Day Two, Week Three: (Even Worse) Bench Presses

A week ago I had a bad bench press day, and this morning I'm left even more discouraged, having seemingly weakened still further. (It's a good thing my weight was what it was this morning or I'd be left seriously disheartened.)

The problem is, whereas last week the cause of my failure seemed quite evident (I had fatigued my pressing muscles the day before), I have no such clear mistake from which to learn today. I haven't exercised my arms in days, and didn't lift at all yesterday. I ate breakfast before lifting, and I think I got enough sleep. Why, then, did I do even more poorly today than last week?

I suspect my form is faltering. In particular, I think I've been unintentionally reverting to the way I used to bench, with my elbows flaring out to the sides instead of staying tucked in to my sides. Take a look at this video for an example of what I think is good form:

You can see in this video that his elbows remain tightly tucked in throughout the movement. When I started doing this back in December, I was immediately able to lift more weight. I think, however, that in recent weeks my elbows have been making their way increasingly back out to the sides again. That may explain a decrease in the weight I can lift last week and a further decrease today.

Perhaps for my 4th workout day this week, instead of doing the supplemental presses I've done for two weeks, I'll practice proper bench press form with lighter weights so that it will come more naturally in competition. In any case, the difficulty now is determining what my three attempts will look like.

Two weeks ago I successfully lifted 315 for three repetitions, including the second-long pause on my chest, and did so for two repetitions last week. Since I managed one repetition at 315 this morning, across multiple sets, I think I will open with 142.5 kg., or 313.5 lbs. If, having improved my form by then, my opener goes well, I'll attempt 150 kg., or 330 lbs. Finally, though I had hoped to break the Washington State RAW bench record for my weight class in my second lift, I think it's wiser to reserve that for my third lift if successful in my first and second, in which case I'll go for 155 kg., or 341 lbs.

Heavy Bench Day
Exercise	6/1 2010	6/8 2010	6/16 2010	Week Four
Bench	135x10	135x10	135x10
	185x8	185x8	185x8
	225x4	225x4	225x4
	275x3	285x2	285x2
	290x3	300x2	300x2
	305x3	315x2	315x1
	315x3	330x1	325x1
	325x3	325x1	315x1
	325x2	325x1	315x1
	325x2	325x1

Day Two, Week Two: Bench Press Blunder

Earlier I explained that on Monday I combined day two for this week with last week's day four, comprised of supplemental pressing exercises targeting the chest, shoulders and triceps. I mentioned that this turned out to be a mistake, as later that afternoon my friend and training partner asked if I'd like to work out the next morning, my next training day being heavy bench presses.

I should have declined and waited until today, but I enjoy working out with my friend and agreed. Yesterday morning my bench presses began easily enough, but by the time I got to my second-heaviest set, it was evident that my muscles were significantly fatigued and still recovering from the presses done the day before, and I ended up doing more poorly than last week. So close to my competition this was a bigger setback than it might have been in previous months, as I have only one more bench press day to determine what my opening lift will be. Oh well, you live and you learn.

Heavy Bench Day
Exercise	6/1 2010	6/8 2010	Week Three	Week Four
Bench	135x10	135x10
	185x8	185x8
	225x4	225x4
	275x3	285x2
	290x3	300x2
	305x3	315x2
	315x3	330x1
	325x3	325x1
	325x2	325x1
	325x2	325x1

Day Four, Week Three (Part 1): (Disappointing) Deadlifts

I love my local YMCA, but I've got one gripe: their barbells suck. All but one have slightly larger circumferences than normal barbells, and the one standard-sized bar has knurling that's too sharp and rips my palms up. Unfortunately, tomorrow I won't have access to the PRO Club's perfect barbells, so despite having lifted the past two days in a row, I decided to do deadlifts today at the PRO Club and the remainder of the workout tomorrow with my training partner at the YMCA. Big mistake.

You know that phrase, something like, "My eyes are bigger than my stomach?" Well, today my eyes were bigger than my legs, back and grip. I went in lacking energy; I was exhausted. But I didn't think it would prevent me from going for a new personal best lift. As it turned out, my lack of energy made me weak and my form suffered. On my final rep, I couldn't get the bar but a few inches off the floor, and backing down to only 5 pounds heavier than last week, I couldn't quite lift it all the way.

I think there are 3 major reasons I was so lacking in energy: 1) This was my third day in a row lifting; 2) I jogged about 3 miles with my coworker a few hours earlier; and 3) I hadn't eaten much, and not since about 3 hours earlier. In the future I'll try not to make the same mistakes, and I recommend you also avoid them. On a day you intend to lift very heavy, pushing your max, make sure you've had a day of rest, that you haven't exhausted yourself with cardio only hours earlier, and that you've eaten recently.

One bit of good news: no blisters. Even in the last failed lifts, when the bar began to slip from my hands, it didn't feel or appear as though the calluses were about to rip off. Looks like filing them down with the pumice--along with, of course, gripping tightly--is pretty effective.

Anyway, here are my numbers for part 1 of day four's workout:

Deadlift Day
Exercise	4/13 2010	4/21 2010	4/28 2010	Week Four
Deadlift	135x5	135x5	135x5
	225x5	225x5	225x5
	315x1	315x1	315x1
	365x1	375x1	385x1
	405x1	415x1	425x1
	425x1	435x1	445x1
	445x1	455x1	465x1
	470x1	480x1	495x1
			485x1