Digging Out !

The snow has lasted way too damn long...and the resulting icy roads and sidewalks are keeping me in my apartment...I will NOT star in one of those "I've fallen and I can't get up" ads...I've toyed with using the Soloflex I bought for 12 cents on Craigslist (it was purchased for training ONLY when I couldn't get to the gym) But, no...I'm too lazy to bat down the cobwebs in my spare room of dread...so I didn't train til yesterday...plus, I'd been only going to the closest stores to buy food items...after a day of crafting eats from old socks and lighter fluid (I have to have "wine") there is only so much body restoring nutrition in room lint sandwiches...and NO...underwear elastic, is not a suitable replacement for spaghetti !~

Yesterday --I did the Pin Press workout at Target..a quick slide from my abode...the set up as usual...bench in squat rack...pins at 4 --which when I arch up to the bar..is chest height...

135 X15 --225X 10--315 X 7 315 X 7

365 365 then 2 singles of 385 and 2 singles of 390--then 1 X 395 and one for 400 !

that is a slight progression from that height last time....so the lay off didn't hurt...

I went downstairs to Subway...and said to the young sandwich architect --
"Foot long...double meat !" ....
'In yer dreams'
she said
'you fat guys are all built alike'
---ohh you want a sandwich?--sorry !!

Green Bands for Progression.

The last few shirted workouts at Nancy's Gym had me using a shirt AND Blue bands to get used to singles with 600 pounds...Today the idea was to progress by taking off ONE training wheel...

2 weeks ago I worked up to 600 for 4 singles with Blue (strongest) Bands.

Today I worked up to 1 rep of 600 with the lighter GREEN bands--and the shirt had come 'un -torqued by then'
so it was more of a real weight to push against...in 2 weeks the progression will to be reps (2 ) or... more sets...with the shirt in the same slightly disadvantageous loosened mode...

The workout was 135 X12 225X6 285X2 308X 1 and 330 and 350 as final warm ups without the shirt.

Then the shirt, and singles with 440+ 485+ 507
then re- torque sleeves ONE time..

550+573+ 600 with green bands added, and by the 600 lift, the shirt needed torqued again but to challenge myself, we didn't use the crutch...we did it without the adjustment...

then I did pin presses without the shirt from chest height it was easy to pop up...
330 350 370 and 380...

Then Bruce and Nancy hit PRs in lifts today too as we all took turns graduating downward to the green reverse bands.

Nancy is hitting more in the reverse band bench than our 240 pound friend Paul Wells....And Bruce hit a record single today too.

It is too friggin cold everywhere...but today it was so cold my Diesel Benz couldn't be revived with the jumper from the BIG BCAA truck (no, not Branch Chain Amino Acids ) so, I walked to Nancy's gym...45 mins in
-8 degrees....sunny and frozen..
it was a very good thing for me...would you believe I wasn't 'up to speed' until 35 mins into the walk?
turtle blood I guess, same viscosity as the 20/50 oil in my car...

luckily the jumper cables worked on ME !

2 days of Heavy this week !

I usually do a "Dynamic" day
and
a Max effort day in the week, when training for the Bench Press...

this week saw me changing that to 2 heavy workouts at Target on Broadway....

Wednesday I grabbed a bench, put it in the squat rack, set the pins at chest height, and did the 'lockout' pin press routine--

225X5
315X3
365X2
385
385
385
--then--
315X 5

that was the workout..

Today--

same deal--but the numbers were:

225X3
315X2
365
365
385
390
390
390

As you remember, the weights start from the pins..
breaking inertia on the bar, I think, makes these work for me at meet ...
it helps start the bar with authority.

NEXT, I put the pins in the 5th hole (3 inches higher) and repeated locking out

405X3 425X2 455+455+475+475+475

that was the session..

I noted on Wednesday that I had a bit of Pec strain doing the lifts...

Sunday I felt a bit of shoulder pain when I first went to the heavier singles...

but I managed to correct the path of the bar and in both instances the 'pain' went away swiftly...

next week...back to the shirt.

Heavy Saturday Power Party !

Here, "Hunky Dorky" lives in a world of Powerlifting trophies.

Heavy day at Nancy's condo gym...LOOSE Katana shirt after the usual Raw warm ups to 330 ..needed lots of sets to get the soreness from Wednesday's workout gone...

Shirt ON then used 440 --500-- 510-- singles.

The 510 felt heavy...but the shirt was not in Katana 'evening gown configuration'---so since it was in 'chokey' mode ...I guess I musta powered that one out myself .

Then we used reverse bands, and took the bar up to
550--
573-
then 600
for 4 singles---
the progression being UP from 2 singles in the last heavy shirt workout 2 weeks ago...next time I may use a weaker set of bands--try more singles or add weight to the 600--but we will progress upward.

MEETS??


I see in the WABDL schedule the earliest meet to try 600 again in --is in Pasco Washington in March on the 14th---Pasco is a HARD travel for me...hope I can figure a way to go...I'm a little too scary looking to hitchhike.

But in 2009, the good news for our loyal WABDL Northwest Team is, there are meets already scheduled that aren't too hard to plan, like:

June 13:	WABDL National Bench Press and Dead Lift Championships
	Shilo Hotel Portland OR
	Gus Rethwisch 763-545-8654 or 503-901-1622

August 22:	WABDL Iron Gladiators Great Northern Bench Press and Dead Lift Championships
	Red Lion Hotel Olympia WA

These will be terrific meets, plus Bull R Productions in Seattle is putting on some good meets this year too---so maybe we'll be back in action here soon...

I'd like to expand our little traveling team to a few more members this year...
so far we usually send
1. Nancy Carpenter--
2. myself.. Bench Bozo--
3. Jody Cranston

but it's not far fetched to see.....

Jane Smith
Warren Orr
and
Bruce Everett-
(he can really deadlift !!)

added to the traveling team of competitors, it's great when we all get together and speak "barbell"

Dave Greene tells me he may enter the next BCPA meet here in Vancouver in the bench only...I expect him to lift Raw ! (no bench shirt)

Good Work PLUSA Readers !! The latest issue of Powerlifting USA is all but sold out at Mayfair magazines....
I expect the newest issue to be on the stands in 2 weeks !