OK, so week two after my holiday.
My new goals
Before I went on holiday, I achieved my goals of 100kg (220lbs) bench press (I got a double) and a 187.5kg (415lbs) deadlift. I am postponing my double-bodyweight pull up goal until I lose some of this weight! I was a bit of an idiot to think I could put 20kg (45lbs) on my pull up that quickly.
My new goals, then, are:
- 140kg (310lbs) back squat for 3 reps (I don’t really have the set up to test my 1RM back squat)
- 70kg (155lbs) overhead press for 1 rep
- lose 5kg of fat without losing any strength
Progress so far and notes
- Military press: I’m really aggravated because I comfortably hit 60kg for 3 reps just before I went on holiday when I was working out what weights to use for my new programme and when I tried 60kg this week for a 3RM I blew it. Oh well, I’ll try it again next week.
- Close grip chin: Fortunately, having failed my 60kg 3RM on the military press, I hit 50kg for my 3RM close-grip chin so I’ll try 51.25kg this week. Slow and steady, I think, as I start to cut the calories down to hit that 5kg of fat loss goal.
- Strongman: I didn’t manage to get my sled built before my strongman workout last week because I was off to Melton Mowbray to watch Rob Russell compete (which I thought was a worthwhile alternative). And I’m unlikely to get it made for this weekend because I’m off to Cambridge to go cycling (of all things). However, I was pleased to find that I was comfortable with 75kg sandbag carries. Since 80kg is roughly bodyweight, that should a nice achievement next weekend. I’m going to add a one-arm press in there because I need to get a bit more frequency on my pressing if it’s going to go up properly.
- Squats and deadlift: I was disappointed to find that I felt weak on the 120kg squats but I smoked my deadlifts with very good speed.
Without further ado, here is the workout plan
Saturday – Upper (max)
| Exercise | Weight | Sets | Reps | Rest | Detail |
| Military press (3RM) | 60kg | 3 | 3 | 3mins | Work up |
| Close grip chin (3RM) | 51.25kg | 3 | 3 | 3mins | Work up |
| Dips | 25kg | 5 | 5 | 1min | |
| Barbell row | 70kg | 5 | 5 | 1min |
Sunday – Strongman
| Exercise | Weight | Sets | Reps | Time | Detail |
| Sandbag lift and carry | 80kg | 10 | - | 2 mins | |
| Farmers walks (2″ bar) | 44kg | 5 | - | 2 mins | Each hand |
| One arm press | 35kg | 1 | 1 | 1min | Work up |
| Front lever | - | 3 | - | - |
Tuesday – Upper (repetition)
| Exercise | Weight | Sets | Reps | Rest | Detail |
| Military press | 56kg | 5 | 2 | 1min | |
| Close grip chin | 46kg | 5 | 2 | 1min | |
| Barbell row | 70kg | 5 | 5 | 1min | |
| Front lever | - | 3 | - | 1min |
Thursday – Lower (max)
| Exercise | Weight | Sets | Reps | Rest | Detail |
| Box squat (15″) | 122kg | 5 | 2 | 2mins | |
| Sumo deadlift | 170kg | 1 | 1 | 1min | Work up |
| Glute ham raise | Blue | 5 | 5 | 1min | |
Notes on assistance exercise PRs
On the first 2 week cycle, for 10 sets of 5 on 1 minute:
- Floor press – 64kg
- Barbell row – 74kg
- Glute-ham raise – blue band with half of pink band (using sling)
- Hip thrusts – 66kg
On the second 2 week cycle, for 10 sets of 5 on 1 minute:
- Dips – 25kg
- Dumbbell row – 40kg
- RDL – 80kg
- Glute bridges – 80kg
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