So I learned a few things.

Wendler 5/3/1 program, cycle 20, week 1

• Work Set – Squat (working max: 305#)
  • 2x5x45 (warmup)
  • 1x5x125
  • 1x5x155
  • 1x3x185
  • 1x5x200 (work)
  • 1x5x230
  • 1x5x265
• Assistance – Pause Squat
  • 3 x 5 x 200
• Assistance – Pulldown Abs (kneeling)
  • 4 x 25 x 110

Since I’m doing the same weights as last cycle, the intent is to get rep PR’s this cycle. On paper, I’m not off to a good start because I got 6 @ 265 last cycle. But this was an intentional choice. Yesterday I attended a workshop that had us outside in 90º+ heat, windy, and lots of physical activity. And it wasn’t just moving around, but a lot of hitting each other with fists, shoulders, and training implements. So my right side, especially my quads and adductors, are bruised and beaten. Plus, I’m just a little drained from yesterday. I actually didn’t want to go to the gym, and just wasn’t feeling it, so I told myself to get prescribed reps and call it good. When I got under the bar for the last work set, I actually was very fired up and wanted to keep going but I reminded myself to stick with the plan. It’s more important I build up to get that rep PR on the 5/3/1 week, not this week. Let myself recover.

And I must admit, I wanted to save a little for the pause squats, since I didn’t know what that would hold for me. I’m following Paul Carter’s suggestions, which essentially takes the first work-set weight and does it for 5 reps on 5 week, 5 on 3 week, and 3 on 5/3/1 week. How long did I pause? About 2-3 seconds. I didn’t really measure, but I made sure I got down and it was very evident there was a pause. And it’s here I learned a few things.

I’ve been focusing a lot on upper back tightness. It was evident I was NOT tight because I’d keep cuing myself and tightening back up –which shows how tight I was not! I worked on this throughout the squats, but something hit me during paused squats because there it was holding the tightness throughout the movement and really driving the head back into the bar when coming out of the hole.

It was about arm spacing.

I’ve tried to bring my hands in closer, but my elbows don’t like it. So I’m a little further out, it’s comfortable, but I realized that in fact is what’s keeping me from getting tight. No, I don’t think tightness should come from squishing your hands as close to your ears as possible, because that’s not necessarily tight; that’s just squished. Instead, I realized that when I get my lats tight, my traps tight, and everything tight, there’s just a natural place my hands fall. It’s about… oh… 1-2 fingers inside the rings (for me). Something about there. And when my hands are in that position, yes it bugs my elbows a bit, but boy I can sure keep everything tight. Pushing my hands wider, I just cannot be tight due to the mechanics of things.

I didn’t realize this until the last couple sets of the pause squats, but yeah… light bulb. 🙂

Ab work… standing pulldown abs kills my elbows even more. So I went back to kneeling, but it just doesn’t stress my abs as much as the standing ones. I think I’ll just alternate depending how my elbows feel. Who knows, might even combine it some time to get the most for my abs and the least for my elbows.