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drizzt

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drizzt Veteran member

drizzt

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Yeah I'll try, but even small charges (anywhere from $15-30 isn't it?) x more than one session will come in down the pecking order for me at the mo... Will check with The Doc as he can usually hook something up :nod:

19.07.2012

106, ok place to be at, I know the weight is about a kilo lower in the mornings, and once I'm down to the jocks I'm confident I can come in under 105.

  • Deadlifts (sets x reps @ weight - RPE)
    bar
    1 x 8 @ 60kg
    1 x 5 @ 100kg
    1 x 3 @ 140kg (+2 sumo reps)
    1 x 2 @ 180kg (+1 sumo rep)
    Add Superior + belt
    1 x 2 @ 220kg (+1 sumo rep) - @ 9
    1 x 2 @ 230kg - @9
    1 x 1 @ 240kg - @10 (failed 2nd)
    1 x 5 @ 200kg - @8
  • CG Floor Press
    bar
    1 x 10 @ 60kg
    1 x 5 @ 100kg
    1 x 2 @ 120kg/drop set/1 x 5 @ 100kg/drop set/1 x 10 @ 60kg
  • Reverse Hypers superset with GHR
    1 x 10 @ 20kg & 10 @ bw
    1 x 10 @ 30kg & 6 @ +10kg (followed by 6 @ bw)
    1 x 10 @ 30kg & 5 @ +10kg (followed by pretty much blacking out :pfft:)

Comments

  • Bit of an up and down session. Wanted to try the suit out for deads again, and the tip Beast gave me about getting down to the bar worked fine (rolling it toward me).
    Only trouble is, I wasn't used to it, so it put me further out of my normal groove. On top of that, aside from maybe a small pop off the floor, I really don't think I got anything out of the suit itself. So add the awkward start to not really getting anything from the suit, and I think it even cost me a bit of poundage tonight. Not only that, but the straps are so loose they kept slipping down every 1-2 reps, which really threw me off when they were hanging down over the arms. With the Nats so close, I might persist with raw deadlifting for now.
    Sumo reps I did tonight actually felt ok, thinking I'm going to make more of a concerted effort to switch to them following nats, especially now that the squat is looking to head above 300kg... easier on the back.
    220 was pretty good, quite snappy. Had a false start on 230 as my hands couldn't grip the bar - they kept slipping off it - then discovered it was one of the "fatter" bars with shiny knurling, so I had to resort back to the straps for it and then it popped up ok. Wee bit of a grind but there was potentially one more rep in the tank if I wanted it.
    Pushed to 240, first rep was ok, second got stuck above the knees. Tried to fight it a little but it didn't wanna move. Not happy with that, so dropped down for a quick set of 5 at 200kg which came up alright. Straps slipped down over my arms after rep 3 :doh:
    Honestly I think I'm going to make a concerted effort on bench and deadlift, and maybe just maintain the squat following nationals. They've fallen quite far behind and it's really frustrating. I know it's not far off clicking, but I want to up those numbers while they are lagging so far behind. At this rate, I reckon I'll be lucky to get 250 :oops:
  • Assistance was ok, close grip bench was mostly paused, fried the tris with the drop sets.
    I was battling on the second set of weighted GHRs, wanted to push for one more rep, but as soon as I got to the bottom I felt this splitting pain hit at the base of my skull, real migraine-ish kind of headache following immediately after. So I had to abort there and sit down until it had cleared which took a minute or two. Intended to do more assistance but called it there to be on the safe side, as things were a bit blurry and the throbbing was unbearable. Sacked a couple of panadol and ibuprofen tabs since which has made it slightly more bearable, but there is still a bit of an unpleasant feeling there.

In on Saturday for some more squats. Maybe leave the bench session to Sunday.

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drizzt

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21.07.2012

104.1 today pretty good, especially considering the weight seems to peak at around 107+ during the week. I'm pretty sure I can get it under 105 if need be on Sunday morning in a couple weeks time.

  • Squats (sets x reps @ weight - RPE)
    bar
    1 x 8 @ 60kg
    1 x 5 @ 100kg
    1 x 3 @ 140kg
    1 x 2 @ 180kg (b) - @8
    1 x 2 @ 200kg (b) - @9.5
    Add 46 Centurion, Straps Down
    1 x 2 @ 200kg
    1 x 2 @ 220kg
    1 x 2 @ 240kg
    Add Wraps, Straps Up
    1 x 2 @ 260kg - @8
    1 x 2 @ 280kg - @9.5

Comments

  • Not a great day today, back was hellishly tight - again - due to deadlifts being too close to this session - again. Just, after doing Saturday through Tuesday straight squatting/benching/extra cardio etc last week, I felt like a rest instead of Deadlifting on Wednesday. In the end that decision made this session a lot more of a waste than I had hoped.
    Raw stuff felt ok but maybe pushed it too far with the set at 200, 2nd rep probably took more out of me than I anticipated/wanted. Everything up to and including 180 felt really good though, hence why I pushed onto 200.
    I wanted to find an opener today, and I think I might have, but not as sure about it as I'd like to be. Big thanks to Beast for letting me use his 46 Centurion today, he's offered it to me for Nats to use, but not sure if I should. I'm finding it even harder than the Superior to get depth in, although it really does fit like a glove, and get a hellishly good pop out of it compared to the Superior. Just a bit of an unknown as to what it will take to get depth. Would love to take it for a spin above 300 as with the harness on this one (which the Superior doesn't have) I can feel a lot more power brewing in there.
    200 to 240 were all incredibly high, I physically couldn't push it down to get depth. 260 was a bit better but it still felt as if I was fighting the suit the whole way down. Massive difference to the Superior. OB reckons I should've put the straps up a bit earlier, he's probably right (as he often is haha). All part of the learning process.
    280 felt terrible, and as soon as I unracked, the splitting headache from the previous night came back with a vengeance. Considered racking it and pulling the pin, but gave it a crack anyway. 1st rep was oooook, might have scraped depth. Looked like it popped up quick on film but felt really hard to me. Dropped a second in, back was too fatigued to hold tightness so I looked really wobbly, came up in the end, wasn't a grind but definitely harder than it should've been. Racked there. Wanted to do another set for a single rep to really just come away with one perfect-looking comp one, but the back started to seize up the longer I stood around, so in combination with the headache I called it there.

So a wee bit of a wasted session in the end due to this easily-fatigued back of mine. Although I guess it was within 40 hours of my deadlift session, so I can't be too hard on it. Just need to plan better in future.

Have a bit of a decision to make as to whether I head for the Centurion or Superior for the comp, so maybe I'll give them both a bit of a run during the week and see what happens. Thanks again to Beast for the spotting and lending me the gear to peruse/use.

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23.07.2012 - Bench Opener Testing

107 flat. Felt bad and then Zane jumped on the scales after me and I see I'm not the only one having trouble staying under 105. So now that I'm not alone I don't feel that bad anymore :grin:

Probably not surprising with the Pancakes and masses of potato salad I ate yetserday. Actually, surprised it's not closer to 108, doing well for early in the week considering.

  • Bench (sets x reps @ weight - RPE)
    bar
    1 x 8 @ 60kg
    1 x 5 @ 100kg
    Add Medium RAM :shock:
    1 x 5 @ 120kg - @7
    1 x 3 @ 140kg - @8
    1 x 2 @ 150kg - @8.5
    Remove RAM, add 48 F6
    1 x 3 @ 120kg - @7
    1 x 1 @ 140kg - @7 (paused, comp commands)
    1 x 1 @ 150kg - @8.5 (paused, comp commands) [=PB]
  • Front Squat
    bar
    2 x 5 @ 70kg
    1 x 3 @ 120kg (b)
  • OH Pin Press (chin height)
    bar
    1 x 5 @ 60kg
    2 x 5 @ 80kg - @8-9
  • Cardio
    Stat Bike - 10km @ roughly 20mins

Comments

  • Pretty stoked with bench today. Think a few things came together to make it a good session.
    First off, the RAM. Was looking at purchasing one last night - well, I did, but long story short the order ended up being cancelled - out of curiosity and to see whether it might be worth buying one in future, I asked OB1 if I could try his RAM out. It can be a little hard at first to get it sitting in the right spot - feels as if the panel is higher up the chest than a bench shirt which is a little awkward feeling - but if you can set up without it moving down you can really get some good pop out of it. And heck even if you don't get it down the chest you still get some decent gain out of it.
    Didn't physically feel like I was getting anything at first (didn't have a "bench shirt" feel to it), but the way the weight was flying up (faster than my raw) I knew something was going on. Will likely purchase one, maybe I'll ask nicely if someone will get me one for my birthday coming up :pray: 150s were pretty easy considering the RAM had slipped up close to the collarbone after setting up/unracking. If I can get it to sit right I reckon I can get even more out of one.
    After mucking around with the RAM, I was well warmed up, so chucked the bench shirt on to do what I initially had planned for the session, and that was to find an opener. Felt way different in the shirt tonight, actually was almost hard to get a touch at 120 :shock: Dropped it toward the chest thinking I was going to get very little/no resistance (like normal in this shirt at that weight) but it started to kick in about an inch off the chest. Results! Not entirely sure what I did differently to get this pop, as I've tried jacking it hard in the past with very little luck, and this wasn't jacked hard at all but something happened that had it humming along tonight. Thought it could be the weight but I'm sure I was heavier than this last week and I got bugger all out of it, so must have had it sitting differently or something.
    Wasn't going to question things, so went to 140 as planned for my opener. Flew up very easily to the comp commands (almost rookie-racked it early :shifty:). Planned to stop there, but the way things were going tonight I decided to give 150 (what I hope for a second attempt) a shot. That flew up as well! I reckon it was about an 8.5 effort, definitely one more rep there, maybe 2. =Paused PB there. Considering opening higher the way things went tonight, but I know things will be different with squats before them at the comp, and not sure how the bicep will be or how the gear will co-operate, so will leave things safe for the opener for now and maybe look at bigger jumps if that goes really well.
    I think a few things are happening; the shirt seemed to sit better tonight, so now that I know it can give me some decent pop, I need to learn where I had it and get that consistently to attain the gains. Secondly I tried to arch a lot harder, which the F6 seemed to respond really well to. Thirdly, I think maybe my raw strength is beginning to pop back up again. Don't want to jinx things, but all of the warmups were easy as, and I think in combination with the shirt playing nicely, my body also co-operated and kicked in with a little extra strength.
    Feeling better about bench now! Will just have to do it following some big squat attempts at Nats :pfft:
  • The rest of the workout was pretty cruisy. Tried front squats, didn't feel great and I'm sure I felt my hip go further out of alignment on the top set, so I stopped there. Also the arms/shoulders/forearms weren't handling the grip too well, been too long since I did them properly last so the body doesn't know what to make of it.
    Pin OHP was great, surprised myself with relatively easy sets of 5 @ 80kg, seems to back up my theory that the bench is coming along nicely.
    Wee bit of bicep pain again today which thankfully didn't derail anything but need to monitor it and stop being lazy with the ice after sessions.

Back in for some squats tomorrow.

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24.07.2012 - Squat Opener

106.2 - but that was after squatting, and with all of the water intake I'm always heavier following squats than beforehand. Pretty confident pre-squats I would've been within a kilo of 105, which is a good afternoon weight. Tracking along well I reckon.

  • Bench (sets x reps @ weight - RPE)
    RageX 50
    1 x 5 @ 120kg (4-board)
    1 x 5 @ 140kg (3-board)
  • Squats
    bar
    1 x 10 @ 60kg
    1 x 5 @ 100kg
    1 x 3 @ 140kg
    1 x 2 @ 170kg
    1 x 1 @ 200kg (b)
    Add Belt, 46 Centurion, Straps up straight away
    1 x 2 @ 220kg
    Add wraps
    1 x 1 @ 245kg (loose) - @7


  • Bench
    1 x 5 @ 60kg
    1 x 3 @ 100kg
    1 x 3 @ 120kg
    Add RageX
    1 x 5 @ 140kg (3-board)
    1 x 2 @ 150kg (2-board)
    1 x 1 @ 160kg (1-board)
    1 x 1 @ 160kg (touch/comp commands) - @10 [+7.5kg all time PB/+10kg paused PB]

Comments

  • Discussing numbers with the boys tonight got me fired up to do some damage on the platform, so I wanted to go hard to find a squat opener properly (as opposed to knocking out a couple of reps). Also decided to go for broke and try the Centurion, and seeing how easy it was to get depth in it when I used the slips to get it right up the thighs has allayed my concerns with that - basically now it feels exactly like the Superior does in terms of fit, except with better fitting straps, and a much better pop out of the hole. I could get depth with the 220s which was an awesome feeling. Will use this in comp instead of the Superior.
    Raw felt terrible, everything was heavy from the 60kg all the way up to the 200. Suit was a funny beast, the descent on almost every set was terrible because the weight felt incredibly heavy tonight, but the ascent was scarily easy.
    I reckon pretty much every set I hit depth on, so that's awesome. 245 was childs play, 265 about the same. Reason I scored 285 a 9RPE, was I had a massive battle walking it out and descending - the 300 a couple weeks back didn't feel that hard! So much of a battle, that I didn't end up getting my feet positioning right, and they were a bit narrower compared to my previous sets. This compromised depth a little compared to the previous sets, but the cam showed that I looked pretty safely in, so I'm happy with it as my opener. I know coming up isn't a problem, it's the going down that I need to focus on now.
    Wraps felt good, too. Used the True Blacks instead of the THPs tonight - did that with the intent of not getting as much out of the wraps, but I think they give me more than the THPs. Nice pop out of them, and actually hold me in tighter. Think I might look to use these for Nats too, will see on the day anyway.
    Again, huge thanks to The Beast for spotting and encouragement, and Alex/Zane/OB/Sam for their help as well. Cheers guys.
  • The RageX! BG wanted to sell it, so I told him I'll give it a bash because I want a shirt to plug the gap between my really loose 48 F6, and my stupidly tight 46 F6. What ended up happening was I struggled into it (not as hard as the 46 F6 though), and thought since I had gone to that much effort, I might as well give it a few trial presses. So no warmups I jumped under the bar and it was awesome! Great pop from it, even just with the 4 and 3 boards.
    So re-visited it following the squat attempts, and despite being completely shagged from squats (definite probability on comp day) - as well as having benched to pretty much max less than 24 hours ago - I decided to give it a good run and see what I could touch with.
    160 1-board felt ok, so I thought I'd give 160 a go at touching. Beast and OB talked me into the comp commands which I wasn't so keen on because I didn't think I had it in me as I felt quite fatigued and exhausted (especially in the tris from last night), but (in hindsight) I'm glad they did, because it ended up being a really good press. Happy to get a cheeky +7.5kg all time PB here, and +10kg on my paused PB.
    Dropped it probably a bit too slow, as it started to fight me a cm or two off the chest, but after hovering there for a bit I finally got it to touch, and on the press command it shot up quite well. Slight lag during the transition, but it didn't turn into a grinder which is oh-so-common for me, and I'm really stoked with that.
    I'm considering throwing this into the ring for nats too, go hard or go home I reckon. But I'll play it safe and try both out on the day, see how it goes.
    First impressions of the RageX is its the best shirt I've tried so far. Not saying much seeing as I've only tried a few shirts on :pfft: But it didn't force me anywhere or into any awkward positions, and the power off the chest was really good. Pretty sure Brett has a sale here, and a new RageX fan :nod:

Good session, will test out Deads tomorrow, maybe the last deads session before the comp. Vid:

I like the depth cam idea, but unfortunately it was obstructed on this one - just playing around though, will see if I can get that going in future 8)

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25.07.2012 - Deads

106.9 today, not surprised - finished late last night (got home just before 9) so I had Burger Fuel for dinner instead of making something :shifty: And then had a mass of food for lunch today. All good I know it's lighter in mornings/weekends and that was an unusual circumstance with the food last night.

  • Deads (sets x reps @ weight - RPE)
    bar
    1 x 5 @ 70kg
    1 x 3 @ 120kg
    1 x 1 @ 170kg
    1 x 1 @ 220kg (b)
    Add 46 Centurion
    2 x 1 @ 220kg (b)
    Swap Centurion for 44 Velocity
    3 x 1 @ 220kg (some belted, some not) - + lots of failures!
    1 x 1 @ 240kg (no belt)

    Swap Velocity for an older style 44 Velocity

Comments

  • Long session today due to trying lots of different stuff with the equipment.
    First of all the raw stuff felt fantastic, despite feeling a bit beatup from the previous couple of days hard benching and squatting, I felt really quick with everything up to and including 220kg. Really stoked with that and think I could've gone 250+ tonight raw had I wanted to.
    But I wanted to try some equipment out to hopefully just give me a little extra nudge on the day.
    First I tried the 46 Centurion I'm gonna use to squat in (Beast's). That didn't really give me anything. So I took it off and was about to go raw for the rest of the session, when the Beast showed up with his Velocity!
    So I gave it a go, man is it tight! Just like my Super Cent that I barely managed to struggle into the other night, very well fitting.
    Initially, I absolutely could not get down to the bar. When I did manage to grab the bar, the belt dug into my lungs and I couldn't breathe, making the lift all but impossible. Tried lots of different combinations - straps down, drag the legs up a little further, belted, no belt, loose belt, alternate grip, hook grip etc etc, and found in the end that it was best without a belt for the time being. This allowed me to get down to the bar and start to learn the line, and got some very easy reps out without a belt. Including the 240.
    By 250 I had burned a lot of energy mucking around with the lower weights, but still managed to get a decent single. Bit slow to lockout which is because my hips were a bit too high. I found if I squeezed the shoulder blades back, I had to dip the hips to get closer to the bar, and the suit didn't respond well at all to that. So what ended up happening was I had to have a fair round in the back to keep the hips high enough for the suit to react, and that ended up being really good.
    OB came out with an older-style Velocity from his endless bag of gear, same size as the one I was in, but softer fabric, and the straps had been taken down a bit to shorten it (which as a result had shortened the legs). Easier to get down to the bar with, but tried not to change the style too much from the previous velocity so the 250 here looked much the same.
    Obviously the tighter/newer Velocity gave me a better pop, but the looser one was easier to manage, so will need to make a call on the day as to what I will use. Might come down to if it looks like I need some extra numbers to place higher I will have to take some risks... see how it goes.

Vid:

Yes, the deadlift form looks horrible, but the rounded back was actually the only way I could get down to the bar without dropping the hips lower (which meant the suit didn't respond). Must try figure out how to lengthen my arms...

Also included yesterday's 160 bench.

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28.07.2012

105.5, happy with that, can easily get 500grams off (I'm confident of up to a kilo) on the day.

  • Squats (sets x reps @ weight - RPE)
    bar
    1 x 8 @ 60kg
    1 x 5 @ 100kg
    1 x 3 @ 140kg
    1 x 2 @ 180kg (b)
    Add Centurion, Straps Down
    1 x 3 @ 180kg (b)
    Straps up
    1 x 3 @ 200kg (b)
    1 x 3 @ 220kg (b)
    Walkouts only, add knee wraps (walkout, hold for 5 seconds, rack)
    1 x 260kg
    1 x 285kg
    1 x 305kg
    1 x 322.5kg

Comments

  • Not much today, only intended to do light squats and heavy walkouts... so for once I did exactly that and no more/less.
    I can feel the body beginning to pack things in, so the deload couldn't have come at a better time. Kink in my upper back that doesn't want to go, lower back is sore and feels out of alignment, shoulder/bicep hurts... the week off will do me good.
  • Squats that I did do were ok, 180 raw didn't feel terrible. Closed the stance in though so in a way I cheated as I know I'm a bit more powerful there, I've been trying to do it wider stanced lately to more closely mirror my suited squat.
    Suited stuff was a bit meh, probably pushed a bit hard to get depth on the 220s, lucky it wasn't a comp because the exertion of trying to hold the breath in broke out on the 3rd rep, and I sprayed a mouth full of spit which would've cleaned the front row of any dirt they had on their face :shifty: Made the rep appear harder than it was, just the suit/belt/forcing depth all conspiring to leave me with nothing in the lungs (or mouth as the case was).
  • Walkouts were atrocious. Even 260 which I've been throwing around for a while now (suited and raw - before my trip anyway) felt terrible on the back. I think some of it has to do with this lingering kink in my upper back between the spine and shoulder blade making the bar feel not so stable. Whatever it is, the whole body is responding badly.
    Still, managed to keep heading up, but everything kept feeling just a little more terrible than the previous weight. What I'd do is walk it out, and stand there to hold it for about 5 seconds (or until I thought it was gonna fall off the back :pfft:), taking big breaths in as if I was about to squat, then racking it. Did it in the comp rack to get the feel of it - valuable, as it has come as a shock on the day in the past, unracking in an unfamiliar setting (facing an open space, racks not locked down etc).
    305 and 322 are now the biggest weights I've held on the back, and they were missions to walk out. Got there in the end.

Good day in the House, lots of tin being shifted. Probably won't log any more sessions from here, just a little bench and cardio to come, and that's me until the comp.

Good luck to everyone competing, will no doubt see you down there.

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Thanks bro! Ideally would've liked a more structured/longer buildup to my first nats but really keen to put whatever it is I have out there anyway :grin:

A 300+ squat isn't too shabby for a less structured/shorter build up though mate. Tonnes of power in you, can't wait to see your lifts. A bit more time in the gear and you'll soon be mixing with the worlds best :nod:

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05.08.2012 - Nationals

After a bit of weight anxiety - 106 on the comp scales the day before lifting - I weighed in at 102.7. Always happens.

  • Squat
    Warmups
    bar
    1 x 5 @ 70kg
    1 x 3 @ 120kg
    1 x 2 @ 160kg
    Add Centurion, Straps Down
    1 x 1 @ 210kg (b)
    Straps up + Wraps
    1 x 1 @ 240kg (b)
    Competition Lifts
    260kg - 3 whites
    285kg - 3 whites [+5kg Comp PB]
    300kg - 3 whites [+15kg Comp PB]
  • Bench
    Warmups
    1 x 5 @ 70kg
    1 x 3 @ 100kg
    Add F6
    1 x 1 @ 120kg (paused)
    Competition Lifts
    140kg - 3 whites
    145kg - 3 whites
    Swap F6 for RageX
    155kg - 3 whites [+10kg Comp PB]
  • Deadlift
    1 x 2 @ 120kg
    1 x 1 @ 170kg
    Add Velocity
    1 x 1 @ 210kg
    1 x 1 @ 225kg (b)
    Competition Lifts
    245kg - 3 whites
    260kg - 3 reds (downward motion during the lift)
    260kg - 3 reds (same again)
  • Total = 700kg

Comments

  • I was a bit of a disorganised mess for this comp, spent Friday and Saturday fizzing, and then when the day came to lift, things had kinda died down a bit. Being up past midnight on Saturday (due to attending the AGM which ran late) and not getting as much sleep as I'd have liked I think contributed to a bit of a poorly-focused day on my part. Also not really eating/drinking on Saturday probably didn't help, as I was quite worried about the weight. Have a path I think I'm gonna pursue for the next comp to make sure it's all on point.
  • Squats felt incredibly average in warmups. Bit disjointed, because we had about 6 or 7 guys warming up in the one rack, and basically everybody was a different height, and warming up on different weights.
    I had initially set 280 as my opener, but given the very "rigid" depth rulings going on over the course of the comp, and how badly the warmups were feeling, I decided to drop it to 260 to be safe and head for a total. I also really pulled the suit right up as far as I could get it to make depth easier to hit. Lost a bit of pop from the suit in doing so, but made passing depth a bit safer.
    I got OB1 to call my depth for the first squat @ 260, but the suit started to fight me and I popped up just before his call. The refs seemed to think it was ok though, so got 3 whites here, good start.
    Pumped it up to 285 to get a comp PB, dropped this one deeeeep, no doubt at all about this one, 3 whites, easy lift.
    300, same goal, wanted to drop it as deep as I could. Dropped into the hole nice and quick, again sunk it deep - probably deeper than the 285 - and came up with only a little trouble through the transition. Easy here, 3 whites again and new PB confirmed.
    Happy with the 300, but I left maybe 10kg on the platform here, which in the end would have earned me a higher placing. If I would've stuck with my plan and opened on 280-285, I potentially would've cracked 305-310 as a 3rd. Ah well, add that to the learning stack.
  • Bench warmups actually felt really good, real snappy. Only did minimal stuff, as I find that suits me well.
    Decided to go with the F6 over the RageX, as I thought that would be a safer bet to start off with.
    Opening attempt was horrible! Wore my (Superman) Chucks because I felt like they gave me a bit of luck in the Squat, and I don't really have a preference for bench footwear. However, once the bar was unracked and in my hands, I couldn't get my feet flat, so after holding it for about 10 seconds, I got told to replace the bar and get my feet flat. Instead of battling to try and get the feet flat in my usual position, I just laid them in a relaxed position and thought I'd try and do it without leg drive. Almost a big mistake, as that flattened my arch out which made the shirt do not much at all, nullified my leg drive, and turned it into a grinder. Still, ended up with 3 whites so I was on the board and a bit relieved.
    Second lift I wasn't sure how it'd go after the terrible first attempt, so I went to equal my comp PB. Also changed the chucks out for my heeled shoes (glad I brought them along) and that worked wonders for the feet position/leg drive/arch. Everything clicked and 145 flew up.
    Felt confident now that I had some numbers on the board, so decided to change into the RageX and see if I could get 155 out - still wasn't sure how the lockout was going to go, so didn't want to go any higher. Didn't jack the shirt at all because I know it is quite sensitive to that and would take a lot more than 155 to touch.
    As it was, 155 came down nicely, perfect line - think because I knew I had nothing to lose, I dropped it nice and confidently - then after the press command the bar went flying up, massive shock! 3 whites, decent PB.
    So oddly the bench got easier as the attempts went up, which is very new to me. Came away more disappointed than happy with the 155, because (and hndsight is a wonderful thing) I honestly believe there was a 170 for the taking there today, so I left a lot on the platform unfortunately.
  • Deadlift warmups went really well, snappy, easy, suit wasn't giving me too much trouble (pulled the legs right up).
    I picked 245 as my opener because that was going to be safe and give me a) a total, and b) 700kg which I was targeting as a minimum goal. It popped up pretty good, slight slowness toward the lockout, but 3 white lights so I was happy to take that and bank the total.
    My first crack at 260 started beautifully, flew off the ground... and then I stalled just before lockout again. Managed to grind through it and lock it out, put it down thinking "Phew, made it".... but got 3 reds. Huh? Wasn't sure what had happened, so I asked and the judges said the bar travelled down before lockout. Thought if 3 judges caught it then it must have!
    Before the 3rd deadlift, I was sitting in 5th place, 5kg ahead of 6th. If I made my final deadlift, it would've put me too far ahead to be headed (unless they changed their dead to something higher), but if I missed and 6th place hit their dead, he'd overtake me.
    So I got pretty psyched up for the final one, pulled the suit down to get a little extra pop out of it, smelling salts etc.
    This one probably felt a little easier than the 3rd, and with the downward bar travel for the previous attempt - which I assumed was at the lockout due to excessive lean or something - I made sure I stood as straight as an arrow. Flew off the ground, same sticking point hit, but ground through it a little easier than the 2nd lift... put the bar down grinning expecting 3 whites.... but got 3 reds again! Turns out, the bar was coming off the floor so fast, when it hit my sticking point it kind of rebounded down (according to the guys watching) which was where the downward motion came from. I physically didn't feel that happening, but obviously the lockout has been a long standing weakness of mine so back to the drawing board there.
    Oh, and 6th place made his 3rd Deadlift, which ended up pushing me back a spot to 6th :( Ah well, that's the way the game goes I guess.

So there's a lot to improve on, estimate I left at least an easy 20kg on the platform, not to mention my silly technical failings in the deadlift.

On the one hand, I'm happy with 21/27 white lights, and after only a little over a month in lifting equipment I've managed to catch onto things pretty quick. There is a LOT of room for improvement in learning the equipment better, and eventually moving into some tighter stuff.

On the other hand, I'm bitterly disappointed with how far my raw strength has fallen since going away on holiday. The gear doesn't do the lifting for you, but the raw strength certainly helps it along, so I need to build this base back up.

Next week I'll start a 5 x 5 or 5/3/1 to begin building my raw lifts back up. I'll likely run that for 10 weeks or so, and then move into a shortish program in the equipment to carry me into the Bledisbro in November.

No videos of my lifts too - in transit, the screen on my camera was smashed :( So until I replace the unit there'll be no more training filming either. Will likely go easy on the logging from here out anyway, I'm looking to beat a few people ahead of me by the end of the year, and I want to fly under the radar a bit more than I have done.

Thanks to all of the support at the comp, especially the guys/girls who ran cards for us, spotter loaders, OAWLA for running it, and the CDs team for being such a bunch of good cats. Nice to meet so many lifters (including Phedder) that I had only communicated with online, and seeing national legends like Sonia Manaena, Andy Mahon, Brent Mackenzie, Steve Varga (and too many more to name) in action. Really inspiring watching such excellent lifters do their thing.

Next outing, BBro.

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Phedder

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Considering your limited time in equipment, I thought you lifted really well mate. Definitely left a lot on the platform in the squat, I got right along side for the 300 and it was ridiculous how deep you sank it, and still came up quite easy. A bit more time learning the suit and hitting depth spot on and I honestly think a 320-330 is there before the year is over. I saw the same thing as the others with your deadlift too, amazing speed off the floor and then a sudden stop and slight drop before you properly activated the hips to bring them through.

Was a pleasure to meet you and the rest of the powerhouse crew, a few easy things for you to iron out and you should see a massive jump in your total come BBro :nod: I'll hopefully be up there for it too.

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