This week has felt absurdly empty of training. I keep wondering if I have accidentally skipped a session or forgotten to schedule a training day, but really it's just because I started my week on Saturday with Ross instead of Monday, so the 4 training days I get in each week are spread over 7-8 days this week instead of 5-6. This is probably for the best since I am still struggling to figure out how exactly to get my left knee to stop being a bastard and start healing and let me get back to squatting already! (So far consensus is that I should probably not squat for at least a week or two and lay off anything else that hurts. So I am going to try this even though I hate, hate, hate skipping training days. Maybe I'll just double deadlift next week or something . . .)
But back to this morning, which was bench day. I started a new 5-3-1 cycle this week and rather than upping my max bench weight I kept it at 135# since I struggled pretty much every workout last cycle. During my 5 week last time around I got 115#x2, 2 and that was with a spotter. Today I got 115#x4,2 without a spotter and with each lift except for one with a clean, competition-length pause at the bottom. Definitely an improvement and very encouraging since my competition max is currently at 105#. I think as with all the lifts, as I dial in my form and get consistent with applying it each and every lift, I am beginning to see the positive benefits in my bench. Consistency truly is the mother of progress.
Training today:
Warmup: landmine presses and band pull-aparts
Bench: 7 sets working up to 115#x4,2 and two rep-out sets at 95# (9, 8 reps) all supersetted with cable rows
Accessory: band pull-ups and triceps work (I switched to the small band this week and was only able to get one actual neutral grip chin-up, but did the rest of my sets as looooooong eccentrics, so still got good work in.)
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