Deadlifts - heavy (425 max)

Weds, 29 Mar 17

Deadlifts: 225x5 conventional, 225x5 sumo, 315x2x5, 365x2x5, 405x4x1, 425x1

My circulatory system was certainly having a hard time today.  I needed to sit down fairly quickly after the 405s, and had to take a knee at 425.  I ripped a callous off as well.

I've been giving some thought to what I'm going to do after this cut.  While I am strong-ish, and do look like I lift, I think I'd rather have prettier muscles, even if it means I won't be able to lift as much.  My cardio health needs to come up as well.  I've been looking at a Pull-Push-Legs style plan.  Three times a week lift, with two or three days cardio.  Likely walk/running.

The key difference, aside from reps, appears to be not trying to be so efficient at lifts.  ie - With a powerlifting bench it's whatever is needed to move the most weight over the least distance.  With a bb style bench it's whatever activates the pecs the best - make the lightest weight hard to move.  To transition the mechanism seems to be to take a standard PL type lift first - say on pull day start with deadlifts and move the weight at a high enough tempo to tax the nervous system without fatiguing the muscles.  So in my case of 425 I'd probably rep out sets at 335-340 until I was fried.  The other two movements would be barbell row and chins, all high rep stuff.  Push day looks like bench, military shoulder press or seated shoulder, and dips.  Last is legs, squats, leg extensions for quads, and seated calf raise.  Sets would likely be 5x5 with a rest-pause-repeat for the last set/rep until failure.  (Think Dogcrapp)

Anyhow, that's where things stand right now.  I really don't want to lose strength BEFORE starting a new program, so the cut will continue on exactly as I have been doing it.