Blog | MotorDoc Powerlifting

Speed and Reverse Band Training

Sun, 06 May 2012 16:38:51 -0500

I am trying a new approach that involves far more adjustments to my training program. This includes a combination of 5x5 training, speed band (Westside) training, and reverse band training. It seems to be working and my PRs for a variety of lifts are going up significantly. Tools include: light, medium, heavy, and strong bands, Super Ram bench equipment, safety rack for a majority of the work.

Saturdays are set aside for monolift training at Progressive Sports Performance where we are doing 5x5 for the past few weekends. In two weeks, max lifts will be evaluated.

Details of the program will be posted in the next blog.

Post AAPF Nationals

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 19:33:49 -0500

There was a lot of success at the April 13-15, 2012, AAPF Powerlifting Nationals in Burr Ridge, Illinois. I ended with 4 National AAPF Master II Raw records and 4 IPF/AWPC World Master II Raw records, which was outstanding.

The lifts were: Squat for 429.9lb/195kg; Bench for 352.7lb/160kg; Deadlift for 451.9lb/205kg; and, Total for 1234.5lb/560kg. The video of the lifts can be found below:

The following two weeks were used as an unload period for recovery, including a four day business trip. This included two weeks of pre-workout dring and creatine. Starting cycling of both while building the strength phase of my program heading towards July 28, 2012.

Each of the lifts were PRs as well as records.

What Has Powerlifting Done for Me?

Sun, 08 Apr 2012 10:28:47 -0500

My original intention was just to get back into shape after I saw a few pictures of myself in 2009 and 2010 and got around to getting into the gym to lift weights and do aerobic type work in February of 2011. Prior to this I went on one to two hour walks per day and still managed to gain weight. I knew my health was still reasonable, but a few warning signs were showing. Also, my right hip and knee was bothering me, I had problems with my feet and my blood tests were starting towards borderline. My weight peaked after I started working out at the gym and I remember breaking down at one point towards the summer - I was frustrated.

When I was younger I was first into amateur bodybuilding and then local powerlifting. I did not have a problem with weight at all until my jobs started requiring that I sit for long periods of time. That, and a fall off a roof that crushed my diaphram and shattered my left forearm. I was no longer working out at all and between travel, hotel and restaurants, writing and other idle efforts (plus far more TV than is reasonable) coupled with an average of 3-4 hours of sleep a night, resulted in a massive weight gain of over 50lbs over a few years. It kept creeping up after that and then I started the diet yo-yo. Not effective and made the problem worse.

13 Days and Counting to 2012 AAPF Nationals

Sun, 01 Apr 2012 20:25:31 -0500

Its getting closer! Took today off and did some research into supplements and some of my 'hanging up' and not making additional progress. At this point there are two more sets of squat, bench, and deadlift before the meet in less than two weeks. Whether I am lifting on Saturday or Sunday is still being determined.

I won't meet my goals for this meet, but I will exceed the last competition significantly. I am reviewing the programming I have been doing since December and am reviewing how to change it to meet some new goals. I did find that some of it worked for some lifts but not others, etc. Pretty much the usual in this sport. Just like everything else, regardless of advertising, one size does not fit all.

Just like the training adjustments that I will make, I have also been adding and subtracting supplements. I've found that ProteinBlitz 60 and Hemo Rage Black are my basics, with Assault MP as my alternate pre-workout drink. I am halfway through my first cycle of Creatine Monohydrate which has been effective (Kre-Creatine sucked!). I've just started Xtend inter-workout supplement and DIM for body chemistry management. I have been taking B-Complex and Glucosamine & Chondroitin for joint health.

16 Days to Nationals!

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 19:32:42 -0500

There are only 16 more days to the APF/AAPF Powerlifting Nationals in Burr Ridge, Illinois. Last Saturday was the APF/AAPF Illinois State Powerlifting Meet with lots of state and national records achieved! The Iron Disciples and Progressive Teams both had a great showing!

Talia Colton of the Progressive Team at her first meet placed first and set four national records for squat, bench, deadlift and total!

Russ DiNaro of the Iron Disciples took a first and second place for his great lifts!

Erik Johnson took first in APF raw lifts. And they were huge!

Heading into the last couple of weeks I just completed a combined squat/deadlift day yesterday, bench day today, and back tomorrow with a day with the Progressive Team working on squat. I've set my starting lifts for each and now lifting up to that as a max in preparation.

Planning on knocking out a record or two of my own!

More to Come!

Reverse Band Bench PR Day

Sun, 18 Mar 2012 16:02:56 -0500

Today the decision was to do a max single bench without assistance, but trying my belt to push against. It had an effect and brought me to 345lbs. I then switched over to a reverse band off the top of a safety squat rack using first a medium and then strong band. Everything was positioned to force me to move the bar to the correct spot between my chest and the bottom of my sternum. I was able to get the max up through 325lbs for a full rep. At 345lbs I lost my concentration on the first attempt and on the second attempt I hit the bar against the rack which caused trouble on the lift and then got the bar under the rack on the way back up. Lucikly I was still in control and was able to rack it.

March 17 2012 Squat PR Day

Sat, 17 Mar 2012 15:40:17 -0500

After a light week I hit the gym at Progressive Sports Performance with my workout partners for squats. Working on my raw and reverse band PR.

March Training Updates

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 19:52:29 -0500

Heavy back day yesterday and a squat day tomorrow. The week of change/recovery has had an effect, I feel more energy and we will see how that translates into power tomorrow.

Areas I need to work on include a little more speed through the start of each lift plus more effort getting deadlifts off the floor. Tomorrow work on depth, speed and see if I can make a PR in squats.

One week from Saturday will be the Illinois State meet. I will not be competing but will, instead be assisting at the meet. However, the date changes my workout scheme for next week so that I will do a bit of everything early on. Then Sunday I intend on setting my weights for the competition in April. Need my starting weights and projected PRs.

Overtrained and Creatine

Sun, 11 Mar 2012 18:22:58 -0500

I've felt a little exhausted over the past few weeks and, I know it's kind of a weird statement considering what I am doing, but the weights felt 'heavy' this past week. What I mean is that I noticed some of my weights (i.e.: bench) had been going backwards and small gains or stalled in squat and deadlift. Normally when the weights are in the ready position they feel lighter because, as a raw lifter, I am stronger at the top than at the bottom of the movement. In this case, the weight felt heavy right off and I would be unable to get the lift 'deep' enough as my muscles would exhaust quickly.

I am wondering if the cause was the Westside Barbell method where the bands would exhaust the top of the movement and I was actually not conditioned for it. Planning on using my older method through the next 4-5 weeks then the Nationals (April 15). This upcoming week will work strictly on form and depth to recover as much as possible.

I started a creatine cycle the past few weeks starting out with 'CreMAGNavol' which is a combined Creatine Chelate system requiring two sets of four pills per day. It seemed to not work as advertised. So, I've switched to the more known and used Creatine Monohydrate in this case a 100% pure powder by BodyTech which provides 5g per serving. I am skipping the loading phase and started with a first dose tonight. Could tell the difference right away - within 5 minutes my mouth felt like the Sahara!! Normal side effect. Now, I am going to watch for bloating and stomach discomfort as some report.

Squat Overtraining Week - Ouch!

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 20:58:11 -0600

On Wednesday did a PR of 465lbs on bench followed immediately by 465lb deadlift. Went very well before driving to Michigan (5 hours) back on Friday for speed bench. That one hurt.

On Saturday, went to Progressive Sports Performance to work on a max again. Felt great, but did not make full squat combined with the long drive, etc. Will see where things are again a week from now.

5 weeks out from AAPF Nationals!!

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Bench Overtraining Week

Fri, 24 Feb 2012 19:30:49 -0600

Been working the Westside Barbell method but noted that my bench has not progressed as I had hoped. Perhaps a good part of it is due to changing my form to the barbell coming down lower on my chest. It feels more uncomfortable than my older style that relied upon my chest and shoulders. This relies more upon triceps and lats than what I am used to. Basically, will work on this but will concentrate on my big lifts being squat and deadlift.

This week has been a little strange, as have the past few weeks, with business travel with a few more weeks of the same on the way. I did get to visit The Pit Barbell in Evansville, Indiana, again. That was very nice - picked up a t-shirt this time.

I am trying something a little different - this week I decided to overtrain and did three days of bench in a row (with a day in between). Now I go back on Sunday with my normal routine with box squats at 14 inches.

Impact of Westside Method

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 19:07:33 -0600

I was wondering about the impact of the Westside Barbell method so decided to go for max 1 rep squat followed by deadlift. This is after an effective two weeks off (with two workouts during those two weeks), having a pretty bad cold coupled with Aleve Cold and Sinus. My head was not into the lifts but ended with a 455 lb bench and a 455 deadlift with room to go up another 30-50 lbs on each.

The plan is to now sink in more with the program and then do one rep tests on all of the lifts in March about a month before the competition. Planning for my final lifts at nationals to exceed 500lbs on both of these and goal to break 400lbs on bench still.

Lost Workouts

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 19:57:59 -0600

Unfortunately, there are those times when work gets in the way of training. This past week has been one of those times. A major failure of a piece of equipment at a customer changed my plans for the week and had me driving between Kansas and Dallas from Chicago (with upcoming travel to Evansville, IN this week). With the equipment I need, it has mostly been a drive. The 16 hour days plus travel (driving an average of 7-11 hours multiple times) is a major setback in sleep, diet, and access to the gym.

Luckily in the upcoming week I have found a powerlifting gym in Evansville that hopefully will be available so that I can get in a few days a week.

In the meantime, I have also obtained all of the bands that my coach suggested, a special strap for bench warmups he recommended, Westside Barbell materials and videos, and just purchased a box squat assembly that is portable so that I can bring it to the gym. Due to some of the issues I have had with my hands and that the health club I use will not allow chalk, I have also obtained some special sprays from EliteFTS that act as sticky and antibacterial. The cool thing is that the sticky lasts only for seconds - long enough for the lift - without any mess.

Max Squat Day

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 19:20:25 -0600

Something is working! Got to 435lbs one rep on box squats (parallel) and may have been able to go further. Felt really good! Followed with sets of shrugs from 315lbs to 585lbs, band work, followed by sets of high rep glutes.

Tomorrow will do light, high rep bi/tri and crunches. Saturday will be chained deadlifts.

Challenge today was a six hour drive to central Illinois and back with a 2.5 hour sales call. Legs, thighs and knees were extremely tight. Watched food intake with an egg beater omlette for breakfast, coffee during drive, protein shake and banana on the way back. Pre-workout drink, post workout protein drink, light chicken and veggie soup for dinner, popcorn and an orange.

Weight has been dropping, as have waist measurements. Other measurements and lifts continue to increase.

Weekend Workouts

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 18:49:46 -0600

It has been an interesting weekend which will result in a day off from the gym tomorrow. Basically, did four days heavy in a row, which is normally not recommended!

Saturday was spent at Progressive Sports Performance with my trainer, Erv Domanski. The personal training session started with tips and tricks on speed box squats, some additional programming, and a few new exercises to work through weak points. The challenge was that the information provided by Westside Barbell on their program was not easily understood. Now it is. Following a 20 minute break we started into good mornings with chains. I got through 405lbs (plus chains) but failed at 455lbs - too big a leap. Finished the 2.5 hours of workout with reverse hypers which felt fantastic!

Today was a little different. My scheduling is still off, so decided to get in max bench day. This included my first attempt at floor bench using a matt through 335lbs for a single for a full rep and then two partial reps at 335lbs (see video). I followed this with dumbell triceps for sets of 20-25, reverse barbell rows at 245lbs for sets of 12, rope rows at 200lbs cable for sets of 20, dumbell rows at 120lbs for sets of 10, and arch situps with a 6"x36" roller. Need the one day to recover before Erv shows me speed bench routines on Tuesday.

Travel Week

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 19:13:58 -0600

Traveled to Atlanta for a Society for Maintenance and Reliability Professionals, Inc. (SMRP) this week from Tuesday morning until Thursday afternoon, which interrupted the lifting schedule. As a result, I had to do the Wednesday workout on Thursday with the Friday workout the day after plus I will have a session with my trainer on Saturday followed by a workout on Sunday and Monday.

Actually, I kind of miss getting into the gym every day!

Yesterday I went ahead and mixed things up a bit and did band box squats (speed squat) at 315 using the light bands, then singles with deadlift (at 275) using bands. That was interesting with the light band because the first couple of attempts I was unable to lock out at the top. Then I finished with heavy shrugs.

Today I did speed inclines with the light band at 185 followed by high rep triceps cable pushdowns, high rep chest supported rows through 315lbs, and high rep anterior deltoid raises at 40lbs. A little sore and wondering how much I will have in me tomorrow.

Workout Vampires!

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 19:00:39 -0600

OK, not the type that suck your blood, but definitely the type that drain you!

Sudden and extreme changes to your workout program, negative attitudes of other people, some people just drain, stress at work, stress at home, lack of sleep, over-training, over-working, diet, and a variety of other physical and emotional vampires! How do you deal with those?

I had probably the worst combination today. A major vampire attack that dropped my max workout day (1-rep bench today) to about 50lbs less than where it should have been. Had to drop the other lifts in the workout by about 20%, but I did muscle through it. Felt tired, lethargic, and generally not into it. But I did make it no matter how many excuses I was making to myself.

While I am traveling tomorrow I plan on reviewing what was different the past week to see what happened. I am continuing to lose weight and my diet is reasonable, so that was not much of the issue. I do know I was a little dehydrated today and that there were some unusually high work stresses today. We'll see if the changed program has had an effect when I am with my trainer on Saturday.

Squat and Deadlift Speed

Sat, 14 Jan 2012 15:20:58 -0600

First day of bands following the Westside Barbell method - well, actually, preparing to follow the program. First things first, learn how to deal with bands. This isn't my first time, I have been exposed to bands during training at Progressive Sports Performance with good mornings last weekend.

After reviewing the Western Barbell "Book of Methods" and associated tapes (DVDs), I put together a 75 minute workout and applied it. The workout progressed as follows (45-60seconds between sets):

1. Box Squat warmups - bands stretched to 5ft at the top X 8 followed by 135lb plus top 41lbs band stretch x3; 185lb + band x2; 225lb + band x 2; 275lb + band x 2

2. Box Squats - includes band as above: 12 sets of 315lb+band of 2 reps.

3. Deadlift warmups - 135+band x 2 with bar high by 1.5 inch; 135+band x 2 with bar deficit of 1.5 inch followed by 225+band x 1.

4. Deadlifts - 10 sets of 275 plus band of 1 rep.

5. Dumbell one-arm pulls - 120 lbs with 3 sets of 8 reps.

6. Abs (Crunch machines) - 100lbs for 50 reps followed by oblique crunches 20 per side at 100lbs.

First Day of Bands

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 20:16:42 -0600

So, I am not yet following the Westside Barbell method completely yet. I am still trying to understand it plus get used to bands during lifting. The Westside method recommends that you don't do the actual lifts, but work around them and you will become stronger. I broke that rule, as well as the weekly schedule, but I had futzed that up anyways. The basic plan is that I have a business trip this week and will start into the program immediately after. With my job, this is important.

I used the 'mini-bands' which I wrapped around a set of dumbells making the length a minimum of 5 feet and a maximum of about 7 feet? I estimated the bands (pair) to add 32.9lbs at the bottom and 46.1 lbs at the top. For the first time out I warmed up with the bar and bands, then added a pair of 45s for 135lbs plus the bands. Lifted for 4 reps. Then with 45 seconds between sets did twelve sets of three at 185lbs + bands. I calculate that as a total load of 8100lbs.

The concept is that the body can only produce maximum force for no more than three reps for bench (2 for squat and 1 for deadlift, as I am interpreting the stuff). The idea is to go for 50% band speed reps during the first week, 55% and 60% the following weeks. I think the form was reasonable, I will have to video it and check it out later. It is interesting because it is not as steady as you think the first time.

Transition to New Program

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 19:01:20 -0600

Bands, straps, training materials (books/videos), roller and stick have arrived after my workout today. I am working through the new materials (a lot of it!), working on the ISSA training course, and working on several research and development projects related to work. There is a lot of transition going on at work, the gym and home. Transition/change is good - it helps make you stronger.

I did not sleep well last night coupled with a high salt dinner out last night and for lunch today. Enough that I exhausted quickly. I also found that the stick felt good, but I seemed weaker - muscles not tense enough. My knees bothered me a bit, as well, most likely because I was on my feet a lot (concrete floors) and up and down concrete steps all day.

Need to increase water consumption and reduce salt again. My weight is still dropping about 0.5-1lb per week (and sometimes faster) which is great!