I managed to get through the snow to the gym today, and finished up my first week of 5-3-1 with shoulder press.
80 x 5
95 x 5
105 x 7
Again, that final set left me feeling like I’m working with the right weights; I’m looking forward to starting the “3″ week on Monday. I wrapped up with 30 reps of muscle-up practice, using the CF Ithaca progression in which you start in a kneeling positing. Felt a bit rusty, so I’m glad I tackled it. I’d love to get a real muscle-up in the next year.
Did you miss me deadlifts? I missed you.
210 x 5
240 x 5
270 x 6
I was worried about breaking five on that last round, but it came together on the sixth rep. That happened for Monday’s back squats, too, so I’d say that I’ve got a good handle on my capabilities for those two exercises. I did extra sit-ups and back extensions as my support exercises, but overall work time constraints made this a short workout.
More 5-3-1 fun, today with bench press.
120 x 5
140 x 5
155 x 11
That last set has me wondering if I’m underestimating my 1RM for this exercise. We’ll see.
Ended with a short metcon, again of my own design:
Push-ups x 20
Row 500m
Push-ups x 15
Row 500m
Push-ups x 10
Done in 6:28. Were I to do this again, and on a day with less bench pressing, I’d probably just do 20 push-ups each time.
Posted in Other exercise, WODs
Tagged 5-3-1, 500m row, bench press, push-ups, rowing
So, I decided to dedicate this month to the Wendler 5-3-1 program, though I confess that the suggested assistance exercises hold no interest for me. I’ve got no desire to go back to things like leg curls. As such, while I will gladly give credit to the program if it works, I won’t hold it accountable if it fails. It’s not the system’s fault if my house rules break it.
I started out with back squats, and in keeping with the notion of realistic 1RMs, I used 255 for the calculations instead of 265. I haven’t been able to do 265 in six months, while I’ve hit 255 pretty consistently. The beginning of a program to increase my strength seems as good a time as any to come to terms with that.
150 x 5
170 x 5
195 x 6
From the last set, I’d say I made a good call in the numbers I used. I then went and ran for about 10 minutes, which helped loosen up the muscles. A good start, I think, and the fact that my knees felt fine lends credence to my increasing suspicion that my knee pain was the result of dancing, not lifting.
Wrapped up my week with shoulder press.
80 x 5
85 x 5
90 x 5
95 x 5
100 x 7
Think I may try the Wendler 5-3-1 program next week, as recommended by Janaki.
Alright, knees, let’s see how you do.
Hang Power Clean
65 x 5
85 x 5
95 x 5
105 x 3
115 x 3
The loads I used were way below what I’d usually do for this exercise, but heavy loads weren’t what today was about. My knees felt strong: no tweaks or pain. We’ll see how they feel today and tomorrow, though.
Another day of longer warm-ups and exercises that don’t put strain on my knees.
Weighted Pull-Ups
15 x 3
25 x 3
35 x 3
45 x 3
50 x 2
Not bad, all things considered. My knees have felt good, so next time I’ll bring them into the mix a bit to see how it goes.
So, last week was sacrificed to the pain in my knees. I’m going to try to ease back in this week: I’ll focus on stuff that won’t put too much pressure on them, and make sure to include my old PT exercises in my warm-ups. And thus, today I revisited the bench press for the first time since… wow, August.
135 x 5
155 x 5
175 x 5
185 x 3
195 x 2
205 x 1
I’d intended to do a 5×3/3×3, but that didn’t seem to pan out. Still, it was interesting to come back to this exercise: it used to be something I did at least once a week. Now, it’s once or twice a year… but my 1RM actually went up. And my form’s better than it ever was.
It’ll be interesting programming the rest of the week without straining my knees. But it’s good to be back.
Today was a hearty return to putting a barbell over my head.
Push jerk
105 x 3
115 x 3
125 x 3
135 x 3
145 x 3
I haven’t done just that motion in a while, and I believe that final set was easily a 3RM. It felt strong, but then I’ve done a lot of clean and jerk recently so it’s not like I was completely cold. Today’s metcon, though, included a new exercise that thus requires a video link!
Three rounds for time:
Hanging leg raises x 20
Walking lunges x 30
Jump rope x 80
The hanging leg raises were new, and I actually tried to keep my legs as straight as possible (with limited success). The jump rope was supposed to be double-unders x 40, but I am have been remiss in working on that exercise; I also decided to scale it back to a 2:1 DU-to-SU exchange instead of my standard 3:1. I finished in 8:00.
Posted in WODs
Tagged hanging leg raises, jump rope, overhead, push jerk, walking lunges
Working out at home in the morning, and worried I’m coming down with the cold that’s been going around. Decided to take it a bit easy, i.e. not do a metcon. Instead, I re-visited the hundred push-ups workout, and looked to the same for rep numbers on five sets of pull-ups.
Pull-ups: 10-12-7-7-11(max)
Push-ups: 18-22-16-16-27(max)
The way I timed it was: set of pull-ups, immediately to set of push-ups, rest for 2-2.5 minutes. Definitely inspired by Lynne. Felt good, broke the minimum required max reps for the final sets of both exercises. Solid morning workout, I think.
