we are going to pick a meet, that way I can start planning. Plus I'm going to be doing a ton of traveling this summer so I need to make sure I don't schedule over it.
Thoughts?
I know a few of us expressed interest in doing another competition this year. I was thinking maybe early summer, although I heard some people that want to go sooner. Kik found this meet that's in the same location as our first one:
http://www.powerliftingwatch.com/powerlifting-meets/aau/2010/ne-states
I'm not sure if this is the same one (it has the same name?) from last year, but they got a pretty great turnout:
http://www.newenglandusapl.com/Results_files/2008%20USAPL%20NE%20States%20Meet%20Results.htm
Any other ideas? I'd like to get a rough timeframe if we are going to pick a meet, that way I can start planning. Plus I'm going to be doing a ton of traveling this summer so I need to make sure I don't schedule over it.
Thoughts?
Monday, March 1, 2010
HD videos from the Meet
Not sure how else to send these along, so I'll post them here and you can save the links. Jon has a nice little HD cam so these are high quality videos of the lifts.
The #'s don't correspond to your attempt#; it's just the way I organized them when I uploaded them. They are in order though, so 2 does come after 1... regardless of the attempt #. If you want to view it in HD the options are on the bottom right of the video player.
Dee: squat1, squat2, squat3, squat4
Frank: squat1, squat2, squat3, deadlift1, deadlift2, deadlift3, deadlift4 (!!!!!!!!!!)
Gordon: squat1, squat2, squat3, deadlift1, deadlift2, deadlift3
Jason: squat1, squat2, squat3, deadlift1, deadlift2
Kik: squat1, squat2, squat3, bench1, bench2, deadlift1, deadlift2, deadlift3
Kik has all the pics on his cam. He'll probably get picasa and upload them soon.
The #'s don't correspond to your attempt#; it's just the way I organized them when I uploaded them. They are in order though, so 2 does come after 1... regardless of the attempt #. If you want to view it in HD the options are on the bottom right of the video player.
Dee: squat1, squat2, squat3, squat4
Frank: squat1, squat2, squat3, deadlift1, deadlift2, deadlift3, deadlift4 (!!!!!!!!!!)
Gordon: squat1, squat2, squat3, deadlift1, deadlift2, deadlift3
Jason: squat1, squat2, squat3, deadlift1, deadlift2
Kik: squat1, squat2, squat3, bench1, bench2, deadlift1, deadlift2, deadlift3
Kik has all the pics on his cam. He'll probably get picasa and upload them soon.
Brian - 2/27 AAU Meet Report
The meet was this Saturday. I felt very prepared, rested, and ready to go. Goals for the day were 300 squat, 240 bench, and 400 deadlift.
I didn't even attempt to lose a single pound. I figured I would just eat like normal and I'd probably make my weight class. If I was over by a lot I didn't care enough, so I'd just compete in the next weight class and get crushed by frank.
I showed up with BW @ 165.5. Sighhh. I had socks and underwear on so I take off my socks and try to pee, but I couldn't. Then I step back on the scale and I see it flicker between 165.0 and 165.5. Bigger sighhhhhh.... who the hell uses a scale that rounds to 0.5 lbs for competition weigh ins? Anyway, I guess I exhaled enough and it stopped on 165.0. Yayyyyy 165 weight class.
I don't remember the exact kg #'s for each attempt except my best ones, so the others are round # in lbs.
Jon's HD videos are linked.
Squat;
275lbs (3 white) - video
*I was in the second flight so I got to watch the judges white light an entire flight of what we would call in the gym as "way too high." There was a lot of talk in the back of 'cut it higher than normal', esp since I go WAY to deep to begin with. Well, I had this on my mind during this squat and I misfired in the bottom trying to cut it high... and ended up going deeper than normal. Just a train wreck, but I gutted it out. Harder than it should have been...
291lbs (3 white) - video (+1 lb PR)
*I wanted to hit a solid # here so that I could go for my goal weight on my 3rd attempt with some confidence. Happy with this. Decided to neglect the entire 'cut it high' thought process and just squat whatever felt right. Still too deep but I decided to correct this in training and not change things during the meet.
297.5 (3 white) - video (+7.5 lb PR)
*Stupid kgs. Couldn't attempt 300, so it was either 297.5 or 303.5. I opted for the lower weight, but I'm still super satisfied with the result. I'm pumped to get back to training and work on my depth. I guess it's a better problem to be too deep than too high, cause I still get white lights for it! :)
Bench;
215lbs (2 white) - video
*I got a red light on this because a judge mis-understood a rule or something. He said that because I was holding the bar with the weight unracked and my butt in the air that it was a failed attempt.... even though I didn't start the lift until I put my butt down. Nathan talked to the judge and straighten it out. I got 2 white's anyway without that guy.
231.5lbs (3 white) - video (+1.5 lb PR)
*I notice that I have zero leg drive on these bench attempts. In the gym I think I have great leg drive and I recently fixed my technique so I don't lift my butt when I do it, but I think I was a bit paranoid that I'd f up a lift by raising my butt. Probably shouldn't have thought about it too much, but I still nailed this weight. Happy with it.
242.5 (3 red) - video
*Stupid kg's again. Couldn't attempt 240 so it was either 236ish or 242.5. I decided that I was happy with my 2nd attempt weight even if I didn't hit the third attempt, so I had room to be ambitious. Opted for 242.5 and failed.
Deadlift;
Wow, deadlift.
375lbs (3 white) - video
*Good start. After seeing the video I'm actually a little surprised at how little my back rounds compared to what I thought. I mean, I know I have it there on the upper weights, and I need to work on it a ton (as I have been), but the way pat and kik usually talk at the gym I thought it looked like I was wrapped around a wheel.
405lbs (3 white) - video (+2 lb PR)
*Nice to hit 5lbs over the goal on the 2nd attempt.
418.9lbs (3 white) - video (+15.9 lb PR)
*Never thought I had this in me. I was deciding between 413 and 418.9 after my 2nd attempt. I think I should have been deciding between 418.9 and 424. Either way, incredibly happy.
Total: 947.9
1st overall, 165 lb weight class
------------------------------------
So, overall I'm satisfied and motivated to improve on everything. It was fantastic having clearly defined goals with a set end date. Definitely helped my training. Setting 3PR's twice in 2 weeks is just great. I was also glad that they did an "overall" champion in each weight class because there was no one in junior 165 with me. This way, I got to beat someone! :)
Looking back, I would change my goals to #'s in kgs because I had a little trouble deciding on my third attempts due to the odd numbers. I'm about 30lbs away from Class I standard, and 130 away from Masters total. Those will be good short and long term overall goals. I need to talk to Kik about what we are going to do for our training from this point forward.
I wanted to say something about the atmosphere at the competition as well. It was seriously awesome. Everyone was so positive. Before my lifts there were multiple people who I never met that were giving me encouragement, and during the lifts nearly everyone yells and supports you. After the lift a few of the organizers that were sitting next to the platform would shake my hand and congratulate. One of them said after a deadlift "man, I don't envy you... you have to move the bar a mile!" I thought it was funny. When I was setting up on the bench for an attempt someone in the crowd said, "He's so.... lean!" It was like the nicer version of Danny's 'you're anorexic!'
Thanks to everyone involved. I couldn't have done it without training partners P,J,K, and advice from everyone in the gym (gordon, nathan, frank, dee, +others) and danny. Thanks also to Tab, Jon, Pat, and Eric for coming to support the team. I had an awesome time at the meet. We have a really fun group and I hope that we choose another meet a few months from now to do together.
I didn't even attempt to lose a single pound. I figured I would just eat like normal and I'd probably make my weight class. If I was over by a lot I didn't care enough, so I'd just compete in the next weight class and get crushed by frank.
I showed up with BW @ 165.5. Sighhh. I had socks and underwear on so I take off my socks and try to pee, but I couldn't. Then I step back on the scale and I see it flicker between 165.0 and 165.5. Bigger sighhhhhh.... who the hell uses a scale that rounds to 0.5 lbs for competition weigh ins? Anyway, I guess I exhaled enough and it stopped on 165.0. Yayyyyy 165 weight class.
I don't remember the exact kg #'s for each attempt except my best ones, so the others are round # in lbs.
Jon's HD videos are linked.
Squat;
275lbs (3 white) - video
*I was in the second flight so I got to watch the judges white light an entire flight of what we would call in the gym as "way too high." There was a lot of talk in the back of 'cut it higher than normal', esp since I go WAY to deep to begin with. Well, I had this on my mind during this squat and I misfired in the bottom trying to cut it high... and ended up going deeper than normal. Just a train wreck, but I gutted it out. Harder than it should have been...
291lbs (3 white) - video (+1 lb PR)
*I wanted to hit a solid # here so that I could go for my goal weight on my 3rd attempt with some confidence. Happy with this. Decided to neglect the entire 'cut it high' thought process and just squat whatever felt right. Still too deep but I decided to correct this in training and not change things during the meet.
297.5 (3 white) - video (+7.5 lb PR)
*Stupid kgs. Couldn't attempt 300, so it was either 297.5 or 303.5. I opted for the lower weight, but I'm still super satisfied with the result. I'm pumped to get back to training and work on my depth. I guess it's a better problem to be too deep than too high, cause I still get white lights for it! :)
Bench;
215lbs (2 white) - video
*I got a red light on this because a judge mis-understood a rule or something. He said that because I was holding the bar with the weight unracked and my butt in the air that it was a failed attempt.... even though I didn't start the lift until I put my butt down. Nathan talked to the judge and straighten it out. I got 2 white's anyway without that guy.
231.5lbs (3 white) - video (+1.5 lb PR)
*I notice that I have zero leg drive on these bench attempts. In the gym I think I have great leg drive and I recently fixed my technique so I don't lift my butt when I do it, but I think I was a bit paranoid that I'd f up a lift by raising my butt. Probably shouldn't have thought about it too much, but I still nailed this weight. Happy with it.
242.5 (3 red) - video
*Stupid kg's again. Couldn't attempt 240 so it was either 236ish or 242.5. I decided that I was happy with my 2nd attempt weight even if I didn't hit the third attempt, so I had room to be ambitious. Opted for 242.5 and failed.
Deadlift;
Wow, deadlift.
375lbs (3 white) - video
*Good start. After seeing the video I'm actually a little surprised at how little my back rounds compared to what I thought. I mean, I know I have it there on the upper weights, and I need to work on it a ton (as I have been), but the way pat and kik usually talk at the gym I thought it looked like I was wrapped around a wheel.
405lbs (3 white) - video (+2 lb PR)
*Nice to hit 5lbs over the goal on the 2nd attempt.
418.9lbs (3 white) - video (+15.9 lb PR)
*Never thought I had this in me. I was deciding between 413 and 418.9 after my 2nd attempt. I think I should have been deciding between 418.9 and 424. Either way, incredibly happy.
Total: 947.9
1st overall, 165 lb weight class
------------------------------------
So, overall I'm satisfied and motivated to improve on everything. It was fantastic having clearly defined goals with a set end date. Definitely helped my training. Setting 3PR's twice in 2 weeks is just great. I was also glad that they did an "overall" champion in each weight class because there was no one in junior 165 with me. This way, I got to beat someone! :)
Looking back, I would change my goals to #'s in kgs because I had a little trouble deciding on my third attempts due to the odd numbers. I'm about 30lbs away from Class I standard, and 130 away from Masters total. Those will be good short and long term overall goals. I need to talk to Kik about what we are going to do for our training from this point forward.
I wanted to say something about the atmosphere at the competition as well. It was seriously awesome. Everyone was so positive. Before my lifts there were multiple people who I never met that were giving me encouragement, and during the lifts nearly everyone yells and supports you. After the lift a few of the organizers that were sitting next to the platform would shake my hand and congratulate. One of them said after a deadlift "man, I don't envy you... you have to move the bar a mile!" I thought it was funny. When I was setting up on the bench for an attempt someone in the crowd said, "He's so.... lean!" It was like the nicer version of Danny's 'you're anorexic!'
Thanks to everyone involved. I couldn't have done it without training partners P,J,K, and advice from everyone in the gym (gordon, nathan, frank, dee, +others) and danny. Thanks also to Tab, Jon, Pat, and Eric for coming to support the team. I had an awesome time at the meet. We have a really fun group and I hope that we choose another meet a few months from now to do together.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Gordon: 2/27 AAU Meet Report
I was really excited about my first meet, and was eager to lift! Weighed in at 190.5, with clothes and shoes on.
Squat:
185 kg, 407 lbs (3 whites) video
Felt ok, @ 8
195 kg, 429 lbs (3 whites) PR + 4 lbs video
Not easy, not super hard either, didn't pause on the way up. @ 9.
205 kg, 451 lbs (3 reds) video
I wanted to try a weight that was a definite reach. Came up out of the hole but could not go up any further. I think I lost some pressure walking it out because it felt super heavy on my back, and dropped down too quickly. I need to spend more time under heavy weights!
Bench:
150 kg, 330 lbs (Misloaded) video
They loaded the bar incorrectly for my 1st attempt and I didn't notice because the kg plates confused me. Nate helped me lift it off, and it felt super heavy in my hands. In my head I thought, "Nate you ********, help me out a bit here." I could barely hold it still, but I decided to go for it anyway, since I thought I just had the nerves or something. It wasn't even a good negative, my left elbow buckled right away, and the bar just fell straight down on my chest and bounced a bit since it dropped so fast. Then they figured out it was the wrong weight :D
115 kg, 253 lbs (3 whites) video
Much easier than 330 lbs! @ 8.
122.5 kg, 269 lbs (3 whites) video
Still ok, @ 9.
127.5 kg, 280 lbs (3 whites) PR + 5 lbs video
Had to grind the lockout, probably could not have gone any heavier. @ 10.
Deadlift:
185 kg, 407 lbs (3 whites) video
Went up fairly fast and easily. @ 8
192.5 kg, 423 lbs (3 whites) PR + 18 lbs video
Still pretty fast. @ 9.
202.5 kg, 445 lbs (3 whites) PR + 40 lbs video
Was harder to break off the ground, then it was ok. @ 10. This is the first time in my lifting career that I had a bigger deadlift than my squat. Neat.
Thoughts:
Big thanks to Coach Nate for advice, directions, and liftoffs. Big props to everyone who came out to support us: Pat, John, Tab, and Eric. Thanks to my teammates, Rene, Frank, Dee, Brian, and Jason for putting up inspiring lifting. Also thanks to everyone who took pictures and videos.
I enjoyed the meet immensely. Everyone there was super-positive and motivating, and there were a lot of strong lifters, young and old. I am happy that I made PRs, and am inspired to keep on training. Definitely going to more meets in the future, hopefully 2-3 a year.
Squat:
185 kg, 407 lbs (3 whites) video
Felt ok, @ 8
195 kg, 429 lbs (3 whites) PR + 4 lbs video
Not easy, not super hard either, didn't pause on the way up. @ 9.
205 kg, 451 lbs (3 reds) video
I wanted to try a weight that was a definite reach. Came up out of the hole but could not go up any further. I think I lost some pressure walking it out because it felt super heavy on my back, and dropped down too quickly. I need to spend more time under heavy weights!
Bench:
150 kg, 330 lbs (Misloaded) video
They loaded the bar incorrectly for my 1st attempt and I didn't notice because the kg plates confused me. Nate helped me lift it off, and it felt super heavy in my hands. In my head I thought, "Nate you ********, help me out a bit here." I could barely hold it still, but I decided to go for it anyway, since I thought I just had the nerves or something. It wasn't even a good negative, my left elbow buckled right away, and the bar just fell straight down on my chest and bounced a bit since it dropped so fast. Then they figured out it was the wrong weight :D
115 kg, 253 lbs (3 whites) video
Much easier than 330 lbs! @ 8.
122.5 kg, 269 lbs (3 whites) video
Still ok, @ 9.
127.5 kg, 280 lbs (3 whites) PR + 5 lbs video
Had to grind the lockout, probably could not have gone any heavier. @ 10.
Deadlift:
185 kg, 407 lbs (3 whites) video
Went up fairly fast and easily. @ 8
192.5 kg, 423 lbs (3 whites) PR + 18 lbs video
Still pretty fast. @ 9.
202.5 kg, 445 lbs (3 whites) PR + 40 lbs video
Was harder to break off the ground, then it was ok. @ 10. This is the first time in my lifting career that I had a bigger deadlift than my squat. Neat.
Thoughts:
Big thanks to Coach Nate for advice, directions, and liftoffs. Big props to everyone who came out to support us: Pat, John, Tab, and Eric. Thanks to my teammates, Rene, Frank, Dee, Brian, and Jason for putting up inspiring lifting. Also thanks to everyone who took pictures and videos.
I enjoyed the meet immensely. Everyone there was super-positive and motivating, and there were a lot of strong lifters, young and old. I am happy that I made PRs, and am inspired to keep on training. Definitely going to more meets in the future, hopefully 2-3 a year.
Frank (2/27): AAU Cabin Fever Meet Results
My prep for the meet was terrible. For some reason, I couldn't fall asleep on Friday night, so I ended up getting 3 (maybe) hours of broken sleep. This also meant that I was starving in the morning because my metabolism hadn't revved-down for recovery. Still, I just ate my normal breakfast (four scrambled eggs + milk) and made my way down to Scituate for the meet. I weighed in at 178lbs for the meet.
Personal Performance
Back Squat
175kgs, ~385lbs (3 reds)
I lifted this weight easily, but I got three reds because for some reason the bar went down a little as I was making my way up. I have no idea why that happened. I was probably just tired and lost control of the bar.
175kgs, ~385lbs (3 whites)
I wanted to move up initially to at least 405lbs, but Nate suggested that I stick with the weight to avoid bombing out of the meet. That turned out to be a good suggestion. This was easy. I can triple it, anyway.
190kgs, ~420lbs (3 reds)
This was supposed to be my second attempt, and I think that I could have gotten it on a normal day. I'll have to review the video to find out exactly what went wrong, but I think it was either because my stance was a little wider than normal or because I was just tired. In retrospect, I shouldn't have made such a big jump.
Bench Press
120kgs, ~264lbs (3 whites)
Easy.
130kgs, ~286lbs (3 whites)
Easy, surprisingly so, really. I probably could have doubled it.
137.5kgs, ~303lbs (3 reds)
I got stuck at the normal place (a few inches above my chest). I had moved up to 137.5kgs because 130kgs felt so easy, but I'm not sure my training justified the move. I probably should have stayed at 135kgs.
Deadlift
237.5kgs, ~522lbs (3 whites)
Easy.
255kgs, ~561lbs (3 whites) PR + 16lbs
This felt really smooth. I don't think my form even broke down much.
262.5kgs, ~577lbs (3 whites) PR + 32lbs
This felt really smooth again. This pull was toward the high end of what I had expected to be able to do for this meet, but the ease with which I pulled it gave me the confidence to make a fourth attempt.
272.5kgs, ~600lbs (3 whites) PR + 55lbs
Huge PR. I totally didn't expect to be able to do this, but I got it off the ground with a horribly slumped-over back and managed (somehow) to lock it out.
My total was 175+130+272.5 = 577.5kgs or ~1273lbs. This is 6lbs away from a Masters total at 181 (1279lbs). If I had chosen to squat 395lbs (which I can double) or bench 295lbs (a little less likely, but still doable), then I would have a Masters total right now.
ARRRRRGGGGGGHHHH.
Still, I'm happy with how I performed. I'm actually ambivalent about whether I would have preferred 420+565 or 385+600, so I guess it's a wash. With this total, I did manage to get first in my weight class (with three lifters, so I actually beat someone) and third best lifter overall.
Also, huge thanks to Dee for driving and Nate for acting as coach for the meet, which kept not a few of us from screwing up by missing our lifts, forgetting to declare our attempts, or making bad attempts. Thanks also to Eric, John, Patrick, and Tab for showing up and giving their support. You guys should seriously consider competing as well next time.
Team Performance
Everyone else who went did really well. I'll leave it up to them to report their exact numbers, since I don't remember all of them, but here's what I remembered happened. I listed the lifters in order of decreasing body weight.
Rene Befurt: 1100 total or so. The judges were a little tough on him because he didn't completely lock out his knees at the top of the squat.
Jason Ansel: 950 or so total and PRs in all three lifts. 6th in his weight class. All lifts looked really easy.
Gordon "Chinese Guy" Lu: 1155 or so total and 5th in his weight class. He finally managed to deadlift more than he can squat too. We also discovered that he's really good at bouncing bars off of his chest and pscyhes up for lifts by taking a nap.
Brian "Tuna" Yutko: 950 or so total and PRs in all three lifts. 1st in his weight class.
Dierdre Connolly: 610 total, which beats her old total of 600. 1st in her weight class.
Future Planning
I'll probably stay out of the gym for the next for the next few days and just do some mobility work, stretching, and calisthenics to get the blood flowing again to my beaten-up muscles. My first heavy day will likely be Thursday. The program I will be using will be Starting Strength because it seems to have worked really well for Gordon, at least. I will likely start with slightly lighter weights so that I can work on my technique, and the twice-weekly jumps of Starting Strength should allow me to quickly match and, hopefully, exceed my old performance. I will deviate slightly from Starting Strength for my deadlift training, but I'll write about that later.
Personal Performance
Back Squat
175kgs, ~385lbs (3 reds)
I lifted this weight easily, but I got three reds because for some reason the bar went down a little as I was making my way up. I have no idea why that happened. I was probably just tired and lost control of the bar.
175kgs, ~385lbs (3 whites)
I wanted to move up initially to at least 405lbs, but Nate suggested that I stick with the weight to avoid bombing out of the meet. That turned out to be a good suggestion. This was easy. I can triple it, anyway.
190kgs, ~420lbs (3 reds)
This was supposed to be my second attempt, and I think that I could have gotten it on a normal day. I'll have to review the video to find out exactly what went wrong, but I think it was either because my stance was a little wider than normal or because I was just tired. In retrospect, I shouldn't have made such a big jump.
Bench Press
120kgs, ~264lbs (3 whites)
Easy.
130kgs, ~286lbs (3 whites)
Easy, surprisingly so, really. I probably could have doubled it.
137.5kgs, ~303lbs (3 reds)
I got stuck at the normal place (a few inches above my chest). I had moved up to 137.5kgs because 130kgs felt so easy, but I'm not sure my training justified the move. I probably should have stayed at 135kgs.
Deadlift
237.5kgs, ~522lbs (3 whites)
Easy.
255kgs, ~561lbs (3 whites) PR + 16lbs
This felt really smooth. I don't think my form even broke down much.
262.5kgs, ~577lbs (3 whites) PR + 32lbs
This felt really smooth again. This pull was toward the high end of what I had expected to be able to do for this meet, but the ease with which I pulled it gave me the confidence to make a fourth attempt.
272.5kgs, ~600lbs (3 whites) PR + 55lbs
Huge PR. I totally didn't expect to be able to do this, but I got it off the ground with a horribly slumped-over back and managed (somehow) to lock it out.
My total was 175+130+272.5 = 577.5kgs or ~1273lbs. This is 6lbs away from a Masters total at 181 (1279lbs). If I had chosen to squat 395lbs (which I can double) or bench 295lbs (a little less likely, but still doable), then I would have a Masters total right now.
ARRRRRGGGGGGHHHH.
Still, I'm happy with how I performed. I'm actually ambivalent about whether I would have preferred 420+565 or 385+600, so I guess it's a wash. With this total, I did manage to get first in my weight class (with three lifters, so I actually beat someone) and third best lifter overall.
Also, huge thanks to Dee for driving and Nate for acting as coach for the meet, which kept not a few of us from screwing up by missing our lifts, forgetting to declare our attempts, or making bad attempts. Thanks also to Eric, John, Patrick, and Tab for showing up and giving their support. You guys should seriously consider competing as well next time.
Team Performance
Everyone else who went did really well. I'll leave it up to them to report their exact numbers, since I don't remember all of them, but here's what I remembered happened. I listed the lifters in order of decreasing body weight.
Rene Befurt: 1100 total or so. The judges were a little tough on him because he didn't completely lock out his knees at the top of the squat.
Jason Ansel: 950 or so total and PRs in all three lifts. 6th in his weight class. All lifts looked really easy.
Gordon "Chinese Guy" Lu: 1155 or so total and 5th in his weight class. He finally managed to deadlift more than he can squat too. We also discovered that he's really good at bouncing bars off of his chest and pscyhes up for lifts by taking a nap.
Brian "Tuna" Yutko: 950 or so total and PRs in all three lifts. 1st in his weight class.
Dierdre Connolly: 610 total, which beats her old total of 600. 1st in her weight class.
Future Planning
I'll probably stay out of the gym for the next for the next few days and just do some mobility work, stretching, and calisthenics to get the blood flowing again to my beaten-up muscles. My first heavy day will likely be Thursday. The program I will be using will be Starting Strength because it seems to have worked really well for Gordon, at least. I will likely start with slightly lighter weights so that I can work on my technique, and the twice-weekly jumps of Starting Strength should allow me to quickly match and, hopefully, exceed my old performance. I will deviate slightly from Starting Strength for my deadlift training, but I'll write about that later.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Deirdre: Test day
1/16/10: Test day
Squat: 45x5, 95x5, 115x3?, 135x3?, 155x1, 175x1, 185xFAILx2
This was really frustrating. Form seemed ok, but I just haven't been squatting above 155 in months. Nathan also cited a lack of intensity, which is true. Need to lift heavy again. My goal for the meet is 200 (hit 195 last time), but I need to push myself to get back there.
Bench: 45x5, 65x5, 85x4, 95x1?, 115x1, 125x1, 135xFAIL
Alas! 130 was totally doable, 125 was easy, I definitely shouldn't have attempted a new PR without testing my previous PR. My bench has been getting way more attention lately than the other lifts, but I haven't been pausing as much, and my weakness is definitely at the bottom of the lift vs lockout. Considering these, I'm not disappointed, but definitely need to work on the pauses and power off the bottom to hit 135 at meet.
Sumo deadlift: 135x4, 165x4?, 185x3, 215x1?, 225x1, 245?x1, 255x1, 275xCouldn't lock out
So close! That 275 is my meet PR, and I got it all the way up, but my back was arched and just couldn't pull it through and lock it out. Considering that I got my PR up after weeks of not deadlifting, I'm satisfied with this. Gotta work on that lockout.
For this meet, my goals are not extreme, I basically want to hit my lifts from August with maybe a +5 on each. I have not been training in PL mode these past few months, so I'll be doing a quick and dirty PL run-up-to-meet this month, probably from the sheiko program I did last time. If I add +15 to my total, I will be more than satisfied.
In other news, I got a new belt, that actually fits me. It's named the Harbinger of Death. ^.^
Squat: 45x5, 95x5, 115x3?, 135x3?, 155x1, 175x1, 185xFAILx2
This was really frustrating. Form seemed ok, but I just haven't been squatting above 155 in months. Nathan also cited a lack of intensity, which is true. Need to lift heavy again. My goal for the meet is 200 (hit 195 last time), but I need to push myself to get back there.
Bench: 45x5, 65x5, 85x4, 95x1?, 115x1, 125x1, 135xFAIL
Alas! 130 was totally doable, 125 was easy, I definitely shouldn't have attempted a new PR without testing my previous PR. My bench has been getting way more attention lately than the other lifts, but I haven't been pausing as much, and my weakness is definitely at the bottom of the lift vs lockout. Considering these, I'm not disappointed, but definitely need to work on the pauses and power off the bottom to hit 135 at meet.
Sumo deadlift: 135x4, 165x4?, 185x3, 215x1?, 225x1, 245?x1, 255x1, 275xCouldn't lock out
So close! That 275 is my meet PR, and I got it all the way up, but my back was arched and just couldn't pull it through and lock it out. Considering that I got my PR up after weeks of not deadlifting, I'm satisfied with this. Gotta work on that lockout.
For this meet, my goals are not extreme, I basically want to hit my lifts from August with maybe a +5 on each. I have not been training in PL mode these past few months, so I'll be doing a quick and dirty PL run-up-to-meet this month, probably from the sheiko program I did last time. If I add +15 to my total, I will be more than satisfied.
In other news, I got a new belt, that actually fits me. It's named the Harbinger of Death. ^.^
Monday, January 11, 2010
Results From Last Year's Meet
It sounds like everyone is interested in the Feb 27th AAU "Cabin Fever" meet that Nathan found. I searched around a bit and found a link to last year's results:
http://image.aausports.org/sports/powerlifting/results/2009/09NE_Cabinfever_both.pdf
Looks like they had a decent amount of people in the RAW powerlifting category. Hopefully they get the same/better turnout so that there will be people to compete against rather than getting the ol' guaranteed-medal-just-for-showing-up + pat on the back.
I'm going to have to consult Danny to translate this document for me though. What are all these small numbers that everyone lifted!?! Must be some strange language I don't quite understand. Kilogram? 1000 grams? Weight of 1 liter of water? That makes WAY less sense than 7000 times the average weight of a grain of wheat or barley on a yearly basis. Get with the times.
http://image.aausports.org/sports/powerlifting/results/2009/09NE_Cabinfever_both.pdf
Looks like they had a decent amount of people in the RAW powerlifting category. Hopefully they get the same/better turnout so that there will be people to compete against rather than getting the ol' guaranteed-medal-just-for-showing-up + pat on the back.
I'm going to have to consult Danny to translate this document for me though. What are all these small numbers that everyone lifted!?! Must be some strange language I don't quite understand. Kilogram? 1000 grams? Weight of 1 liter of water? That makes WAY less sense than 7000 times the average weight of a grain of wheat or barley on a yearly basis. Get with the times.
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