T-Bone Strength 4-18-08 Through 4-23-08

Been in San Diego for the past 6 days. Got to get some serious training in down there and see family which was a great time.

4-18-08 Dynamic Bench

Speed Bench: 250x9x3 (3 different Grips)

Hammer Strength Extreme Row: 4 plates x10 (each arm), 5 plates x10 (each arm), 6 platesx8 (each arm), 7 platesx5 (each arm)

V-Grip Pulldowns: Machine Stack (went up to 295) 3 sets of 10

Rolling Triceps: 3 sets of 12

Dumbbell Bench: 120lb Dumbbells 5 sets of 10

4-19-08 Deadlift Assistance

DB Rows: 120x30, x15, x10

Seated Rows: Machine Stack (went up to 400) 3 sets of 12

Romanian Deadlifts: 225x8, 315x8, 405x5, 455x3

Leg Press: 5 sets of 10 w/1300lbs

Barbell Rows: 315x8 (2 sets)

Did some strongman training with some of my old buddies down there on the same day:

Super Yoke: 700x50 feet (3 times)

Stones: Series went 205, 225, 265, 280, 305. Got through them one time with a time of 29 seconds ish? Given I haven't ever really trained stones seriously I was pretty proud to load the 305 stone to a 54 inch platform.

Log Press: 225x5 (2 sets, I was seriously dead at this point)

Tire Flip: 800 pound tire I flipped 10 times for 2 sets. Didn't go for time, just for flips, was really fun training strongman, but I'm a powerlifter, I had to get back to business.

4-21-08 Max Effort Bench

Competition Raw Bench: Barx12, 135x8, 225x5, 315x2, 335x2, 365x2*, 395x1**, 405x0
Dropped the weight down: 275x2, 295x2, 315x2, 335x2, 345x2, 355x1 (I wouldn't have got the 2nd rep given the struggle so I decided to just rack it after the first rep)

Incline Tates: 65x10 (3 sets)

Shrugs: 120lb Dumbbellsx30 (2 sets)

Pushdowns w/straight bar: 3x12

Hammer Curls: 60x10 (2 sets)

Hammer Strength Shrug Machine Thingy( This was weird, it tries to mimic a trap bar deadlift (which I hit a 675 deadlift on Saturday which was stupid easy and has no carry over or validity to powerlifting whats so ever) and yet you can lift a crap load of weight on this thing): Worked up to 10 plates per sidex3

4-23-08 Max Effort Goodmornings/Deadlift Training

Arched Back Good Mornings: 135x5, 225x5, 315x5, 405x3 (3 sets), 315x5

Rack Pulls: 315x4, 405x2, 495x3, 545x1 (Grip wasn't an issue!)

Pulldowns with bands: 2 sets of 8 with whatever was on the stack at the time I had no idea.

Pullthroughs: 3 sets of 8

All in all good training considering I had to paint my grandma's house, fix her pipes, fix her truck, and do a bunch of other work. But hey I'm not complaining! Its the typical sacrifice I have to make to get the job done. I'm pretty darn pleased with hitting the 545 rack pull today without straps and just a belt considering I felt my grip was weak and I had driving from San Diego and got on the boat and felt pretty tired yet I got it up without a hitch (literally! and I meant the pun there!). I really enjoyed using that extreme row. It just works the back and the lats unlike any other equipment thats currently available at the gym here on the rock. Its really a great piece of equipment that I look forward to using again. I also hit a couple of significant pr's this past Monday, hitting 365 for a double, increasing my raw bench max to 395 and just missing 405 raw. I'm going to get that darn 405 raw out of the way. And to put this huge milestone in my training into perspective, a little over a year ago in our first meet at the USPF California State meet, I hit a 402 max shirted, and now I'm very close to benching more than that raw! My training has been going great and I haven't felt this good ever. I've increased my muscle mass, dropped fat, and gained a significant amount of just raw power. One thing I do wish I had is to work with bigger dumbbells. I really am a big proponent of dumbbell work and 120's were very easy for me to work with and I feel as though at least 175's-200's would be needed to get my bench, squat, and deadlift where I want them to be. Long Entry I know, but it's been awhile since I've updated. Current goal is to hit 405 raw before the Casino Gym Closed May 8th, can I do it? Stay tuned!

And yet Steve is so benchin he just cant get enough!