LRB 365: Big-15. Phase 2. Week 1. Bench and Squat

Saturday -
BW - 196

Bench -
BarX15
85X5
105X4
125X3
155X2
175X1

165X8, 5

Chins (V-Grip) -
BWX5
+15X5
+20X3, 3
+25X2
+30X1

+25X7, 3
BWX5

DB Bench -
60sX20, 8
55sX9, 7

Monday -
BW - 200

Calf Raises - 3 sets of 15

Squat -
BarX10 (paused)
95X5 (paused)
115X5
145X4
175X3
225X2
255X1

215X10, 5

Standing Leg Curls - X20, 20, 20, 12 (each leg; no rest between 1st and 2nd, and 3rd and 4th sets)

Single-Leg Press - 1ppsX15, 15, 15, 12 (per leg)

Back into it after a week off.  I went very low carb during my down week and dropped around 5 lbs.  What makes that interesting is that 165X8 on bench is a Rep PR.  My previous best was 165X7 at 203.  So a PR even at the leverage disadvantage.

I videoed my chins to see if I was cheating or cutting them high.  I have mixed feelings about what I see in the video.  On my phone it looked bad, but it looks okay on a larger screen.  Think I will first try keeping my heels back towards my butt and see how that feels/looks.

My goal for the cycle on DB Bench is 65sX15.  Should be close to that now, and will switch to them next session.

I'm still playing around a lot with squat form, and it was going pretty well on the first session back, but then I started having some pain at the top of my left quad.  It was particularly limiting on the back-off set with 215 where the weight felt fine, but the pain limited me.  Here's a vid of the 175X3 set that I took to check my form mid-way through:

Getting a bit more sit-back, and the depth is still good.

Standing single-leg curls were particularly brutal trying to go back and forth with no rest. 

Left quad pain was still there for the single-leg presses, but I think pushing through them may have helped.