David tries to get teh abz before getting (semi-)strong again

[DCM]

Tuesday 12th March

Hip thrusts
3x12x90kg
A1 Press
10x5x52.5kg @ 6-9
A2 NG chins @ 8
15kg x 4, 3, 4, 4, 3 = 18
Bodyweight: 6, 5, 5, 5, 4 = 25
B1 EZ bar 21s
30kg, 25kg, 20kg
B2 Double-handed DB OHTE
20kg x 15, 12
17.5kg x 15
Rear delt flies
2x20x8kg

Kneehab
- Foam rolling quads & adductors
- Couch stretch against wall
- Pigeon stretch

[DCM]

Thursday 14th March

SGDL
4x180kg @ 9 default PR
4x4x160kg @ 6-7
Low-bar squat
100kg, 110kg, 120kg, 130kg, 120kg all x 5
DB RDLs
3x10x50kg
Kneehab
- Rolling and stretching

Notes
I felt a bit emotional after squatting for the first time in a few weeks. Zero knee pain, something that felt impossible so very recently. I had to stop myself from doing more weight and sets, amazing how your brain can encourage you in idiocy sometimes. I will be cautious in getting back to regular squat training.

Videos

180kg snatch grip x 4


Side view of 2nd set at 160kg - happy with back tightness and positioning

[DCM]

Friday 15th March

A1 TnG bench
7x5x82.5kg @ 6-10
3x5x77.5kg
A2 Pullups @ 8
7, 5, 5, 4, 4, 4, 4, 3, 3, 3 = 42
B1 Seated DB shoulder press
25kg x 7 (-1)
20kg x 10 (same)
20kg x 11 (-1)
B2 CNG cable rows
3x15
DB supinating curls
12.5kg x myo cluster reps
Tricep pushdowns
Myo cluster reps
Face pulls
3x15

Notes
- All done in 40 mins
- Annoyingly, I have a fair bit of knee pain today, it just took its time getting here. It feels different to what I was experiencing last week - more of a stiffness/throbbing. I guess it could just be a form of DOMS, but it still means I've got to take it real easy with my return to squatting.

[DCM]

Tuesday 19th March

Weight: 88.6kg (- 0.8kg)
Waist: 35.4 inches (same)

Warmup:
- 1000 m row
- Foam roll quads, adductors, IT band, T spine
- Lax ball piriformis

Low-bar squats
4x6x120kg @ 5-6
A1 SGDL
4x6x140kg
A2 TnG bench
5x2x100kg @ 9
Circuit x 3
- NG pullups @ 9: 8, 7, 5
- DB push press (20 kg): 10, 10, 8
- Renegade rows x 10
- DB pushups x 10

Notes
- Squats felt great, zero pain again. Knees have been feeling good over the weekend.
- Great to finally do some conditioning again. Had planned to do 4 rounds of the circuit, but felt done in after 3 and decided not to push it. Slow and steady, etc.

[DCM]

Thursday 21 March

Warmup
- 1000 m row: 3:41:1
- Foam roll quads, adductors, glutes andIT bands
- T-spine stretch

HB squat
4x4x120kg @ 6-7
A1 Press
1x2x60kg
5x2x62.5kg @ 8-10
A2 NG chin amraps
10, 8, 6, 6, 5, 5 = 40
B1 DB bench
3x10x35kg
B2 Long handle cable row
3x12
Conditionging circuit x 3
- Prowler push-press + rope pull @ 80kg x2
- Med-ball (20kg) OH throws x 10
Warmdown
- Pigeon stretch
- Couch stretch against wall
- Hamstring stretch
- Lizard stretch

Notes
- I'm seeing if my knees will be happy (or happier) with the work sets spread across three squat sessions - so fewer sets per session, but more frequent sessions. Also see if they will tolerate high bar, which is a deeper ROM for me.
- More conditioning. Feels good mang. Beginning to see visual changes again now too.

[DCM]

Saturday 23rd March

Warmup
1000 m row: 3.35.5

Conventional DL
2x200kg @ 10
4x5x170kg @ 7-8
Paused HB squat
3x5x100kg
A1) TnG bench
9x7x75kg @ 6-10
A2) Pullups @ 8
6, 6, 5, 4, 4, 4, 4, 3, 3 = 39

Notes
- Crap session. My conventional deadlift seems to have really tanked and I'm not sure why.
- My lower back was also sore, so I did HB pauses rather than LB. But then my knee felt shite on the 3rd set so I shut it down (was supposed to do 4 sets total).
- Now a few hours later and my knee was clicking a bit while walking the dog just now - so there's my answer about squat frequency: 3 x a week is too much. Or HB paused is a bad idea. Or both? Dunno.

[DCM]

Monday 25th March

Weight: 88.5kg (down 0.1kg)
Waist: 35.2 inches (down 0.2 inches)

Warmup
- 1000 m row: 3.37.1
- Foam roll quads, adductors, IT bands, piriformis
- Foam roller T-spine stretch
- Iron cross
- Cat-cow
- Cobra

A1 A) LB squat
5x130kg @ 6
5x135kg @ 7
2x5x140kg @ 9-10
A1 B) Paused LB
3x5x110kg @ 6-7
A2 DB bench
40kg: 4x6, 3x5
Circuit x 3
- Pullup amraps: 8, 6, 5
- Standing DB press @ 20kg: 10, 10, 8 (last few reps push-pressed)
- Renegade rows x 10
- DB pushups x 10
Warmdown
- Couch stretch against wall
- Pigeon stretch
- Lizard stretch

Notes
- Feels good to squat 3 plates again, even though the RPE was way too high. Will get back into high-volume, lowish-intensity squatting next week - really want to keep RPE low and avoid form breakdown
- Weird that bodyweight isn't dropping. This same amount of calories (2400) saw me drop 3kg from 90kg to 87kg back in Nov/Dec - maybe my metabolism isn't as active as back then?
- Really struggled on the final round of the circuit, think I might have to set this up differently.

[DCM]

Wednesday 27th March

Warmup
- 1000 m row: 3:41:1
- Foam roll quads, IT band, adductors, piriformis
- Foam roller T spine stretch
- Cat cow
- Iron cross

A1 A) SGDL
1x200kg @ 10
4x5x150kg @ 5-6
A1 B) Conventional
4x4x180kg @ 6-7.5
A2) Press
8x4x57.5kg @ 6-8
B1 Dips
10, 10, 8, 7
B2 NG chins
8, 6, 5, 5
Conditioning circuit x 4
- Prowler (80kg) push press + rope pull x 2
-10x 20kg med ball OH throws

Notes
- My setup for the 200kg SGDL was dogshit, basically ended up stiff-legging it with a rounded back. Still a PR, will do better in future
- I liked doing conventional after SG, felt like I was primed to do heavier work.
- Managed 1 more round on the circuit than last week.

200kg SGDL:

[DCM]

Saturday 30th March

Cheeky holiday session in St. Ives, Cornwall

Warmup
Fast walk from the bottom of town up to St. Ives leisure centre

A1 LB squat
10x3x140kg @ 6-8
A2 TnG bench
6x4x90kg
2X5x80kg
B1 DB bench
36kg x 8, 8, 6
32kg x 8
B2 CNG pullups
8, 6, 4, 4
C1 One-armed DB shoulder press
20kg x 10, 10R/8L, 10R/7L
C2 Pullups
5, 5, 4
DB supinating curls
14kg x myo cluster-reps
Tricep pushdown
Myo cluster-reps
Kettlebell side raises
3x15x6kg

Warmdown
- Couch stretch against wall
- Lizard stretch
- Raised-leg hamstring stretch

[DCM]

Monday 1st April

Bodyweight: 90.5kg, back to square one lol
Waist: Forgot to measure

Warmup:
- 1000 m row: 3.35.4
- Foam rolling quads, adductors, IT band, piriformis
- T-spine roller stretch
- Cat-cow
- Cobra
- Iron cross
A1) LB squat
6x6x120kg @ 5-6
A2) TnG bench
6x6x80kg @ 6-8.5
A3) Pullups
6, 6, 6, 5, 5, 4 = 32 total
B1) Leg press
4 plates x 15, 15, 12
B2) DB RDLs
3x10x45kg
Conditioning circuit x 3
- Alternating DB shoulder press x 7 (20kg DBs)
- Renegade rows x 8
- DB pushups x 9
- Hammer curls x 10
Seated face pulls
3x15
Warmdown
- Lots of stretching

Notes
- First session of my adjusted programme to increase conditioning and shred fat while retaining/building strength and muscle
- Was panting like a dog for most of this session, fantastic stuff.

[DCM]

Wednesday 3rd April

Warmup
- 1000 m row: 3.35.1
- Standard foam rolling and stretching

A1 A) SGDL
4x4x160kg @ 6
1x1x180kg @ 8
A1 B) Conventional DL
4x2x200kg @ 8-9
A2) Press
10x3x60kg @ 6-7.5
B1) DB row
3x12x50kg
B2) Side-to-side pushups
10, 9, 6
Conditioning circuit x 4
- Prowler push-press + rope pull x 3 @ 70kg
- 20kg med ball OH throw x 12
Warmdown
- The standard stretches

Notes
- Another decent little session. I love trying out new stuff and trying to master new skills. I want to be able to do one-armed pushups, so am starting with side-to-sides, which are difficult as hell.
- I've been experiencing pain in my left trap recently and realised today that it must be the prowler push-presses causing it. Will do something else instead next week.
- Bodyfat is melting away like crazy suddenly. Probs a combo of dialling things up at the gym and cutting out pretty much all snacks from my (calorie-controlled) diet

[DCM]

Friday 5th April

Warmup
- 1000 m row: 3.34.9 best yet
- Standard rolling and stretching
A1) HB squat
8x4x110kg @ 7ish
A2) DB bench
6x4x40kg
3x4x35kg
A3) NG chinups
10kg x 4, 4, 4, 4, 4,
Bodyweight x 4, 4, 4
B1) Bulgarian split squat
3x10xbodyweight
B2) 45 degree hypers
3x20xbodyweight
B3) Hanging leg raises
3x10 dogshit reps
DB supinating curls
15kg x myo cluster-sets
Rope handle pushdowns
Loads of cluster-sets
Face pulls
3x15

Notes
- I can't believe that I once squatted 210kg high bar in comp. It feels so weak and shitty now, fucking 110kg for 4s @ RPE 7, what is that even? I'm not even sure I should continue doing them, as my knee began to feel a bit hot and bothered at points. If it feels inflamed over the weekend, I might have to sub these out for paused low-bar or maybe even goblet squats.
- I pussed out of another conditioning finisher in favour of doing some direct arm work. I've already ramped the conditioning (and general training volume) up quite quickly this last week, so I guess it makes sense to leave some tools in the box for later on down the fat-loss road. Or maybe I'm just a wuss.

[DCM]

Monday 8th April

Weight: 88kg, down 2.5kg
Waist: 35 inches

Warmup
-1000 m row: 3.33.4 Another big improvement
- Standard foam rollimg and stretching

A1) LB squat
7x5x130kg @ 6-7
A2) TnG bench
3x5x85kg
4x5x80kg
A3) Pullups
5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 4, 4 = 33 total
B1) Leg press
3x10x5 plates
B2) DB RDLs
3x12x45kg
B3) DB bench
35kg x 10, 8, 7
Warmdown
- Standard stretching

Notes
I was supposed to do conditioning circuits at the end, but the rest of the workout had already taken me to the limit of my anaerobic capacity - turns out supersetting 3 compound movements for several sets across is HARD. Got a big old exertion headache. Will condition on Wed and Fri instead.

[DCM]

Wednesday 10th April

Warmup
- 1000 m row: 3.31.0 huge pr, 1 second off a Level 7 time
- Standard rolling and stretching

A1 A) Conventional deadlift
1x200kg @ 6
1x220kg @ 8
4x6x180kg @ 6-8
A1 B) SGDL
4x6x140kg @ 5-6
A2) Press
1x65kg @ 8
4x6x55kg @ 6-8
2x5x55kg @ 7.5-8.5
2x6x50kg @ 7
B1) DB row
4x8x60kg
B2) Feet-up side-to-side pushups
4x7
Warmdown
- Standard stretching

Notes
Great session, the best deadlifts have felt in weeks. Once again this pushed me to the limits of my conditioning, so I again omitted my circuits at the end. I'm just accepting this as necessary for now - once I've adapted to this kind of workload, I can always phase my circuit work back in.

220kg DL single:

[DCM]

Friday 12th April

Warmup
- 1000 m row: 3.27.7 Another big PR, baby!
- Standard rolling and stretching

A1) Paused LB squat
1x5x105kg (did this as normal HB)
4x6x105kg @ 6
A2) DB bench
5x7x35kg
A3) UHG chins
4x7, 1x5
B1) Bulgarian split squats
3x10x15kg DBs
B2) 45 degree hypers
3x15x20kg
B3) Hanging leg raises
3x10
Face pulls
3x15

Notes
- Smashed my own 1000 m row time again by 3 seconds today and comfortably reached Level 7. Not bad!
- Much as it pains me, I have to retire from high-bar squats, at least for the foreseeable future. It was probably (definitely) silly of me to try them again today, but they are simply not good for my knee. It seems daft to be emotionally attached to a specific style of squatting, but I've always found the Olympic-style HB squat to be somehow graceful and aesthetically pleasing (never my own, I hasten to add). And it was my main/only squat style for many years. Oh well, it's not worth getting too upset over, at least I can still squat at all.
- Did normal, underhand-grip chins properly for the first time ever today. They felt okay but I could imagine them aggravating my elbows if I made them a staple.

[DCM]

Monday 15th April

Weight: 87.1kg, down 0.9kg

Warmup:
- 1000 m row: 3.26.6
- Standard rolling (quads, adductors, piriformus, IT band) and stretches (t-spine on roller, cobra, cat-cow, iron cross)

A1) Low-bar squat
8x4x135kg @ 6-7
A2) TnG bench
8x4x85kg @ 6-7.5
10-minute density block
- Dips: 8, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 = 48
- Pullups: 4, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 = 34
Circuit x 3
- Alternating DB shoulder press (20kg) x 7
- Renegade row x 8
- DB pushup x 9
- DB supinating row (12.5kg) x 10
Face pulls
3x15
Warmdown
- Standard stretching (pigeon, lizard, couch stretch against wall, hamstring)

Notes
- Another PR row time - somebody stop me

[DCM]

Have got waaaaay behind on my log, mainly due to some erratic sessions of late. Back at it now though. Anyway, here's a catchup.

Monday 22nd April

A1) Conventional deadlift
1x200kg @ 9
7x4x180kg @ 7
A2) Press
8x4x57.5kg @ 7
B1) TnG bench
10x5x75kg
B2) NG chins
5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 4, 4, 4, 4, 3 = 44
Face pulls
2x20

Notes
Took an unplanned week off. Been eating and drinking like a fat man since Thursday. Everything felt a bit shit as a result today. Away later in the week for a few days, then starting a new 8-week wave of training next Monday - Project Shredded at 36.


Wednesday 24th April

A1) LB squats
6x6x120kg @ 6-7
A2) TnG bench
6x6x80kg
A3) Pullups
6, 6, 5, 4, 4, 4 = 29
SGDL
4x6x140kg
B1) Feet-up pushups
3x15
B2) CNG cable rows
3x15
Face pulls
3x15

Notes
My lower back was really fried after Monday, so squats sucked. The whole workout was pretty gruelling tbh.

[DCM]

*Monday 29th April

Project Shredded at 36 - Week 1

Weight: 90.5kg

Warmup
- 5 mins incline treadmill
- Standard rolling and stretching

A1 Low-bar squat
6x6x125kg @ 6-6.5
A2 TnG bench
6x6x80kg @ 7-8
A3 Pullups
6, 6, 5, 5, 4, 4 = 30 total
Circuit x 3
- Alternating DB shoulder press x 7 (17.5kg)
- Renegade rows x 8
- DB pushups x 9
- Kettlebell swings (20kg) x 10
Face pulls
2x20
Warmdown
Standard stretches