Powerlift88’s BodyBlog

Hit my chest pretty hard tonight and it felt great. Started with dumbbell presses at 70 for 3 sets of 10 and then 90 for a set of 5. Then I went and did seated chest presses at 190 for 3 sets of 8, seated chest flys at 150 for 3 sets of 8, squeezing my chest at the top of every lift, then finished off with incline presses at 190 for 3 sets of 5. I felt so great and really hope this will further my bench.

Finished the night with some shrugs. Hit 315 for 3 sets of 10, then worked on an iso-lateral row machine, that really targets the traps and upper back. Getting used to this new machine, I did 285 for 3 sets of 10, then 375 for a set of 8 to burn off.

Overall, a really great night. Finishin it off with some vitamins, some Probolic-SR, and some sleep.

I ended up not benching last night. My back is still pretty sore from deadlifts and then my shoulders weren’t feeling it so I just kicked back with a big glass of Probolic-SR and a banana for the night and just relaxed with the girlfriend. Ill see how I feel tonight, and Ill possibly shirt up tonight. Right now Im feelin pretty good so hopefully that will stay and I can hit it back tonight.

Hope everyone’s training is going well. Drop me a message and let me know how its going!

Since Im shirtin up tomorrow afternoon for bench, I just did 3 mass building exercises for my shoulders. Hit the seated military presses at 165 for 3 sets of 6, being my first workout using these. Then just did some side lateral dumbbell raises at 30 for 3 sets of 10, then finished off on the fly machine, doing reverse grip reverse flys to hit the back of my shoulders, doing 120 for 3 sets of 10. These are also a great back sculpter.

Reverse grip reverse flys: Find a regular fly machine. Sit on it with facing the machine so that your face is in the back support. When you grip the handles, instead of your fingers facing the machine, reverse your grip so the tops of your hands face the machine. Push the weight out until your arms are in a straight line next to your head, and go back to the beginning. A great back sculpter, rear trap worker, and rear shoulder worker. Try them out!!

Back in the shirt tomorrow…time for some pain

Went back last night for some deadlifts. Still working towards 575. Last night I felt strong. Got up to 405 for 1 with the straps of the suit down at my sides and no belt which felt great. Put the straps of the suit up and the belt on for my last warmup at 455 for 1. My worksets were at 500 for 3 sets of 3. Every set felt amazing and really flew off the ground and locked out with no problem. Could’ve done a couple more sets but Im following my coach’s plan to get me to 575. Next week should be around 520 for 3 sets of 3. Lets see how that goes.

Back tonight for some shoulder and trap work. Then shirtin up on Wednesday.

Just watchin the numbers rise!!

The Rickshaw - a machine used for lunges and shrugs mostly, but is used by a lot of Strongmen these days to train for the 900 lb. truck deadlift and truck hold in the IFSA Strongman series. Basically you stand with your back to the machine, and it makes a "U" around your back. There are two sets of grips, one about 2 inches off the floor, just enough for your hands to get under for a grip, and the next set is about at knee height. I have made these a staple in my workout, because you can go extremely heavy, and with the way the machine is made, it actually makes it a little easier to lift, so there is no need for a suit or a strong belt. Just a nice back support belt is all thats needed. Look for this machine, and start shaping your back, traps, quads, and hamstrings.

Overall, my max lift on the bottom set of grips is 675X3. On the grips at my knees, Ive done 705X1, 765X1, and 805X1.

Today’s workout: I got to 585X2 on the bottom grips, then on the top set I ended up doing 705 for 3 heavy singles. No suit, no powerlifting belt. Just a back support. They all felt amazing.

Also blasted out the triceps today with a lot of close grip benching at 225 on a smith machine, short rope pulldowns at 90 for 3 sets of 10 with a 2 second pause at the bottom where the triceps are fully flexed, some overhead dumbbell lifts with a 65 lb dumbbell for 3 sets of 10, and overhead tricep cable extensions at 80 for 3 sets of 10.

Today was a great day. Rest the last of the weekend then back Monday night for deadlifts

Takin just a couple days off to let my body heal up before starting again on Monday night with deadlifts at 490 for 3 sets of 3. Last time I hit some weights was on Wednesday night, making it a bench night. I ended up shirtin up, cause Im still trying to get used to getting the weight all the way down to my chest considering the shirt likes to stop me. 225 flew off my chest real well, so I went up to 235 for 3 heavy singles just to practice form, arching my back, and hitting that sweet spot on the chest. All 3 went real well. After that I got the shirt off which was a nice relief and hit out just about 30 sets of bicep work and forearm work. Really fried my arms. I was gonna hit the gym tonight and squat again, since Im changing up my schedule a little, but I didnt want to sqaut twice in one week. Gonna relax this weekend and hit it back Monday night.

What most would call an oversized load..I call my Monday night Deadlifts.

Last night, I did my 2nd squat workout. Got back into it last week after not squatting in 2 and a half years, but keeping my legs muscular with a lot of cardio and body building leg work. Last week I did 335 for 3 heavy singles, which were just flying out from beneath the parallel mark. Last night I was going to jump 20 lbs and do 355, and when I did I flew up so quickly I almost hit a jump squat so I went up to 375, with the same result. I went up to 405 and did 3 really deep, really great squats. For only my 2nd squat workout in 2 and a half years, I am very very happy. Gonna shirt up tonight for some bench work, then rest for Friday, when I pull 490 for 3 sets of 3 on the deadlift. The numbers are climbing at a steady pace, and Im really happy.

To everyone that reads, just keep lifting. The world is your weight.

Started training with my new powerlifting team at my gym. First competition with the team is out in Ephrata, Pa on May 31. I just got back into squats after taking 2 years off due to knee problems, but serious leg training and some rehab have helped tremendously. I hope to squat around 440. I just started using a bench shirt and am hoping to squat anywhere between 275-300, as Im still getting used to the shirt. Im training full force for a 575 deadlift, which I should be able to attain. I know my max on here for bench says 320, but then I was hardcore into bench training, but lost 35 lbs due to being sick. So its just been getting back up there. Hopefully I can achieve my numbers.

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