23 year old Male/5’10/181-185 lbs (scale is definitely broken)/33.75 inch waist
I’m logging my training here so I can add thoughts about each training session and factors that could have possibly influenced my performance over time.
——
Currently pushing 2 ct paused variations of the SBD as my main lifts
-
Paused Squat
262.5x5@8
250x5@7
250x5@7.5-8
-
Press w/belt
115x8@8
115x8@8.5
110x8@8
-
Rack Pull
240x10@7
240x10@7
-
Biceps Curls
80x2x10
80xAMRAP (13)
Worked ~5 hours today. Helper took the day off so I went in and finished up our 2nd rough. Low stress stuff like strap/stud guard, sweep, air test, bust a little concrete. I’ve been back on hourly rate for ~7 weeks now while getting faster on running DWV. Probably another 4 months and I’ll be back on piece rate. From late April-mid July I made pretty minimal progress in the weight room. I was working 12-14 hour days most days of the week at a pretty fast pace. I’m never doing that again as long as I’m in charge. All of my lifts tanked by 10% which isn’t a lot according to what is typical but I don’t squat 600+ lbs so any gains I lose make me catastrophize. I’m working on being detached emotionally from my training. I’m trying ringo, I’m trying real hard.
Forgot to log my training from Monday.
2 ct Paused Bench
185x5@8, 175x3x5
Front Squat
135x10
145x10@ rpe 7.5
Seal Rows (myo reps)
115x16 activation set
115x5x5
Lateral Raises
25x13
25x12
25x11
Today’s training
Paused Deadlift
302.5x5@7.5
287.5x5@7
287.5x5@7
Touch and Go Bench
185x8@10
175x8@8
175x8@8
I’ll be finishing this workout tomorrow. I ended up working later than I would have liked and don’t have much time to get home from the gym, eat enough to be in a surplus, and get 8 hours of sleep. Overshot quite a bit on bench press but I think that’s because of my knee. For some reason after leg extensions the other day I began experiencing sharp knee pain. Couldn’t really produce any leg drive at all or get into a good arched position without knee pain. Seems to be getting better now that my workout is over.
Another note I will add is changing out touch and go bench for a variation. Might sub in close grip bench then rotate that as my main lift after I finish PB 1.
Second half of yesterdays session that I did today.
Beltless Strict Press
97.5x13@10 (AMRAP)
87.5x12@9
87.5x12@9.5
Biceps Curls
80x2x10
80x14 (AMRAP)
Today was supposed to be 8 and skate but somehow I ended up working 10.5 hours. Knee is feeling better everyday. Since starting PB1 I feel like I’m walking around with a constant arm/shoulder pump which is pretty cool.
Paused Squat
262.5x5@8
250x3x5@7,7.5,8
Press
115x8@9
110x2x8@8
Rack Pull
2x10@7
30 second dead hangs x 3 sets
Lost in the sauce a bit on rack pulls but they definitely were sub rpe 8. I’ve been exhausted all day and I’m not sure why. Chalking it up to a random training fluctuation which I haven’t really had in quite some time.
Paused Bench
185x5@8
175x4x5
Front Squat
155x10@8
155x10@9
Seal Rows (myo reps)
115x17 (5 back off sets)
115x15 (5 back off sets)
Lateral Raises
25x14
25x13
25x12
Partial training session today
Deadlifts
290x5
315x5@8
300x5@7
300x5@8
Biceps Curls
80x2x10
8x16
Calf Raises
135x20
155x20
185x15@7
Worked about 9.5 hrs today. Felt a bit exhausted. I didn’t have much for lunch and pretty much took no breaks except to heat up my food and stuff it. I don’t think focusing on my paused deadlift has done very much for my regular deadlift although I think that could also be due to probably not pausing enough consistently. Tomorrow I’ll knock out some close grip bench and overhead press.
Close Grip Bench Press
185x8@7.5
190x8@9
180x8@7
Beltless Press
97.5x13 (AMRAP)
87.5x12@8
87.5x12@10
i haven’t trained close grip bench in months and it’s still stronger than my standard bench press. Idk why that is but maybe I should experiment with close grip as my main bench grip?
Paused Squat
262.5x5@7.5
250x5@7
250x5@7.5
250x5@7.5
Press
110x8@7
115x8@8
115x8@8
Rack Pull
250x10@7
250x10@7.5
Lateral Raises
25x15
25x14
25x13
Pretty good session. Took the weekend off and went camping. Probably lost a little bit of weight and in some small amount expected a performance decrease. Mainly because I didn’t do well the last time I ran the first half of PB 1 but my work stress was at an all time high and was just not conducive to training. Especially a program like PB 1 compared to what I was doing. Anyway, this makes me very optimistic about the rest of this block and the rest of the program. I’m thinking Strength 1 next in order to peak and hit 1 rms for the first time ever although I’m going to miss getting a pump. That should roll me into early next year then I want to spend some time focusing on hypertrophy. Maybe run through hypertrophy 1 and 2. Might even try the bodybuilding template towards the end.
Paused Bench Press
185x5@8
175x4x5 (7,7.5,8,8.5)
Front Squat
160x10@8
155x10@8
Seal Rows (myo reps)
115x18@9
115x5x5
115x13@9
115x2x4
115x3x5
Leg Extensions
85x20
85x15
85x18
20 lb Weighted Pull Ups
10@8
9@8
9@10
Paused Bench has been stagnant for 4 weeks which is fine. I don’t really expect to make much progress on my bench during this block since my OHP and bench press are decently close in volume and the same in frequency. My bench definitely does better being trained 3x per week.
Deadlift
315x5@8
300x3x5
CGBP
187.5x5@7.5
187.5x5@8
187.5x5@9
Beltless Press
97.5x13@10
87.5x12@8
87.5x12@9
87.5x12@10
Calf Raises
185x3x16
Worked 55 hours this week which sucks. I don’t know why I keep getting suckered into these long hours. At least my lifting isn’t suffering. This workout rpe was probably an 8-9. I was huffing and puffing between sets of deadlifts. Felt pretty drained by the time close grip bench came around but I think all of that was because I only ate breakfast and a quart of milk up to that point (it was like 5 pm).
Paused Squat
267.5x5@8
252.5x3x5@7.5,7.5,8
Press
115x8@7.5
115x8@7.5
115x8@7.5
Rack Pull
255x2x10@7,8
Leg Extensions
85x20,17,16
Broke this workout up into 2 days. Yesterday I had a chill 8 hour day and overhead press ended up moving well. Today was about 10 hrs followed by school. Didn’t get to the garage gym until 7:30 pm but that’s okay. This is the last week of the first block from PB 1 then I’m going to hop on Strength 1 which should lead me into testing 1 rep maxes the day before New Year’s Eve which is fantastic timing. I think I’m going to keep the paused squat as my main squat. Current e1rm is 330, a good target might be 360 depending on how I react to the training. Targets for bench and deadlift are 275 and 430. Despite having goals for each lift I really don’t care anymore how quickly I get stronger or what my lifts are. I just want to be strong for life purposes and look like I lift.
Deadlift
315x5@7.5
300x3x5@6.5,7,7.5
CBGP
187.5x3x8@7.5,8,8
Beltless Press
97.5x14@10
87.5x3x12
Calf Raises
185x3x18@7
Finished the first half of PB1. This time went around much better than last time. Main difference is I’m working like 10-15 hrs less per week. Looking forward to the second half of the program.
Paused Squat
295x1@8
275x3@8
Press
115x6@6
120x6@6.5
125x6@7.5
Leg Extensions
85x20,16,15,12@8
9 hour day. Didn’t get to the stiff leg deadlifts because it’s late. I had plumbing school right after work so that sucks. Oh well, as long as I get all the training in each week I’ll be fine. Maintained paused squat performance after 5 weeks of not training singles. Very excited to see how this half of the powerbuilding template goes.
Sumo DL
315x1@8
295x3@7
Paused Bench
165x5@6
175x5@7
185x5@8
Feet Up Bench
135x10
145x10
155x10@7
Biceps Curls
85x2x10
85x12
Paused Squat
295x1@8
275x3@8
255x3x3
Press
125x2x6@8-8.5
120x6@8
SLDL
205x8
225x8@8
Having issues gaining weight despite being on GOMAD plus a ton of other calories. kinda sucks. E1rms have mostly staggered over the last 7 weeks but that’s okay it’s a powerbuilding block. Definitely going to run strength 1 next.
Paused Squat
305x1@8
285x3@8
265x3x3
Press
125x3x6@8
SLDL
230x3x8@8
Leg Extensions
85x20,18,16,14@8
Last week I had a pretty bad workout on the comp bench day which made me catastrophize and almost change programs. Glad I decided to stick it out. I think my performance decrease was because of how late in the day it was combined with the fact that I had worked 57 hard hours last week. Told myself I’m not working over 45 hrs per week anymore unless I’m certain it won’t mess with my lifting. I shortened the pause on my main squat (2 count to 1 count) in order to ease my way back into heavier loads as I switch back to regular squats after this template. I was worried that my pause wouldn’t be long enough to be an actual pause but now that my session is done I’d say I should be more worried about maybe pausing for too long!
Also got a SSB for my birthday yesterday so I’m super stoked to get to use it Saturday for my squat supplemental.
Last nights training
Bench Press
227.5x1@8.5
210x3@9.5
190x2x3@7,7.5
185x2x5
SSB Squat
185x3x8@8
Pendlay Rows
155x14
145x3x12
13.5 hour work day yesterday. Bench Press has been stagnant this entire time. Not sure the programming is the right dose. I like SSB squats, a good variation that makes me have to really use my core. On the bright side I feel like I’ve built some muscle over the last 8 weeks. My shoulders and traps are a little bit bigger and my waist is a little bit leaner while being a similar body weight or slightly heavier. I’ve been trying to force myself to grow these last couple of weeks. Bought a scale so I can weigh in before bed and make sure I’m heavier than I was yesterday by at least .1-.2 lbs.
1 count paused squats
310x1@8
290x3@8
265x3x3
Press
127.5x3x6@8.5
SLDL
235x2x8@7.5
235x8@8
I keep forgetting to post my training. This was from 2 nights ago. I’ve been on underslab work for the past 2 weeks now. It’s nicer than roughing in and the money is better but I’m working oddly long days. Yesterday was 12 hours but that could have been avoided if I was given a job closer. I had to drive 1.5 hours one way just to get to the lot. Oh well. Hopefully it gets better these next two weeks. Might get some finish work to do in November so that may make the environment conducive to gainzZz since finish work is cake no matter how long you’re working.
Last Night’s training
227.5x1@8
190x3@7
195x3@7.5
195x3@7.5
185x5@8
185x5@7.5
Pendlay Rows
155x15
145x3x12
Worked 6 days this week including the yesterday. Thursday was a pretty long day with a lot of leaning over. Low back has felt pretty sore since then so I skipped SSB squats last night hoping my back will feel better today when I lift.
Sumo Deadlift
325x1@8
305x3@7.5
285x3x3
Paused BP
195x5@10
180x5@9
Feet up Bench
170x10@8.5
155x2x10@7
SSB Squats
190x3x8@8
Back still feeling really sore in the lower spinal erector areas. Not sure if it’s from work or the SLDLs. Possibly both. My low back feels sore pretty much every day after I conventional deadlift or do stiff leg deadlifts. I’m going to tinker a little and perhaps put in paused sumo deadlifts or some direct hamstring work combined with a sumo variation. Conventional pulling is just beating the hell out of me. My hips are way higher than my shoulders and I can’t set my low back doing SLDLs.