Son of a Bench Week 8. Day C.

sRPE @5.5

BW - 223

Bench - 185X3, 3 @7/8

DB Bench - 35sX12, 8 @9

Chins - X2, 2 @8

super-set with

Copenhagen Planks - BWX15, 10 @8/7

Pushdowns - X10, 11 @~10

super-set with

Machine SL Calf Press - X12, 11 @~10

Rower - HIIT; 5 rounds

Very nice little session.  Subjective measures of difficulty (sRPE) have steadily declined all week while ~objective training stress (setsXrepsXRPE) has remained about the same.  So I'll go ahead and start selectively bumping volume and intensity next week. 

Son of a Bench Week 6. Day A.

sRPE @8

BW - 221

Bench - 

-    up to 240X1 @8

-    205X5, 5 @8/9

Lever Dips - 205X12, 8, 8 @10

Hack Squats - 110X8, 6 @8

super-set with

Pull-Downs - X10, 9 @10

1-arm DB OH Extensions - 25X13, 7, 7 @10

super-set with

Machine SL Calf Presses - X14, 11 @10

Rower - HIIT; 5 rounds

Whew.  A one set increase in Bench volume, and taking most of my accessories to failure instead of to RPE 8 made this the most short-term fatiguing session of the block so far.

I have houseguests this week which mean I'll probably only get one more session in until next week.  I probably need to be prepared to make some judgement calls on next weeks volume and intensity.

Pressin' Out Week 4. Day C.

sRPE @6.5

BW - 223

Press - 125X3, 3, 3 @7.5

DB Seated Press - 45sX12, 10, 8 @~10

Chins - BWX3, 3, 3 @8/9

Adductor Machine - 150X11, 10 @~10

Rope Pushdowns - X12, 11, 9 @10

Solid.  sRPE trending down throughout this week.  I'll add a tad more volume over the next couple of weeks as long as that trend continues.

Pressin' Out Week 4. Day A.

sRPE @7

BW - 224

Press - 

-    up to 150X1 @9.5

-    125X5, 5, 5 @8/9.5

DB Bench - 65sX12(ties PR), 8, 7 @~10

Roman Chair Squats - BWX13, 10 @9.5

Pull-Downs - X11, 9 @~10

EZ OH Extensions - 55X14, 10, 9, 8 @~10

Small bump in Press strength over last week, and tied DB Bench PR.  Overall difficulty of the session was down a little bit over last week as well, even though I added set volume.

3 Day FB Hypertrophy. Cycle 4. Session B.

sRPE @9

BW - 222

Bench - 175X3, 3, 3 @~5.5

031 Tempo Work:

-    DB Seated Press - 

    -    50sX7 @10

    -    45sX8 @10

-    RDL w/Straps - 160X10, 10, 10, 10, 10 @7/8.5

-    DB Curls - 

    -    20sX10 @6

    -    25sX10, 10, 10, 10 @7.5/10

Rower - HIIT; 10 minutes

Was purt'near out of gas by the fourth set of RDL.  Really had to drag myself through the rest of the workout.

Mid-Rep Volume PRs. Week 4. Session C.

sRPE @8

BW - 212

Deadlift - 

385X1 @8

305X9, 9, 9 @6.5/7.5

Cambered Bench - 135X6, 6, 6 @6

Reverse Cambered Bench - 185X19 @9

Pull-Downs (myo-reps) - X15, 5, 5, 4, 4 @10

DB Incline - 50sX11, 11 @7/8

305 for 3X9 is a Volume PR on DL.  My low back was TAHRED after this, and I had to carefully manage the rest of the session, and the rest of my day, as a result.

But the reduced volume on the supplemental lifts still kept sRPE a bit in check.

Mid-Rep Volume PRs. Week 3. Session C.

sRPE @9

BW - 209

Deadlift - 

375X1 @6.5

295X9, 9, 9 @6.5/8.5

Cambered Bar Bench - 

140X6 @6.5

135X6, 6, 6 @6/8

Reverse Camber Bench - 185X13 @8.5

Pull-Downs (myo-reps) -

X12, 3, 3, 3, 3 @~10

X11, 3, 3, 3, 3 (reduced weight) @~9.5

DB Incline - 50sX10, 8 @8

Had to train barbells on back-to-back days because of travel.

sRPE is consistently creeping up, I'm getting gassed out earlier and earlier in sessions, and I'm having to just will myself through workouts.  I may have exceeded my current volume tolerance, and will reduce by 1 set on most supplements and accessories next week. 

BBM PB I Block 1. Cycle 4. Session A.

sRPE @8.5

BW - 204

Squat - 

305X5 @7

290X5, 5, 5 @6/7

Press -

100X8, 8 @~7/~9

95X8 @7.5

GHR - BWX13, 13 @6.5/8

BG Split-Squats - BWX20, 20, 20 @8/9

Started getting back spasms on my last Squat warm-up.  Worked back up to a little less than the target.  All the physical and psychological strain of working through it really drove up the Session RPE.  Dragged myself through the rest of the workout.

Block 19 (Tier 2). Cycle 6. Session B.

sRPE @8

BW - 213

Press - 

110X7, 7 @~8.5

95X7, 7 @7

Chins- BWX7, 4, 4 @7.5/8

Toes-to-Bar - BWX5 @8

Hanging Leg Raises - BWX13 @9

BB Rows - 145X10, 10, 10 @8/9

Had to gas at all walking into the gym today and everything was a chore.  Likely a combination of my restrictive diet post-diagnosis, and just general stress.

Block 19 (Tier 2). Cycle 3. Session C.

sRPE @7

BW - 218

Squat - 

385X1 @8

325X4, 4, 4 @6/7

Dips - BW+27.5X8, 10 @7/10

Pull-Downs - X12, 12, 12 @6/7.5

DB Press - 48.75sX10, 9 @8/10

Very nice squat session despite being a weekend morning session.  No kinds of PRs, but I believe that top single more or less matches my best top set in the past year when I did 385X2 @9 at the end of a training block back in September.  Since it's the middle of the training block, that's very encouraging. 

Everything else was very solid as well, and sRPE was on target despite adding a set of Squats and a set of Pull-Downs.

Block 18 (Exploratory). Cycle 6. Session B.

sRPE @7

BW - 218

Press - 132.5X4, 4, 4 @~8/9

Chin-Ups -

BWX8 @8

NG Density, 1 rep every 0:15; 2:30 / 10 total reps @7

Machine-Pullovers - X15, 14 @7/10

Toes-to-Bar - BWX6, 6 @8.5/10

DB Curls (myo-reps) - 37.5sX15, 5, 5, 5, 5 @~10

Looks like that 135 for 4X4 Volume PR on Press is receding into the distance.  Next week is the last week of the training block.  Maybe I'll just do 4 sets with 135 and see what I get.  Only did 3 sets here as I'm still taking the slight volume reduction from last week's TRAC recommendation coupled with sRPE creep.

Also cut density chin time in half.  I started to cut it out altogether, but then it occurred to me that cutting in half might be more like "cutting one set" than taking the whole thing out.

2X6 on TTB is a Volume PR.

When I did the 37.5s on DB Curls 2 weeks ago, I couldn't get 5 reps on all the myo-rep sets.

Block 18 (Exploratory). Cycle 5. Session C.

sRPE @6.5

BW - 217

Squats -292.5X8, 8, 8 @7.5/8.5

Dips - BW+60X4 @8

EZ OH Extensions - 60X14 @10

Low Pin Press - 127.5X3, 3, 3 @8

Gaspari Bar Curls - 62.5X12 @10

Was starting to feel run down, sRPE was creeping up, and RTS TRAC app was suggesting dropping a set from each movement so that's what I did.  Subjectively, I feel noticeably better.  I'm going to do a hybrid next week where I drop a couple of main movement sets and a couple of 2nd slot back off sets.  I suspect I could have gotten the same benefits while keeping things like the 2nd set of OH Extensions and Curls for example.

292.5 is a 2X8 PR on Squats, and I got 3 sets. 

Block 18 (Exploratory). Cycle 5. Session B.

sRPE @7

BW - 218

Press -

130X4, 4, 4 @8/9

122.5X4 @~8

Chin-Ups - 

BWX7 @8

NG Density; 1 rep every 0:15; 5:00 / 20 total reps @8

Machine Pullovers - X15, 12 @8/10

Toes-to-Bar - BWX6, 5 @8/10

DB Curls (myo-reps) - 40sX12, 4, 4, 4, 4 @~10

Everything was a little blah today.  The TRAC system in the RTS app says I should reduce volume by 1 set on each movement in my next session.  I usually don't take that advice, especially if sRPE is more-or-less on target, but it might be a good idea.  Especially since next session is Squats, it's on Christmas Eve, and I have to go in the morning because the gym is closing early.  Yeah...

First and third sets of Press with 130 felt really good.  Form felt really locked in, but RPE still crept up on that 3rd set, so I dropped back for the fourth.  Still an outside chance I could hit a 4X4 PR at the end of the block.

Everything around my shoulders was feeling run down after Press so I focused on stopping chins @8.  That ended up being a couple reps less than last week, but that's fine.  My tentative rule was that if I drop in reps on the main set, that I add reps on the density work, and so I added 0:30/2 reps there, and that was fine.  Also added a set to the pullovers, but that was planned for this week.

At this BW, 1X6 is technically an e1RM PR on TTB.  Still can't get 2X6 which is the PR I wanted.

Upped weight on DB Curl myo-reps, but had to scale the reps back.  Will probably drop back in weight next week.

Block 18 (Exploratory). Cycle 4. Session C.

sRPE @8

BW - 215

Squat - 290X8, 8, 8, 8 @8/9

Dips - 

BW+60X4 @7

BWX14 @9

EZ OH Extensions - 65X11 @10

Low Pin Press - 125X3, 3, 3, 3 @8/9.5

Gaspari Bar Curls - 60X12, 11 @8/10

290 for 2X8 is a Volume PR on Squats, and I got it for a tough 4 sets.  Rest time between each set was longer than the set before, and rest before the last set was >5 minutes.  This all seems very hard, but I'm kind of tapping back into a variation of the old Starting Strength mentality: "You got all your sets and reps last week, so you might as well and try and add more next week."  The caveat being that I'm keeping a very close eye on that sRPE creeping up along with other subjective markers.  Plus, obviously, it I start substantially overshooting RPE in the first 3 sets (meaning close to +1 or higher), I'll pull the weight back for subsequent sets.  

3 weeks to go in this training block, and it will pay to be conservative from here on out.  I hit a 2X8 PR today, but it's almost certain I won't hit a new 8 rep PR by the end of the block, as my previous is 340.  So there's no real goal left besides just kind of "staying in the pocket," i.e. trying to maintain target RPE and not let sRPE, stimulus-to-fatigue ratio, etc. creep out of a sustainable range. 

Everything else was more-or-less flat from last week.  Pin Presses felt a little better at the start, but then felt worse at the end.

Block 18 (Exploratory). Cycle 2. Session C.

sRPE @7.5

BW - 220

Squats - 282.5X8, 8 @8

Dips - 

BW+80X4 @8.25

BWX11 @9

EZ OH Extensions - 70X7 @10

Low Pin Press - 122.5X3, 3, 3, 3 @~8

Gaspari Bar Rotating Curls - 55X12, 14 @8/10

Tougher than usual session all the way around.

Over a year since I've gone this hard on Squats, I think.  Immediately pre- and post- the first lockdown I was doing sets of 6 @~8.  Anyway, these were fairly tough.  I was very focused on depth, and so took my time, breathing and resetting between most reps, etc.  I've mostly kept rest times in the 2-3 minute zone.  I expect rest times on these to be consistently over 3:00.

Dips were supposed to be @7 with this weight [shrugs].

Trying to decide where @10 is on OH extensions so that I don't get stuck with the bar behind my head is interesting.

Pin Pressing is such a weird experience.  On one hand, these feel really hard, but on the other hand, don't seem so fatiguing?

Rotating Gaspari Bar Curls feel...interesting...on my wrists.  Not painful, but an unusual feeling of tension.

Block 17. Cycle 3. Session A.

sRPE @6

BW - 222

Curls - 55X13, 13, 13 @~8

Press - 

135X2 @7

95X12 @~6

Upright Rows - 75X15 @8

Toes-to-Bar - BWX4, 4 @~8

Deficit DL (plate) - 320X5 @6

55 for 3X13 is a Volume PR on Curls

222 (BW)X4 is a Rep PR  on TTB.

sRPE is a bit lower than I would like on this day.  We'll see what it's like in a couple of weeks when I've added more volume in.  It was an experiment to move Squats off of this day because I didn't want to do high rep squats and then do deficit pulls, but I think I may have thrown the balance of the week off a bit with a big sRPE spike mid-week (bench, chins, squats) book-ended by lower fatigue days.  My workset tonnage, something I don't usually pay that much attention to, is about 30K higher last Wednesday than it was on this Monday.

Block 17. Cycle 2. Session B.

sRPE @6.5

BW - 220

Bench - 

230X1 @9

185X3, 3, 3 @6

Chins - 

BWX5 @8

Density - 2 reps every 0:30; 3:00 / 12 reps @8

DB Rows - 80X10 @8

Squat -

340X3 @7

205X14 @6

DB Curls - 35sX10 @~7

I took about a 3 minute break between bench and even starting Chins, and another 5 minute break between rows and starting Squats, and that made a HUGE difference in the energy I had available for Squatting and keeping the sRPE down in general. 

Block 17. Cycle 1. Session B.

sRPE @6.5

BW - 218

Bench -

215X1 @8

185X3, 3 @~6

175X3 @5

Chin-Ups - BWX4 @7

Density - 2 reps every 0:30; 3:00; 12 total reps @8

DB 1-Arm Rows - 75X10 @7

Squat -

320X3 @5.5

195X14 @5

DB Curls - 30sX10 @6.5

As expected, this session was much tougher than session A.  I decided to move Squats from Slot A3 to Slot B3 because I put Deficit DL in A4.  Because DL is a focus this block, I decided it was better to be fresher for the DL accessory than for Squats.  I may need to either give myself a much longer break between the upper-back work and the Squatting, or pull back a little on RPE on 1-2 of the upper back movements.  Those Density Chins are really high in short-term fatigue, and I do want to try and keep sRPE <@8 or lower on average this block.  I kept it <@7 on average last block, and believe I saw benefits from that.

On the bench, I'm trying out an idea this block that the Data Driven Strength guys talk a lot about: A highly specific top set, followed by low-rep / low-RPE volume work.  Aiming to keep rest times between the volume triples at around 90 seconds.  Once the block is fully ramped up, should be doing 1@9 followed by 5X3 @6.  Overshot RPE slightly here in the low fatigue intro week.  

Block 16. Cycle 5. Session B.

 BW - 221

sRPE @7.5

Bench - 

235X1 @8.75

170X10, 10, 10 @7/9

Chin-Ups -

BWX6 @8

Density block; 1 rep every 0:10; 3:20 (20 total Reps ) @9

Rope Rows - X8 @9.5

Toes-to-Bar - BWX4, 2 @9/7

DB Incline Curls - 35sX12, 10 @8/10

170 for 3X10 is a Volume PR on bench.  3rd set was harder than I hoped it would be, but I also added the 3rd set this week.  2 more weeks in this block to see if the RPE stabilizes. 

Density Chins were still really tough even though I backed off total time/reps.  Going to pull that WAY back next week.  Don't need to be hitting @9s on secondary, compound movements if I want to keep sRPE moderate.

TTB was also tough.  Maybe just a tough day.

Block 16. Cycle 4. Session B.

BW - 220

sRPE @8

Bench -

235X1 @9

165X10, 10 @6.5/8.5

Chin-Ups - BWX5@7.5

Density Block; 1 rep every 0:10; 4:00 @10; 24 total reps

Rope Rows - X8 @9.5

Toes-to-Bar - BWX3, 3 @~7

Incline DB Curls - 33.75sX12, 10 @8/10

Gym got flooded in heavy rains the day before, and so was pretty miserable for this session.  Really swampy from the heat and water everywhere, and huge fans running everywhere being loud as hell.  Definitely made everything a little tougher and drove up the sRPE.

Bench was a little flat over last week on the top set.  Back-offs were slightly better.

Density chins were awful.  Gonna drop the total time down again next week to 3:20 for 20 total reps.  Try and get RPE down a bit.