Back and shoulders last night. Sadly it seemed to be back night for everyone. I had to wait ages for a bar and the weights were hard to find and those not being used were spread out all over the place. When I did get a bar I was struggling with my deadlifts. I don't think my head was in the right place. I switched the routine and threw in some different exercises, including kettlebells which I've not used for a couple of years. Must have worked because my back is very tender today.
10 mile road run today, organised club run so it was fun despite the rain.
Got running with one of the faster boys to see if I could push my pace a bit. Turns out I can, personal record for 1 mile 8:13 and also for 2 miles 8:33.
Really chuffed with that, and was still able to put in a 9 min/mile at the end of the run.
You never really learn to swear until you learn to drive.
If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough - Mario Andretti
I ran 5.6km yesterday on a whim.. ran all the way to our football pitch where they have pull up bars, tricep dip bars etc dotted around so did a set of circuits too.
Felt really good afterwards - even if I practically died
Although I'm getting used to the 20 reps per set, still can't get used to how puny it looks when you're struggling to move weights that some of the girls in the gym can throw around. It's quite humbling.
Hopefully there will be some gains to be made, I'll give it some time and see how I'm getting on. And I haven't had a pump like this in a long time.
Itchy.. with such high reps:
- how much have you had to drop the weight by? (50% of 1RM?)
- how is recovery time? (do you get 2-3 days DOMS?)
- do you find your form dropping?
- With bench press as an example I've gone from doing 5 sets of 5 at 85kg, to 4 sets of 20 at 40kg.
It's actually lifting more weight in less time, with lower rest periods, which leaves me more time to work more chest exercises.
-DOMS is a belter, as you'd expect. More like 3-4 days, but I've got a feeling that will reduce the more I carry on. I've only done a fortnight, and a few days have been lost due to a niggly knee and a hangover, I'll keep you posted.
-Form itself doesn't drop. Because the weight isn't really high enough to **** you up its not too bad.
Having said that, on the final sets I can find myself trying to get the reps out of the way quicker because I know I won't make 20 if I go slower. Form doesn't seem to suffer, but timing might.
It's a work in progress though, I'm constantly evaluating how I feel and how my body is reacting.
Apart from the intense burning I'm liking it. Less risk of my dodgy shoulder giving out under heavier weight. I'll no doubt change it at some point but I'm staying here for now.
The reason for the questions is that I was watching a video about Steroids VS Natural and the main thing I picked up was the way they train...
Steroid users recommend high reps and to get the pump going, 20-40 reps. They said they do that because their bodies can recover way faster than when natural.
The max recommended for natural athletes are 15 because of this whole recovery period. I guess this would explain your 3-4 days of DOMS???
It'll be interesting to hear how you get on and progress though - keep us posted !!