July 20, 2006

9 responses to Week 28: 2 am tripled squat PR

  1. Gords Says:
    July 21st, 2006 at 2:29 pm

    Nice workout music. Rammstein is the best for lifting to in my opinion. Everytime I watch one of your videos there at your outdoor gym my brain tends to give me the impression that I’m breathing fresher air with a hint of evergreen trees. I’m definitely envious of your situation there.
    Congrats on the new triple PR.

  2. Chris D. Says:
    July 21st, 2006 at 5:57 pm

    That must have been awesome lifting under the lights and out in the woods. One of these days I’ll have to come up with something like that.

  3. Kris Says:
    July 21st, 2006 at 9:09 pm

    Gords, thanks! Entering the PR phase of the program is very rewarding. In the big scope of things I am not moving very much weight, but getting back up after all the back trouble feels like a HUGE personal victory. Hopefully I can stay healthy and get to the real weights, haha! :-) Rammstein is definitively great lifting music, but I have listened to them so much in the past that only their newer stuff gets aired much. Listening to Benzin brings back a picture of Harald Selsam setting up for his squats during last year’s WPO European Powerlifting Semi Finals in Helsinki.

    Chris D., or you can catch a plane here. :-) I guess the likelihood that any of my cyberfriends could make it is extremely slim, but looks like this year’s annual fall workout(s) will take place on the weekend of 8th-10th September. Sauna and good Finnish food (including kebab…) included. There’s enough beds to house quite a few people. Seriously, if anyone is interested, shoot me an e-mail.

  4. Måns Says:
    July 22nd, 2006 at 2:17 pm

    Yeah, kebab and that goop we made of yogurt and protein powder last year… Wasn’t half bad, actually. The goop, that is. Kebab is always good. :)

  5. Kris Says:
    July 22nd, 2006 at 6:40 pm

    Only this time, we will make the kebab from scratch, won’t we?

  6. Scott Says:
    July 23rd, 2006 at 9:29 am

    Just make sure you post the recipe :)
    Out of interest, how cold does it get there during the late night sessions? Are you warming up inside and then just heading out for the heavy stuff?

  7. Kris Says:
    July 23rd, 2006 at 11:18 pm

    I will. It’s currently about 15°C/59°F here around midnight, which is still pretty decent and a nice contrast when hitting the 22°C/71°F water afterwards. Much better than the 2°C/36°F we had during last year’s annual fall workout in late October. I am a thorough believer in the Russian paradigm of warming up by just pyramiding up in weight (no traditional warm-up or stretching), so I just grab my gear and start loading up the bar no matter what the temperature. I do decompress the back between sets though, usually by hanging from the side of the rack.

  8. Scott Says:
    July 24th, 2006 at 9:54 am

    That warmup method (and the back decompression between sets) sounds suspiciously like mine. However, as it’s the coldest part of the year here (which isn’t that cold - today maxed out at 16°C) I think I’ll be paying closer attention to the warmups.
    The other reason for increasing the warmup for a little while is simply that I haven’t been inside a rack for a few months. I’m curious to see whether the Total Gym and kettlebell work has helped at all with the powerlifts; but I’m doubtful. Muscular endurance yes, but raw strength?

  9. Kris Says:
    July 24th, 2006 at 10:12 pm

    Perhaps a good idea, just don’t go to the point where your body will start to expect a warm-up to function properly (my opinion). Do you stretch at all, postworkout or otherwise? FWIW, I don’t, “last set, end of workout” is my motto. :-) I believe stretching has its place when some area needs increased mobility, but so far it seems like I have retained a solid level of flexibility with no stretching. Can still touch my toes with straight legs, can touch my hands behind my back and have no trouble squatting deep or doing behind the neck presses.

    I’m also quite curious to see what has happened to your strength levels in the powerlifts. You should be able to work back up fairly quickly, don’t think the drop is all that big when push comes to shove.

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