MadCow 5×5 Week 3 In Review

General

I keep having to have the realization, epiphany, or whatever you want to call it that I’m only in it for strength, not size / mass. The only thing I should care about during this 12 week MadCow 5×5 program are numbers, specifically the numbers in my spreadsheet that put me at an estimated 1000lbs+ total. Continue reading “MadCow 5×5 Week 3 In Review”

Switching to a week in review format

I jumped the gun a bit with that last post. For a 12 week program that has 3 workouts a week, that would be 36 entries, way too many. Once a week is fine, basically a “week in review” of my progress. These posts are for myself really, a way to force me to reflect on my goals, my progress, and serve as a basic gut check. What’s special about this mesocycle is the calculated total at the end is 1000+ lbs, which I’ve been saying for a while is my target, but I’ve had a few set backs and lost focus more times than I would like to admit.

MadCow 5×5 Week 2, Workout A

I’m still not 100% and coming off a head cold. Regardless, I felt pretty strong. It was my first time working out in a sweatshirt and realized real quick why you have to had your hood up…you can’t squat with it down! I made all of my lifts without a problem, nothing really too eventful other than my return to the basement and trying to figure out the accessory exercises.  Continue reading “MadCow 5×5 Week 2, Workout A”

Review: Yukon Hyperextension for Glute Ham Raise

You don’t find too many Hyper Extension machines in home gyms, but my posterior chain is a known weak spot for me and since my theme so far is “work your weakness”, I needed to add one. I’ve tried the DIY route using plans around the internet but it didn’t work out well, I thought maybe I was that weak I couldn’t really do a true Glute Ham Raise. After finally using a real GHD machine, I determined it was my crappy DIY job that was the issue. I needed to buy a legit piece of equipment. Continue reading “Review: Yukon Hyperextension for Glute Ham Raise”

Choose a program based on your goal, and stick with it

Martin Berkhan wrote a great article called “Fuckarounditis” that everyone should read. It’s full of so many hard truths that everyone needs to hear. Admitting to yourself that that you have it is the first step to getting over it.
Now back to the main topic, programming. For beginners, there are two very similar programs for barbell training: Starting Strength and Strong Lifts 5×5. They are simple, easy to follow, and most importantly, effective. They’re both based around the “big 4” lifts and aim to take new lifters from the very beginning to a point where I would consider a person strong. I can’t stress enough how simple these programs are, and I think that’s where people get confused.
I see in places like /r/fitness and /r/weightroom people asking “I’ve been on StrongLifts for 2 months, now what?” My answer is always the same “What is your goal and did you reach it yet?” The thing about these programs are they’re linear, which is perfect for new lifters and works well with the phenomenon known as “newb gains”, the ability for a novice to increase their strength at a faster rate. But here is the rub, at about 2 month into Strong Lifts, you should only be lifting about 145lbs (quick math) if you followed the program correctly. I would assume most people do not have a goal of squatting 145lbs.
So back to my point. If your goal is to squat in the mid 2s, keep going with the program until you’re constantly failing. These programs won’t work forever, but the large majority of people looking for help are < 6 months on it, which is clear to me they have Fuckarounditis