thread of getting sw0le

not hueg numbers but being able to do things i didn't used to be able to

shoulders have gone from concave to convex, i feel like this is a milestone

Added just 100 calories back into my diet (so 2500) and reset my squat from 195 (where I was struggling even before I cut calories) down to 180 and now I'm comfortably completing all three sets and able to progress 2.5lb per workout consistently. Everything else is also slowly increasing slowly; I'm just left with two issues I'm still banging my head into a brick wall on:

1. I can't figure out how to front squat without feeling like I'm going to snap my hands off at the wrist- I had intended front squats to be a temporary measure to get comfortable with the rack position so I could move to power cleans, which I've been ignoring for six months, but I still can't do it. I've tried getting a form check from some of the trainers, but the best I can get is "try adjusting your grip a little." No shit, really?
2. I'm trying to work my way up to body weight chin-ups (or whichever it is that's done underhanded) and I'm not sure how to progress when starting from assisted chin-ups. I've been able to move from 3 sets of 8 at +60 lbs (with a brief pause in the middle, so not perfect sets) to the same performance at +55, but I don't know if I should continue like this or try something closer to the advice in the Starting Strength book to see if I can get just one chin-up out with full range of motion starting from a hanging position (last I checked: no, I cannot).

I'm down about a pound, so that seems to be going OK too. The best discovery I've made diet-wise is that I can not only stand but legitimately enjoy a giant pile of lean ground turkey if I cook it with some MSG-laden Goya taco seasoning and mix it with a bowl of vegetables.

Have you tried bar on delts, hands crossed over for front squats?

Start with free chins as much as you can do, even if it's only half of one, then move on to assisted chins imo.

Rack is all about your elbows up, bar resting on front delts as if they are pillows, your hands are just stabilizing things, sounds like they're doing too much to me? In any case try hands xed over, no wrist flexion with it, key is still elbows up though.

It is pretty hard to keep the rack up while you're squatting and keeping your back straight which is what makes it such a good exercise I think. I've started doing split squats with my back foot elevated on one of those bosu balls, because god my toes aren't made of rubber, and fuck they are hard, barely any weight too. they hit my ass and quads like no other. neway

i perversely enjoy doing 3 sets of pull ups then two assisted pull up drop sets, literally all the blood in my body goes to my lats. then straight arm press downs on the cable har dee har harrr *extreme video fx* for real though i love being able to articulate my back and use it most fully in a back exercise instead of flopping around too much and i think volume really helps w being able to do that. so like do six sets of chins if you have the time, three half reps, three assisted sets of 8, you will be doing multiple free chins in no time i bet.

also you will be kissing ur guns in the mirror.

you know what else? rows. they're great. i am so much better at them than i used to be. ok i'm done serial shitposting. for now.

i only just discovered i can front rack now. i could not for a long time, not for more than one rep. stretch still hurts my wrists but not bad. the problem is likely your shoulder and back mobility. i felt like my arms were too long to reach. like i literally could not get my hands there. then it just went away. sorry not sure what i did to fix it because i've been doing all kinds of stuff lately.

i'm going to front squat today though

i felt like my arms were too long to reach. like i literally could not get my hands there.

This is exactly it! Glad to hear you were able to push past it, though- I've had occasional good days myself but it never really lasts. I definitely have mobility concerns (my right shoulder is semi-permanently twisted forward a little bit thanks to wearing a fully loaded backpack with one strap when I was a stupid, stupid kid), and finding a good set of stretches and exercises for it is already my project for this weekend.

I've tried the cross-hand grip, and while it's easier on the wrists, it weirdly seems to make the actual balance part of a front squat harder. I'm still not working with much weight- practicing at 75 to try and just get the movement down- so it's got to be something about my stance with arms crossed throwing my balance off. And much as I wish I could, I can't really use the cross hand grip for power cleans either :(

Was able to bench 185 x 3 today. My squat I'm not trying to increase atm, really just continuing to focus on form and not going above 135, but the closer I get to what seems like proper form, the more I really feel that 135. One thing that has helped me is wider legs.

hang on you bench more than you squat? are these kilos?? so confused

Had a squat breakthrough today- just getting my elbows higher in the low bar position made it much more stable. I didn't realize how much of my issues with what is still my least favorite lift were due to balance problems. Was able to get through a full set of 3x5 at 185 lbs today, which isn't anything to write home about but it's a slight improvement on a caloric deficit that left me feeling like I could easily add another 2.5 on Thursday, so I'm pretty happy about it.

yeah the more you can squinch up your shoulders behind you the more stable the "platform" for the bar is

I do bench more than I squat, but it's really a flexibility/form issue for me with the squat rather than leg strength. I think I could get down and back up with 185 lbs but my back would be rounding like crazy. (yes lbs, not kilos).

I have short calf muscles, tight hips and a shoulder problem that makes it hard for me to squeeze my lats/get my shoulders back. I actually think the shoulder issue might be the biggest setback in my squat because it makes it hard to keep my chest up.

Overheard press up again, put up a plate (135) x 3. Tried to do a second set and couldn't even do one rep, but it still felt pretty good to hit the plate milestone. Deadlift was down today though, could only do 275, and that only for 3 reps.

Dude that is a heavy overhead press! Amazing stuff.

Thanks! Again, this is pounds, not kilos, just to be clear.

Feeling like my basic lifts are shaping up enough that I might try some Olympic lifts at low weights after I hit the one-year mark (September).

I really enjoy olympic lifting and I think there are a lot of benefits to it. I would just advise that you take it slow and if there is any way for you to get some instruction from someone that knows what they are doing I recommend it. They are explosive movements with a lot of technical aspects and moving parts.

you'll also really need to work on flexibility

Yeah I mean maybe I would just start doing progression stuff toward it, not gonna jump into the lifts.

lifted for the first time in a while d/t injury -- feels good, man

i don't think you read it right. he said "overheard" press.

overheard u pressin

yo dawg i heard u like pressin

lulz

ermagherd overherd press

How do I bicep? I'm like 3 months in and everything else is going great (dips are SO FUN you guyyyyys what did I do before I just did dips all the time) but I've seen barely any improvement at all in what I can curl I don't get it!

I've been seeing a trainer recently, had my first full session this week - it was p gruelling and intense but I enjoyed it. My bones are in bits after it though, I guess it used a lot of muscles I don't normally use. Three days later and my legs and arms are still majorly stiff and sore.

back was hurting after my last couple sessions (after a couple months out after tearing my ACL) and revisited SS to analyze my form --- i was deadlifting alllllll wrong. it's really amazing what even tiny changes can do.

GP: pullups?

yeah i need to be very deliberate with my form when I deadlift, it's too easy for me to get all out of whack.

I find that widening my arms helps with deadlift form -- it keeps the upper back straighter. I also find that I can just kind of *feel* when my hips are rising too early, and sometimes that means I'm using too much weight.

The things i always tell myself: Flat back, chest up, don't sit all the way down, pull straight up your shins

Focusing on the motion of almost snapping my hips forward helps me do it right, like the second half of it almost being a pelvic thrust.

had a string of minor injuries (calf, shoulder, then bicep)--and thus feeling old and useless and ready for the funeral pyre.

is there anything worse than just getting to the gym and right away feeling a twinge in a new place and going through the entire kubler ross cycle before realizing you have to cut off your workout.

yeah a couple weeks ago i went on a deadlift day with a hip that felt unusually stiff and creaky, said fuck it i'll soldier thru and ended up straining an old low back trouble spot. you def have to have some humility.

The things i always tell myself: Flat back, chest up, don't sit all the way down, pull straight up your shins

― illegal economic migration (Tracer Hand), Friday, July 29, 2016 9:21 AM (2 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i found that addressing the bar in the exact order that rip recommends really helped --- get the feet in position, bend over and grab it, bend knees until they touch, lift chest w/o moving hips, pull

Another thing that helped me was to realize that arm length will affect your deadlift posture and not everyone should try to set up exactly the same way. I happen to have long arms so the tilt of my back is a little more upward than some when I set up. I think it was an Alan Thrall video I learned that from.

i have long legs so that i am pretty much parallel to the ground when i dl and it's ok

my deadlift is different than yours, and that's ok.

i really love deadlifting

me too. i've been in the habit of using straps but i forgot them last time, which is a good thing because now my grip is
http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/eastenders/images/f/f6/Under-construction.png/revision/latest?cb=20141120185311

i have been doing such a good job this summer. forgoing work to exercise more. which isn't helping my work stress 100% but whatever. lots of dumbbell bench presses. gonna do more butt exercises in the month of august.

i think also do some running because i haven't run much all year and i like fall running in the park near my house w/ lots of steep hills so i gotta get ready. all i care about anymore is exercising.

well, that and eating

Lol yeah I feel like I organize my work days that are gym days around the gym.