Pics of the new Trap bar

Mad props for Shannon McMahan of Paducah, KY, for putting this together for the gym. It is a beast!!!

I went to use it and the little pin on the edge seen above had to be tapped a couple times by my sledgehammer before plates were able to fit on it. This trap bar is going to get worn out.

And since you are green with envy about the trap bar, take a look below at the results of my first grill out of the season.

Underground Strength Challenge 2010

Thanks to Luke and Jake Beggs for the solid design above. We had the Inaugural Strength Challenge at the Underground Fitness Center last night. Participants were weighed in and then attempted one repetition maxes on squat, bench, and deadlift. Each participant was allowed three attempts for all three lifts. Then each person then could see how many FULL bench press repetitions they could accomplish with their bodyweight. The last event was a grip test for MAN HANDS with 315lbs on our fat bar with a double overhand grip.

We had the following 11 competitors: Clay Brady, Mike Spitnale, Luke Beggs, Andrew Lewis, Rob Sinnott, Luke Ranta, Tyler Brewer, Brett Borders, Jake Beggs, Derrick Bellmann, and Nic Norwood. Here are the results (all weights are in pounds):

Heaviest Lifts

Squat

Luke Beggs 480

Rob Sinnott 445

Tyler Brewer 410

Bench

Rob Sinnott 375

Jake Beggs 345

Luke Beggs 320

Deadlift

Luke Beggs 525

Tyler Brewer 505

Brett Borders 505

Jake Beggs 495

Heaviest Total

Luke Beggs 1325

Rob Sinnott 1295

Jake Beggs 1225

Strongest Pound-for-pound- compared weight lifted to competitor's bodyweight

Squat

Luke Beggs 242%

Tyler Brewer 212%

Jake Beggs 207%

Bench

Jake Beggs 186%

Nic Norwood 179%

Rob Sinnott 163%

Deadlift

Clay Brady 274%

Jake Beggs 267%

Luke Beggs and Nic Norwood 265%

Highest Percentage Total

Luke Beggs 669%

Jake Beggs 660%

Nic Norwood 644%

Most Bench Press Repetitions with Bodyweight

Nic Norwood 27 reps at 140lbs

Jake Beggs 25 reps at 185lbs

Luke Beggs (200lbs) and Rob Sinnott (230lbs) tied with 17 reps each

MAN-HANDS GRIP

Luke Beggs 33.62 seconds

Tyler Brewer 27.3 seconds

Rob Sinnott 24.9 seconds

Awesome event, a bunch of Personal Records (PR) were made!!!!!!!!!! Thanks to every one that came out.

Deadlift and back- 2.8.10

A day late... no big deal. Keep moving up in deadlift, hoping to be in 500's by summer.

Deadlift
135 1x10
225 1x6
315 1x6
405 1x3

455 4x3

Pullups
4x6
1x5 + 1 chinup- I can still do chinups after my pullups die so I finished the last set with 1

DB Row
95lbs DB + 40lbs in chains 2x6
left arm started lagging so dropped a chain
95lbs DB + 20lbs in chains 2x6

Chinups
2x10

Underhand Pulldowns
220 1x7
215 1x7

Low cable rope curl
100 1x15
110 1x15

Alternating Supinated DB curl
30's 2x15

Hercules (high cable) curls 1x15

deadlift'n 1/11/10

Deadlift day- went ahead and decided after my warm up that i was going to max today... just curious and felt good

step overs and unders
foam roll glutes, hip flexors, and back
cossacks

135 2x10
225 1x10
315 1x6
365 1x6
405 1x3 strapped
425 1x3 strapped
445 1x3 chalked
465 1x1 chalked and belt
485 1x1 ---> PR for me... chalked and belt

got encouragement/competition from training partner danny amon to not use wimp straps

goal is to be in mid 500's by end of year... i'll get it

supinated barbell rows
185x10
225 3x8

pullups 4x AMAP

pull-throughs 2x8
1x6

Stuff that crossed my mind during deadlift

I get all kinds of thoughts across my mind during deadlift.... here is some stuff that hit me today, relevant or not

1) You should deadlift without a belt and straps every once in a while. Get your man grip up, you know? I did four sets today without straps today and it actually let me slow down some and really focus on my form. You also have to leave your ego at the door because you can do more weight with straps. I didn't use a belt today, but kept my form strict to really work my core. Unequipped lifting has its benefits

2) While talking about deadlift and not using straps, I also used an alternate grip. I tried it both ways (ha); the first set of 6 I used a left over and right under hand grip and the second set I reversed the grip. I used an overhand grip on all warm-up sets

3)you should never talk to another man that you don't know in the bathroom

4)on that note, people that get stage fright make me laugh

5) high testosterone should be wanted by all

6) force yourself to grow... don't say," i've tried everything" bc you haven't. Hamstrings too small? deads, RDLS, eccentric leg curls, leg presses with a high foot placement... do it all and do them all to failure. quit cutting your leg workouts short! get a solid recovery shake and stretch with foam rolling afterwards. Stay active the next day to prevent stiffness and lessen soreness.

have a great Wednesday

Deadlift and PT eval with Nic Norwood

I put my personal trainers through semesterly evaluations on approach, exercises selection, demonstration, programming, etc. Today I was able to work with Nic Norwood, who has set 6 national records, 4 still standing, through USAPL and has competed in 7 national competitions. He was able to help me some with my deadlift form, and given his experience, a great source for info.

Being such an accomplished powerlifter, I was expecting to deadlift with him... so I wore my dealift'n shoes

Some highlites from the session were:

1) Be patient with the pull. It isn't like squat where you can go in there and zip through it. You have to set up and drive at the right time.

2) Shoulders and head up first

3) Release your grip with one hand once the weight is on the floor after each rep to make sure you aren't bouncing the weight

Excellent pointers... I also got another cue from a video I watched this weekend... make sure your shoulders start in front of the bar when the weight is on the floor.... it really helped me get in the correct position.

T-nation also did an article with Andy Bolton http://bit.ly/43Ojdk who has pulled over 1000lbs TWICE... 1003 and 1008lbs... completely inhuman. I listened to Alwyn Cosgrove's interview with Mike Boyle (http://bit.ly/RVBGn) about the state of the fitness industry and something that stuck out was to "the essence of getting better is to be around people better than yourself."

Of course I would listen when these three individuals either spoke with me or wrote an article... it would be crazy not to. I'm going to get stronger, what are you going to do???

GOALS GOALS GOALS

Alright alright alright, I preach about goals... setting them, writing down a descriptive plan on how you are to achieve those goals, and what you should do once said goals ARE attained.

If you don't know where you are going,
you'll end up somewhere else.
- Yogi Berra

You know you need to be realistic. Take sombody that has been working out consistently for two years and is benching 135lbs in January can't realistically set a May goal of 225lbs for sets. Eventually, for sure 225 is a sweet goal, but you have to push yourself yet have an idea of what is conceivable in the amount of time you are considering. Set checkpoints... where you expect to be at certain points and have both long and short term goals.



Writing down your goals keeps you accountable and you also have a visual reminder of what you set out to do. Writing them down should serve as a motivational boost every time you see that sheet of paper. It helps keep you focused on what you set your mind to achieve.


You have heard or maybe even YOU have set a goal, achieved it and became complacent, and then drifted away from it. If your goal was fitness oriented, once you achieved it did you maintain that level of fitness or drop off dramatically. We all have ups and downs but to get your body fat percentage to a certain level while pushing around a certain amount of weight and then letting it drop doesn't make sense.

Why achieve a goal just to have to get back to it at the same time next year? Goals should be progressive... you should constantly be focused on becoming better. Share some of your current fitness goals with me in the comment section!

Sick Deadlift from 6 inch pad

the laugh at the end is the most motivating