Not Just a Man's World

Another good week in the gym.  I’m looking to push my heavy squats up a bit over the next few weeks too, so we’ll see what happens.

Results for last week

Workout 1: (Monday)

• Back squat: 84kg – 1×1 (or at least match 83kg) – 84kg done with ease, I should have chanced on 85kg.  Never mind – perhaps I’ll try to do a 2kg jump next week.
• Back squat: 60kg – 1x max rep effort (minimum 9 reps) – I was feeling really good (perhaps it was the light single) so I squeezed out 10 reps.
• Hip thrusts: 122kg rest-pause method (10s rest, minimum 8 reps total) – Well I felt better doing this than I had felt doing hip thrusts the week before, but I did manage 8,4,3 which means the weight needs to go up next week.
• Assisted glute-ham raises: Pink band support & full black sling, 3×4 – in the end I did 3×5, rather than 3×4.  It just seemed possible.

Mid-week rowing: (Tuesday)

• Concept 2 intervals: 8x30s (60s rest) – target 2.00.0 – It seems that the more I try to achieve these the worse I get at the moment.  Perhaps it was because I did it a day earlier than usual but my times were shocking…: 2.003., 2.00.8, 2.01.8, 2.01.8, 2.01.8, 2.02.4, 2.01.5, 2.03.9

Workout 2: (Friday)

• Back squat: 76kg – 1×4 (or at least match 74kg) – well I managed 76kg and, apart from a careless collapsing stumble on the first rep I felt like there was more in the tank on that one so I might consider pushing it up 2kg again next time.
• Back squat: 60kg – 1x max rep effort – having done 10 reps last time I was amazed to find myself pushing out 12 reps and wondering if there was a thirteenth in the tank (I decided not to try after the twelfth was quite slow).  New weight next week!
• RDL: 88kg 3×7 – these proved to be much easier than the 3×7 was with the previous weight and they were popping out without too much trouble, although I did treat myself to an extra 30 seconds of rest after the second set since I was still breathing hard and seeing stars when I was supposed to start my third set.
• Assisted glute-ham raises: Pink band support & full black sling, 3×5 – having done 3×5 last time I did 3×6 this time.  I’m finding these tough in a different way though right now I’m finding my kneecaps are the worst bit.  Despite kneeling on a cushion I still feel like someone is trying to kneecap me while I go down and back up.

Plan for this week

Workout 1:

• Back squat: 79kg – 1×3 (or at least match 78kg)
• Back squat: 61kg – 1x max rep effort (minimum 8 reps)
• Hip thrusts: 124kg rest-pause method (10s rest, minimum 8 reps total)
• Assisted glute-ham raises: Pink band support & full black sling, 3×7

Mid-week rowing:

• Concept 2 intervals: 8x30s (60s rest) – target 2.01.0

Workout 2:

• Back squat: 83kg – 1×2 (or at least match 82kg)
• Back squat: 61kg – 1x max rep effort (minimum one more than last workout)
• RDL: 88kg 3×8
• Assisted glute-ham raises: Pink band support & full black sling, 3×8

Related posts:

1. Powerlifting progress 2012: week forty-six
2. Powerlifting progress 2012: week forty-one
3. Powerlifting progress 2012: week forty-seven
4. Powerlifting progress 2012: week thirty-three