bozodos

got told off for doing pendlay rows today (with bumper plates), apparently I have to not have the weights hit the floor. Surprised I didn't get told the same thing for deadlifting. 135kgx10 squats were not a problem incidentally Birds, good suggestion, I'll do that for a week and then try 125x20x2 again. Did my first unassisted dips as well, so it's all progressing quite well.

he's about as aesthetic as you get as a strongman, also smaller than most of his competitors too. I do love the appropriate name as well Not sure if either of those two examples are 'natty' though.

either Derek Poundstone or Dan Green, both insanely strong to boot.

I find that squatting first then deadlifting (or in reverse order if no power cage) works the best.

some work better for different outcomes and on different people though - I've seen a huge improvement going from a 4 day split to 3 days of compounds with linear progression for example

yeah Stonglifts seems to have its advocates and at teh same time a lot of detractors, as does Starting Strength. I suppose you can always see how it works for you!

do you think it would make a dramatic difference to whatever you're doing now?

I'll worry about things like splits once I'm strong enough to warrant it! Yeah I noticed the mention of bread as a complex carb and the ifbb thing, but strong is strong

Yeah that's how I used to train - doing sets of 20 due to the program I'm using. I was previously squatting 130-140 for reps and a 1rm of 170, but that was a while ago. Can't hurt to change it up a bit and see how I go with this current plateau!

yeah it did remind me a lot of what Birds and Markos go on about a lot - interesting to see him hating on pyramid sets too (latest fad with my gymbro lol).

yeah I'd been incrementing in 5kg (2.5kg are the smallest plates in the gym), just hitting something of a brick wall at that weight!

interesting article http://npcnewsonline.com/powerbuilding-you-dont-grow-in-the-gym/63930/

squat more, deadlift more? I'm finding my squat is stalling a bit at 125kg - I can get the first set of 20 out, but always have to do 2 sets of 10 afterwards! Not sure if I should deload to get the reps out, or put more weight on and do shorter sets for a bit.

just to confirm, tabata thrusters are bloody hard and afterwards I felt like I'd done sprinting or had run around the block (did 3 sets, 1 minute rest between sets). I like it.

I think that PTC is more based around sprints / prowler / kettlebell circuits yeah?

why's that? just like 20 minutes of thrusters, or the singular 4 minute version?

still doing PTC beginner, still seeing gradual improvements in OHP, squat and curls - deadlift and bent over row has risen rapidly, especially deadlift. I've taken it easy with the bench pressing part. Finding progress with squatting slow in terms of getting up to 20 reps in a set - not being able to squat first most of the time does not help. Currently at 15x2 and 10x1. Enjoying the routine though, and can almost do dips unassisted now, and the assistance weight is dropping when I do pullups on the off days. Some of the fellow regulars have been asking me what program I'm doing and showing a fair bit of perplexity at the fact that it's not a 5x5 routine haha. I might add that it's a hard routine to do, I'm about to start doing some Tabata HIIT - there's a Crossfit WOD called Tabata This! that looks interesting.

before I squatted today, I squatted at bodyweight with my hamstrings touching calves and held the position for 20 seconds - that helped a lot to loosen me up to start squatting!

that's actually what I meant yeah, before the first exercise more than anything! (coming from a sedentary office worker)

what's the consensus on doing warmup sets before work sets? yes no?

read my links to get what I'm trying to convey here. I agree with what you're saying (and arguments on martial arts styles can be had forever and a day), which is why I don't bag Crossfit based on say YouTube videos and can accept that the HIIT style of their WODs has some merits, I just think that it's an inherently flawed approach, and that the marketing machine behind it is laughable. There is plenty of criticism of Crossfit out there from well respected strength coaches who don't tend to crap on particular training styles for no reason, Mark Rippetoe being one of the best known. Markos touched on another good point there - it's also bloody expensive! I'm already doing what I need to get to my current strength goals, I just need more conditioning work to compliment them. Good article here about strength vs conditioning http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/most_recent/rippetoe_throws_down

I love bbws just as much as ever dani boi, though the mrs gets fairly upset over my insistence on eating as well as I can, and insists that she'd prefer me fat with big arms, unfortunately I don't lift for her or anyone else but myself! I've tried to get her into squatting to no avail. It is one thing I like about the gym though - no shortage of plus sized wimminz in tight clothing - gets very distracting! Markos: It would be interesting to see some of your lifters attend a Crossfit competition! Figjam: I agree re: quality of instruction. Thing is though, if there was one particular sport that caused more injuries and glorified it than others, it then boggles the mind as to how it is superior to other sports that are less injury prone, and don't promote injuring yourself. Check this article out (The Australian did a paraphrased version of it the other day) http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/22/fashion/thursdaystyles/22Fitness.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 And a comprehensive rebuttal of the "Paleo" diet http://www.nsca.com/uploadedFiles/NSCA/Inactive_Content/Program_Books/PTC_2013_Program_Book/Aragon.pdf

See the reasons I listed above. If you want to do it good on ya - go for it, just don't try and convince me that it's a silver bullet all encompassing exercise regime! My big issues with it apart from the mentality and marketing are that it pushes unprepared people too hard and in the wrong way, coupled with the variance in quality of teaching. I like the high intensity cardio idea, just not that particular approach to doing it. I was attracted to this particular gym because I'm told I can go there and get proper coaching on getting stronger and that the Crossfit part is optional. That and my current gym has made it fairly clear that they only really want people using machines and doing group fitness classes, which I'm not interested in.

I know what it is and what they do - the issues I have with it are: the elitist attitude, high rep olympic lifting, pushing people too far (high amounts of injuries and the prevalence of conditions like rhabdomylosis), kipping, and the obsession with fad dieting. I also know some very fit / strong guys who do it, but none of them started out as crossfitters - they all crossed over from other styles of training, or do regular bench/squat/dl in addition to their WOD. It actually first gained traction with emergency services over in the US, and the conditioning aspect of it would of course be popular with soldiers etc, and the quality of training given does seem to vary greatly depending on the gym. I was more amused that my crossfitting mates can only see crossfit as a way to be strong, they mean well though.

yeah I figured it dosen't actually strain the wrists - otherwise why would Markos be instructing with it - just an interesting angle!