Richard Gibney's 365 Days of Fitness: Day 310

Day 310 I was looking forward to today's workout all week. I've had the urge to move some heavier weights lately. I really want to be able have some decent strength by the end of the year and the only way to do that is get myself under some heavier loads.

I had two main goals today. I wanted to work on some Olympic lifting and I wanted to do some heavy squats. I haven't done a ton of squats lately, so I wasn't sure how it would go. My co-worker Philip posted a video of himself doing some super heavy squats on Facebook. This got my pretty inspired to get in the squat rack and put myself to the test.

Today's Workout: Olympic Lifting and Lower Body Strength

Olympic Lifts

Set 1: Squat Cleans (from the hang) - 5 x 95lbs Set 2: Barbell Complex - 4 reps each x 95lbs - Hang Clean - Power Clean (Floor) - Front Squats Set 3: Barbell Complex - 4 reps each x 115lbs - Hang Clean - Power Clean (Floor) - Front Squats Set 4: Power Clean - 4 x 135lbs Set 5: Power Clean - 4 x 165lbs Set 6: Power Clean - 4 x 185lbs Set 7: Squat Clean - 4 x 185lbs Set 8: Squat Clean - 4 x 185lbs

I was really happy with my Olympic lifting today. Things were working really well tonight. My form felt on spot and my timing, which I've struggled with in the past was really dialed in. I didn't go for any personal bests but I had a decent amount of weight on the bar and was moving it quite easily.

Lower Body Strength

Set 1: Back Squats - 5 x 225lbs / 3 min rest Set 2: Back Squats - 3 x 275lbs / 5 min rest Set 3: Back Squats - 2 x 315lbs

I was a little disappointed in my squats. I guess I shouldn't have expected too much. I haven't been squatting very heavy lately. They felt pretty good with the 225lbs and the even 275, but the 315 nearly crushed me. My legs just stopped working. I thought about dropping the weight and doing a couple more sets but I ran out of time and had to teach a class. However, an hour later when my class was finished I still felt like doing some more. I passed on more squats and decided to challenge my stability a bit more with some overhead barbell lunges.

60 minutes Later

Set 4: Barbell Overhead Lunges - 5 x 95lbs per side / 2 min rest Set 5: Barbell Overhead Lunges - 5 x 95lbs per side / 2 min rest Set 6: Barbell Overhead Lunges - 5 x 95lbs per side

I had never tried the barbell overhead lunges before. I didn't have a ton of weight on the bar but it was plenty heavy enough to present a serious challenge. Lunges are most frequently done with dumbbells, sometimes with a barbell on the shoulders, but very rarely are they done with anything overhead. When the weight is overhead the exercise is much more challenging on the core because you must keep your torso vertical in order to avoid dropping the weight. Therefore, the overhead version may not strengthen your legs as much but it's more beneficial for strengthening your body overall.

Energy System: Rowing

200 metres (Sub 45 seconds) - rest 30 seconds x 8 Sets

I didn't get any sort of cardio or energy system work in yesterday, so I finished off with a little time on the rower. I thought about running but my legs were a little jiggly from the weight lifting. The rower worked well. I felt I was able to get some good high heart rate work in despite my legs being fried. That being said by the time I was finished my legs and especially my glutes were toast.

I feel pretty good about today's workout. I left the gym feeling thoroughly taxed. I have a feeling I'm going to feel pretty sore tomorrow. My next workout will have to be a lot less intense, but that's ok. I think what I did today earned a little bit of slack for tomorrow.