Week 5 - Day 13A

Squats were ok aside from the fact that my lower back was killing me.  I tried tightening my abs to alleviate the pain, it helped a little.  I feel like I'm hyperextending my back into a hyperlordotic arch when I get low.  I was reading earlier today that low bar parallel squats with an individual who has longer legs and a shorter torso puts more strain on the lower back due to my back being more horizontal during the lift.  I need to do some more research on this topic to find out the optimal way of avoiding lower back pain when doing these squats.  Anytime I incur pain on myself, I always want to stop and re-evaluate my form and possibly re do the same weight to avoid hurting myself further once I get into heavier weights.

Surprisingly, I stalled on the 4th and 5th set of my bench.  The bar today was different than the one I used on the previous A session.  The knurling was in a different place so I may or may not have been in my normal width grip position.

Rows are still fairly easy.  Maintaining a rigid body and white knuckling the bar helps a lot with stability on the lift.

Warmups:

3 x 10 Leg swings

3 x 30 sec.  static Squat stretch

Squats:

5 x Bar

3 x 115

2 x 135

5 x 5 x 155

Bench:

5 x Bar

3 x 65

2 x 85

5/5/5/4/4 x 100

Rows:

5 x 5 x 100

Warmdown:

2 x 15 sec. warrior lunge + twist

2 x 15 sec. butterfly

Foam rolled legs, upper back, lats