That was expected. Only more of a reason to keep at it because its obvious ur lacking proper muscle activation. Will get better wit time.
On rdl just keep the bar in contact wit shins, push butt back until stretch, practice wit broom.
In the end it'll help ur squat too.

Squat: 5@90, 5@130, 5@150, 5@170, 2x5@165 <-- strong focus on form/sitting back

RDL: form practice w/ bar, 90, 110. Still felt lower back working over hams.

Calf raises: 10@180, 10@250, 10@270 <-- standing, on leverage squat machine...just figuring out weight, will probably rep at 270+

Situps: 10,8,6 +35lbs (twist left and right at top of each rep, tough!)

Back extensions: 3x10 +45

Lunges: 3x5@40

Ham curl: 2x10@70, 1x10@60 (per leg)


Threw down a weak dunk or two off 2 legs, got real high on another jump but back rimmed it.
That's about it.

That's a good session for me right now, I will try out something similar to it when I lift tomorrow.
I also just want to say I appreciate the feedback and the help. It's nice to know someone is reading and your posts contain some valuable content that will help me improve my vert/lifts. Thank you.

Felt good today. I started with plyos.

2 sets of each of the following, in order:
10 high pogos, 10 low pogos
Power skipping - full length of court and back
12 lateral cone hops
8 squat jumps
Sprint - full length of the court

I mixed in free throws when I needed to catch my breath, then went to lift.


RDL: form practice sets 4x90 <-- Starting to get the hang of these I think, had some good and bad reps though

Squat: 5@90, 5@130, 5@150, 5@170, 3@180, 5@160

Calf raises: 10@270, 10@290, 10@320

Situps: 10,8,7 +35lbs (twist left and right at top of each rep, still tough!)

Back extensions: 2x10 +45

Lunges: 2x5@40

Ham curl: 2x10@70, 1x7@70 (per leg)


Overall felt very good, I'm liking my form on the squats and lunges + feeling the effects. My knees are liking it too, slowly but surely getting better.

Yeah that's a good point about the RDL potentiation. Is that why you suggested I do it first?
I do calf raises on a leverage squat machine, not free weight. I would have trouble holding that much weight on my shoulders for free weight calf raises, that's why I use the machine.

Pretty damn good work out today. I'm doing much better with the RDL's, still gonna keep it light and work on form for a little while though. I've been doing hang clean form practice too, gonna keep up with that and hopefully mix it into my routine in the near future.

Started with plyos again:
2 sets of each of the following, in order:
10 high pogos, 10 low pogos
Power skipping - full length of court and back
12 lateral cone hops
8 squat jumps
Sprint - full length of the court


RDL: form practice sets 3x4@90, 1x4@110

Squat: 5@90, 5@130, 5@150, 5@170, 3@180, 5@160

Lunges: 2x5@40

Calf raises: 10@270, 2x10@320

Situps: 10,8,7 +35lbs (twist left and right at top of each rep)

Back extensions: 2x10 +45

Ham curl: 3x10@70 (per leg)

Some upper body...

Chest flies: 10@125, 9@130, 7@135

Seated rows: 10@90, 7@95, 5@100

Tricep pushdowns: 10@125, 10@135, 10@145


I recently bought a proper foam roller, rolling my IT bands fucking KILLS. Good sign though, gonna keep fighting through it to really loosen them up. That should hopefully help to get my knees back to 100%.
I have also been working on eating much more the past week or so. Weight is going up, hopefully that will reflect some strength gains as well. I'm pretty sure in the past I wasn't eating sufficient amounts to really maximize muscle growth. Looking to change that with the increase in calorie intake. Let's see what happens.

Weak leg day today, wasn't feeling it...Seems to be happening more and more often 

2 sets of:
10 high pogos, 10 low pogos
Power skipping - full length of court and back
12 lateral cone hops
8 squat jumps
Sprint - full length of the court


RDL: form practice sets 4x90

Squat: 5@90, 5@130, 5@150, 5@170

Chest flies: 10@125, 10@130, 8@135

Reverse flies: 10@65, 2x10@70

Tricep pushdowns: 10@125, 8@135, 6@145

Bicep curls: 10@60, 10@65, 10@70


Stretching: Do circuits, 3-4 sets of each stretch and hold for under a minute...No more long ass static stretches.

Haha wow, decided to check out my journal since I'm slowly moving back to activity. Could not have been more wrong with that 10 week prediction  .

My left knee was f'ed around my last post and I began developing a ton of nagging aches in the following weeks. I never really fully stopped playing ball although I did stop lifting, so some of those aches developed into tendonitis.

Turns out I was EXTREMELY inflexible and that was the source of all my injuries/aches (combined with over-training as well). I only realized this after stopping activity for about 2 months when I went back to the doc to check on my progress.

For the past 3 weeks I've been stretching/foam rolling as often as possible and just really loosening up. I play ball 1-2 times per week, never more than a few games. I ALWAYS make sure to spend at least 15 minutes on the bike before playing. I've thrown down a few dunks in the past week comfortably without feeling it that night or the next day. Basically just being smarter about it and taking care of my self. I feel the best I've felt in years, but I still have a ways to go before I can get back into dunk training.

I am hoping that by mid-december when christmas break starts I will be able to squat again, but I won't force it if it doesn't feel right. I'm psyched because my body weight squat form is 100x better now, really sitting back and working the hams and glutes. Once I get back to training and hit the p-chain hard I'm gonna be soaring.