Author Topic: chasing athleticism  (Read 924145 times)

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entropy

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #165 on: August 12, 2012, 03:48:10 am »
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Woke up feeling even better today, seems to be healing more every day!

I'm visibly leaner too, except, damn the scale actually went up not down. I wanted to be under 83kg by tomorrow morning, instead I was over 84kg this morning .. slightly frustrating lol.

Goals: Cutting to 6-8% bodyfat

entropy

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #166 on: August 12, 2012, 07:41:46 am »
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Usually play basketball on sundays but didn't today. Messed around with banded swings, nice little workout. Got a bit of conditioning done.

Training
Banded swings (orange band) - 8x10kg, 13x5kg, 11x5kg, 9x5kg, 12x5kg, 11x5kg

my groin felt better afterwards too, it's almost perfect now! Phew.
Goals: Cutting to 6-8% bodyfat

entropy

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w8d1
« Reply #167 on: August 13, 2012, 11:03:10 am »
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Training
FS 2x105 (PR), 2x100,2x85
SQ 3x6x97.5
BP 3x6x76.5 (CG), 3x5x65 (WG)
lat pulls 1x20, 3x8

BW: 83.8kg

I couldn't triple any front squats, more in my head than anything else, i think i was holding back some in fear of injury. I shud get 2x3x105 on friday though, im sure of it.

SQ - in lieu of finding more uprightness, I experimented with bar position, moved it higher up. Wanted to see if it would make a difference in forward lean. It may have, its perhaps too early to tell. But what I did notice was more tension in legs. Give it a few more workouts to see how it pans out.

Also since I didn't lose ANY weight this whole week despite beign 100% strict, i'm making some changes. Have reduced milk intake on workout days by 200mL and on rest days i'll reduce by 300mL. Also have stopped using butter (I usually eat 1 teaspoon a day). Felt more hungry today than usual.
Goals: Cutting to 6-8% bodyfat

entropy

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #168 on: August 14, 2012, 03:21:59 am »
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BW: 83.6kg or 184.31lb .. i'll be genuinely delighted when I drop under 83. Hopefully sometime THIS week. I think i'm still way over 15% bodyfat, maybe even over 20?

Reduced my usual 2 slices of bread for breakfast to just 1 on rest days. Oh and I cut 1/2 a scoop of whey as well. So basically i'm very low fat, low carb, medium protein now. Been hungry all day lol. This shit better work!



My lowtop basketball shoes arrived. They're pretty nice. But a bit too roomy. Might have to wear 2 pairs of socks, will try them out on sunday for pickup ball. I didn't really tighten the shoelaces but I could pretty easily slip my foot out of the shoe which was a bit disconcerting. Hopefully I can jump in these shoes without bothering my ankles like my other hightop boots! I just realised I haven't tried dunking in over 2 wks now. And it's been around the same since I ran sprints. I missed a session due to rain, and last wk due to injury. Will def do both jumping and running this wk, weather permitting.  

In other news, I finished my new new flooring. I wasn't satisfied with the grey slab of concrete, something about it set off my inner caveman sensibilities. So a million flint sharped nails later, and a hammer worthy of coach he-who-shall-not-be-named-in-this-log, i've got a fully paleo surface  any prehistoric man would be proud to have adorning his cave.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtLvYdg3XDs" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtLvYdg3XDs</a>

haven't tried squatting on it yet but will get a chance tomorrow, it seems pretty flat and even.
« Last Edit: August 14, 2012, 06:45:00 am by entropy »
Goals: Cutting to 6-8% bodyfat

creativelyric

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #169 on: August 14, 2012, 06:09:48 am »
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My lowtop basketball shoes arrived. They're pretty nice. But a bit too roomy. Might have to wear 2 pairs of socks, will try them out on sunday for pickup ball. I didn't really tighten the shoelaces but I could pretty easily slip my foot out of the shoe which was a bit disconcerting. Hopefully I can jump in these shoes without bothering my ankles like my other hightop boots! I just realised I haven't tried dunking in over 2 wks now. And it's been around the same since I ran sprints. I missed a session due to rain, and last wk due to injury. Will def do both jumping and running this wk, weather permitting.  

Sounds a bit risky. I'd change your size down if you can.

entropy

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #170 on: August 14, 2012, 06:20:44 am »
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I think the size isn't the real problem, its just the sole its not very grippy and my foot slides around inside the shoe. Any tips to deal with that?
Goals: Cutting to 6-8% bodyfat

LanceSTS

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #171 on: August 14, 2012, 06:57:41 am »
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 Sick work on that flooring for your rack.  :highfive:
Relax.

entropy

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Re: chasing athleticism - w8d2
« Reply #172 on: August 15, 2012, 09:13:14 am »
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Training
SQ 3x6x100
OHP 4x55,3x54.4,4x53.5,4x53,2x8x45
CURLZ 3x8x37.5 (PR)

Really happy with the first 4 reps of my squats. The last 2 not so much. But i'm ok with that, considering, see next line.

OHP told me what I had suspected from squats, I was really weak today. I couldn't even ANY of my planned sets on press, and the weights are still light for me well within my old PRs. So I did what I could have.

Worked super hard for the curl PRs.

Looking forward to fridays, wanna PR my front squats and get some sprints in.

I suspect I was weak cos I lost a lot of water weight, thats why i'm treating my (current) bodyweight with suspicion. If it stabilises in the low 83s then i'll be more happy about it of course but we'll see.


Bodyweight: 83.25kg/183.5lb
« Last Edit: August 15, 2012, 09:14:53 am by entropy »
Goals: Cutting to 6-8% bodyfat

entropy

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #173 on: August 16, 2012, 07:21:39 am »
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Btw i realised that what I thought was a groin strain is actually probably my quads. It was fairly high up my leg so easy to confuse. The reason I mention this is, it makes sense that my leg strength has been lower this wk for that reason. By that I mean the front squats have been a lot harder than they should have been (not being able to triple 105 maybe cos its heavy, but 100 and 85? yeah thats def odd).

The other thing is today i was practicising squats and trying to figure out a way to make my backsquat more upright and athletic. I tried putting a plate under my heels, and using a highbar position (incidientally this makes no difference whatsoever to my backsquat form whether its highbar or lowbar placement). But I can't do it, no matter what I try my back isn't upright its always always angled as usual.



What I dont understand and i'd be grateful if someone can point it out to me, why can't I get my backsquat to be similar to my front squat? What is it about putting the bar on my back which makes this impossible? I can do an upright looking front squat - but all my backsquats regardless of stance, bar placement, knee break and so on makes no difference.
« Last Edit: August 16, 2012, 07:36:58 am by entropy »
Goals: Cutting to 6-8% bodyfat

Raptor

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #174 on: August 16, 2012, 10:12:35 am »
+2

LBSS

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #175 on: August 16, 2012, 11:16:48 am »
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i was gonna say something snarky and clever about physics and something something something but raptor nailed it. just look at that picture, it's not a hard concept.
Muscles are nonsensical they have nothing to do with this bullshit.

- Avishek

https://www.savannahstate.edu/cost/nrotc/documents/Inform2010-thearmstrongworkout_Enclosure15_5-2-10.pdf

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entropy

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #176 on: August 16, 2012, 11:25:17 am »
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Do you think squatting like in my left pic will make the squat in the right pic go up? Cos thats why i'm going on about all this stuff. I wanna squat my BS in a way which makes my FS go up without necessarily needing to FS a bunch.

As far as reasons and snarky physics goes, bring it on man. I'm keen on hearing it. I know one guy claims the LBBS puts less of a torque on the LB than the HBBS. Then Greg Everett debunked him in his book, showing the opposite was true, that the LBBS puts more of a torque on the LB.

But here is where im stuck .. in my mind model the lower the bar goes on the body there shud be a lesser tendency to lean forward cos there is a smaller moment trying to topple u over. or conversely, the higher the bar goes, the bigger a moment trying to rotate u fwd, hence more fwd lean. Why is my mental model flawed? I havent read gregs book but i wish i knew his explanation
Goals: Cutting to 6-8% bodyfat

entropy

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #177 on: August 16, 2012, 01:02:46 pm »
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Position the bar on the squat racks at a height approximately three to five inches lower than your shoulders.

Check your equipment -- weight even on both sides? Collars in place? Spotter rails adjusted?

Is the area free of loose plates and debris?

A recommended way to evenly disperse the weight across your shoulder girdle is through the use of a Manta Ray (TM), a neat little device which clips onto the bar. This recommendation is made because the bar alone can cause discomfort or injury when sitting atop your 7th cervical vertebra.

With at least two spotters standing by (NEVER only one spotter), position your hands evenly on the bar and, with your feet squarely under the bar, lift it from the rack with the legs.

Step back just enough to avoid bumping the rack during the exercise, and position your feet at a comfortable width -- this is called the "athletic stance," where your force output capability is at its maximum -- usually a bit more than shoulder width).

Your weight should remain centered over the back half of your feet throughout the descent and ascent, not on your toes.

Descend with control into a position where the tops of your thighs are about parallel with the floor, keeping your torso and back erect so that your hips remain under the bar at all times.

Do NOT allow your hips to drift backward, your knees to drift inward or out beyond your toes, or your torso to incline forward.

A check on proper position is to ensure that the angles formed at the knee joint and hip joint are close to being equal. (By contrast, powerlifters almost always have more of an angle at the hips, and close to a right angle at the knees.)

You should go to a depth necessary to stimulate maximum quadriceps and gluteal contraction, but not so deep that 1) your knees are traumatized, or 2) hyperflexion of your lumbar spine exposes you to serious back injury.

Descend to a depth where your thighs are approximately parallel to the floor.

Vigorously rise out of the squat position following the same path that you descended -- the torso and back remain erect and the hips remain under the bar throughout the ascent.

As your leverage improves throughout your ascent, accelerate the bar, always bearing upwards against the weight with maximum force. Slow down just short of lockout in order to eliminate unnecessary ballistics.


Repeat the squat movement for the required number of reps.

The use of supportive devices such as power, suits, wraps and belts is not advised except in cases where the weight is extremely heavy.This is so your body receives adaptive stress instead of your gear. Your gear will rob you of this elemental benefit of squatting.
When returning the bar to the rack, have the two spotters carefully guide you in, being sure that your hands are not in the way of the racks.

Your fatigued state has diminished your control over the heavy weight, so exercise caution in the return to the racks.
« Last Edit: August 16, 2012, 01:14:45 pm by entropy »
Goals: Cutting to 6-8% bodyfat

LBSS

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #178 on: August 16, 2012, 01:57:00 pm »
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re: fred hatfield: i stopped reading at, "Do NOT allow your hips to drift backward, your knees to drift inward or out beyond your toes, or your torso to incline forward," because it's physically impossible for you not to do those things. look at any picture of him squatting, he's doing every single thing on that list except letting his knees drift inward.

you're thinking about the positioning of the weight in completely the wrong way. look harder at the picture raptor posted. the lower the bar, the closer to the center of your torso, the closer to the center of your torso, the more of your torso needs to be on the other side of your center of mass for you not to fall backward.

getting stronger in the squat will make your squat go up, full stop. don't pick at the minutiae like that, you're getting distracted. just work on getting stronger, both of those squats look fine.
Muscles are nonsensical they have nothing to do with this bullshit.

- Avishek

https://www.savannahstate.edu/cost/nrotc/documents/Inform2010-thearmstrongworkout_Enclosure15_5-2-10.pdf

black lives matter

entropy

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Re: chasing athleticism
« Reply #179 on: August 16, 2012, 02:08:34 pm »
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re: fred hatfield: i stopped reading at, "Do NOT allow your hips to drift backward, your knees to drift inward or out beyond your toes, or your torso to incline forward," because it's physically impossible for you not to do those things. look at any picture of him squatting, he's doing every single thing on that list except letting his knees drift inward.

Sure I agree with you but here is the key thing, Hatfield isn't talking about watching someone's squat or teaching someone to coach someone else to squat. He's talking about what the lifter under the bar ought to be thinking/doing. If you look at it from the perspective of the lifter then his instruction makes sense, even if it's impossible, the point is it helps the lifter hit the right positions by thinking about the cues.

Quote
you're thinking about the positioning of the weight in completely the wrong way. look harder at the picture raptor posted. the lower the bar, the closer to the center of your torso, the closer to the center of your torso, the more of your torso needs to be on the other side of your center of mass for you not to fall backward.

i gotta think about this, will reply later once ive thought about it.

Quote
getting stronger in the squat will make your squat go up, full stop. don't pick at the minutiae like that, you're getting distracted. just work on getting stronger, both of those squats look fine.

Fair enough, that's a good point. I just know guys who've squatted 400x5 with LBBS and watch them struggling with 225 front squats, at that point I have to question whether just progressing (the wrong) squats is the right thing to do, at some point you want an athletic payoff from all the work in the gym
Goals: Cutting to 6-8% bodyfat