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Week 10 - 5/3/1 - Day 36

Cycle #3

Overall, I felt much better coming into the workout today.  I read something very inspiring while I was perusing the net at work today.  It was an article by none other than Jim Wendler himself.  It was quite refreshing to read because I've been experiencing subtle whispers in my head telling me that I need to cut down on my eating and start doing some more cardio to get that six pack ab.  I guess I should expect it considering summer's finally here.  The title of the article is "Time to Man Up".  When I first read it, I had a resounding thought of "F*CK YEAH" in my head and I got really amped.

Deadlift:  5x115, 5x140, 3x175 + 3x205, 3x235, 5x265

I had business socks on.  Probably looked a bit silly, but it saved my shins a bit.  I did manage to rip off a scab from my previous deadlift session, so that was no fun, but didn't really affect me much.  I used my belt on the last set and had an alternating grip.  Form felt great- I didn't feel any stress on the lower back.  I think the feeling I can best describe is that I was trying to separate the floor, contracting the glutes and driving my heels into the ground while lifting the bar close to the body.  Once the bar reached my knees, I drove my hips forward aggressively.

Boring But Big 70%

Squat: 3x135, 3x155, 1x185 + 7/5/5/5/4 x 205

These felt considerably more confident compared to last time.  What I didn't like though was that my right wrists were buckled while my left were in line with my forearm.  This needs to be fixed for Friday's squat.

Ab Wheel:  10/5/5/5/5

These were pretty difficult.  I had put quite a lot more effort in my assistance squat lift today so my mind and body were pretty fried at this point.

Treadmill:  10% incline + 3min. warm-up @ 3.0 spd, 2 sets of 1min. 5.0 speed jog / 1min. 3.0 speed rest

Week 10 - 5/3/1 - Day 35

Cycle #3

I don't remember my stats, but I think this is a rep PR on the press.  I definitely could have managed a few more reps.

Press:  5x75, 3x85, 4x95

Accidentally did 2 extra reps on the first set.

Boring But Big 70%

Bench Press: 3x10xBar + 5x10x115

My bench felt very strong today.  Managed to bang out all the reps on each set.  I wasn't tucking my elbows as much.  And I also wasn't locking out.  I noticed that when I lockout at the top, my shoulder blades naturally protract thereby making me lose tightness in my upper back.

Curls:  3x10x40 + ***Tricep pushdown:  3x10x35 + Face pull: *3x10x25

Curls were were a bit easier than last time.  Tricep pushdowns were extremely easy.  Face pulls got my anterior delts burning a bit.

Treadmill:  15min at 2.5 speed + max incline.

Week 9 - 5/3/1 - Day 34

Cycle #3

Squat:  5x185, 5x215, 5x245

I had some difficulty with these.  My form seems to be pretty good- bar is no longer moving up onto my traps.  Wrists are buckling sideways a bit though.

Boring But Big 70%

Deadlift:  5/5/4/4/2x205

Used some long formal socks to avoid scraping the knees.  These were heavy.  Couldn't get to 10 reps on a single set.