Supplemental Stuff, Updates, etc.

General notes, relevant to supplementation and general progress:
1) Glucosamine Sulfare or Sulfate Salts (Rottapharm) is probably useful as it reduces markers of collagen degradation and thus probably reduces progression towards problematic side effects of too much climbing.
2) Chondroitin appears to be pointless.
3) High calcium intake is very important for climbing health; providing a surplus (in conjunction with other vitamins, e.g. D and K2 - fortunately found in butter/ghee) will go far towards preventing unnecessary injuries.
4) There's very little evidence supporting ZMA specifically, but it's handy if you're low in the ingredients.
5) Importantly, it's probably not a good idea to climb every day. Alternating days of climbing and lifting - when climbing's even possible - probably reigns here. That's also good because it provides a great excuse for getting back on the lifting wagon and reclaiming the old body.

Also probably time to start sketching out an outline for that cardio manifesto I've been toying with.

For supplements, I'm generally skeptical of anything that's associated with reduced symptoms unless it's acting on the underlying; I'm concerned about my fingers hurting because I don't want to fuck them up, not because it's painful.

Sunday, November 11th, 2016

Key Takeaway:
For Taku intervals and steady-state conditioning, do the lower-intensity stuff on an inclined elliptical or treadmill.

At least some cardio should be AM to wake up; this can be light and low-intensity. Probably the same half-hour setup as currently used, but potentially at an even lower intensity than currently used to avoid tiring out. This should be done immediately on waking the first time - take meds and just go power walk/elliptical.

Intervals should alternate machines where possible (never do the same thing twice in a row unless absolutely necessary) and be exclusively zero-impact until running's improved. Running would then only be on days as far from any squatting/deadlifting as possible.

The erg's still out until shoulder's back to better shape, meaning consistent soft tissue, TRX, and band work.

Details:
Back in the gym, a little more solidly this time. Cardio is the one thing I can consistently do during the week, so I've been running through Taku's protocols (so far the "first two weeks" part - this started with 1-2 runs of 90/90, then 3 for most of the last two weeks, now 4 for the last two times; it'll be the protocol as traditionally written going forward). Other days it's conventional cardio, looking for ~20 minutes at lactate threshold (which with the caffeine and addy is more like 150-180 heart rate instead of the generally-prescribed 120-130...jesus). The weekends (and generally any SF days, and/or any SEA days) go more to climbing right now, with lifting to return soon.

In the interest of minimizing system stress, I'm trying to focus on concentric-only cardio. Machine choices are laid out below, though there's some variation in validity there. I'm also trying to focus on low-impact, at least for the intervals.

From an energy expenditure/weight loss effect perspective, it's probably worth designating 1-2 primary machines for the lactate threshold work and then cycling through everything else for the intervals. Based on the selection below, I'd probably peg inclined Elliptical and Treadmill for threshold and everything else for the intervals. Erg probably calls for some PT in advance; packing TRX and some soft tissue tools for the road lets me do a lot there, but dedicated attention (especially graston for the lat...) will be a big help too. Also a great way to burn through the FSA funds.

Given some running coaching to get form down (also mobility work etc. - I've been terrible about couch stretching, actually) that may be a viable choice for a mid-week (say Tuesday) session - presumably any squatting would be something like Thursday/Friday and Sunday, so it'd give just about the best possible recovery window and let me work on a pretty fundamental human skill.

Favored Machine Choices
- Erg
- Upright bike
- Recumbent bike
- Stairmaster
- Treadmill (INCLINE)
- Elliptical (INCLINE)

These are all nice in that there's no/little lengthening under load - it's actually kind of annoying trying to find other sources on this, but it's not that hard to figure out for yourself (or to test - go do a hard cardio workout on a new machine; if you're not particularly sore the next day, it's low/no-eccentric).

Presumably more exotic machines like the Versaclimber and Airdyne match this.

The treadmill and elliptical seem like mixed bags, since both either are or emulate flat running and thus (at least based on reputation) have a greater eccentric component than the above (where any lengthening is either unloaded [erg, stairmaster] or actively facilitated by shortening from the other side [bikes]). Doing these things on an incline helps by simulating hills; there may also be a way to manipulate foot position on the elliptical to similar effect. Murder on the calves, though.

Other Attractive Ideas
The stereotypical powerlifter "counter-culture" exercises also seem to fall into the lower/no eccentric zone - which makes a lot of sense:
- Sledgehammer
- Sled pull (aka regular sled)
- Sled push (aka prowler)
- Hill sprints

Rope jumping is probably acceptable since it shouldn't kill quads/hamstrings/glutes, though concentrically it's murder on the calves.

Unfortunate Exclusions
- Flat running/Treadmill
- Flat elliptical

Other than that it's actually hard to say - the big problem honestly seems to be that you've got to hit an incline to do a particularly good job. We're also primarily after low/no impact activities for anything halfway intense.

Returning to Old Program

Sticking with what I like - which is lots of rowing and faster conventional workouts. Switching to/adding Oly as shoulder health improves.

Row
Rehab

Bench
Bench 5*3 (2.5lb increments...maybe after 135)
LAPD 8*3-5
Curls 8ea*3-5 superset Push-Ups
Rehab

Squat
Squat 5*3 (5lb increments)
TGU 3ea*3-5
Pistol 5ea*3-5
Rehab

Row
Rehab

Press
Press 5*3 (2.5lb increments)
LAPD 8*3-5
Curls 8ea*3-5 superset Push-Ups
Rehab

Deadlift
Deadlift 5*3 (5lb increments)
TGU 3ea*3-5
KB Swing 10*3-5 (or GHR, depending on available equipment)
Rehab

Rehab here:
HS Plank - but take it easy
Power Pulls
Farmer Carries
"Hip Stuff"

Various bits of rolling. May have to prescribe day to day.

Restart Program

I liked the 2015 spring programs (previous iron post) but for now I want to rebuild basic capabilities again first. Probably switch to a 4/week program in a few months to add some variety and make it easier to build in shoulder rehab/prehab work.

Current conception: Alternating days

A:
Squat 5x3 (start 135) - pause final rep for breathing
Bench 5x3 (start 105)
Row 8x3 (start with TRX?)
Curl 8*x3 (start with 10s)
Face Pull 10x3

http://strengtheory.com/implementing-paused-squats/
May do the paused reps towards the end of the workout (on the way out, even). That "50 paused reps" idea could be a fun thing every so often.

B:
Deadlift 5x3 (start 165)
Press 5x3 (start 75)
Pulldown/Pullup 8x3 (start 60)
Face Pull 10x3
Turkish Getup 5*x3
Similar concept with a paused dead right off the floor - much like that ultra-slow dead reps idea for building core strength from Rob ____ or whatever his name was.

Will have to go back and review that old Cressey article about balancing rotation etc. - going to be doing a lot of push-ups on the side and need to keep hammering shoulder health.

Revised Program

After yesterday's exhaustion session, it seems kind of superfluous to go through the effort of setting up to row (at least for now). Oly's a lot of fun, suitable for a ton of volume, and a huge cardio hit with short rest periods.

Press (Saturday)
Press 5*3 (2.5lb increments)
LAPD 8*3-5
Curls 8ea*3-5
Rehab

Squat (Sunday)
Squat 5*3 (5lb increments)
TGU 3ea*3-5
Pistol 5ea*3-5
Rehab

Oly (Monday)
Snatch High Pull 2*5
Hang Snatch 2*5
Clean and Jerk
Rehab

Bench (Tuesday)
Bench 5*3 (2.5lb increments)
LAPD 8*3-5
Curls 8ea*3-5
Rehab

Deadlift (Wednesday)
Deadlift 5*3 (5lb increments)
TGU 3ea*3-5
KB Swing 10*3-5
Rehab

Oly (Thursday)
Full Snatch 2*5
Clean High Pulls
Hang Clean
Rehab

Pulldowns can go back into the lower body days once time permits (similar story with some kind of extra work on the upper days). For now it's about shrinking time down.

2014-06-01 SPF States Meet

I didn't sleep well for the days leading up to the cut and the meet, partly from staying up with a girl and then scrambling to reach my PT appointments. I went low-carb the week leading in, and somehow got sick as well. This resulted in my starting the hot baths while already feeling like crap. The feeling went from unpleasant to outright dangerous (felt like I was going to pass out every time I got out of the tub) so I called it off and weighed in around 170lbs after a lot of food Friday night and Saturday morning.

Sunday's flights went Women - Men Light - Med Middle - Men Heavy, so I had more time to warm up than usual. I ran roughly the same warmup I do during workouts; I think this worked out, actually. I did need to roll somewhat more than previously to get every loosened up and feeling healthy.

When I hit my 315 warmup single on the squat, the guy helping me with the weights told me it was probably time to cut it, so I asked Cara to drop my opener to 350 (originally set 365). When I took that out I stepped very far back (as usual) and got words from both Cara and the back spot to stay closer to the rack. That kept working for the 2nd attempt (mid-380s) but on the third I completely fucked up:
1) I forgot to cinch my belt, so I had to interrupt setting up to fix it
2) I somehow decided to take a much closer stance than I was used to
3) As I started the descent and realized #2 I immediately though "You're going to fail this" and jinxed it
So that failed immediately.

The bench went a lot better. I did some hard-style planking and shoulder taps before setting down on the bench and actually warming up. Everything felt a lot more stable (probably due to bench quality) and "healthy." 175 flew up, 185 felt really good, and the 195 opener went fast (too fast - I didn't pause long enough). 215 also went pretty well so I decided to push to 230 (...or 231, or whatever) for #3. That was probably the most satisfying bench rep of my life - I shouted "up" at least twice and did a victorious air-fist after I locked it out. I see this as a sign that shoulder stability and slingshot work both do a lot here. It doesn't feel like I broke a huge wall, but it's still the end of a major plateau.

Warming up for deads felt pretty bad. The bar stuck to my thighs until I added some of Saarni's ~baby powder, and everything generally felt heavier and slower than it should have. I got to 355 and decided to drop my opener to 385 (originally set for around 420). The attempts themselves were very solid, and I left a lot on the platform, but I felt like my head was going to explode after each one so I'm satisfied. I did 413.5 as my second (tying third from last year but looking drastically better) and roughly 435 for the third, since that was the lowest that would get me a 1050 total. I easily had over 450 in me, but, again, I just wasn't feeling it on anything other than the bench.

I also had to borrow Saarni's belt for the deads because my waist had expanded so much that I couldn't get air while my lever was closed. I figured out why around 2am when I vomited up basically everything I ate the entire day - it looks like it all just sat in my stomach while the food from Saturday went through.

Full Video (1050lb Total at 170)

Squat 1 (~350lbs)
Squat 2 (~385lbs)
Squat 3 (~413lbs)

Bench 1 (~195lbs)
Bench 2 (~215lbs)
Bench 3 (~231lbs)

Dead 1 (~385lbs)
Dead 2 (~413lbs)
Dead 3 (~436lbs)

Programming-wise -
1) My next run will be front squats and snatch-grip deads, with push-ups until I can get 50 good reps (see previous). That's in conjunction with my PT stability exercises, many of which now involve the push-up position. I'm going to keep doing slingshot work, but probably not while I'm in China.
2) I'm going to either learn how to squat out of a monolift or keep my walkout more symmetrical and closer to the rack so I don't screw up my third next time.
3) Lots more ab work.

I'm also going to go back to the 3/week approach for now, since the weights are lighter and it facilitates keeping in a lot of conditioning. China will make it harder to keep my weight low but I should be able to pull it off.

I'm going to work on hip/thoracic mobility and general physical maintenance to help maintain things. I felt like my back was rounding out a lot on my squats.

I'll write up an actual program on Friday after my last PT session (which will probably involve some programming discussion).

I'm going to need more Broz tape.

Useful Tate Tidbits

For accessory movements:
1) Think of them as building the muscle; feel them there, don't worry about weight, slow the tempo, pick exercises you FEEL in the muscle, etc.
2) Failure with these is when you finish a rep and think "Hmmm...miiight not get the next one."
3) Get a vicious pump every single time

Post-Meet Program Plan

General thoughts -
1) I need to get a lot better at push-ups
http://hundredpushups.com/test.html
Using something like this, presumably.
2) Front Squats and Snatch-Grip Deads
http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/most.../the_snatch_grip_deadlift
3) Possibly/probably add intervals back in

Reading online suggests that Front Squat and Snatch-Grip Dead both tend to come in around 80% of the conventional versions.

To help keep my focus on life rather than lifting, I'm going to drop back to 3 days per week and do this initial run in the traditional abbreviated style.

So, on the Day A / Day B schedule, I'm guessing I'll have:

A:
Front Squat 5x3
Push-Ups (until 50 good reps)
Chin-Ups
Abs
Prehab - and this time I'll spell out an actual set for it

B:
Snatch-Grip Dead 5x3
Push-Ups (until 50 good reps)
Chin-Ups
Abs
Prehab (as above)

2014-05-08 Deadlift

Warmup

Deadlift -
135x5
170x5
205x5
240x5
275x5 (added belt)
310x5
350x3
390x5x3
I did these with shorter rests than usual; I just felt ready sooner. I'll give 397.5 a whirl with no belt for the first set to see if I've just been recovering better, but I have a strong feeling that belting up contributed to how well I did here. Ejay took a video for set 3, and it honestly didn't look like anything maximal.
From this I'm confident that I'll hit 405x5x3 in two weeks (hence an extra 2.5lbs next time) and have a good shot at 500 come June.

Pull-Up -
10 (9 and 10 cheaty)

Chin-Up -
8 (straight bar)
8, 6 (V-bar)
My lats are not used to contracting to this position. I'll alternate the two or something.

Squat -
45x10x3
95x8x2
135x5
I found "my" stance - it's a bit wider than shoulder width.

Bench -
45x10x3
95x5
Focusing on the lat cues I've been learning in PT really helped on the 95 set.

45-Degree Back Raise -
10x20x3
Plate behind the head makes these brutally hard.

Hard Plank - 3 of 20sec
Bat Wings - 3 of 10 with 7.5lbs and 5-second holds. Use Saarni's old bench; it's higher.
Blast Strap Row - 10x3
Power Pull - 10, 5 (at this point I was really losing the ability to contract properly)
Plate Farmer's Walk - 3 trips with 25lbs each hand, each one from the decline to the wall x2
Pretzel Stretch - 10 breaths each side. I need to check on how to do these.
Lat Roll - Some using regular roller
Posterior Shoulder Smash - Used the gemini, had some good finds
Pec Smash - Tried with the lacrosse ball; not as good. Will work on this.
Super Couch - Tried to use a stronger band but the fitstaff couldn't hook it to anything. I'll ask Cyrus to hit my quads tomorrow to make up for this and the lack of quad rolling (ran out of time).

I'm going to order a (Reactive) Slingshot tomorrow, and a belt fairly soon. I'm guessing I'll go with the same Lever style that Henry has, but it might wind up being a different brand with finer hole spacing (if available). Bench training will now alternate benching and slingshot volume work.

2014-05-05 Squat

Warmup

Squat -
45x5
85x5
125x5
145x5
205x5
250x5 (Belt)
290x3 (Belt)
410 Walkout (Belt)
340x5 (Belt)
430 Walkout (Belt)
340x5 (Belt)
450 Walkout
340x5
I borrowed Henry's lever belt and adjusted it in by one notch; that actually wound up making the lifts and walkouts a lot harder. Pushing out against the belt distracted me from keeping an upright torso (or biased my brain towards letting my back take the weight), so I leaned forward a lot more than usual. The last set actually looked better than the others, and the 450 walkout was easy without the belt.

Deadlift -
135x10x3

Squat Walkout -
405, 2 times
I loosened the belt one notch to go for this one; it worked a lot better. Being able to breath helps.

45-Degree Back Raise -
20x3, hands on head
Adding these for a deadlift accessory.

Pull-Up -
8x4
Fairly strict

Super Couch for 1m/position

I met Cyrus in the parking lot and he gave me a card; I've got a free massage credit, and I'll set up with him for Friday. Today's main focus from now on will be on abs; I have a feeling the rear laterals were actually hurting me shoulder-wise.

2014-05-04 Arms and Prehab

Warmup

Overhead EZ Extension -
30x12
40x12
50x12
60x7
That external rotation "slip" during the 235 unrack seems to have set my left shoulder worse; it didn't like these (which makes sense, since I cheat the later reps by throwing my elbows out).

Preacher Curl -
50x13, 9, 10

Rope Pressdown -
40x20
Aggravated shoulder.

V-Bar Pressdown -
40x20x2
Didn't aggravate shoulder.

Face Pull - 5x15x3
BER - Micro*15x3

Super couch with twist
Quad rolling
Upper back rolling

This is the last two-a-day workout; it was nice for a while but I think I'll benefit psychologically (and progress-wise) from moving back to the evenings.

2014-05-04 Bench (and some bonus)

Warmup

Bench -
45x5
65x5
85x5
105x5
125x5
145x5
170x3
235 Unrack - tweaked my left shoulder; it felt like it pretty much slipped backwards out of the socket
195x3 (4F)x2
190x4

CG -
155x5
160x5
165x4 (5F)
165x0, 1 (pin press)
155x5x3

Bench (ring finger) -
155x5
Feels weird

I'm going to try benching in the annex again and doing everything in the evenings. I guess we're back to one workout per day. It's also time to put the prehab back in, since the limiter here may just be shoulder stability.

Looking back over my logs, the common element in my progress here seems to be the floor press. I want to do some higher-intensity work on the bench itself, so I'll throw floor press where Push Press was and switch bench down to triples. I'll also try throwing in strict press and close grip for 5x5s after those movements...I'm really just throwing shit at the wall to see what sticks at this point. After the meet I'll rotate bench out for floor press and go back to the push/strict pressing cycle on the other day.

2014-05-02 Deadlift

Warmup, with some lat pulldowns

Deadlift -
135x5
170x5
205x5
240x5
275x5
310x5
345x5
385x5, 5, 4 (5F)
315x1
Technique is king here - I lost my lat engagement on the later reps. The bar swung out a bit later on set 3, and that plus resting the bar fully on the ground probably cost me the 5th rep.
I went scared cat/Bob Youngs style on that one; I got it past my knees, but the total loss of back position made it impossible to lock out.
I'm going to push my workouts back an extra day or so for extra recovery, do some recovery deads over the next few days, eat a bit more today, and probably take deadlift days off work so I can pull in the evenings next time.

Updates 4 weeks out

I woke up this morning at 164. Weight loss seems to be capping off, so I'll be reducing meal sizes again. I'll start by just reducing the dressing on breakfast to 20g of olive oil and the rice to 90g each (so roughly 170kcal dropped, for ~2175)

Next steps:
1) I've got about a week left before I restock beef and chicken, and 10 days each for pork and fish.
Beef: Replace the 185g short rib with 130g top sirloin
Chicken: Reduce portion to 130g -> but bump rice back up
Pork: Start buying segments that are 100% loin only and reduce portion to 140g
Fish: Increase portion to 150g (hilarious, I know)
(~2025kcal/day)

EDIT: As some slightly greater ass-coverage, I'm going to increase the meat portions somewhat further and compensate with a drop to 10g oil for the salads.

2) If rice stayed down, drop it to 80g/meal (~1875kcal/day);

3) Remove the apple from lunch and drop rice to 70g/each (~1725kcal/day)

I doubt I'll hit #3 before the meet, in which case I'll only do it after reintegrating conditioning. If I head off to China I'll drop training to 3-4x per week and condition all 3 days to compensate for increased calories and drinking; if I stay in town I'll stick with my 4-on-5 schedule but add back the old conditioning days.

I don't have an official diagnosis on the shoulder, but I've got a strong anti-inflammatory prescribed and instructions to avoid overhead work. Benching is still fine, so I guess we're just dropping into a heavy/medium mix there. Thursday will be bench 145x5x3 (so 75% of next week's working weight) with some extensions, crossovers, and raises depending on what aggravates the shoulder and what doesn't.

2014-04-07 Squat

Warmup

Squat -
45x5
85x5
125x5
165x5
205x5
245x5
285x3
330x4, 3 (4F), 3, 2, 2, 1
I haven't been sleeping too well (same problems as the last few days). I also suspect that the extra volume just isn't any use with my lower body movements - they were moving just fine before.

Coming in 3 times a day is also enough of a pain in the ass, and sufficiently boring, that I think I'll revise it down regardless. Triceps is now arms, chest and shoulders merged, reduced split on the leg days.

Bench: CG Bench, JM Press, EZ Curl
Squat: Kroc Row, Rear Lateral, Neutral HLR/Pallof
Press: RE Bench, Incline, Side Raise
Deadlift: Barbell Row, Rear Lateral, Suitcase Dead/Fallout

Upper body prehab runs with face pulls and push-ups; lower body prehab goes with x-walks and single-leg rdls. I may run this back up to 4 movements, but for now I'm sticking it at 3. SLDLs and maybe TBLs could wind up back in eventually, but that's pending lower body feeling.

Oh, and I'm also thinking about splitting the salads up by vegetable (pork gets spinach, maybe separate after that) and returning to an apple vinaigrette for the pork one.

Possible Further Split

I'm considering nixing cardio and splitting things up even further to focus more on the individual muscles (primarily because I don't feel like I'm adequately addressing a lot of things right now).

This would look something like:

Bench (5x3 Bench, drop set, Pull-Up)
Biceps (EZ Curl, Hammer Preacher Curl, Decline Curl)
Chest (Decline, DB Swiss, Crossover) <- potentially RE Bench over Decline, pending shoulder

Squat (5x3 Squat, drop set, Pull-Up)
Upper Back/Abs ("Kroc" Row, Rear Lateral, Neutral HLR ss Pallof Press)
Quads/Abductors (Trap Bar Lift, Pistol, Banded Abduction)

Press (5x3 Press, drop set, Pull-Up)
Triceps (CG Bench, JM Press, Decline NG Extension)
Shoulders (Incline, Landmine Press, Side Raise)

Deadlift (5x3 Deadlift, drop set, Pull-Up)
Upper Back/Abs (Barbell Row, Rear Lateral, Band Fallout ss Pallof Press)
Lower Back/Hamstrings (SLDL, 45-Degree Back Raise, Uni RDL)

Subject to various changes.

That being said, I'm not going to just leap into this - I'll think it over a bit and at least allow a week or so on the current iteration so my body can adapt to the already-higher volume.

This also lends itself to experimenting with ephedrine. Alternatively, I can rearrange things a bit on Mondays and Fridays and do the conditioning in the evenings (cluster the above earlier in the day). That sounds like a recipe for complete burnout, though. Honestly, this whole plan seems like a recipe for burnout; I doubt I'll actually do it, but spitballing can be amusing.

2014-03-30 Deadlift

Warmup

Deadlift -
135x5
165x5
195x5
225x5
255x5
285x5
320x5
355x5x3
I love that these felt about the same as 335-345.

Pull-Up -
8, 8, 7, 7

I had (or opted) to take the last week off to tour grad schools on the east coast. In light of that, I've rearranged my training somewhat; I'll have a 2-day deload (squat and press) in a few weeks, and otherwise everything's largely reset.

I'm also reworking conditioning; I think I'm going to extend my time in each block and try alternating weeks of the erg and the battle ropes. I'm pretty sure that one of the big things limiting my bench progress is that all of my conditioning hits my lower body (and now my back); the ropes should add something for upper. I'm extending the cycles so things time better with deloads.

Further programming thoughts

I've realized looking at this that I probably can't hit everything to my satisfaction during the evenings if I only have two workouts across the 4 types of training days. Off of that, I'm thinking I'll handle each day in a more traditional bodybuilding sense and arrange the accessories by bodypart:

Press - Shoulders
Bench - Chest
Deadlift - Back
Squat - Back

Back's in twice because I doubt I'll benefit from a whole lot of extra leg volume. Different runs for each of them (and probably some hamstrings on deadlift day - basically the whole posterior chain). Probably looking at something like:

Dead: SLDL, Barbell Row, Curl, Jackknife
Press: Incline, DB Incline, Side Raise, Landmine Press
Squat: Trap Bar Lift, DB Row, Curl, Jackknife
Bench: Close Grip, DB Swiss, Cable Crossover, Push-Up

Picking lifts here was a bit tricky; the idea's to build up weak points and strengthen movement patterns, but I also want to make sure that the session opens with a "real" lift (i.e. something I'd consider supplemental and not accessory). It's a mildly close contest between Front Squats and Trap Bar Lifts, but I think I'll get some extra from the TBL just because it involves breaking something off the ground. Snatch Grip vs. Stiff-Leg deads is also a hard one, but if I'm already doing the trap bar I figure it's worth hitting my low back and hamstrings here.

These are all on the same rep pattern:
First: 6-10 x3
Second: 8-15 x3
Third: 10-15 x3
Fourth: Discretionary

Let's give it a try.

Some programming thoughts

Given the frustration involved in decline extensions, I think I actually will try more of the Costis thing. CG Bench -> DB Bench -> Push-Up -> Crossover should wreck basically all of the pressing musculature. If DB Bench keeps aggravating my shoulder I'll drop it and keep running side raises.

Target for CG Bench is somewhere around the 5-8 range, DB 8-12, Push-Ups we'll see, Crossovers 12-20.

More Programming Thoughts

I talked with Costis about his bench, shoulder, and arm programming today; I'm recording it roughly here and then talking about ideas.

He pretty much trains on a Westside-type template; main day goes heavy bench, then generally incline or press, cable crossovers (starting as a "decline" and eventually coming towards flat across a few sets), dumbbells, and then sometimes decline bench. Shoulders opens with Press, then side raises and a rear delt destroyer. Arms runs close grip, heavy barbell curl, then a mix of various other curls and extensions.

Since I'm running two per day now, it's reasonable to actually inject some higher intensity into the evening sessions; since they're for accumulating volume (more bodybuilding style) rather than intensity, they won't be particularly "damaged" by fatigue from conditioning.

The big stuff I'm noticing in Costis' approach:

1) Heavy emphasis on CG bench (actual close-grip - hands inside torso)

2) Rep ranges vary a lot, with most sets basically being RE

3) Crossovers/Flyes

4) Side Raises

5) Rear Delt work

6) Dumbbell flat or incline

(He also likes dips, but slap tear)

The RE aspect is pretty typical for his programming - he goes by feel, not prescription, and the Westside guys have made a good case for that being the way to go with accessory work.

From that I'm strongly considering putting CG Bench in first, taking out the extensions, and doing the whole thing RE.