Brian - Starting Strength

Hola MIT Strength bloggers.

I haven't been logging my lifts, but I have been lifting. I joined the MIT Ultimate team and our practices are Monday and Thursday, and I have a club game on Tuesdays, so I've been lifting Wed/Fri/Sun. Also, running/swimming on some mornings.

About 2 or 3 weeks ago I switched to starting strength. Reason being that I wanted to drop back down and work on form and explosiveness with less weight while I get used to this aggressive schedule, and then increase weight as the season goes on. I also missed a few months this summer due to injury so this is a good way to get back into it.

I followed the beginner's guide to starting strength (start at 45lbs on each lift and add 10 lbs for sets of 5 until you get tired and/or form breaks down), and started on Bench - 150, squat - 175, press - 85, deadlift 225, powerclean - 50kg. These were decently low numbers compared to my max, but that's sort of what I wanted. I'm doing a 5lb linear progression on each lift each day (up to 170/200/105/245/70kg), along with dips/chins/hypers/abs.

This plan should be getting very challenging right near the end of the season, which works out well. I need to consider what to do when I can't make linear progress anymore. This winter I'd like to work in a lot of agilities, plyometrics, and maybe even some prowling, if there's any way to do that around here now?

Keone 8/2, 8/6

I have resolved to find a new gym. Quads is too far.

8/2

Bench
175x5
185x4,F
175x5x2

Going backward after a week of inactivity.

Squat
275x5x3

Power Clean
135x5
145x5x2

Dips 10x3

8/6
Bench
175x5
197.5x3x3
135x10x3

Squat
285x5x3

Keeping lower back arched + knees out + wider stance => better stretch reflex. Happy. Next time, 290.

Overhead Press
100x5x3
75x5x10 (1" rest)

Deadlift
340x5
360x5

I was really freaked out because 340 felt really heavy, so I almost didn't go up. I've observed that when you get stronger, your previous maximums still feel really heavy, you are just capable of doing sets afterward with more weight.

Dips 10 9 9
Chins 6 5 3

Keone 7/26

Took series 7 today (passed, thank god). Had been spending all my free time cramming for it so... 5 days off?

Bench
195x5x3 (PR!)

Squat
275x5x3
bleargh this was hard

Press
95x5x3
85x5
75x5
65x5 x10 (1 min)
going to try some volume stimulation to try to stop sucking so much

Power Clean
135x5x3, 1 min, quickly, running out of time

Keone 7/19

Bench
192.5x5x3 (PR!)
155x10 10 9

Squat
285x5x3

Deadlift
340x3
365x5

Dips 10 10 10
Chins 6 4 3 (...)

Keone 7/6

7/2

Eunice visited me for the fourth! We went to the gym together. (Everyone: say it with me: "awww".)

Bench
175x5x3
135x10x3

Some... woman... was doing half-squats in my usual power cage, so I was relegated to crappy (or at least unfamiliar) benches where I had trouble getting proper back/foot placement. Eventually the rack freed up and I did 185x4, but I was pretty gassed at that point from the volume sets. Dangit.

Squat
245x5x3

Deadlift
365x4, F
oh no!

Dips
12, 10, 6 (...)

Chins
6, 6, 4


7/6

Schedule got thrown off by the holiday and taking Eunice to the airport. At least that gave me a lot of rest.

Bench
187.5x5x3 (PR)
145x10 10 8

I need to stop bagging at the end. I think the last two reps are doable, it just feels like my arms are going to fall off. More rest between sets next time (currently about 2 min for the x10s; obviously this makes it harder...)

Squat
255x5x3

Press
90x5x3

Power Clean
135x5x3

Dips
12, 10, 8

Chins
6, 6, 5

ugh, slight progress.

Keone 6/29

I ended up meeting up with a friend in Lakeview today, so I only had an hour to go to the gym. Ah well. Need to get back to power cleaning and pressing.

Bench
185x5 5 4 5 (3x5 PR)
D'oh, didn't set feet/back right on third set... so, insufficient arch, and these were too hard. You know how you can kind of tell by rep 3 whether you're going to get to 5? Yeah.

So I rested a few minutes, did some warmup squats, and then came back and got it. w00t. Like I said, this has been a milestone of mine for a while. Celebrating now with a frozen pizza.

145x10 10 8


Squat
235x5x3

Keone 6/27

Bench
182.5x5x3 (PR)
185x5
145x10 10 8

Well I guess that proves I am going up to 185x5x3 next time! (Side note: this has been a milestone for me for a while).


Squat
225x5x3

Still working back up. Back/hamstrings staying tight at the bottom I think.


Overhead Press
85x5x3


Deadlift
315x5
335x2
355x5


Chins/Dips (interleaved)
Dips 12 12 8 (dot dot dot for Daniel)
Chins 6 6 4 (ditto, pretty tired from volume work + press)

Keone (6/21, 6/24)

6/21
I made the trek to Quads gym in north Chicago (Lakeview, for those familiar with the area). It is an awesome facility with two power cages, five additional squat racks and one platform for deadlifting and doing olympic lifts. (It also has a crap-ton of machines, many of them custom, and most people who train there seem to be bodybuilder types who use them for isolation, but this is okay because it means no one uses my stuff.) It also has a GHR bench which should be useful, and chains and sleds and stuff. It's also very reasonably priced ($70/month). Me gusta.

Bench
175x5x3
135x10x3

Squat
205x5x3

Deadlift
315x5
335x5
355x3

Dips/Chins (interleaved)
Dips 10x3, 6
Chins 7, 5, 4


6/24
Running short on time (had to see an apartment) so I was in/out in an hour.

Bench
180x5x3 (PR!)

Squat
215x5x3

Dips/Chins (interleaved and interleaved w/ squats)
Dips 11x3
Chins 7, 7, 5

I also bought a bike today! And I think I found a good apartment; incidentally, it is actually really close to this gym so I will have no excuses to skip out. Awesome sauce.

Keone 5/16

I went to a Starting Strength seminar in Atlanta last weekend and I learned a lot. The biggest thing I learned was that I have very little lower back strength/control (and in particular I cannot arch it on cue) so I will be resetting squat while I try to fix it. With a properly arched lower back the stretch reflex comes into play much more effectively, which explains why I squat really low and don't bounce out of the bottom. I'm also trying to set my knees out wider (parallel to foot angle, which is about 35 degrees off center) to engage the adductors more.

5/14
Squat
175x5x3

Bench
170x5x3

Deadlift
325x4 no chalk, couldn't hold on


5/16
LIfting in the wang center sucks.

Bench
175x5x3
back to pre-finals week weight. nice.

Overhead Press
95x5x3

Squat
185x5x3
Frank watched these (thanks!). Except for the odd rep, they were pretty good. The main bad reps seemed to come from trying to artificially create the bounce out of the stretch reflex, instead of just focusing on keeping the low-back arched and letting it happen.

Deadlift
275x5 ran out of time


Also, goodbye!
I left Boston yesterday and will get into Chicago on Monday. So, I guess this is it. It was a lot of fun training with you guys and I will definitely keep in touch. I've promised Frank I will keep posting here (although I will probably lump my posts together, maybe once a week, to not annoy everyone) and I want to go to a meet with you guys next year. (Boston and Chicago are not that far apart.) My next step is to figure out which gym to go to in Chicago (I'm leaning toward Quads gym, where Ed Coan trained, although it is a bit of a trek for me) but I will definitely be picking up right where i left off.

Best wishes and good luck to everyone! Chris, hope you feel better soon!

Keone 5/9

Working back up. Everything is going a little better.

Squat
275x5x3

Bench
165x5x3
135x10x3

Deadlift
365x5

Dips x10
Chins x6
Dips x10
Chins x7
Dips x9
Chins x4 (...)

Keone 5/6

Bench
160x4,5,5
140x5 x12 (1:00 rests until set 8, then 1:30 rests)

Squat
255x5x3 (light day)

Power Clean
60kg x5x3

Felt a little lightheaded on a couple of reps, and almost fell down once. Weird.

Keone (5/31, 6/2, 6/4)

Getting back into the swing of things.

Tue 5/31
Bench
155x5x3
135x5 x8

Squat
255x5x3

Deadlift (slight deficit, in forward platform w/ reds)
345x5


Thu 6/2
Bench
155x5x3
135x5 x9

Squat
265x5x3

Power Clean
60kg x5x3
65kg x3


Sat 6/4
Squat
275x5x3

Bench
160x5,4,4
140x5 x8 these are getting a lot harder
move bench back to front

Deadlift
355x5

Finally traded elbow sleeves with Frank. They feel awesome. One further step toward becoming a robot.

Keone (4/27, 4/30)

Wed 4/27
Overhead Press
104x5
104x2 (!)
100x5x2

Power Clean
67.5kgx3
65kgx5x3

Squat
275x5x3


Sat 4/30
Bench
170x5x3
135x11, 6 (sigh), 10

Squat
315x5x3 (PR!)

Deadlift
315x5
345x3
365x2,F
315x5

Chins
BWx6,5,4

Dips
BWx8,8

Keone (1/25)

I've been sick (cold started Wednesday night), so I haven't lifted since Wednesday. Had a short window today, so...

Deadlift
315x5
345x3
365x4,F
365x5 good

Squat
225x5
265x5
295x5x3

I miss my squat shoes. Chris, I shall stalk you.

Chins
BWx8
BWx5
BWx5
1 min rest between.


No time for bench. Will do next time (Wed)

Keone (4/20)

Squat
275x5x3

Bench
175x4
175x5
175x4

Deadlift
315x4
365x3
385x1
400x1
405x1 (PR)
415xF
415xF
405xF
Legs shaking from the 405x1 onward. The one that worked featured a lot of shaking but I think was legal. I'll put up video when I get back.
Edit: D'oh, definitely hitching. Also, back rounding. I'm an idiot and I need to fix my form.

Dips
BWx11
BWx8 (close out 11 w/ assist)
BWx6 (")

Chins
BWx8x3

The biggest effect of carbohydrate deficit seem to be endurance. I get tired from a lot less. At least there is a good explanation for this...

Keone (4/16, 4/18)

4/16
Bench
175x4
165x4x2

Squat
225x5
275x5

Deadlift
315x5
345x3
365x1
385x1
365x3 hmm
345x5

Dips
BWx9x3

Chins
BWx7x3


4/18

Squat
225x10x2

OHP
100x5x3

Power Clean
133x5
144x5x2
149x3x4
149x2
On last set, just felt tired. Too many sets before.

Dips
BWx10x3

Chins
BWx7x3 (forgot to increase)

Will start doing weighted dips/chins.


Also, has anyone seen my 1.25 lb plates? I think someone borrowed them and forgot to put them back in my bag, or something.

Keone 4/6-4/14

Wed 4/6
Bench (the slow spiral of death)
177.5x4,F
177.5x3,F
165x5
165x4
Didn't get enough sleep, I think.

Deadlift: attempted heavy singles but could not even get up 400x1, my previous PR. (I did 385x5 about a week ago so I expected to go up quite a bit.)
eventually:
375x1
365x1
335x5

Squat: something light, I think 225x5x3


Sat 4/9
OHP 106.5x5, 4, 3

Power Clean: 140ish for lots of reps (form practice)

Squat: 285x5x3


I was pretty frustrated with the last few workouts, and in general with the past month of lifting. So I am adjusting my workouts a little bit, keeping the main lifts and structure but adding in some assistance exercises (chins, dips, bent-over rows, bicep curls, and maybe back extensions--we don't have a legit back extension thingy though) after the main lifts.

At the same time, I am hoping to cut some accumulated fat by doing a high-protein/fat low-carb diet and trying to maintain strength. I think my target is to weigh in at 165 at the meet, although I won't be heartbroken if I don't make it.

Tue 4/12
Bench
177.5x4,F
177.5x2,F
165x5x2
135x8 (trying for 10)
135x7
More of the same, I guess. I felt really low on energy today (started low-carb on Sunday night).

Deadlift
315x5
355x3
365x5
I decided to pick a low goal today.

Squats
225x5x3, fast

Crazy eights (I was embarrassed, but yes I still did them) 40x3sets
Chins BWx5x3
Dips BWx8,7,6 (close out 8 with machine assist)


Thu 4/14

Squats 275x5x3
OHP 98x5x3 slight reset
Power Clean 65kgx5x3 (felt easy--nice)
Chins BWx6x3
Dips BWx8x3
tried bent-over rows, still messing with form though

Q 4/9/11

Squat:
250 x5 x3

Bench:
155 x5 x3

Hang Clean:
60kg x3 x5

Dips:
10 x3

Back extension:
25 x8 x3

Keone 4/4

OHP
106x4
104x4x3
Fix form. Keep bar closer to face. Reset to 100, d'oh.

Power Clean
135x5x2
144x5x3
146.5x3
Cues: more explosion, straight arms, land on heels, maybe start catching bar lower (squat clean?)

Squat
225x5
255x5
275x5
295x5x3

Some good morninging on rep 5, rep 4/5, rep 5. Bleargh.


Next time: heavy singles on deadlifts, and 177.5x5x3 for bench. Exciting!

Eunice 4/2

Bench
62.5x5x3 (PR)
65x3 (PR)

Deadlift
180x5 (PR)

Squat
125x5x3 (PR)
135x3 (PR)

I'm so jelly. -KH