Week 2: 20 - 24 August

FRONT SQUAT	88	x	5	:	103
FRONT SQUAT	85	x	7	:	105
BENCH	83	x	5	:	97
BENCH	75	x	5	:	87
HANG CLEAN	65	x	3	:	71
DEADLIFT	130	x	5

Week 1: 13 - 17 August

A slight change to the plan. Included some 5x5 and dropped Press, as my left shoulder is unhappy with it.
Tired of always having one shoulder or the other complaining. I must be getting old or soft. Possibly both.
With the current split some exercises will be done twice a week. Once 531, and once 5x5.

FRONT SQUAT	83	x	5	:	97
FRONT SQUAT	75	x	5	:	87
BENCH	75	x	5	:	87
HANG CLEAN	60	x	5	:	70
DEADLIFT	110	x	5

Week 4: 06 - 10 August

Rest Week again...

FRONT SQUAT	80	x	3	:	88
BENCH	70	x	6	:	84
DEADLIFT	110	x	3

Week 3: 30 July - 03 August

SQUAT 120 x 3 : 132 BENCH 90 x 2 : 96 PRESS 50 x 5 : 58 HANG CLEAN  60 x 5 : 70 DEADLIFT 150 x 1

Week 2: 22 - 26 July

Week 2 Details:
Squat:    115x5 : 134 Projected
Bench:   85x3   :  93 Projected
Press:    45x7   :  55 Projected
Deadlift: 140x2

Week 1: 15 - 20 July

Week 1 Details:
Squat:      110x6   : 132 Projected
Bench:      80x5    : 93 Projected
Press:       40x10  : 53 Projected
Deadlift:    130x1

Week 4: 09 - 13 July

Rest week.

Week 3: 02 - 06 July

Time really does seem to be flying. I've been through two cycles already.
8 weeks gone in a flash.

DAY	EXERCISE	RESULT	MAX(EST)
Mon	Squat	115x7	141
	Bench	90x2	96
Fri	Press	40x10	53
	Deadlift*	145x1
* Done for Singles, Doubles, and Triples.
No Max Rep work.

Everything is still rolling along. Projected maxes still increasing (mostly).
I may have to step down bench press soon, but will see how it goes.

Week 2: 25 - 29 June

A pretty good week. Time flies. Already 3x3 again.
DAY	EXERCISE	RESULT	MAX(EST)
Mon	Squat	110x8	139
	Bench	85x3	93
Fri	Press	37x12	52
	Deadlift*	135x1
* Done for Singles, Doubles, and Triples.
No Max Rep work.

Wed was some play at the park. Chins, Dips, Jumps.
A nice break, and some good "work".

Bench press is very narrow due to shoulder issue.
I'm happy with it. Training maxes based on standard width.

Week 1: 18 - 22 June

Illness affects training once more… Monday skipped.
DAY	EXERCISE	RESULT	MAX(EST)
Wed	Squat	105x6	126
	Bench	80x5	93
Fri	Press	33x14	48
	Deadlift*	130x1
* Done for Singles, Doubles, and Triples.
No Max Rep work.

Week 4: 11 - 15 June

Week 4 is recovery/rest week.

Everything is done 40%-50%-60%. So no straining for me.
Started developing a cold towards the end of the week, and took Friday off.
Hopefully it won't impact training on Week 1 next week.

My gymnastic rings have arrived, and I will start including them in my training.

The 531 whole-body training is not quite as flexible as I need. (I can't always make 3 workouts a week).
I read an article by Jim Wendler: "Effective Training For Busy Men".
The 531 twice a week option is very similar, so I decided to move in that direction.
That way, even missing one workout a week, I will still hit the main exercises.
Day 3 will be an assistance/volume day. I believe that the bones of this workout is stilll 531.
Unless there is serious pawpaw in the fan, I should be able to get the two main workouts every week.

If you need some good reading the latest article by Jim Wendler: "Mentoring Wendler" is up.
I've also found som egood article links posted weekly by Ben Bruno: www.benbruno.com.

Week 3: 04 - 08 June

The 5-3-1 reps for Week 3 have been ok
DAY	EXERCISE	RESULT	MAX(EST)
Mon	Squat	105x8	133
	Bench	90x2	96
Fri	Press	35x10	46
	Deadlift*	135x1
* Single, Doubles and Triples only (Speed Focus)
Combined workouts this week due to other matters.
Started the mobility and flexibility work in the evenings.
When combining workouts:
1. Get the Main Exercises Done
2. Do Main Assistance if possible
3. Include extra work last.

Apart from a big error on the Bench (90 instead of 85), its going well.
The Deadlift really seems to get overcooked easily. Doing Speed reps seems to work.
135 came off the ground easily, so I'll just keep going and see how it ends up.

Week 2: 28 May - 01 June

The 3-3-3 reps for Week 2 went well.
DAY	EXERCISE	RESULT	MAX(EST)
Mon	Squat	100x7	123
Wed	Bench	85x4	96
Fri	Press	?
	Deadlift*	?
* Single, Doubles and Triples only

A small drop in est. max for Squat, but the 7 was not full out.
Tiny increase in bench est. max.

Trying to catch up with the logs again. Perhaps some more interesting prose will follow soon.

Week 1: 21 - 25 May

The 5-5-5 reps for Week 1 went well.
DAY	EXERCISE	RESULT	MAX(EST)
Mon	Squat	92.5x11	126
Wed	Bench	75x8	95
Fri	Press	33x10	44
	Deadlift*	125x1

* Done for Singles, Doubles, and Triples.
  No Max Rep work.

Week 4: 14-18 May 2012

Spent last week as Week 4 (Deload) of 531.

This week: Started with Full Body Template:
Mon: Squat
Wed: Bench
Fri: Press, Deadlift

My shoulder is coming right now after some intense physio.
Not 100%, but I can bench again, and pressing seems OK.
Looks like I might just be able to get back on track for 2012.

As an aside:
Olympic Lifting Rocks: Check this out >> Learn the Snatch [T-Nation]

Gotta run...

A New Beginning

I feel like I have been out of circulation for a while, so my posts have been few.
It started with a stupid move. I moved a barbell from one hook to another.
Simple. Yes. But, if you do it with a shoulder press, when it's a weight near your max its not smart.
Enter the shoulder injury. Eight weeks later, I'm still broken.
I've been rehabbing and fixing, and it's much better. I even have a better understanding of shoulder health now.
So, not all was lost. But, eventually I gave in and went to see the Doc.
I've had my scan, and will see the physio next week.
Hopefully the end is in sight.

What this means: No bench. No Press. No Squat (too much rotation on the shoulder).
What I can still do: Deadlift, Front Squat, Snatch, Chin, Rows. One Arm Presses.
So my training will continue.

I realised that I lost the plot a bit with my workout routines. This will be remedied.
Back to what has worked: 5/3/1. 3 Days a week. Basic. Simple Progression.

Starting Monday. Planning to stick it out for at least 6 Months. Time to get a grip.
I can't let another year go by with too little progress.

Today I tested my Deadlift so that I know where to begin on Monday:

Snatch: 30kg : 4x3
Deadlift: 70kg,85kg,100kg,115kg,130kg,145kg,160kg : all 1 rep.
Bench Test: Nope, shoulder don't want that.

It's been a while since I lifted 160kg. I'm quite happy about it.
I may have to start with a recovery week...

Workout 54 55 56

Mon [13/02/2012]
 Heavy Deadlift
 Shoulder Press
 Squat

Wed
 Turkish Getup
 Pushup
 Swing
 Goblet Squat
[Skipped some exercises]

Fri
 Squat
 Bench
 Row

This arrangement didn't work out exactly as planned. There were one or two logistical issues that upset the week too. In the end I just didn't feel that I had the balance right for my goals.

Next week will be similar, but a better arrangement, and hopefully better matching with my prehab/rehab and goals.

Workout 39 40 41

In a previous post I mentioned sitting down and looking at my routine on the awesomeness scale. I realised that My bodyweight goals are awesome, so I need to work towards them. But my strength goals are also awesome, so I will work at them too. As both of these goals involve strength, I can work towards them concurrently. A bit of Hypertrophy work thrown in will not go awry.
Therefore I took the 5x5 Template of Mark Rippetoe, the work of Wendler, the original ideas of Bill Starr and added in some bodyweight. Hopefully I left the logic of the classic plan in tact.

Day 1:
Squat: 5x 60,70,85,95,110
Bench: 5x 50,55,65,70,80
Deadlift: 5x 85,100,115

Day 2:
This was a bit of testing and checking this week. Should be working next week.
It will be the 6 Convict Conditioning Exercises: Pushup, Pullup, Squat, Bridge, Leg Raise, Handstand Pushup.
To that I will add a couple of exercise to get some volume, and balance the work.
It'll be good to take some spinal loading out of the program.

Day 3:
Squat: 5x 55,70,85,95
           3x115
           8x85
Bench: 5x 50,55,65,70
            3x 80
            8x 65
Row: 5x 50,55,60
         3x 65
         8x 50

Those who are familiar with the older style routines will recognise the 5x5 Madcow influence.
We'll see in a few weeks whether I got it right or not. The first cycle is meant to be 12 weeks. If I stall sooner than that I messed up.

Workout 36 37 38

Last week was Max week for 531, so I thought I'd just post the achievements:
[All weight in KG].

Workout 36:
  Deadlift: 130x2 [Double Overhand Grip - Sumo Style]
  Dips: 20 rep set. 41 reps in 3 Sets.

Workout 37:
  Bench: 81x3 [Narrow Grip] > Went ok. Didn't strain too much. (No Spotters).
  Inverted Row: 20 rep set. 42 reps in 3 sets.

Workout 38:
  Squat: 115x4 [Below parallel. Low bar position is hell. Will need a lot of work. Upper back is weak link].
  Press: 55x4. [Getting better].
  Chinups: 13 reps. [Been a long time since I could do 13 straight].

Not a bad week over all. One step at a time will get me back to more respectable figures.

Deadlifts will progress quickly once I go back to mixed grip regular style. Just making sure that my form is good enough.
Squats will go up too. My back is the limiter at the moment. Not used to proper low-bar position. Legs are doing the weight easily.
Bench will probably take a while as I try to get focus on my notoriously weak triceps.

The little engine that could keeps chugging along...

KIS

Something has been sitting in the back of my mind for the past week or so. It's been like a small thorn embedded in my foot. You don't feel it all the time, only when there is a bit of pressure on the spot.
Well, I finally started to give it some attention.

I have been so caught up in trying to somehow include all my conflicting goals and workout options that I broke my own programming principle number 1: Keep It Simple.

It's not always possible to have a really simple program, but 90% of programs should be simple.

Goal: Get Big\Strong? Use Basic Barbell Exercises. Squat, Deadlift, Press, Bench, Row, Chin.
Those exercises pretty much cover the bases. Perhaps you need a little bit of accessory work.
But, it should be supplemental.

I've started working this into my workouts, and it will be more visible in the next cycle.
Guys like Dan John, Jim Wendler, Mark Rippetoe, Bill Starr have layed the foundation.
All we really need to do is build on it.

Will there be more Bodyweight and Kettlebells in the future? Yes.
(Even in the Barbell program, there will be some bodyweight work).
But, for now, I think it's best to focus on one goal at a time. And maybe a supplemental goal.

Goal: Get Strong. (ie Back to strength levels I had before my country shift).
Supplemental: Get Bigger.
Tools: Barbells and Food.
So, the next couple of weeks will determine the success of the approach.