Training Log For AAU Worlds

[Mikey]

I will only update my first post with workout changes instead of having a new post for every workout. I have some extra comments on each workout posted below. Just check the date to see what workout it corresponds with. Here are my workouts:

Week 14 Training Day 1 7/17/06

Squat 225x2/315x1/405x1/455x3/505x1/455x1(5 second pause rep)
Deadlift 315x1/405x1/505x3/555x1
Pause Bench 135x2/225x1/315x5 singles with 10 second pauses
Pull Ups BW(273)x8,5,5,5

All weights were easy tonight, The 455 pause squat could have been tripled easily. Everything else was great.


Week 14 Training Day 2 7/19/06

Squat 225x2/315x1/405x1/505x1
Deadlift 315x1/495x1(no chalk, double overhand)/555x1
Pause Bench 135x2/225x1/315x1/365x1/275x5(close), 275x5(wide)
Chest Supported Row 90x12/135x12/190x12


Week 14 Training Day 3 7/21/06

Squat 225x2/315x1/405x1/455x3(last rep paused 3 secs.)/505x1
Deadlift 315x1/505x3/555x1
Pause Bench 135x2/225x1/315x5x1 with 10 second pauses on chest
Pull Ups BWx6,6,6,5


Week 13 Training Day 1 7/24/06

Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/465x3(last rep 5 sec. pause)/515x1
Deadlift 315x1/515x3/565x1
Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/325x5x1 w/ 10 sec. pauses
Pull Ups BW(279)x6x4

Weights felt light today. 10 pound jumps won't be possible every week but for now it will do. Bodyweight is up but it won't go much higher then 280 for now. I wanted to strap on 20 pounds and see if I could do a 300 pound pull up but that will have to wait.


Week 13 Training Day 2 7/26/06

Squat 225x1/415x1/515x1
Deadlift 365x1/565x1
Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/315x1/375x1/285x3(close)/285x3(wide)
Chest Supported Row 90x5/135x5/180x5/225x5/250x5

Squats are getting very light. Deads where so so, I think I will do a 2nd warm up next week. Bench felt good but I may stay with the 375 next week and just go up 10 pounds every other week. I may expierment with that on all lifts when they get tougher. Went with 5x5 for rows today to cut back from 48 to 25 reps there. Will probably drop the 135 bench warm up.


Week 13 Training Day 3 7/28/06

Brutal Day Today

Pause Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/465x2/555x1(no pause)
Deadlift off Block 315x1/405x1/505x2/595x1(off floor)
Pause Bench 225x1/325x5x1 w/ 10 sec. pauses
Pull Ups BWx6x4

Pause Squats where way easy as was the 555 single. I did the deadlifts off a 4 inch block which put the bar right against the middle of my foot. I don't think I'll do those again b/c it put be in a position that is too different from my regular deadlifts(I couldn't get the bar against my shin). Maybe I'll drop it down to 2.5 inches. Benching was super easy today. The biggest discovery of the day though was that it is the pause squats that are making my back get worse. I'll have to see what I can do about this. I may be investing in a cambered bar for benching.


Week 12 Training Day 1 7/31/06

Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/475x3/525x1
Deadlifts 315x1/405x1/525x3/575x1
Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/330x5x1 w/ 10 sec. pauses
Pull Ups BW(281)x6x4 easy

Squats felt great, deadlifts where fast but they felt heavy. Benching was again very easy. I think this is working well for my squat and bench but not so well for my deadlift. Pull ups where easy, all sets done with 1 mins. rest or less.


Week 12 Training Day 2

Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/475x1
Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/315x1/380x1
Decline Bench 225x3/315x3/335x3/355x3
Chest Supported Row 90x5/135x5/180x5/225x5/255x5

Good day today despite some sore biceps. I had to tangle with a guy at work yesterday and throwing him around made my biceps and forearms sore. No deadlifts today so as to allow more recovery. I will try a Monday/Friday approach this week and next to see how that goes. My shoulders have been somewhat sore so I will be including decline benches from here out. Would like to hit 455+ on the decline by cycles' end. Rows where good and very strict.


Week 12 Training Day3 8/4/06

Deadlift 225x1/315x1/405x1/520x5
Front Squat 135x3/225x2/315x5
Pull Ups BWx6x4

My back and knees hurt so bad I had a hard time getting out of bed! I need to make some changes in my training. Right now I'm 10 weeks out for deadlifts and 11 for squat and bench. I'll just do progressive overload starting with 5s then 3s then 2s and only 1 top workset. I also did all my warm ups sumo style and did just my work set conventional. I will however remember this current routine for when train with knee wraps b/c my squat and bench where doing ok.


Week 11 Training Day 1 8/7/06

Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/315x1/345x5
Decline Bench 225x1/315x1/365x5
Pull Ups BW(291)x5/BW+10x5/BWx5/BW+10x5/BWx5

All benching was very easy today. Got out of my groove on my 5th rep on decline when I hit the upright on the way up on my 4th rep. Bench was too close to the uprights. Pull Ups where also very easy. As a side note my flexibility has come a long way the last 3 months. I can almost do a side split and put my head on the ground during a front split. I also can do 50 front/backs with a towel for my shoulders with a 30 inch grip.



Week 11 Training Day 2 8/9/06

Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/460x5
Chest Supported Rows 90x5/135x5/180x5/225x5/260x5

Easy day for squats today. I think I'll push the 5's for 4 weeks versus 3 for squats. We'll see how deadlifts and bench continue to go. Rows where of medium difficulty but all done very strict.



Week 11 Training Day 3 8/11/06

Deadlift 225x1/315x1/405x1/540x5
Front Squat 235x1/325x5
Pull Ups BW(287)x4x5/BW+15x5

Good Day today. Deadlifts where nice and smooth but they could've been easier if I focused more on technique. I will work on this next week by losing the headphones.



Week 10 Training Day 1 8/14/06

Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/315x1/355x5
Decline Bench 225x1/315x1/375x5
Pull Ups BW(289)x4x5/BW+25x4 3/4

Benching was easy, with the last rep having a 5 second pause. Decline bench was still easy. I think I could do 405 for 5 right now. On my last set of pull ups I did 4 reps then stopped and couldn't get my chin to clear the bar. I was about 2 inches away!! Last time I did 375x5 on decline I hit an easy 440 bench.



Week 10 Training Day 2 8/17/06

Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/480x5(super easy)
Deadlift 315x1/455x1/560x5
Sumo Deadflift 500x1(easy)
Chest Supported Rows 90x5/135x5/180x5/225x5/270x5

OK, squats where super easy to say the least. This is going to be a good squat cycle. Since comencing my new cycle I've been doing all my warm ups sumo style, b/c it doesn't hurt my low back like conventionals do, then switching to conventional for my money set. The 560x5 was annoying b/c my stupid gym has those octagon type plates and every rep I have to completely reset so I lose tension in my pause on the floor. So after my 4th rep I stopped completely, put some more chalk on my hands, and pulled the last rep easy. It would've been very easy with normal plates. After that was done I dropped to 500 and went sumo. It was very easy. Perhaps b/c I'm short and my legs are very powerful. So, b/c I technically missed I'm dropping the weight to 510x5 and doing it sumo.



Week 9 Training Day 1 8/21/06

Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/315x1/365x5
Decline Bench 225x1/315x1/385x5
Pull Ups BW(290)x5,5,5/BW+25x5/BWx5

Will do another week of 5s for bench as the 365 was easy. For decline will make 5lb jumps for a few more weeks before going down to 3 reps. Got the 25lb plate for pull ups today and it wasn't too bad. For my pauses on bench I take the bar down and do a one-two-press. It would pass in any federation. A tip I'll give is read the article on dragondoor.com about "pull ups for a bigger bench press". I feel these are really helping me. As a side note, my waist is down to 42 so I am losing fat and maintaining muscle.



Week 9 Training Day 2 8/24/06

Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/500x5
Sumo Deadlift 315x1/405x1/495x1/555x3(easy)
Chest Supported Rows 135x5/225x5/275x5

One more week of 5s for squats and it will be a good week. I feel if I actually cut back to just breaking parallel or 1 inch below I could probably go up to 545 or so for 5 reps easy. But I have no spotters to call my depth or tape it so I just go butt to the floor. Sumos went well and I will try 575x3-5 reps. I could've done 5 reps tonight but I'm still getting over being sick. I would really like to do 575x5 next week.



Week 8 Training Day 1 8/28/06

Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/520x5(had 7 in me)
Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/315x1/375x5(had 6 in me)
Pull Ups BWx5/BW+25x2x5/BWx2x5


Wow, this is a really good squat and bench cycle. I broke out the deadlifts on their own day b/c it is my weakest lift right now and I would like to get the 575x5. That weight has been a goal of mine for 4 years since I saw Bob Lowery do it in an old PLUSA in 2002. I could probably do 540 and 380 for 5 but it's time to move on to triples.




Week 8 Training Day 2 8/31/06

Sumo Deadlift 225x2/315x1/405x1/495x1/575x4

Soooooo close but the good thing is I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I could've done 5 reps. I got this on film here: http://media.putfile.com/575x4-deadlift.
Those stupid plates rolled after my second and third rep at which point I had to reset and pull the 4th rep. For anybody who has ever done sumo will tell you that once the tension is lost, it is lost. The 4th reps form was not as good as I would've liked. We will just chalk this one up as a good day though and move on to triples.



Week 7 Training Day 1 9/4/06

Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/495x1/540x3
Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/315x1/385x3
Barbell Ext. to Throat 135x4x8 60 sec. rest
Pull Ups BW(294)x5x5 60sec. rest

Tired. Went after work. Blah.



Week 7 Training Day 2 9/8/06

Conventional Deadlift 225x2/315x1/405x1/495x1/595x2
Deadlift off Plates 405x5
Bent Over Rows 315x2x5

Switched back to conventional this week. I've been doing a lot of reading on technique lately so I'm putting it to work. I missed the 3rd rep b/c of grip so I did some dl off plates to help the start, finish, and grip. Then switched to barbell rows for the chest supported rows. I did the plate dls and rows without chalk and of course no straps.



Week 6 Training Day 1 9/11/06

Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/495x1/560x3(had 5 in me)
Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/315x1/395x3
Pull Ups BW(294)x5/BW+25x5/BW+15x5/BWx5

Squats where good and depth was very low. Tonight I noticed that I was sitting much taller for my squats than usual. I really had no slow points with my squats which is a plus. Bench was strong too. Last rep was paused for 5 seconds, I won't do that again as it is risky buisness!



Week 6 Training Day 2 9/14/06

Conventional DL 225x3/315x1/405x1/495x1/615x2(easy)
Rows off Plates 135x10/225x5/315x5
DL off Plates 455x5

Weight was very easy for me tonight, don't know why. Last week I had trouble with my grip this week none. Only did 1 set of rows as lower back was a little stiff.



Week 5 Training Day 1 9/18/06

Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/495x1/580x2
Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/315x1/405x2

Today was my first week of doubles. There were only 2 weeks of triples b/c of my extra week of 5s. The weight is now starting to get serious so I guess I should really start to buckle down as well. Neither of these top sets where easy but the rest of the cycle is doable. Next week is a very important week for my bench. No pull ups today, I'll do those Thursday instead of the rows to take a little stress off my aching lower back.



Week 5 Training Day 2 9/21/06

Deadlift 225x1/315x1/405x1/495x1/585x1/635x1 3/4
Grip Shrugs 225x25/315x21,19

Ok, I missed a deadlift rep b/c of my stupid grip! I almost lost all my calluses on my left hand in the process. Grip has never been an issue until after my hand injury. Now I must see what I can do before my meet. I think I will pull just singles for the last 2 weeks unless I feel good. This should help with my confidence. Will continue with the grip shrugs ala Ed Coan with a double overhand thumbless grip.



Week 4 Training Day 1

Squat 225x1/315x1/405x1/495x1/595x2
Pause Bench 135x1/225x1/315x1/415x1 3/4

Squats where hard and I missed my bench b/c my left foot slid completely out from underneath me and the bar just came back down. Luckily, today I had a good powerlifter spotting me for my squats and deadlifts.



Week 4 Training Day 2 9/29/06

Sumo DL 225x1/315x1/405x1/495x1/495x5/545x3
Conv DL 495x1/585x1
Seated Grip Shrugs 4platesx25/6platesx2x25(barely)
Barbell Rows 225x8/275x8
Pull Ups BWx2x5

In actuality I did the conventional dl first but 585 was not pretty so I did dropped down to 225 and worked up sumo using the technique suggestions I recieved, espically focusing on keeping upper body as strainght up and down as possible and pushing the legs apart on the way up. I did the 495x1 as a feeler set then did it for 5. After that did some grip and upper back work. I will be doing only sumo from now to the meet and singles conventional style off plates b/c really, my peak for the DL has come and gone.

[CinnamonGirl]

Wow!

See your PM inbox, Mikey.

[Mikey]

Friday I got a little crazy and that won't happen again. It case you want to know, I will add new workouts to my first post not by putting a new post for every workout. My goals for this cycle are 640 squat, 450 bench, 700 deadlift. All these lifts are raw and lifetime drug free.

[Bobcat]

What weight class, Mikey?

Vondah (raw or raw lifetime 60-64, 165 or 148) and I (raw lifetime 50-54, 165) are making plans to come to Richmond.

It would be a pleasure to see you make those lifts!

[Mikey]

275 weight class. I will not go any higher than that. With the way my training is going now I may be closer to a 650+ squat and 450+ bench.

[Mikey]

Added declines today and they where easy. Last time I used these I saw a 30 pound gain in my bench over a 10 week cycle. I think it is b/c I hit the bar low on my chest and press in a very straight line. Also, I make it a point to ensure that when I'm lying on the bench my chest is higher than my shoulders.

[Mikey]

No back pain now and it has been a few hours so that is a good sign. It seems it always takes an injury for me to do a standard peridization routine.

[Tom]

Sorry to hear you're having back trouble. Looks like you've got a handle on it, though. Good luck.

[Mikey]

The decline is coming along nicely. I'm hoping to hit 455+ for reps on this by cycles end. With my bodyweight where it is(290) I'm upping my expectations for the AAU worlds to 650-665 squat, 455-465 bench, 700-725 deadlift. Not too bad for a 24 year old lifetime drug free trainee.

[Mikey]

Glad I switched to doing each lift once a week. My knees still hurt but today was a very very easy day. Rows keep getting stronger every week.

[Mikey]

Goal for deads will be 575-580x5. With a little more emphasis on technique this is very doable. I've been listening to music on headphones during my workouts, which is something I don't normally do, and I think this is throwing off my concentration a bit for squats and deads(I don't wear them on bench day).

[Mikey]

Bench looks like I may be on point for a 455 press or more. I figure I could lose about 6-7 pounds easy the day before the meet so I may come in at a solid 280.

[Mikey]

No workout this Wednesday. Feeling a little sore and under the weather from some training at work. Will combine squats and deadlifts for thursdays workout and maybe do some pull ups.

[Mikey]

Tough day today. But I'm pumped to try the heavy sumos b/c I've never done them before.

[Mikey]

Still fighting whatever it is I have so energy was not 100%. Although the bench weights felt very good.

[Mikey]

Good workout tonight. Ed Coan once said that the deadlift is the number one technique powerlift and I never really understood that until I pulled heavy sumo style. I do not use a very wide sumo style like OD Wilson but more along the lines of Ricky Dale Crain. Last week of 5s for squats has me at 520x5 and I would LOVE to get 575x5 sumo style. I use a deadstop style ala Coan, always have, and find it easier to do sumo then conventional.

[Mikey]

Switched to my old standard as we are 8 weeks out but I also feel that putting deadlifts on their own day will bring about some better results. As much as I want to do sumo I'm still having second thoughts b/c I love conventional style. We shall see what happens this thursday.

[Mikey]

This was a super easy triple and then the bar got out in front of me on the 4th rep and that made it super hard. Here is the link to the video:
http://media.putfile.com/575x4-deadlift

[Mikey]

9-4-06
All weights hit easy but was groggy after work. Had headache, no chalk, no music but I still hit all my numbers. Most importantly, No Excuses.

[Scott Shetler]

Mikey,

Serious work big man! I know your still a ways out, but good luck!

-Scott

[Mikey]

Thanks Scott! My training is going very good now and I feel that once the sumo kicks in to full gear 700+ will fall for the deadlift. I look at it this way, I hit a diffucult 560x4+1 conventional style then hit an easy 575x4 sumo style which I couldn't have done that easy convetional. I've got some ideas for the offseason once this meet is over as far as deadlifts are concerned.

[Mikey]

Took an extra day off b/c of working overtime yesterday. My grip on my right habd is hurting. I've never had grip issues till I got into that scuffle at work and hurt my hand. My deadlift appears to be in the crapper right now. I need more rest I feel.

[CinnamonGirl]

A scuffle at work?!! :shock:

[whistler]

Hi Mikey,

Nice sumo deadlift video. I look forward to meeting you in Richmond (and watching you move some serious poundage!). We should have quite a few lifters from the board at Worlds.

[Mikey]

I work in a prison, no further comment. Thanks whistler. Don't know if I'll be going sumo at the meet. My deadlift is crappy right now but I do feel that the 595x2 would have been easier sumo then conventional. I have 4 squat workouts and 3 deadlift workouts left.

[CinnamonGirl]

'nuff said.

My thoughts and prayers go with you every day!

[Mikey]

9/11/06

My squat is around 640 right now and pause bench 430. If I would've done 560x5 I cou ld gurantee a 660 squat.

[ms_irreverent]

I work in a prison, no further comment.

Eep. I have a friend who retired last year from Greensburg. You have my admiration.

[Mikey]

9/14/06
Deadlift appears to be back on track this week. I have 3 more workouts left so I will continue with my goals of 635x2, 655x2, 675x2.

[Mikey]

9/18/06
I was a little more tired than usual today. The weights didn't feel heavy but the speed that I like wasn't there.

[Mikey]

I'm really upset about my grip. As of now I am good for a 675 no problem but 700 will take some extra rest. I'll have to make some changes and in the off season some things I will focus on. I don't feel as prepared for this meet as the last one, I feel tired and overtrained.

[CinnamonGirl]

I feel tired and overtrained.
How long before the next competition? Have you talked to Marty about this at all?

[Mikey]

Now, I haven't. I should though. I only have 2 more sessions per lift for my meet October 22. I'm going to give myself 10-14 days rest for my squats and deadlifts.

[Mikey]

What a crappy day today. I am overtrained there is no doubt about it now. That's ok, I'll still hit a pr total, I'm thinking 620/440/675=1730. After this meet I'm taking my weight back down to 265 and I'm going to add in some good support work. I wanted to try a cycle with minumum support work to see how it went and I need to include some in my program. I know what exercises work well for me I just need to put it all together.

[Mikey]

Deadlift is done. I will do some sumos and plate dls until the meet but other than that, I peaked this exercise a month ago. I will be hoping for a 675 in October. The biggest mistake I feel I made was dropping my assistance work down to 1 or 2 exercises and then aborting it altogether.

[CinnamonGirl]

Well, I'm sorry to hear about that.

But, if there's anyone here that knows how to use what they've learned, it's you. I expect next time will be much better!

[Mikey]

My next workouts will be Thursday and Sunday. Being overtrained and not having much af an appetite I'm going 10 days instead of 7. I only have 1 or 2 more workouts but I still need to have a few good training sessions before the meet. Like I said before I'm looking at 625/440/675 at around 290. After the meet I will take my time cutting down to around 245ish. A guy asked me to do his bench only meet in December for free so I'll go up there and give it a go. I won't peak though. My next meet full meet would not be till June/July 2007 for the ADAU nationals. I'll be hitting the gym 4x a week doing cardio each day and really working on bringing up my weak points. If I can get my back better I'll go with conventional deads, but for now the off season will consist of sumos and plate deads. I've found though that sumo really helps my squat so I'll keep it in there for that purpose. I'll be going back to my 4 week cycle of old hitting 2 sets though instead of 1 with my rep weeks being 2x3,2x5,1x1(no support work),2x10,repeat. I'm going to try to come up with a correlation betweek 10 rep and 5 rep sets to my 1 rep max.

[zebulondragonslayer]

Hey Mikey,

Did you do the meet ? What did you do ? Hope all is well.... Give us an update.

[PLCJ58]

Great log Mikey. I plan on doing the NASA USA Nationals (raw) in June. What other routines have you used in prep for other meets? Thanks!

[Mikey]

Sorry, haven't been on the site as much as I would have like to. I did not do the meet as I blew out my lower back and couldn't walk or stand up for 2 weeks. I've just come back to training but no squats or deads for 3 months minimum. I am doing rehab as I hope to make a full recovery.

[Bobcat]

May your recovery be fast and complete.

[PLCJ58]

Sorry, haven't been on the site as much as I would have like to. I did not do the meet as I blew out my lower back and couldn't walk or stand up for 2 weeks. I've just come back to training but no squats or deads for 3 months minimum. I am doing rehab as I hope to make a full recovery.

Dang Mikey sorry to hear that man. I hope you have a speedy recovery brother.

[CinnamonGirl]

I am sorry to hear about your injury, Mikey. All of my best wishes for a speedy and complete recovery!

[guitarfreak]

I blew out my back about 4 years ago doing deadlifts. Most excruciating pain I have ever felt. I also couldn't walk and personally thought I'd never do deadlifts again. I laid off doing them for a long time now it's easily my favorite lift. Hope you recover soon.

[Mikey]

Thank you all for the words of encouragement. Squats and deadlifts are by far my favorite lifts in the gym.