Results matching “Bird”

The Coan/Phillipi torture continues, this week repping at 86% of my current deadlift max (which is only 75% of the target for this cycle). Tiring to say the least.

The upside of this is that almost anything feels simple in comparison - at least for a while (until breathing returns to normal and blood recirculates around the body). These 'simple' exercises began with the ever-popular Dimel deadlift and its stiff-legged cousin.

With my training partner beginning to experience a little back pain we elected to forgo the scheduled good mornings and after a quick Waiter's Bow session, it was time to call it a night.

Deadlift 2×5@60kg, 5@100kg, 6×3@125kg
Dimel deadlift 3×8@60kg
Stiff-leg deadlift 3×8@80kg
Waiter's Bow 2×20@10kg

Following a recent comment by John I decided to reinstate some incline benching into my workouts - 15 degrees at a time. The bench has settings at 15, 30 and 45 degrees; I'll be using the first two (the 45 is about where shoulder pain begins).

Worked up to a comfortable 5RM at 60kg, then dropped back to 50 for a bit of speed work (all except the last 2 sets - painfully slow, but the bar went up eventually).

Finished off with a couple of sets of weighted chins. Love them.

Incline bench press (15 deg) 10@20kg, 5@40kg, 5@50kg, 5@60kg
Incline bench press (15 deg) - explosive 8×3@50kg
Chin-up 8@10kg, 3@20kg
Pull-up 10@bw

This is a great exercise for the lats. I generally do this in a power rack (the home gym isn't big enough to do it anywhere else), with the barbell sitting across the pins at their lowest setting.

Straddling the bar - and standing close to the weights at one end - lift the bar using both hands. Keep the elbows tucked in and bring the plates toward your chest.

I like to partner these with chin-ups, which also keep the lats warmed up.

This exercise was first seen in an article by Coach John Davies on T-Nation. It's designed as a high-rep warmup movement; though I occasionally use it at the end of a workout (particularly after deadlifting) or as part of a light feeder.

To perform the Waiter's Bow, clutch a weight plate across your chest. With legs slightly bent, bend forward at the waist until you reach about 45 degrees. At this point you should feel a good stretch in your hamstrings.

This was the second ME workout with a deadlift focus; following a pretty similar pattern to last week's. Today I elected to avoid a spleen-bursting max and work up to a double or triple. Unfortunately this only took me as far as 160kg (a solid 20kg behind last week's performance). A little disappointing, but still respectable.

Having tested out the wonderfully simple Waiter's Bow movement last week I decided to add them again - more to keep the blood flowing around the lower back than anything. I also sampled a couple of sets of Band Good Mornings, with the same intention. For a good finishing exercise it's great; though I'm not sure I could manage to keep a straight face if doing them anywhere public. Unusual to say the least.

Hanging leg raise 2×10@bw
Hanging knee raise 2×20@bw
Standing plate twist 2×10@10kg

Rack pull (5 holes showing, just above knee) 2×5@60kg, 5@100kg, 5@140kg, 2@160kg

Waiter's Bow 20@10kg
Band good morning 2×20@mini band

Another brief friday workout (although not quite as short as last week's) took up the bulk of an attempted lunchtime break. I'm slowly increasing the volume of rotator cuff work; slotting it between bench sets where it seems to have a nice 'reload' effect. It also makes the break time pass faster - always a problem on DE days.

After a bit of rapid benching came a little triceps work; culminating in some high volume band work. Other than the band triceps pushdowns (which are wonderfully quick to setup and get in to), are there any other band exercises for triceps that people have tried?

Bench press 2×20@20kg, 8×3@50kg (explosive)
Standing L-Flye 4×7@6.5kg
Bench press (close grip) 4×8@50kg
Band tricep pushdown 2×20@blue, 2×20@green

I love working out at home. On a few occasions over the years I've been drawn into the world of commercial gyms with shiny machines - only to lose interest a few weeks or months later. Weight training in a home gym, using mostly free weights, has never felt like a short term thing. Unlike going to a commercial gym, training never feels like a chore; in fact I look forward to it.

One of the reasons for this feeling is undoubtedly the fact that my home gym has been designed with one person in mind - me. Everything that's there (and it's a pretty simple setup) is there only to enable me to increase my own strength; there are no mirrors, banks of televisions or anything else to act as a distraction. The music is always loud, fast and exactly my taste. Perfect.

A second factor in my love of training at home is the presence of a training partner who shares the enthusiasm for the rugged simplicity of the setup, and doesn't bat an eyelid when I introduce somewhat unusual exercises into my training. It's all part of the fun.

So what do I have in this simple setup? The gym revolves around the presence of a power rack, bench, bars and weights. The other items are somewhat periferal - a few toys for grip training, a bike to warm up on and a good assortment of resistance bands. These items afford a vast array of exercises, and I add new ones every few weeks. After a year of regular training in many things I'd feel reasonably well-versed; powerlifting is constantly giving me new opportunities to learn. A wonderful feeling.

If starting again I'd make only minor modifications to the setup, such as purchasing a larger number of weight plates at the outset (fears of the training becoming a phase); and equipping myself with a simpler bench - I began without a power rack, and getting a bench with side stands seemed like a good idea at the time. Now they are unused.

For anyone currently considering the setup of their own home gym, I'd suggest the following:

• power rack
• bench - preferably adjustable to allow incline and decline work
• olympic weight set and about 3 times as many plates as you think you'll need
• olympic dumbells (adjustable)

Everthing else depends on available space, finances and intended use. If you're interested in Olympic Weightlifting, a few bumper plates and a lifting platform will be handy (you're probably best advised to build your own platform - much, much cheaper).

Other items you might like to consider include some of the variety of grip tools (Ironmind's Rolling Thunder ranks highly on my own wishlist), a sandbag (once again, these are often best when home-made), medicine balls, or your favourite piece of cardio equipment.

Oh, two things that will prove indispensable - a CD player and plenty of hard-hitting tunes. Now you're set to go.

This is the second week of the current deadlift cycle, and today's speed pulls were accordingly a little heavier than last week's. An extra 10kg didn't feel too bad for the first couple of sets, but by the end of set 8 it was making its presence felt.

The remainder of the workout was almost a carbon copy of last Wednesday's; with a slight increase on the last two exercises. And just like last week, a good night's sleep is certainly on the cards.

Hanging knee raise 2×20@bw
Standing plate twist 20@5kg, 20@10kg

Deadlift (explosive) 2×5@77.5kg, 8×3@117.5kg

Dimmel deadlift 3×8@60kg
SLDL 3×8@80kg
T-bar row 3×8@80kg
Arched back good morning 3×8@30kg

Not being the proud owner of a Rolling Thunder handle, I was thinking about alternative ways to combine deadlifting and grip work. I ended up performing single-handed dumbell deadlifts using an adjustable Olympic dumbell; only loading plates onto one end. The other end proved to be slippery enough to give the hands a good workout.

DB vertical grip deadlift (each hand) 5@16.5kg, 5@26.5kg, 3@31.5kg, 2@36.5kg

For some time now I've been considering adding a few bands to my slowly expanding home gym setup. There are now several varieties on the market including Jump Stretch, Nazareth Barbell, Critical Bench (bungee bands) and IronWoody. I decided to test out the IronWoody bands; which are slightly cheaper than the competitors and a little easier to find in the UK (if you're in the UK, they're available from London Kettlebells).

The primary benefit of bands is the ability to alter the strength curve for a particular exercise, so as to suit the individual lifter. However, there is another feature that appeals to me just as much: the ability to create custom exercises which don't necessarily require the use of weights at all. A few of the ones I am keen to test out:

TKE (Terminal Knee Extension)
Helps to strengthen the VMO. Often overlooked by powerlifters who squat with the emphasis on the hamstrings and hips. This is prehab for the knees.

See: 5 More Movements for Rapid Strength Development - Dave Tate

Band good morning
I first saw these on the Westside Dead Lift Secrets DVD, though the guys at Westside Barbell have undoubtedly been doing these for a long time.

To do them, simply anchor one end of the band with your feet and loop the other end over your head (so it sits on the back of your neck). Perform Good mornings as usual.

Band triceps pushdown
A great finisher or addition to a feeder workout.

See: 7 More Movements for Rapid Strength Development - Dave Tate

Band pull-through
Many cable exercises could be done using bands, and this is definitely on the shortlist.

Band pull-apart
See: 7 Movements for Rapid Strength Development - Dave Tate

NB: thinking about cheese and bacon pull-aparts really doesn't help this :)

Band curl
Hit the hamstrings from several different angles. Another one for feeder workouts or a quick warmup.

See: 7 Movements for Rapid Strength Development - Dave Tate

Naturally there are many, many more exercises that can be done with bands, as well as the regular addition of bands to the big three. Looking forward to trying them out.