Back To Work

I've not had the opportunity to do much deadlifting recently and the blog has been a bit inactive. On Saturday 12th April, before I flew out to Bratislava, I did this little workout...

50 for 8
70 for 5
90 for 3 x 8 sets.

Then yesterday I got back on track with my Saturday workouts and did...

60 for 8
80 for 5
100 for 5 x 5 sets.

Prior to that I did overhead press for the first time in ages - only 5 sets of 8 with 40 kilos, but when I hadn't done them for so long I didn't want to go heavy and tweak something.

I've accepted that there's no realistic prospect of me hitting the British qualifying standard by 18th May, and that's taken the pressure off. My deadlifting muscles, and all the tendons and ligaments that are used during the lift, need to be developed gradually. I can spend the next few months focussing on technique and core strengthening, and hopefully come May 2009 I'll be way above the standard.

I'll also not be pushing myself to the limit on bench press for the next few weeks. I'm on a 'deloading' phase and that will leave me with more energy to work on my deadlifts.

And my performance in Bratislava? There's a full report on my Golden Blog, but I managed to get a 192.5 opener and then attempted a new British record of 202.5, which was just too heavy on the day. But opening with a weight that was a target only a few weeks earlier shows promise.

Yesterday's technique actually felt perfect and shows that I'm moving in the right direction. Lots to be optimistic about.

It's Been A Long Time!

40 for 10
50 for 10
60 for 8
70 for 6
80 for 6
90 for 4
100 for 3
120 for 1
130 for 1
140 for 1
100 for 3 x 3 sets.

It's been some time, but I got back to deadlifting tonight after a few weeks away. I've not lost my enthusiasm in the slightest. It was just a case of circumstances and priorities. My focus was on the British Bench on 9th March, where I did superbly well and finally achieved my long term goal of benching 200 kilos (440 pounds). I've attached a photo of me in the act, so to speak!

No sooner had I got the bench out of the way than I came down with a really bad dose of the flu either side of Easter. I was able to manage the occasional bench session, mainly because I could lie down while doing it! But anything standing up, and especially deadlift, the hardest lift of all, would have half killed me so I had to back off for a bit.

I also have the World Masters Bench in Bratislava in two weeks time, so my priority for the last week or so has been on peaking for that, but at least I got a session in today.

It felt hard, but then it should after that amount of time away. I managed a single with 140, only 10 kilos off my 1RM, and I wasn't at my limit, so it's pleasing not to have lost any appreciable strength. But the flu has hit my stamina and recovery hard, and today I found doing reps really difficult and recovering between sets was hard and took absolutely ages. But it got done.

I'm on a bench-every-other-day routine up to and including my last session on Saturday 12th April, and I hope to fit at least two more deadlift sessions into the non benching days before I fly off to Bratislava. I'll be staying around the 100 - 110 range for now, trying to reactivate the deadlifting muscles and get my technique right again. It felt horrible tonight and really strained the back. Nothing a couple of sessions of ten sets of three won't put right again.

It now seems unlikely that I'll be hitting 185 by mid-May. Unless I can get into the 170s in the gym by round about May Day, it will have to wait until next year. And I don't see myself getting through this plateau any time soon, especially with all the bench press competitions coming up, which have to be my first priority. C'est la vie!