Training 9-24-07

This weekend was definitley a peak-and-valley kind of weekend. Some really good times and some really bad times, and not a whole lot in between. The biggest good thing is that I realized that I have some of the best friends ever. I'm lucky to have friends who really care about me -- some I've known since preschool and some I've known for less than a year.

A

Squat
5 x 5 x 215

Dumbbell Bench Press
3 x 210
3 x 5 x 190
4 x 190

Deadlift
3 x 5 x 235

Pullups
3 x 5 x 25
2 x 4 x 25

Turkish Get-ups
1 x 15
3 x 15
5 x 15

Squat was a challenge. I came the closest I've come to failure on any rep of squat this far on the 4th rep of the last set. But it's feeling good -- my legs are working and I'm gaining confidence. 215 again next time.

All the benches were taken (all 5! at 9:00 on a Monday night!), so we (me and Token Asian Roommate) did dumbbell bench instead. This could be the change of pace I need to break past my plateau at 225 on bench. Using the dumbbells also made me focus on pushing evenly on both sides (my left actually tends to be stronger).

Deadlift was also good. If I want to push it, I might be able to get 245 next time. I'm at the point that I'll need to watch the form closely. I don't want to go too heavy and screw up my back.

Couldn't find the 20 lb dumbbell to weight my pullups, but using 25 lbs turned out pretty well. I'll do 25 again next time and hopefully get a full 5 sets of 5. Adding weight to my pullups makes me feel like a badass. Lucas smash!

Tried Turkish Get-ups for the first time today. They're pretty fun and seem like a good exercise -- I was fried after my set of 5 (per side). I said earlier that my goal with the ab exercises is to go for as long as possible without repeating one. I might make an exception and do these once or twice a week.

And finally, I met a guy named Winston who was watching me Deadlift and asked me afterwards how much I weighed. (I weigh 197ish) He asked if I'd ever considered doing powerlifting. I said that I might be interested, but that I hadn't really been on a regular training program until recently. Anyway, I hope to run into him again and ask him more about powerlifting -- it seems like something I'd enjoy and I'm hoping he can point me in the right direction for how to get started.