thread of getting sw0le

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.

My deadlift is down like 40lbs the last two workouts which bums me out a little. Guess I won't win the big weightlifting championship :(

all i care about anymore is exercising.

― assawoman bay (harbl), Saturday, July 30, 2016 11:54 AM (2 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

well, that and eating

― assawoman bay (harbl), Saturday, July 30, 2016 11:54 AM (2 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post

holy shit me too

+ 3, sleeping

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

^ this is a good thing

trying to rehab a strain in my low back, doing lighter/higher rep back extensions and RDLs. i probably won't do DLs until it feels totally fine and it's... taking a while!

i did practice setting up the DL and checking form in the mirror, and it was frustrating! when it 'felt' right my low back/hips were still curled under too much.

i tried a different setup method from the rippetoe one, basically descending to the bar with a flat back and pushing the knees in last. surprise surprise it looked good but was pulling like crazy on my hamstrings.

this has been another shitty posterior flexibility diary entry, thakns

surprise surprise it looked good but was pulling like crazy on my hamstrings.
so yeah you we doing it right just have to work on the flexibility . you can try lifting from small blocks or a couple of plates under the weights until your able to get there without so much pull.

Btw hit five pull-ups today. I mean on the parallel bars so not really trad pull ups but still five full range of motion reps. Felt really good, like those "fast twitch muscle receptors" or whatever they're called were suddenly firing a lot more.

if anyone has any good ideas for improving ham flex, i'm all ears.

i've got a good stretch routine i do regularly & after workouts. dunno what to do about hamstrings specifically besides just pulling really hard on them w/ a strap

I'm not declining too badly while cutting, but I've also only lost like three pounds over three weeks. I'm down from a 190 squat to 180; other stuff hasn't declined yet, but I'm stalled at 95 OHP, deadlift has slowed to a +5lb a week crawl (last one at 245) and bench is going up 2.5lb every other session with extreme effort (137.5 now) so I'm sure it's about to stall out soon.

It's nice that it's forcing me to be absolutely ruthless with my food intake, though- I *cannot* waste any calories on, say, Taco Bell or else I have to a) go over in order to get enough quality food in (protein, veggies, non-shirt carbohydrates) or b) stay under and take a huge performance hit in the gym the next day.

if anyone has any good ideas for improving ham flex, i'm all ears.

i have the same problem and while i've not made any great progress on it i will say that one thing i've learned is that it's important to focus on the entire posterior chain (ie, if you are stretching your hams and yet your lower back isn't straight it's not very effective). it's quite difficult for me, for instance, to bend forward without also hunching.

i agree it is best to focus on non-shirt carbohydrates

goole http://dev.moveskill.com/2015/03/what-should-stretching-feel-like/