A tough couple of weeks for my workouts.  This is week 7 of an approximate 14-week program.  InOneWeekend and some sleeping problems, as well as a long recovery from my 65-mile ride last Saturday kept me from working out.  I only got two workouts in last week and one this week.  I head off for a short vacation on Wednesday and won’t have access to the equipment I need.  So much for the three to four workouts a week for now.  I’ll have to hit it hard when I get back next week.  Hopefully I’ll come back rested after a few days on the water in Michigan with family and friends.

I discussed some of my progress issues with my strength coach, Tim Watson, to see how to get past my 170-pound bench press. Tim provided good perspective. I haven’t been able to get past the 10 sets of 170 pounds at 5 reps per set. Apparently the bench press uses only 1/4 of the muscles in the body, and some of the weakest ones at that. All this adds up to slow progress in a bench press.

Tim suggested changing up my bench in a couple of different ways. First, I varied the weight in the 10 sets making sure to complete all 10. I started at 180 pounds and moved down to 155 pounds for the final sets. On the last sets I had difficulty finishing, so I naturally added another technique that Tim suggested: a mid set recovery. With this technique I paused at the top between reps in order to give my muscles a short time to recover before the next rep. I simply could not have finished if I had not done this.

Tim provided some other perpsective, and pretty impressive if I must say.  In the deadlift, alone, I lift 11,000 pounds at 220 pound reps in each workout.  And in my body-weight squats I’m doing more at 80 than most trained marshal arts practitioners.

Okay, here’s today’s workout:

Deadlift: 10 sets, 5 reps per set at 220 pounds.  Start a new set every 90 seconds.

Bench Press: 3 sets, 5 reps per set at 180 pounds.  3 sets, 5 reps per set at 170 pounds.  4 sets 5 reps per set at 155 pounds.  Start a new set every 90 seconds.

Body-weight Squats: 80

Pull-ups: 8 sets, 2 reps per set, alternate behind the neck and under the chin.

Jump Rope: 5 minutes

Workout Music: Kenny Chesney When The Sun Goes Down, and Rascal Flatts Still Feels Good

- Andy