Swanson-Cube Method to July Comp

CUBE W3D4 OHP-heavy.

Warm up; foam roll, lax ball pecs, tris, upper back, banded j cup walks, internal/external rotator work, tricep warm up.

OHP (Duh)
Bar, 135, 155, 185, 205 x forever, 15, 15, 8, 8
225x4
255x1 ~ maybe, I used some knee English.
DROP SET
145, 95, 45
That was some bull****, too.

Curls, rolling triceps, one arm DB row.

Good session, I guess. Just struggling with progress in all areas right now, so I'm not in the most positive mindset.

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Tear me up.
 
Swanson52 said:
CUBE W3D4 OHP-heavy.

Warm up; foam roll, lax ball pecs, tris, upper back, banded j cup walks, internal/external rotator work, tricep warm up.

OHP (Duh)
Bar, 135, 155, 185, 205 x forever, 15, 15, 8, 8
225x4
255x1 ~ maybe, I used some knee English.
DROP SET
145, 95, 45
That was some bull****, too.

Curls, rolling triceps, one arm DB row.

Good session, I guess. Just struggling with progress in all areas right now, so I'm not in the most positive mindset.

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Tear me up.
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I got nothin'. Then again I don't ohp often. Doesn't go over well with my torn labrum. I wish I could hit 255x1 even with some knee thrust.
 
Shoulder strength....check. Beastly big man!!

Figured the little ones had to be beautiful after seeing momma's pic. I have a 9yr old girl and saying No to her is a real issue. :worried:
 
My shoulders are still ablaze. The only thing that will likely put it out? Beer.
 
I'm going to stay away from the Havoc for now as well (even though it's sitting in my supp cupboard calling to me); I'm going to get this liver issue sorted out before I pile on an oral. Hell, I'm glad Shelby said no beer cuz that's counterproductive as well.

Milk Thistle, dandelion root, assorted fats, COQ10 and b-12 for orals at this time. Boo, ****ty liver values.
 
napalm said:
There's always vodka. I'm pretty sure it has no calories...
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Just not the same tending the grill with a vodka/soda as it is with a good ol American craft beer.

That said, I'd like to thank you guys that I know serve or have served (Yourself, Sean, Jim, appears superbeast, and whomever else) for keeping myself & my family free. Here's a crystal light to you men. :old glory:
 
Posting from the hot tub, big pimpin style.

5' LISS treadmill, foam roll, distracted stretch, 6 prowler passes pushing, 4 dragging
30' LISS treadmill
Tan
Tub

Check this out; I was turned loose for 3 hours to carb up/cheat/whatever. Similar to Skip's Skiploading but I've been dieting for 4 complete weeks.

After 1 hour, I had cankles, +3 pitting edema, and I had sweated through 2 shirts.

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I could honestly feel the water sloshing in my legs as I walked. After hour 3 I went into a 10 hour insulin coma.

Today I weighed 305; I added 16# of water and glycogen in just a 3 hour window. Crazy.
 
Dude I'm still holding about a thousand gallons of water today. I've NEVER had edema from a refeed...it was nuts.
 
Whaddya think, how long until you're back to 285? I bet that stuff will flush in a hurry and you'll finally start seeing the results you're expecting.
 
herderdude said:
Whaddya think, how long until you're back to 285? I bet that stuff will flush in a hurry and you'll finally start seeing the results you're expecting.
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That's exactly what I'm expecting. From previous experience, it takes me about 4 full days to drop to my pre-refeed weight.

However, when I was doing refeed-type dieting in the past I wasn't conditioning as hard. That might help purge the water & glycogen faster. So-I HOPE to baseline by Wednesday.
 
Ugh.

Cube W4D1 Rep Deads

Warm up (leopard, prowler, agile 8, etc)

DL
135x12x2, 225x12x2, 315x12x1, 405x10
Prescribed for 585 max is 445x6, but I went 455 because I'd rather lift 10 extra pounds than shuffle plates.

455x6x1
Here's what happened; at 4 the f'ng clip broke, I stopped to push the plates back & wife shut off the video because she thought I was done. On my honor I finished the set. Yes I started to round the back, mainly because I'm weak.

Also notice how disturbingly fat I am...if I'm being honest, I'm almost to the point of saying eff the comp and doing a full-on cut. Anyway.

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CONVO DEADS
Pyramid down
405x6
315x10
225x15
135x20

FRONT BOX SQUAT
Oddly, my shoulder really hurt doing these. Enough so I backed off 90#
225x12x2

BOX STEP UPS W/OLYMPIC BAR
135x12
Add chains of unknown weight for instability x8x2
These SMOKED my core.

PLANKS
+45x40"
+70x30"
+90x20"

Overall I felt like this is a good session. Other than me spotting the HUGE, tren banging 30 y/o kid blasting 405x10 on flat bench and 315x10 on incline...

Makes it hard to not cheat...
 
Honestly the round back may be leverage and not weakness. Just keep doing your mobility work like you are, and with your dieting you should get better leverage and get those shins to the bar on sumos as well as pull the hips lower when getting into position.

I'm a little guy and it took me a lot to get comfortable in sumo so I can appreciate it. Your a strong dude with a solid frame so your lifts are are just gonna take that escalator up.

Warning: Rob112 is not a professional and should be taken with grain of salt.
 
You think it would be beneficial to alternate pulling conventional and sumo? I think I heard Lilly say something about it. For some reason, when I started pulling, i only did sumo. Haven't since.
 
CincyKiller45 said:
You think it would be beneficial to alternate pulling conventional and sumo? I think I heard Lilly say something about it. For some reason, when I started pulling, i only did sumo. Haven't since.
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I know the YouTube video you are talking about. He makes great points in it. Love his stuff, very inspirational too IMO. He makes a good point that he hurt his groin during the squat and was able to pull conventional in the same comp. Plus they strengthen the body differently.

Dan Green is a filthy sumo puller and he does block pulls and deficits conventional in training. To me it sounds like a good idea. Maybe some vets have some opinions on utilizing both.
 
I saw a 5"7' SHW this weekend pulling sumo and he could not pull the bar from his shins. The bar path was directly vertical and his mobility was excellent, but he was just too goddamn big to get the bar any closer. So you're not the worst off. I think it's a little of what Rob said, too. I get much better leverage when I round my back.
 
CincyKiller45 said:
You think it would be beneficial to alternate pulling conventional and sumo? I think I heard Lilly say something about it. For some reason, when I started pulling, i only did sumo. Haven't since.
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Maybe; I threw some convos in today because of the same Lilly vid.

My convo leverage is SO POOR.
 
rob112 said:
Honestly the round back may be leverage and not weakness. Just keep doing your mobility work like you are, and with your dieting you should get better leverage and get those shins to the bar on sumos as well as pull the hips lower when getting into position.

I'm a little guy and it took me a lot to get comfortable in sumo so I can appreciate it. Your a strong dude with a solid frame so your lifts are are just gonna take that escalator up.

Warning: Rob112 is not a professional and should be taken with grain of salt.
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Good stuff; see I never felt like my back was rounded in a way that was because I was weak, but I thought I might've been wrong.

Hips...yeah I am really fighting that. When I drop them lower, the movement is less smooth. I "hitch" at the legs/back transition. I'm not sure what to do there.
 
CincyKiller45 said:
You think it would be beneficial to alternate pulling conventional and sumo? I think I heard Lilly say something about it. For some reason, when I started pulling, i only did sumo. Haven't since.
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It is. Schwab is a big proponent of alternating and it helps to save your hips. Conventional helps to build a bigger sumo, but not so much the other way around. I've personally found my best carryover from snatch grip pulls since they work the upper back so well. For me, I have to keep a tight thoracic or I lose my pull.
 
I might alternate convos & snatch grip on squat day.

Or add it as the main movement on DL day?
 
Supplementary movement on deadlift day? Do competition form for your main movement and then do your off movement?

Just do snatch grip sumo pulls. You'd look like a spider.
 
herderdude said:
Supplementary movement on deadlift day? Do competition form for your main movement and then do your off movement?

Just do snatch grip sumo pulls. You'd look like a spider.
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My arms are SO SHORT, that at max width on snatch grip pulls I'm 6" inside the collars.

I look more like a fat Y
 
Swanson52 said:
My arms are SO SHORT, that at max width on snatch grip pulls I'm 6" inside the collars.

I look more like a fat Y
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Ooh, ooh! Sumo stance snatches. Them are some short arms. Sometimes I hold just outside the rings, other times I hold just inside the collars.
 
As God as my witness, I'm on the verge of saying eff the comp and going full-on cut.

Jesus, with that orange shirt, I am what Charlie Brown looks for on Halloween.
 
Have you competed before?

If not you have a chance at making 9 PRs...pretty cool if you ask me. Just saying.
 
Big man...it's a helluva alot easier to put on than take off. Keep at it and let it do it's thing.
 
I'm struggling to shave pounds off myself. Every day I go into the gym I regret it and wished I could just plow food..just stand by your decision and follow through. You have it
 
rob112 said:
Have you competed before?

If not you have a chance at making 9 PRs...pretty cool if you ask me. Just saying.
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Yes, but this'll be my first sanctioned meet. So essentially, clean slate.
 
Or...since this isn't a drug free fed, maybe I add an injectable to my TRT. ??
 
jimbuick said:
Do it! Go big or go home brother!


I posted an article in my log, about Viking supremacy, you should read it.
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I actually saw that when Wendler posted a link on FB. Glorious article.

AZMIDLYF said:
Tren E
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This has been suggested to me. Makes me nervous, but after watching that dude shred weight in the gym yesterday, I'm intrigued.
 
Give me some thoughts;

A buddy of mine is a PL coach, and I just sent him my vids to review, which he absolutely shredded. His stance was "nuke from orbit, your form is shyt", which I don't disagree with.

I'm 11 weeks out; would it benefit me to dial my maxes back by 25-50#, start the cube over next week, and just hammer form, weight be damned? This is a marathon; 8/17 is an IPL World Qualifier, but it won't be the last one ever...besides, without being a dick I think I can put up a 1247 total @ 275 without much trouble. I'm confident today that I could go 450/350/525 in my sleep, bad form & all.

I want to get BETTER, I have always been all about form because I'm typically not an ultra-strong cat.

Yea, or nay?
 
AM
Mobility, foam roll, etc.
10' treadmill
Prowler Rounds (25# increments up to 100, back down)
15' treadmill
 
Technique will take you farther down the road big man.
 
AZMIDLYF said:
Technique will take you farther down the road big man.
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I agree, man. I've let myself ego lift a bit (which I f'n ABHORR), when I don't even have my setup down on 2 of 3 lifts.

I'm not going to be "that guy" that throws around weight with garbage technique.

Plus, I've GOT to drop this fat. It's bugging me, and I can diet more aggressively without worrying about missing heavier lifts.
 
I agree. You possess a solid base of strength and the weight loss should not affect it too much.
 
I think your bench is fine, and your deadlift could use a lot of work (but it would actually only make you stronger, not make the weights heavier). The biggest culprit is your squat, and you really need to get on your mobility work to help open up those hips and force the knees out so you can squat down lower. I know the pain, I'm 6'3," but you have to do it not just so you dont bomb out of the meet for shallow squats but for longevity's sake (your knees).

I believe the cube is set up so 10th week is week off with test day, which also means meet week. So you could take a week off (say this week) and work only mobility, test your new, improved-form maxes, and reprogram based on what you did. I would definitely look at some MWOD stuff specifically for improving hip mobility.

Some examples include
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Make sure to use SMR on your ITB, adductors, glutes (I think I've seen you do DeFranco's Agile 8 - he includes one with a lacross ball I recommend), back, and lats. My recommendation would be to do the MWODs 3-4x/day for a few weeks, and then you can pick the most effective ones for you and stick to those - but keep doing them every lower day.
 
That's good stuff right there. ^^^^^^

You're right, over got to work on hip mobility, absolutely. I've been using some stuff from the Supple Leopard, but maybe I've not been hitting it often enough.

Thanks a TON for taking the time to put that together, I really appreciate it.
 
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