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[Aitrus]

A little bit of preamble to begin...
I bought a curl bar and a multi purpose incl/decl bench with attached leg extension and lat pulldown bar in Jun of 08... Something to get me started I guess. I had never touched weights in my life, and was beginning at a modest 60lb bench press.

After realizing the futility of working out at home on a very restricted budget, I decided to make use of my school's facilities. Free gym, why not?

Began a very general program on July 20th to increase my fitness level because I was, and still am not, very strong.

In about a two month span I've moved from 60lb bench to 115, have a DL of 140 a squat of 160, barbell row of 100, shoulder press at 110 and am doing dips less 40lbs of my body weight and pullups less 50lbs of my bodyweight.

I am currently using the stronglifts 5x5 workout with some additional exercises implemented (power cleans, for example, are used in place of squats now once a week on DL day). I plan to provide updates every few weeks when I'm able and to..

Currently I stand 5ft9in and 174lbs and as of August 20 my numbers are as follows:



115 bench 5rm
160 squat 5rm
140 DL 5rm
pullup minus 50lbs of bodyweight 10rm

I dont think I've hit a ceiling yet with my training, so these numbers should be going up a bunch in the weeks to come (Yes, I say this with my fingers crossed!).. The numbers are obviously not in kG; though maybe someday.

As for diet, I eat regularly and I eat a lot... People tell me I pretty much consume my own body weight in food every day, and I try to eat as well as I can..

I guess that is all for now eh!

[swanso5]

you only need to really know how much wt you can do for deads, squats, bench and chins...focus on these 4 mainly

[DianaB]

This should be interesting, some one who doesn't aspire to look like Brad Pitt in Fight Club at least...
Cut out the assisted pull-ups and just use your BW. You can train your chins/pull-ups by doing negatives every other session. Use a slow rate of contraction on the negs, a four count is good.
Do you know how to clean properly? It's always good to get a lesson or 2 from a strength coach on any power lifts, just for safety if you have any doubts.
Here is a vid of a friend of mine rocking out some cleans supersetted with serratus crunches. Her form is pretty good, I'd like to see a bit more of an arch but her elbow placement is A+.
http://media.putfile.com/complex-86
And for anyone reading this who is looking at fat loss, this girl was about 3 months post partum in this vid. She trained this way for about 4 months and dropped ALL her baby fat, plus built some amazing muscle on the way. No cardio to speak of, just heavy weights and clean eating.

[davecw]

I dont even want to know who you aspire to look like!

[DianaB]

[Aitrus]

[DianaB]

Fight Club:
http://entimg.msn.com/i/BradPitt/FIGHT_CLUB_300x298.jpg
Gladiator:
http://www.cinemafusion.com/images/uploads/BradPittTroy.JPG

Overall he's still too girly though, IMO.

Finding a good coach is going to depend on where you look. Try a real gym, not a general fitness facility. If you want to learn the explosive techniques of oly lifting, try your local colleges or universities. Most have weightlifting clubs that are open to anyone. We have a local university that trains 3 times a week and costs $200 a year, less if you are student in any school. Or look for a power lifting gym. If you just want a lesson or 2, some coaches will take you on for an hourly rate. I'm warning you though, it's addictive.

Practice cleans in the rack with the bar. The girl in the vid I posted taught herself in a few weeks time. A camera is your best friend, you can review your lifts and see what the issues are after training.

Be sure you lean back on your initial pull with the weight on your heels. Take off your shoes and do them barefoot if you can. I'm deadlifting tomorrow and I'll post some videos, if my form doesn't disintegrate all the hell.

[swanso5]

she seems to do a "double" pull too if you can see what i mean

definatley not enough "thrusting" action which will limit how much wt she can lift doing more an upright row type movement with a little leg asistance

she also seems to catch it a bit low too don't you think which comes from the above mentioned flaw...

even though i love a chick who cleans

[DianaB]

The first pull is to the hip, that's pretty much normal when you are learning to clean, in fact, it's re-enforced. When you see a real experienced lifter, that part is usually fast enough that you don't notice it. I'm not sure what you mean by an upright row though. The hand position isn't even close.
To add weight, there needs to be more explosion, but this is a beginner who is self taught for this lift, although she did get a sign off from one of the best oly lifters for technique that I know of.
That said, she is (was) a beginner, and not practicing oly lifts (aside from the basic clean) in her training. Technique and speed improves with time, or it doesn't, really depends on the person. The problem with watching vids of an seasoned oly lifter is that the movements are so fast it's almost impossible to see the steps taken in execution.

[Aitrus]

[Aitrus]

Just a small update but I am now squatting 195, pullupX7, bench is 130. Will have updated numbers for my deadlift this weekend. Have also been working hang clean/power press in an effort to dichotomize and understand the power clean.

[DianaB]

Pull up unassisted right?
Your on your way. Good that you are sticking to it, have you asked some of the more experienced guys for help or advice yet?
130 on the bench is that for 5 or 1 rep?

[Aitrus]

[Christopheel]

You look like someone who just needs to eat big. That's the missing part I believe.

For nausea, a better breathing, can you take a video ? We can help you then.

Cut phase (Reducing bodyfat) is for women or really fat men, eat food, lift the heavy barbell.

For your program, are you gaining ? are getting stronger ? If yes then stick to it.

[Aitrus]