A journal I hope to stick with

[rangers97]

this is my new journal, I hope to stick with my new program for at least a few weeks, right now I have been lifting for about 7 years and am not burnt out from the lifting, I just cant decide on a routine to stick with... I seem to change my routine almost weekly. I want to train heavy, but then I get a nagging injury and decide to go lighter, then the injury feels better so I go heavy again, then I want to train body parts once a week, then twice, then HIT style, then MAX-Ot style, etc...it's a vicious cycle.

right now my goal is strength. I want to do a 300lb bench press for reps. I do not know my 1RM but I am sure it is over 300 currently, but I want to work up to 300 as a working weight, and then up from there. I decided to do max-ot and was doing it for a couple of weeks, but I feel that some of my numbers were not increasing in a manner they should be, so I decided to alter things a bit and see what happens. Right now I plan on working body parts twice a week, but with low low volume on each day, 2 sets per part. I am hoping the extra day per week will stimulate some more strength/growth gains, and I allow for this by lowering the volume accordingly. We'll see

monday 4/4
bench press 265x6,4
smith shoulder press 140+bar x 7,7
weighted dips bodyweight+95 x 7,6 PR!!

well my right shoulder is messed up...something def wrong with it, so I may take out all overhead pressing from the routine and replace with front raises, just to keep some shape in my front delts. shame since I felt strong on the smith presses, but I think my shoulder won't hold up for long and I would rather save my shoulder for the bench pressing, since that is more important to me right now. The dips were great though! Next week I will try for bodyweight + 100, we have these 100lb plates at my gym and I will prepare myself for the stares since I have yet to see a +100lb dip ever performed at my gym

tune in tomorrow for more fun and games!

[cursor]

I have a similar (cronic) problem with one of my shoulders. Annoying isn't it?

Good luck with your new journal ... and your determination to "stick with it". :

[rangers97]

very annoying! Considering it came out of nowhere and doesn't hurt one bit when not lifting. I mean I wouldn't even know I had a "problem" with the shoulder if I never lifted. It just acts up on the pressing movements, but strangely enough not on the dips. I wish I could describe it better cause it is very strange, I can't even make it hurt if I tried, lol, but when I go to bench press it reminds me every time how it is there

Have you tried doing the "cuban press" as a warm up? It helped my shoulder heal from heavy benching. I use the movement faithfully before each and every workout.

[CF-OC_gal]

Originally Posted by IronMan

Have you tried doing the "cuban press" as a warm up? It helped my shoulder heal from heavy benching. I use the movement faithfully before each and every workout.

This works! :

[Firehawk]

Careful on squatting too. IF you got your hands in real close, this helps to keep the back stable, but when you push up and drive through with yoru back at the bottom, your arms tend to push up on the weight too which can cause shoulder pain. Just something to think about. I just learned this.

[cursor]

Originally Posted by rangers97

It just acts up on the pressing movements, but strangely enough not on the dips.

Keep in mind that there are (I believe) 16 muscles in each of your shoulders. An injury to one (or a couple) of them may not be felt when doing exercises that don't recruit the injured muscle(s).

[rangers97]

Originally Posted by IronMan

Have you tried doing the "cuban press" as a warm up? It helped my shoulder heal from heavy benching. I use the movement faithfully before each and every workout.

what exactly is the cuban press?

[rangers97]

Originally Posted by Firehawk

Careful on squatting too. IF you got your hands in real close, this helps to keep the back stable, but when you push up and drive through with yoru back at the bottom, your arms tend to push up on the weight too which can cause shoulder pain. Just something to think about. I just learned this.

yeah tell me about it....it feels more stable but can hurt like hell...i tend to try to spread my arms out as far as they will go when I squat...only problem is then getting them back in to rack the weight, lol....but the wider I go, the better for my shoulders...

[rangers97]

tuesday 4/5

ok, right shoulder hurt again today doing side laterals, never happened before, so now I am getting a bit concerned. I have 2 days until next pressing day, so we'll see if it heals a bit in that time. I am upping my normal MSM/glucosomine dosage to see if this helps. MSM is truly amazing stuff, I totally think it helps and would definitely recommend it to anyone lifting weights....but anyway here is today's workout, short but sweet!

weighted pullups bodyweight+20 x 6,6

barbell rows (palms down) 190x5,5

db curls 60x6,5

side laterals 30x7 stopped second set due to the shoulder pain...

happy about the db curls as that I believe is a PR for me. Never got to 6 reps on the first set with 60 lb dbs. I cheated a bit and used straps, but maybe it's psychological, but I felt more secure and therefore more strong in the movement.

tomorrow is leg day, I hope my shoulder feels better by thursday since thurs is incline bench press day and I am hoping to have a good day on those....anyone have any advice on any form for incline presses that may cause less stress to the shoulder? Would dbs help? Question...how do you guys get heavy dbs into position on an incline bench? It's very hard to put them on your knees and lean back with them on the incline since you have a short distance to travel...any suggestions?

[rangers97]

ok missed a post for wednesday, so there are 2 days worth of workouts in this post. Experienced some elbow pain in BOTH elbows after yesterday's workout, which is usually the reason why I switch things up, but I am going to keep hoping the MSM/glucosomine works and that the rest over the weekend will help them to heal a bit. It is so discouraging because as I am experiencing the pain and we all know it is not worth it to lift in pain for any reason, I am also still increasing on all my lifts, which is a terrible situation: Do i keep going cause I am increasing and then increase the risk of more serious elbow problems, or do you back off, and back off for how long, a week? 2 weeks? a month? and lose all your gains. This sport is so much psychological it kills me.....It really messes with your head sometimes and mirrors really suck too, especially when you like what you see in one

wed 4/6

squats 225x8, 235x8 went a bit lighter to try to focus more on good form today, got to parallel on all the reps except for maybe the last one.

stiff leg deadlifts 175x5, 5

calf raises -->did not do...too tired from the the deadlifts...maybe I will put calves after quads next time just so I can get them in....it's an easy exercise to just skip and not do


thurs 4/7

incline bench press 210x7,6

shoulder front raises 35x8, 40x6

close grip bench press 215x6,6

db shrug 115x10

i am eliminating all shoulder pressing movements because of my bad shoulder...so let's see, I got a bad shoulder, two bad elbows, damn I am falling apart in my old age...30 really knocks you for a loop...I swear I never had any major physical problems until I hit 30 last september, then everything just hit the fan soon after. So anyway, my shoulder exercises will be limited to front raises and side laterals, at least until the pain subsides in the shoulder if ever, at least I will try to get as heavy as I can on those exercises and still give the shoulders some kind of bodybuilding type workout, just to keep them big and strong. Happy with the inclines and the close grips, although I have a ways to go to get to where I was last summer, where I was repping 225 on the incline and 225 on decline close grip bench. But if things go well and my elbows hold up, I will be there soon.

[Firehawk]

How about you stop shoulder movements and just focus on your bench press? That would help alot.

Declines hit the front delts, then you could do maybe 1 set of 8-10 lateral side raises or upright rows, and you're shoulders are covered. Back day hits your rear delts.

Also, on squatting, keep your hands rested onthe bar. That can hurt your shoulder too.

You got any videos of your squat?

[rangers97]

Originally Posted by Firehawk

How about you stop shoulder movements and just focus on your bench press? That would help alot.

Declines hit the front delts, then you could do maybe 1 set of 8-10 lateral side raises or upright rows, and you're shoulders are covered. Back day hits your rear delts.

Also, on squatting, keep your hands rested onthe bar. That can hurt your shoulder too.

You got any videos of your squat?

no, no videos of my squat, but i am curious as to what you mean by keeping your hands rested on the bar. Do you mean don't "hold" the bar with your hands, just kind of use them to balance the bar on your back? Is that what you mean, cause yes, my shoulders do hurt with the bar on my back...

[Firehawk]

What i mean is:

Don't put your hands real close to your shoulders on the bar. I was warned about this before too. It does help you keep more upright, but when you are at the bottom and push out of the hole, you have a tendancy to push up with your arms, and this puts all kinds of stress on your shouldres, which can later give you big big problems. So, place your hands outside the rings comfortably. Hold the bar, but not tightly. Just rest them there basically.

[rangers97]

hey firehawk...question about benching...do you find that declines are the least stressful on your shoulders? And if so, do they give you as good a chest workout as regular benches?

I guess what I am asking is that if they are better for your shoulders, do they do the same thing as regular benching, obviously not competition wise, but how about strength and size wise?