BW - 232
Waist - 43.75"
BB Rows - 152.5X10, 10, 10 @8/9
Hanging Leg Raises - BWX7, 7, 7 @8
Dips -
BW+10X10, 10 @8/9
BWX10 @8
BB Curls - 57.5X10, 10, 10 @8/9
I'm cutting this development block off here. Low back discomfort started to build during this cycle to the point my back was "out" by the end of this day. Interestingly, the next day it was 90% improved, and was back to normal the day after that.
Because of the months spent only working out at home, I'd been focused on improving chin-ups in that time. I decided to carry that into this first block back in the gym.
At the beginning of the pandemic, I was doing set of 2-4 with an unknown BW. By the end of this block I was able to get that up to sets of 5-6 at ~my heaviest lifetime BWs. In just this gym bock, my increase was roughly 3.6%. None of that doesn't seems great compared to the improvement I generally see on Barbell lifts. However, I've always struggled to progress chin-ups, and generally my progress has come by sacrificing form (i.e. cutting them high). My general impression was that at the end of this my chin-ups feel much more "under control," and I had a general expectation that I was going to be able to add a rep or two to a set or two every week.
The structure of this block also inspired me for a new roadmap for developmental blocks going forward. The general structure here was 3 days/week, 4 movements per day, with the first and last movements being devoted to chin-up development. I'm going to try carrying that forward in the next block. I've always cared about more than just the 3-4 lifts most strength programs are geared towards (the 3 Powerlifts + OHP), and I've often let myself be pulled in the direction of prioritizing those few lifts in order not to "bastardize" successful programs. I'm going to be looking to break away from that mindset.
Next bock will use the same structure to prioritize #1 Biceps Curls, and #2 Overhead Press. The first and last movement of each session will be geared towards those, with higher volume/set, and reps more in the moderate-to-high "hypertrophy" range. The Powerlifts will be in a strength maintenance phase with heavy top singles and low rep/ low fatigue back-off sets. Dips will also be in a hypertophy range in the hopes they will work as a Press Accessory. Chin-Ups will have to be in a lower rep / volume / fatigue zone because I'm not strong enough on them to really use either of the strategies I'm using for the other lifts. Hanging Leg Raises are quickly becoming another "main" movement for me, and they need a lot of improvement. For now, they will be treated the same as they were in this block as they were progressing similar to Chin-Ups despite only getting one slot per week.
