I’m glad I overcame my fear of the weights again today and did my workout as I had planned:
It feels great to finally beat my PR of 92.5 kg in deadlift, which was almost a year old. Today I did five reps at 93.5 kg, and then added a single rep at 95 kg just for fun. It feels like I could do more.
I’ve been busy lately. Instead of trying to catch up when missing a workout, I’ve decided to stick to Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and allow for missed workouts. So in practice, I’ll get two workouts per week on average. Last week, I only got one. I’ve noticed before that whenever I’ve had a full week off, I need all the will-power I can muster to do the next workout. Doubts creep in. Am I really ready for another personal best? Should I deload? And I start looking for excuses. But I had slept well, eaten well and was mentally prepared, so I had no excuses:
I keep improving my personal best in squat. I’ve been wondering about my form, and in particular whether my back is straight when squatting. So today I filmed a set, and the straightness of the back looks okay. What does not look okay is my body. I lift for strength, not for looks, but seeing myself on video was painful. There’s actually a big difference seeing myself in the mirror and on video. I need a lot more upper body work. Bench and press are not enough.
I did an extra rep in the last squat work set. It’s a mental trick I do sometimes, to feel more prepared for next workout. The 92.5 kg deadlift is touching my personal best. It was almost a year since I lifted this heavy, and I really look forward to beat my record next time.
Another personal best in squat:
It was heavy, but I think I’m ready for 82.5 kg on Friday. This time, I did rest more between the sets and finished all press sets at 33.5 kg. The deadlift really clicked tonight. Not sure if it was the Rammstein music or what, but 91 kg was easy. Whatever was on my mind during those reps is the mindset I need to look for.
I would like to add pull-ups too, but still lack a place to do them.
I’m back! What was supposed to be a short break while waiting for new equipment turned into a 7 month break. But I’m lifting again since September 1, and today I had a workout worth blogging about:
The 78.5 kg squat is a new personal best. It was very heavy, but managable. Not much margin left, but hopefully, 80 kg will feel about the same next time. The press weight was a perfect challenge, but I missed a rep in the second set, because I got over-entusiastic and didn’t rest enough. Deadlift starts to feel heavy too, but I’m still a few kilos away from my personal best.
Nine Inch Arms 