general pattons lift log: numbers and pic progress thread

[andre patton]

The purpose of this thread will be to chronicle my gain and any progress made to reaching my goals..both short term and long term.

Background: I've been weight training on and off for years. A few years ago I studied to become a personal trainer...didnt like the money so I bailed on that idea. I have studied under some great trainers that have coached professional power lifters, so most of my background is in that.

I stopped lifting last summer. I got back into it in April after about a 10 month hiatus. Honestly, I havent considered myself a serious weight lifter since 2008. Most of my numbers were obviously pathetic as I work to get back to where I once was.

Goals: My short term goal is to have my Squat 1RM + Bench 1RM + Deadlift 1RM = 1000lbs. My long term goal is to weigh between 210-215lbs and hover around 11-13% body fat.

I will update this thread with a new weeks worth of numbers everyday until we get caught up to this week. I dont want to overload the first 10 posts with a 2 month backlog right off the bat. I will also add any notes that I deem noteworthy.

I didnt take any pictures when I first started. I'll take some tonight and post them every Sunday once I get caught up to todays date.

Week 1 - 4/2/2012
Weight - 196lbs

EXERCISE
WEIGHT
SETSxREPS

SQUATS
175lbs
5x5

FLAT BENCH
175lbs
5x3

BB ROW
135lbs
5x5

ARNOLD PRESS
90lbs
2x8

INCLINE BENCH
165lbs
4x3

FRONT SQUAT
135lbs
3x5

DEADLIFT (RACKED)
275lbs
3x5

WIDE-GRIP LATS
150lbs
3x6

SHRUGS
275lbs
2x10

CLEAN AND JERK
95lbs
3x6

SKULLCRUSHER
85lbs
3x4

BB CURLS
85lbs
3x6

V BAR ROW
180lbs
3x8

(edit: changed the format to make it easier to read)

Week 1 was extremely taxing, even at these low weights. Took huge breaks between sets to catch my breath. Too many cigarettes, not enough physical activity.

 

[MMS]

height?

good to see you taking the plunge, nice to see alot of logs in here

 

[andre patton]

height?

good to see you taking the plunge, nice to see alot of logs in here

5'11 on a good day.

I have my own excel spreadsheet with all my numbers on it...never put a spot for height cause i doubt its going to change. Forgot u guys dont know that though, haha.

Some more background: As you can see I use a modified 5x5 routine (Bill Starr). I'm open to suggestions when it comes to adding/removing certain lifts. I doubt I'll change routines anytime soon...unless my progress significantly stalls...this routine has worked best for me over the years so I like to stick with it.

 

[MMS]

if you doing Bill Starr 5x5 by the book i got nothing against it, solid routine

are you adding weight weekly, biweekly, or monthly?

judging by your numbers tho, im surprised you are using an intermediate 5x5 routine

SL or reg Starting Strength should still work well for getting up to the standard PRs(2x BW DL, 1.5x BW Squat, 1x BW Bench/Row, .5x BW OH Press)

 

[andre patton]

if you doing Bill Starr 5x5 by the book i got nothing against it, solid routine

are you adding weight weekly, biweekly, or monthly?

judging by your numbers tho, im surprised you are using an intermediate 5x5 routine

SL or reg Starting Strength should still work well for getting up to the standard PRs(2x BW DL, 1.5x BW Squat, 1x BW Bench/Row, .5x BW OH Press)

I increase weight weekly. I'm stronger than those numbers suggest, it just takes me a long time to build back up to what I can do after I took such a long break. My stabilizers are shyt.

Even now, I still increased weight too fast for my body. My joints and tendons are killing me. I need tips on what type of supplements to get for joint pains. I feel like I have a bruise on my shoulder bone...right underneath my rotator cuff. And it feels as if I need to pop my shoulder, but I cant.

 

[krackdagawd]

"Deadlift(racked) " What does this mean breh?

 

[andre patton]

"Deadlift(racked) " What does this mean breh?

Rack pulls. Its a normal deadlift but I started with the weight about 6 inches off the ground...until I increased flexibility in my hamstrings. Doing it this way takes a lot of stress off the lower back and helps prevent injury for people with bad form.

Deadlifting is all about form in my book. Its too easy to injure yourself, seriously injure yourself, if you break form even slightly. So I dont fukk around. I wasnt going to just jump back in it and do them from the ground.

 

[krackdagawd]

Oh ok, nah I wasn't commenting negatively or anything I just didn't know what it meant.

 

[MMS]

Rack pulls. Its a normal deadlift but I started with the weight about 6 inches off the ground...until I increased flexibility in my hamstrings. Doing it this way takes a lot of stress off the lower back and helps prevent injury for people with bad form.

Deadlifting is all about form in my book. Its too easy to injure yourself, seriously injure yourself, if you break form even slightly. So I dont fukk around. I wasnt going to just jump back in it and do them from the ground.

if form was your concern...you would just lower the weight until you can do it properly dont make excuses because i did the same thing with squats early on

 

[Houston911]

if form was your concern...you would just lower the weight until you can do it properly dont make excuses because i did the same thing with squats early on

yeah, it doesnt compare to a real deadlift

patton you made some real good progress in your last thread

 

[Spliff]

Patton the OG

 

[andre patton]

if form was your concern...you would just lower the weight until you can do it properly dont make excuses because i did the same thing with squats early on

i definitely agree with you in principle...but my issue with deadlifting that week was simply flexibility. doesnt matter how low the weight is if i cant bend over to pick it up without rounding my back. my other option would have been to skip deadlifts and just do some stretching exercises on my hamstrings.

i dunno, it doesnt matter anymore its just something i did for week 1.

 

[MMS]

im confused

are you able to do parallel squats? if so i dont see how you cant get that low

 

[andre patton]

im confused

are you able to do parallel squats? if so i dont see how you cant get that low

this was 2 months ago...but i dont remember having any issues with my squatting. its possible i wasnt going as low as i am now.

but regardless i'm overly protective of my lower back. ive pinched nerves before due to poor form, so if i dont feel comfortable then i wont rack from the ground. ive never had issues with squats so i approach those with less caution. its just a personal choice with me.

i knew that after such a long layoff i would be incredibly weak at the beginning of my pull, but still relatively strong thru the middle and end. rack pulls and reverse bands are pretty common with a lot of power lifters (jesus that 13 year old kid has bad form)

again its not something i continued to do, just my train of thought at the time.

 

[andre patton]

on a slightly unrelated note my lower back is incredibly sore right now. tried to do bb rows today and i couldnt take it. i need to look up some stretching exercises for my lower back to do before i go to the gym.