I don't know what I'm doing but I know what I've done

Monday/Tuesday 18-19/1/2021

A1) Nordic Curls
4 x 9
1 x 12

A2) Single-arm Banded OHP
4 x 12 e/s
1 x 21 e/s


B1) Double DB Row
30kgs x 0 x 15
30kgs x 21

B2) (Purple) Banded Curls
5 x Max e/s

B3) Double-Pause Push Ups
4 x 16
1 x 22


C) Weighted Plank
5 x 50s



Not sure if the bed is moving during Nordic curls or just the part of the frame my feet are anchored under... Might switch back to RDLs next time.

Had a back spasm this morning and just really wasn't interested in making things worse doing lunges. Not sure if it's to do with the work set up at home or what but was like a cattle prod jammed in my lower back as I sat there typing. Will try get something done when the back settles down to make up for it.

The double-pause push ups are deadly. Enjoying the burn off them.

Serious core burn on the planks using the band as a weight. Im always very conscious of making sure my back isn't in extension doing these as I don't really want to create a problem.

Friday/Saturday 22-23/1/2021

A1) DB Floor Press (@9)
30kgs x 4 x 13
30kgs x 13

A2) Side Planks
5 x 50 e/s

A3) Face Pulls
5 x Max


B1) Narrow Push Ups
4 x 25  (may have done 5)
1 x 42

B2) Banded Lateral Raises
5 x Max e/s

B3) Banded Shrugs
5 x Max


C) Hollow Hold
5 x Max



Floor press was solid. Upped the reps per set by one rather than just look for extra volume in an AMRAP last set and got 3 more reps than last week. Will stay at sets of 13 for a few weeks until the AMRAP set suggests I can go up again.

Lost count on the number of sets of push ups

Birra pump.

Dtp1979 wrote: »

Have you tried any banded push-ups yet?

Yep. Not just yet this time around but with red then purple band before.

They're in the longer term plan for this lockdown but will use the handles for a while and do more tempo push ups and paused ones on the interim.

Bench has held up well when I got back to the gym the last two times and was able to PR before the October lockdown so think I can build on what I did before

Dtp1979 wrote: »

Boards not loading new page....again.........dot

Same happens me with bluewolfcake's log but if you switch to full site it's visible

Wednesday/Thursday 20-21/1/2021

A1) Tempo Goblet Squat (4310)
30kg x 4 x 8

A2) Wide-Grip Push Ups (on handles)
4 x 21
1 x 34


B1) Purple Band Pull Aparts 
5 x 18

B2) Wide-Grip Banded Rows 
Green x 4 x 20
1 x 27


C1) Tricep Pressdown
5 x Max

C2) Ab Rollouts
5 x 13



Started to feel a pinching in my hip at the start of the 5th set of Goblet squats so just pulled the plug there. Still...got in some leg work this week at least.  Onwards and upwards.

Can definitely feel the difference in ROM with the push-up handles. Pecs be pumped.

Dusted off the old Argos bar and used it for banded rows with a wide grip...nice hold to maximise the contraction. Really felt it in the lats.

Monday/Tuesday 18-19/1/2021

A1) Black Band SLDLs
5 x 15

A2) Split Squats
25kg x 5 x 16 e/s

A3) Single-arm Banded OHP
4 x 14 e/s
1 x 16 e/s


B1) Kneeling Banded Row
4 x 20 e/s
1 x 30 e/s

B2) (Purple) Banded Curls
5 x Max e/s

B3) Double-Pause Push Ups
4 x 17
1 x 22


C) Weighted Plank (push up position)
4 x 50s



Keeping the volume ticking up.

Will change the double pause to a tempo, change the plank to a banded rotation (the kneeling one-arm row is like an anti rotation movement as well as a row), curls for maybe a tricep extension and maybe the row for straight-arm pulldown.  Will have a proper look across the week and other changes and decide.

Friday/Saturday 5-6/2/2021

A1) DB Floor Press
30kgs x 4 x 13
30kgs x 14

A2) Banded Rotation
5 x 20 e/s

A3) Single Arm Standing Reverse Fly
5 x Max e/s


B1) Narrow Push Ups (on handles)
4 x 25 
1 x 31

B2) Banded Front Raises
5 x Max e/s

B3) Banded Shrugs
5 x Max


C) Hollow Hold
5 x Max (~50s each)



Did the above in reverse cos it was just going to be easier to get through it that way.

Floor press felt tired from the start and could feel the effects of the push ups from yesterday. Still though...ok numbers.

Probably should have dropped the reps on the narrow push ups...knew I wouldn't be getting many extra reps on the AMRAP set from set #2.

Wednesday/Thursday 20-21/1/2021

A1) Goblet Squat Iso Hold
30kg x 5 (30s per hold)

A2) Wide-Grip Push Ups (on handles)
4 x 24
1 x 32


B1) Straight Arm Pulldowns
Purple x 4 x 16

B2) Seated Wide-Grip Banded Rows 
Green x 4 x 20*
1 x 30


C1) OH Tricep Extension 
5 x Max

C2) Ab Rollouts
5 x 15



Had a bit of a niggle I've had from the chair I'm working in and it was bothering me towards the bottom of the squat so instead of skipping that exercise, I just did iso holds at parallel until my legs shook like I had severe hypothermia, which seemed to be about the 30s mark. Wasn't ideal but got a bit of quad burn and was good to feel my legs do a bit of work.

holdfast wrote: »

What are you hoping to get from the sports specialist - sorry is to polish up your position or get other alternative exercises?

Well, what he did was look for where the problem was actually stemming from that was causing the issue. The previous physio I went to was addressing the tightness but not working back along the chain to address the underlying problem that was causing the issues.

A lot of assessment of movement until he arrived at what he thought was the problem...or the chain of problems.

The couple of things he suggested in the short term have had a noticeable impact. There is no guarantee of how much improvement can be made because fundamentally its about making sure I have a decent quality of life and not having as much discomfort as i have had at times so that ultimately I don't need to go down the route of needing the hip replacement in the next 10 years.
But we can just put in the work and see where it takes us. Previously, I made improvements but they weren't going to be long term because they weren't addressing the underlying problem. Hopefully now we can make a longer lasting difference.

Tl;dr to put together a programme that addresses the underlying issues that have caused a lot of dysfunction and undo as much of that as is possible. Not least because one of the knock-on effects is my pelvis being pulled into asymmetry which is the likely reason I get recurring niggles in my lower back on the right

holdfast wrote: »

I can see the need as some physio may not have the depth when it comes to S&C for rehab. It might be something I may have to consider myself with my wonky knee. While I have work arounds and kind of know what upsets it, maybe my form etc could do with tidy up. Also a more in depth professional assessment than me reading T-nation articles

Yeah he was recommended to me as being top of the food chain and when I mentioned him to the physio (that I went back to after being seen for the symptoms elsewhere) he said much the same.

A lot of what he said from assessing me and how it would manifest itself stacks up with what I've experienced in terms of dysfunction.

I was working around it and addressing symptoms but not the cause and I was spinning my wheels for too long and it's at the point where some days I couldn't comfortably stand on the leg on the bad side to put on my sock on the other foot. So it was about more than making sure I've done what I can to squat and deadlift!

Wednesday/Thursday 17-18/1/2021

A1) Tempo RDLs (42X0) 
30kgs x 5 x 9

A2) Split Squats
25kg x 5 x 17 e/s

A3) Banded OHP
4 x 14 e/s
1 x 19 e/s


B1) Banded Row
4 x 20
1 x 32

B2) Underhand Tricep Pulldowns
5 x Max e/s

B3) Tempo Push Ups (30X0
4 x 16
1 x 20


C) Weighted Plank (purple band)
5 x 30s



Went back to the tempo RDLs. Hip was better with it today, which is a positive. Nice feeling of working the hamstrings.

The purple band worked the planks a lot harder. It really tries to pull the lower back into extension so you have to work hard to keep everything neutral. 30s really was hard.

Still adding to the volume week on week.

Monday/Tuesday 22-23/2/2021

A) DB Floor Press
30kgs x 4 x 14
30kgs x 15 (+2)


B1) Pallof Press
5 x 25 e/s

B2) Single Arm Standing Reverse Fly
5 x Max e/s

B3) Double-Pause Narrow Push Ups (on handles)
4 x 15 
1 x 19


C1) Banded Front Raises
5 x Max e/s

C2) Banded Shrugs
5 x Max


D) Hollow Hold
5 x Max (~55s each)



2 reps more on floor press this week. Felt so solid.

Extra reps on Pallof press made a difference alright.

Hadn't planned to change anything but when I looked at last week's rep total on the narrow push ups, I thought I better make it a harder version. So double pausing - one halfway down and at the bottom as well. Metronome in play to keep the pauses honest. Really felt the bigger ROM more so.

The hollow holds burned like a mofo.

Friday/Saturday 19-20/2/2021

A) 45kg Ground-to-shoulder
10 rounds of 10 in 25.06


B1) Wide-Grip Push Ups (on handles)
4 x 26
1 x 29 (+2)

B2) Straight Arm Pulldowns
Purple x 5 x 18

B3) Seated Wide-Grip Banded Rows 
Green x 4 x 23
1 x 27


C1) OH Tricep Extension 
5 x Max

C2) Ab Rollouts
5 x 17



Did ground-to-shoulders with the 45kg slam ball rather than high rep Goblet squats today. Hadn't done these  since August/September so knew I'd find it hard going. Before it was 60s go, 60s rest. Just did sets of 10 and about 60s rest this time. I figured it might be slower versus the 60s on/60s rest because the sets of 10 got slower as it went on, they took more out of me and didn't have any longer recovery. But its something to aim to beat and it felt good to get the heart rate up. Topped out at 162 bpm.

Hip seems to be relatively ok but we'll see how that goes.

Some good pump off the rest.

Monday/Tuesday 1-2/3/2021

A1) DB Floor Press
30kgs x 4 x 14
30kgs x 17 (+2)

A2) Pallof Press
5 x 30 e/s

A3) Single Arm Standing Reverse Fly
5 x Max e/s


B1) Double-Pause Narrow Push Ups (on handles)
4 x 16
1 x 18 (+3)

B2) Banded Front Raises
5 x Max e/s

B3) Banded Shrugs
5 x Max


C) Hollow Hold
5 x 55s



Think for the next block I'll do the floor press with extended pauses...maybe 2s or so. Rather than just keep increasing the volume.

Really felt the Pallof press working this time with the higher reps.
Hollow holds still killer.

Will make some changes for next 4 weeks...nothing major but just a change in some exercises without completely changing what is being worked.

Dtp1979 wrote: »

Would it be a bad idea If you did a floor press with your back supported off the ground a few inches so you could get mire ROM?

Nope. I could, in theory, use something like an aerobics step but with more support and maybe a bit wider than normal ones. And that'd make it more like a bench ROM. Would only need to get me 6" off the ground.

Haven't really looked for something like that though to be honest. Have considered making something that I could use that would be 6" thick, maybe 9" wide and 36" long that I'd cut into three sections, hinge them and I could fold it into a 18" high stool, which is the same as the eldest uses for music so would have another use as well as being a fold-out bench. That might just stay as a sketch on my notepad though :pac:

Doing plenty of pressing on the handles to work through a greater ROM than bench and I actually don't think it will take too long to get back to where I was with what I'm doing so I'm not too overly concerned with increasing the ROM on floor press but I might look for some other handy hacks