8/23:
HOLY CRAP I AM SO SORE
Monday, August 24, 2009
Competition Day
8/22:
Things were going a lot better on Saturday. Alarm went off at 7, breakfast was great, out the door at 8, and we got there nice and early at 8:30. Bench was first, here are my lifts...which were pretty awful to say the least:
Rules for Bench Press: After liftoff, competitor must lower the bar, let it rest on their chest until judge gives the signal to lift, lift the bar and hold it up with arms extended until the judge gives the signal to rack.
First lift, I got up 260, but rules state you have to hold the bar in the up position until the judge gives the direction to rack it. I didn't wait, just racked it. So that lift was disqualified. Second lift I tried 275, but just flat out didn't get it up. I probably started too heavy for the first lift, which left me a little too tired for the second. I have gotten 275 up in the past, but it was not to be which was really frustrating. Third lift was 275 as well (I wasn't aware that you can't go down in weight, only up), and I forgot to let it rest on my chest before pressing. So I lifted it, realized I need to let it rest, brought back down, and didn't have enough energy to push it. FAIL. The guy right after me did the exact same thing, so that made me feel a little better.
Next up, deadlift:
First lift, 435. Not much to say...I had just warmed up at 405, that was no problem and neither was 435. Second lift was 450: not too bad, I felt the form going a little bit but I got it up without problem. Third lift and final lift was 465. I think I get it up pretty well, but if you look closely I let it rest on my left thigh which is an easy call for a DQ. You can see looking a little cockeyed at the bar, then at the judges. Turns out they overloaded the bar and put 485 on, so they give me a do-over on the try at 465. After making sure they got the weight right, I pull the lift all the way up making sure not to let it touch my legs. Success! 465 turned out to be better than almost all of the 198 lb weight class lifters.
So lastly was the curl. Rules are pretty basic, your legs have to stay perfectly straight, back stay on the pad, and wait for the judges commands to curl, lower, and rack.
I had practiced this only a few times before, best I got was 145 so I started my first lift at 125. I get it up no problem. To my surprise one of the mammoth heavyweights (not sure what he weighed in at, had to be 325+) was starting out at the same weight as me, and we were attempting the heaviest in the group. Anyhow, second lift was 140. Again, no problem. Third lift, 145 and this one was a little harder (the state record was 142.5 for my weight class). I knew I had done it before, so when I hit that little hitch in the middle I was able to push through it.
Rules for the competition are, if you make your 3rd lift and would like to go for a state or national record you can go for a 4th lift. The nat'l record for the 181lb class was 147.5, so I decided to go for 150. I wasn't sure if I could get it, but I thought I'd try it just to see what would happen. So, I lift and get stuck about halfway up. I keep pulling and pulling, it felt like it stayed in that position for a good minute without making any progress. I didn't even hear the crowd, who I guess was cheering real loud from the sound of the tape. I end up getting it up, almost DQ by bringing my back off the pad as I bring it down, but it was good and counted. Nat'l record!
So all in all, two first place finishes for my weight class (deadlift, curl). Felt pretty good, and a good start for my first competition. Taking the day off tomorrow, back to work on Monday.
Things were going a lot better on Saturday. Alarm went off at 7, breakfast was great, out the door at 8, and we got there nice and early at 8:30. Bench was first, here are my lifts...which were pretty awful to say the least:
Rules for Bench Press: After liftoff, competitor must lower the bar, let it rest on their chest until judge gives the signal to lift, lift the bar and hold it up with arms extended until the judge gives the signal to rack.
First lift, I got up 260, but rules state you have to hold the bar in the up position until the judge gives the direction to rack it. I didn't wait, just racked it. So that lift was disqualified. Second lift I tried 275, but just flat out didn't get it up. I probably started too heavy for the first lift, which left me a little too tired for the second. I have gotten 275 up in the past, but it was not to be which was really frustrating. Third lift was 275 as well (I wasn't aware that you can't go down in weight, only up), and I forgot to let it rest on my chest before pressing. So I lifted it, realized I need to let it rest, brought back down, and didn't have enough energy to push it. FAIL. The guy right after me did the exact same thing, so that made me feel a little better.
Next up, deadlift:
First lift, 435. Not much to say...I had just warmed up at 405, that was no problem and neither was 435. Second lift was 450: not too bad, I felt the form going a little bit but I got it up without problem. Third lift and final lift was 465. I think I get it up pretty well, but if you look closely I let it rest on my left thigh which is an easy call for a DQ. You can see looking a little cockeyed at the bar, then at the judges. Turns out they overloaded the bar and put 485 on, so they give me a do-over on the try at 465. After making sure they got the weight right, I pull the lift all the way up making sure not to let it touch my legs. Success! 465 turned out to be better than almost all of the 198 lb weight class lifters.
So lastly was the curl. Rules are pretty basic, your legs have to stay perfectly straight, back stay on the pad, and wait for the judges commands to curl, lower, and rack.
I had practiced this only a few times before, best I got was 145 so I started my first lift at 125. I get it up no problem. To my surprise one of the mammoth heavyweights (not sure what he weighed in at, had to be 325+) was starting out at the same weight as me, and we were attempting the heaviest in the group. Anyhow, second lift was 140. Again, no problem. Third lift, 145 and this one was a little harder (the state record was 142.5 for my weight class). I knew I had done it before, so when I hit that little hitch in the middle I was able to push through it.
Rules for the competition are, if you make your 3rd lift and would like to go for a state or national record you can go for a 4th lift. The nat'l record for the 181lb class was 147.5, so I decided to go for 150. I wasn't sure if I could get it, but I thought I'd try it just to see what would happen. So, I lift and get stuck about halfway up. I keep pulling and pulling, it felt like it stayed in that position for a good minute without making any progress. I didn't even hear the crowd, who I guess was cheering real loud from the sound of the tape. I end up getting it up, almost DQ by bringing my back off the pad as I bring it down, but it was good and counted. Nat'l record!
So all in all, two first place finishes for my weight class (deadlift, curl). Felt pretty good, and a good start for my first competition. Taking the day off tomorrow, back to work on Monday.
Day Before Competition
August 21:
I woke up to weighing 186.5 Friday morning, which was pretty disappointing. I was hoping for 184.5 or 185 at the highest, so I basically had to starve during the day. I had 3 very small meals, no water at all starting 6pm Thursday (except for 1 oz w/ meals). Weigh ins were between 6 and 7pm, so I went out to Total Performance at about 4, a gym in Charlottesville (which was really nice, if you live in cville and are into sports you should check it out), threw on the sweatsuit and hopped on an elliptical. A little over an hour later, I hop on my trusty scale...181 exactly. Sweet!
So we all hop in the car and ride out to competition site out in Stanardsville (about 20 minute drive). It would have been great except there is a huge wreck getting out of town. That took about 20 mins to get through. Then once we get into town we think we are looking for a hotel, which we can't find at the address we had. In fact, we can't find much at all. If you've ever been to Stanardsville, you'd know that it's a small town with population ~ 73. No traffic lights, no shops, one gas station. Anyways, we drive around for about a half hour back and forth down small two lane roads, a house every half mile. Stopped in at the gas station and ask for directions...but they have no idea what is going on. In the meantime, I've had about 700 calories all day and nothing more than half a protein bar since noon plus I had been up since 4 that morning. My head is spinning and I just about want to blow my brains out I'm so tired/hungry/nauseous/blah. I finally get in touch with someone in front of a computer, and we find we are looking for an american legion post, not a hotel. So we drive up the same road we've been up and back probably 4 or 5 times, and low and behold there is a building a good ways off the main road with a small parking lot. FINALLY. I go in, weigh, and in the hour plus it took to get there I got down to 179.4 (lowest I've been since second year of college). Afterwards, I ate about 4 meals and drank 2 gallons (yes, literally 2 gallons) of water. Competition time!
I woke up to weighing 186.5 Friday morning, which was pretty disappointing. I was hoping for 184.5 or 185 at the highest, so I basically had to starve during the day. I had 3 very small meals, no water at all starting 6pm Thursday (except for 1 oz w/ meals). Weigh ins were between 6 and 7pm, so I went out to Total Performance at about 4, a gym in Charlottesville (which was really nice, if you live in cville and are into sports you should check it out), threw on the sweatsuit and hopped on an elliptical. A little over an hour later, I hop on my trusty scale...181 exactly. Sweet!
So we all hop in the car and ride out to competition site out in Stanardsville (about 20 minute drive). It would have been great except there is a huge wreck getting out of town. That took about 20 mins to get through. Then once we get into town we think we are looking for a hotel, which we can't find at the address we had. In fact, we can't find much at all. If you've ever been to Stanardsville, you'd know that it's a small town with population ~ 73. No traffic lights, no shops, one gas station. Anyways, we drive around for about a half hour back and forth down small two lane roads, a house every half mile. Stopped in at the gas station and ask for directions...but they have no idea what is going on. In the meantime, I've had about 700 calories all day and nothing more than half a protein bar since noon plus I had been up since 4 that morning. My head is spinning and I just about want to blow my brains out I'm so tired/hungry/nauseous/blah. I finally get in touch with someone in front of a computer, and we find we are looking for an american legion post, not a hotel. So we drive up the same road we've been up and back probably 4 or 5 times, and low and behold there is a building a good ways off the main road with a small parking lot. FINALLY. I go in, weigh, and in the hour plus it took to get there I got down to 179.4 (lowest I've been since second year of college). Afterwards, I ate about 4 meals and drank 2 gallons (yes, literally 2 gallons) of water. Competition time!
Saturday, August 15, 2009
One Week to Competition
Meant to post this 8/15:
Hey everyone. I was in the gym yesterday, and I had the idea to do this blog. I have a powerlifting competition a week from today, a strongman competition next month, and a bodybuilding competition later this year, so I figure this would be a good way to chronicle how I'm doing.
The competition next week will consist of bench press, deadlift, and strict curl (bicep curl up against a wall). There are several weight classes, and the one I chose to go down to is the 166-181 class. I started out fluctuating between 192-195 during training, this morning I weighed in at 185 even, which is as good as I could hope for. It's been a good 3-4 weeks of cutting weight, and it has fallen off pretty steadily.
I've been training for these specifically for the last 2-3 months, and it's been rough. I started out not having done heavy bench in...oh....ever, so trying to increase that without a spotter has been hard. And the way you have to do it is different than any way I've ever trained before: you have to bring it down to your chest, let it rest for a full second, and then lift it back up. So I haven't been able to max out a lot just because I don't want to have a big ass weight stuck on my chest in the off chance I can't get it up (that's what she said). I have done 285 over the course of my training, but since I've had to drop weight the most I've been able to do is 275, so that is what I am planning to start with at the competition.
Yesterday was leg day, and I started off with a max effort attempt at deadlift. My previous best was 445, I failed at 455 two weeks prior, so that is what I started with. Got it up cleanly, and fairly easily compared to last week's attempt. I normally only do 1 max set when I do them, but since competition day is looming I decided to do an attempt at 465:
Got it up, but it wouldn't have counted because my legs didn't straighten out all the way. Oh well, still a good sign. Easy week of lifting this week so I'm ready for the competition on Saturday.
Hey everyone. I was in the gym yesterday, and I had the idea to do this blog. I have a powerlifting competition a week from today, a strongman competition next month, and a bodybuilding competition later this year, so I figure this would be a good way to chronicle how I'm doing.
The competition next week will consist of bench press, deadlift, and strict curl (bicep curl up against a wall). There are several weight classes, and the one I chose to go down to is the 166-181 class. I started out fluctuating between 192-195 during training, this morning I weighed in at 185 even, which is as good as I could hope for. It's been a good 3-4 weeks of cutting weight, and it has fallen off pretty steadily.
I've been training for these specifically for the last 2-3 months, and it's been rough. I started out not having done heavy bench in...oh....ever, so trying to increase that without a spotter has been hard. And the way you have to do it is different than any way I've ever trained before: you have to bring it down to your chest, let it rest for a full second, and then lift it back up. So I haven't been able to max out a lot just because I don't want to have a big ass weight stuck on my chest in the off chance I can't get it up (that's what she said). I have done 285 over the course of my training, but since I've had to drop weight the most I've been able to do is 275, so that is what I am planning to start with at the competition.
Yesterday was leg day, and I started off with a max effort attempt at deadlift. My previous best was 445, I failed at 455 two weeks prior, so that is what I started with. Got it up cleanly, and fairly easily compared to last week's attempt. I normally only do 1 max set when I do them, but since competition day is looming I decided to do an attempt at 465:
Got it up, but it wouldn't have counted because my legs didn't straighten out all the way. Oh well, still a good sign. Easy week of lifting this week so I'm ready for the competition on Saturday.
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