Ed's training journal

[Ed Clarke]

After a couple of months training at home yesterday I took the plunge and
went and did my first proper powerlifting trainig session
big thanks to kev,kitch and Lee for letting me join in with them at the gallery gymn in windsor where Ilearnt a couple of things 1 they are all big strong bastards and2 one of them has got a rotten arse, stay off the protien shakes lads there not doing your guts any good.

Training composed of squats 5x bar 5x80 5x100 2 x135 plus one rep at135 mostly done by the spotters. They made me stop squatting after this ,they said it was cause Id done enough but I think they just got bored pulling weights off the bar.

Ilearnt that I squat with my legs too narrow and dont get enough depth.

Then it was onto deadlift whereI learnt that that I deadlift with my legs too
wide and my arse comes up too quickly(sounds a bit gay!)

Training composed of 5x50 5x85 5x125 5x145 5x145 10x85(practising not bringing my arse up too quickly)


Woke up this morning and didnt ache with muscle ache like you would after
a body building session but all my joints and ligaments felt a bit battered
and my legs just felt really tiredand my back ached probably from my shite deadlifting style.

will now train at home for a couple of weeks before going back to the gallery
for another lesson have decided to drop the weight down and try and get my technique right as I seem to have been doing squat and deadlift completely wrong.

Big thanks to the lads at the gallery once agiain and Ill see you in a couple of weeks

[Ben "tricky" Burgess]

good stuff mate, set yourself some goals for the journal! :)

[Ed Clarke]

thanks mate ,good idea have thought about it and goals are by march 31

bench press 1rep max 105 (currently 100)

Squat 160 (currently 135)

Deadlift 185 (currently160)

Trained benchpress today at home outside on the patio and it was fucking freezing had to wear gloves cause the bar was to cold to hold.
felt pretty tired and was quite down on last week for my bench only managed 3 on 92.5 when i got 6 last week but im blaming that on the cold and the kids waking me up at 3 in the morning.

benchpress 80x5 85x5 90x4 92.5x3 60x5 60x5(last two just to practice technique,or lack of it)

strict barbell curl 46 2x7 1x5 plus 1 cheatcurl

close grip benchpress 71 2x5 1x6

bent over row 80 3x8

think i probably need to stop worrying about how much weight im lifting and try and practice good technique and when i ve got that sorted start moving the weight up.

traininng squat next on friday so am going to try and apply what ilearnt on monday at the gallery wider stance and better depth

[Ed Clarke]

9/02/07
trained squats today and applied all the things I learnt at the gallery
wide stance and leading with the head had to do a load of warm up sets
before I could get down below paralel its like my legs just dont want to bend that far,its probably just because im an old bastard.
leading with your head seems to realy work there were a couple of times I could feel myself collapsing forwards as I came up and Isort of thrust my head back and up and my body just seemed to follow.
feel I have a lot of improving to do in the squat basically my legs are weak as piss so have decided to prioritise my squat training.Itrain mostly at home which means no spotter and doing squats without a spotter is a bag of wank!
so mostly im going to go down a local gymn on squat day but on the nights i cant im going to build myself a set of wooden spotterslike ive seen on one of mr boars posts.
did box squats today for the first time ,what a bastard of an excercise
legs were like jelly afterwards and i only used really light weights ,had to swap to a narrower squat stance cause when i tried the wide stance Icouldnt get my arse to touch the bench im wondering whether I should do some stretching or something to try and improve my range of movement but I think I read somewhere stretching a muscle weakens its contraction,if anyone knows anything about this or has any tips for making depth in squatting easier id appreciate any comments.Would swapping to just box squatting help ? at least with that when your arse touches thebox you know
your low enough.im going to stick with the box squats cause thyre a total bastard so they must be good for you.
Training cosisted of squats 5xbar 5x 40 5x 60 5x80 5x100 5x110 4x120 3x122.5 4x120push press 5x60 5x65 1x70 box squats 3x10x60

[Ed Clarke]

trained deadlift todaydidnt go to heavy with the weight and really tried to concentrate on proper form narrow stance and trying to drive with the legs and keep the bum down as long as possible. before I was just grabbing the bar and picking it up with alot of back and not a lot of legs.The proper way seems reallt unnatural at the mo but I spose it will get easier with practice.

Deadlift 60x5 80x5 100x5 105x5 110 x5 120x5 130x3 140x3
box front squat 40x10 50x10 60x10
good mornings barx10 30x10 40x10
havent done front squats since about10 years ago and it didnt take me long to remember why, horrible exercise ,but i figure theyve got to be good for strengthening the bit of the leg you use for deadlift didnt go very heavy just trying to get technique right. same with goodmornings which ive never done before seemed a bit awkward at first so will probably build the weight slowly.

[Ed Clarke]

been thinking about goals today have decided Iwould like to compete was wondering if there is a minimum standard you have to get to before you can have a go.realise im pretty weak at the moment but feel as ive never really trained poperly before there is lots of room for improvement.
can feel another visit to the gallery coming on to tweak the old technique.

[back2basics]

You can enter regionals or open competitions Ed. Me and a mate are going to do the bwla north midlands as guests for our first comp. I'm currently on a 150 sq, 110 bench and 205 dl (all raw, not even wraps or belt), which is nowt in this sport, but I really fancy seeing if the occaision will bring the best out in me (i'm nervous already and the comp is not until march). Plus what better way to gauge your training. Everyone's got to start somewhere (i think).

Learning the right technique and routine for you could bring some real quick improvements for you.

My suggestion would be go for it and only be concerned with what YOU are doing / achieving that day.

Hope I've convinced you!!

[Ed Clarke]

Thanks a lot for the advice mate theres something coming up on the 17th mar
in windsor so i think ill find out if can enter that if im competing I know it will drive me to keep training and keep trying to lift heavier weights
your right it doesnt really matter what other people are lifting its all about yourself .
thanks for the reply

[any1uno]

Nice journal..keep up the good work.

[Ed Clarke]

trained bench press today and decided id try a powerlifting style with a pause for the first time . Fucking hell what a difference that makes no problems locking out but i really struggled to get the bar from my chest to about 3 inches above it , once i got past 3 inches no probs ,well not exactly no probs cause the bar wobbled about much more than usual.got a dodgy shoulder from playing rugby and pressing from a pause seemed to really make it complain while a bb style without pause is mostlu ok, hopefully itwill get used to it. was a bit of a strange training session cause iwas really pissed off with my benching cause I really struggled but then did pbs in all the assistance.

bench press barx10 40x10 60x5 80x1 90x3 90x1 80x5 85x5 90x3
barbell curl3x46x8
close grip bench press 71x5 76x5 81x5
bent over row 80x8 90x5 90x6

[kyle]

hi ed,if u r having problems with an old injury or having sore shoulders due 2 pausing ur benches u would be better of not worrying about a pause,just bench as u would normally so long as u r not bouncing the bar of ur chest then u could leave the pause benching until u will b using a shirt.(assuming ur going 2 compete)?then the shoulder pain would not b so much of a problem

[Ben "tricky" Burgess]

you mention BB style benching, i take it you know theres a difference to PL benching? I.E you need to tuck your elbows in at the bottom. If you try and pause bench elbows out it will hurt your shos in my experiece.

[Ed Clarke]

Thanks for the advice ,I was trying to keep my elbows tucked in but the shoulder is basically fucked I dislocated it about 15 years ago and its never been the same since.decided to go back to benching without a pause for a bit as that doesnt seem to be too painful.may try some lighter pause benching just for technique .any ideas why im weak as piss for the first 3 inches and then it gets easier? seems to only happen when I pause

[Ed Clarke]

17/02/07
Great training session today had a kip before i trained and felt really refreshed and up for it managed a whole load of pbs for reps at deadlift
felt my technique, although probably still abit dodgy, had definitely improved.
am using my legs more and saw a definite improvement previous best deadlift was 160 and I managed 3 reps with it today. i know 160 is pretty light for most powerlifters but im improving so finished the trainingsession thinking iam the dogs bollocks.
Deadlift 2x60x5 2x80x5 100x1 120x1 130x1 140x5 (pb) 150x5(pb) 160x3(pb)
2x140x5

paused front box squat 60x8 70x6 80x4

goodmornings 3x60x8

was tempted to go for 170 but thought the extra reps at a lighter weight would be more beneficial next week 170 for definite

made up for the shite bench session I had earlier in the week

[back2basics]

Well done on your pb's Ed.

[Ben "tricky" Burgess]

any ideas why im weak as piss for the first 3 inches and then it gets easier? seems to only happen when I pause

weak lats and/or pecs compared to shoulders and tris

[Ed Clarke]

Thanks for the replys will beast the lats and pecs

[Ed Clarke]

Day off work today ,so went to the flex gymn in aylesbury to train.Nice gymn friendly owner loads of weight plates and cheap to train.
slightly spoilt by the moon faced cocks doing double bicep poses and walking round the gymn giving out hard stares in between each set of cheat (and i mean cheat like fuck) barbell curls.nobbers! but isuppose every gymn's got them.
was really looking forward to training and felt ok going in but my legs were still knackered from saturdays monster deadlift session should probably have left it another day before training.Also squatting in front of a mirror was a real eye opener I thought my technique had really improved since my trip to the gallerybut sadly no.have decided to start all over again with squatting ditch the weight and concentrate on form for the next few weeks.
Still struggling to break parralell so have decided to start doing a load of stretching after workouts and on the rest days.



squats barx10 40x10 60x10 80x2 100x1 120x4(very dodgy form) 4x100x5 3x60x5
Ham string curls 3x25x10

seated dumbell press 10x10 15x10 20x10 2x25x6

hadnt done dumbell presses fora good 5or 6 years and it showed asthey wobbled around all over the place

generally felt tired and weak thinking about not training for 3 days then starting again hopefully feeling a bit fresher

[Ed Clarke]

rubbish week for training too mutch work and knackered shoulder made training difficult and unrewarding.
tried benching on thursday but shoulder was having none of it,decided to concentrate on close grip as that didnt seem to hurt ,and got stuck under the bar on my first rep got right pissed off and sacked the whole session.

deadlift today planned to hit it hard and heavy but the warm ups felt really heavy and my technique went to ratshit ,so I dropped the weight down and tried to concentrate on technique and explosiveness felt that my technique
improved so might continue with this for a few weeks.Find my technique is pretty good on lighter weights but as soon as I try and lift anything heavy
I start bringing my arse up and stop driving through my heels .I think my back is probably a lot stronger than my legs so at the mo this is easier for me.
All in all a pretty shite week for training but I guess you cant do 3 12 hour days laying wood floors and eat randomly and expexct to knock out pb's come training time.

deadlift 140x3 145x1 100x8 110x8 120x8 130x6

next week knocking the weight right back and working on technique maybe doing 1 heavy lift but the rest concentrating on technique and explosiveness


on a brighter note ordered some whey protein from myprotein which somone
on this site was advertising a discount code really good price and good delivery.

[Ed Clarke]

havent trained for a week courtesey of my kids giving me the plague.still suffering a bit today judging by how much I struggled and the mountains of snot I coughed up whilst trying to do pullups.
ahd a great Idea to make pullups harder ,put some 2.5k and 1.25k weights in my tracci bottoms pockets managed 2 reps before my trousers fell down ,
must have looked like a right nob hanging off my kids climbing frame with my trousers round my ankles ,good job it was dark.Also managed to snap my ancient weight training belt trying to roll the bar down my body after getting stuck under the bar afte rrelaxing too much on a pause whilst benching.
so all in all todays session was a bit like Laurel and Hardy do weight training.
was still a bit under the weather so didnt push too hard today just nice to be back training again was good to actually be able to do paused benching without pain to shoulder.

bench press 80k x5 85 x3 85x3
barbell curl 46 x8 x3 60kx1 x1 x1 x1 20 secs rest
close grip bench press 66k x8 71kx8 76kx5
pulups bodyweightx8 +7.5 x5 +7.5 x5

since i managed to bust my old belt ,which is probably a good thing since I think it cost me 5.99 from argos about 10 years ago,can anyone suggest a reasonably priced(preferably under £30) replacement.

Squat and deadlift tomorrow so hopefully a better session

[Ed Clarke]

just a short session today as still suffering from remains of cold,pretty pleased
as I finally managed too do really deep squats had to make my stance narrower to do it figure i can work on widening my stance now ive cracked the depth decided to do some deadlift singles aswell and managed a new pb of 170 not a lot i know but I was pleased,tried 180 but it was like it was nailed to the ground .feel like my lack of leg strength really lets my deadlift down once I get the bar to knee height it flys up no probs but I really struggle to get the bastard off the floor.still at least my deadlift is improvingand not goingbackwards like my benchpress.



atg squats 100x6 105 x6 110 x5
deadlift 100x1 120x1 130x1 150 x1 170x1 180 fail 180 fail


next week I make 180 my bitch!

[mrINCREDIBLE]

hi Ed, seems were both in the same level coming into compititions... i started training in january and like you have a comp on the 18th march although mine is in dover! only recently herd bout the winsor comp, mite go along on the 17th cos i think the big guys are lifting that day so i can get some tips! been good looking over ur training log, personally iv been hitting the cardio as well to get down to under 90kg... what class u entering?

good luck in windsor and let us no how you get on

[Ed Clarke]

unfortunately am not entering the windsor comp cause of work commitments
so am still looking round for a first comp bit nervous about entering cause my squat and bench are so shite ,I weigh between 83 and 85 kilos depending on when I weigh myself so i spose that would put me in the under 90k category or a crash diet for the 82,s im going to train with a powerifting club in miltonkeynes on friday so hope fully they'll give me some pointers to help me improve.good luck for your comp hope it goes well.

[Ed Clarke]

was supposed to train yesterday with a powerlifting club in miltonkeynes but didnt finish work till 9 so ended up training today on my own at home bummer.
fancied a change so just went for singles and was pleasantly suprised as my bench training has felt like it has been going backwards but i still managed to
press my pb of 100k ,although it did take about 10 minutes to get from chest to lockout. Managed pbs in close grip bp and bent over row so all in all a good session.

Bench press 90x2 95x1 100x1
close grip bp76x1 81x1 86x1 91x1pb
bent over row 100x1 pb 102.5 x1 pb 105x1 pb


have decided to make some spotters out of 3x3 tomorrow for squating but also to do static presses from just above chest height as the bottom of my benchpress seems to be a lot weaker than the top.

[Finch]

Hey, why don't you guys come and have a session at the Farm in Northampton? It's halfway between Aylesbury and Nottingham, about 7 mins from J15 on the M1.
We are there Monday, Wednesday and Friday between about 4 and 7.

[mrINCREDIBLE]

was thinking of goin to the windsor comp on the sat to see what its all about so iv got a better idea of what to expect when i go to dover on the sunday... do you no the address of the comp in windsor?

[cuntos]

Yeah it's here: Wexham School – Specialist Sport College, SL2 5QP

See you there!

[mrINCREDIBLE]

cheers mate, take it starts around 11?

[mrINCREDIBLE]

Hey, why don't you guys come and have a session at the Farm in Northampton? It's halfway between Aylesbury and Nottingham, about 7 mins from J15 on the M1.
We are there Monday, Wednesday and Friday between about 4 and 7.
nice offer but unfortunatly due to a tarnished driving license im unable to drive legally! I blame the police for this misjustice, targeting upstanding members of the community instead of concentrating on more serious offenses like groups of 16year olds hogging the bench!

[Ed Clarke]

Had a fairly light day at work today and felt pretty keen ,finally felt like my squat is starting to slowly improve now that Im flexible enough to squat deep
reckon I could have got another rep on each set of squats but without spotters I didn't have the bollocks to go for it, definitely making some home made spotters at the weekend.
deadlifts went well as well am going to stick with this formula and try and add 2.5k each week

Squats 120 3x4 130 x2

deadlifts 150 3x5 160 x3

Mr incredible

was it drinking or speeding?

[mrINCREDIBLE]

speeding mainly, also bald tyres out of date mot and not wearing a seat belt! in my defense id only just bought the car and the only reason i was driving it in that condition was cause my mate had broken down on the m4 and was helpin him out but the courts didn take into account my kind nature!

your training looks to be coming on nicely. im lowering the weights this week so i dont peak to early!

im hoping to open with:
squat 130kg --- 160kg pb
bench 120kg --- 160kg pb
d/lift 170kg --- 210kg pb

not sure if this is the right way of going about things but been told to make my first lifts comfortable then push on the 2nd and third!

if anybody has pearls of wisdom they would like to share im all ears!

[Ed Clarke]

unlucky mate !
thats a big benchpress youve got im asuming its unequipped since youve just started .Lifts for the comp look about right to me ,but Im certainly no expert.

good luck for the comp hope you get the lifts your hoping for.

[Ed Clarke]

Bench press today and managed a pb which felt especially good as the bench training has not been going well recently ,still struggling with the pause benching (pb was touch and go) and have decided to do a mixture of touch and go and paused benching in the hope of protecting my dodgy shoulder.
I sometimes wonder if my benching might improve if I had a spotter , but then there is always the argument that not having one gives you a bloody good incentive to press it.

Bench press 90x3 100 x1 102.5x1 90x2 90x2 80x5

barbell curl 46kx8 51kx8 56kx5

close grip bp 76kx6 81kx5

lying tricep extension 46kx6

was going to do some pullups but had a massive coughing fit after the tricep extensions and started dry retching after which I didnt feel like it.I know some of you hardcore no pain no gain gymn rats will consider this the height of gayness and that I should have finished the session ,but the sofa was calling to me and anyway I fucking hate pullups.

Power lifting training will be slightly diluted for the next 2 weeks as I have agreed to play in a vets rugby match on the 31st mar and in order not too
suffer a heart attack some cardio work will have to be done between now and then.

[mrINCREDIBLE]

yeah its all un-equipt, not sure if the squat suits and bench shirts will benifit me at this stage as im still new... dont wear anything at the minute, no belts or wraps! have been thinking of investing in a belt but wasnt sure if i could wear this in comps or not?

sometimes its good to hav a spotter when u bench just for the added confidence that if u do start to struggle u can rely on them to save you... make sure they no what there doin, only use them when there is no hope of you finishing the press. personally i found that when it does go wrong and ur on ur own it takes out the 'WHAT IF' factor, iv squashed myself lots of times!

[Ed Clarke]

tried speed work for today tried to concentrate on being explosive .
Paused box squat (parralell box)
100k 3x2
105 3x2
paused front squat 60k x2 70kx2 80kx2
45 secs rest between sets

Speed deadlift 100kx5 110k x5 120kx5
140k3x2
60secs between sets

[Ed Clarke]

Finally made it over to bletchley to train at the leisure centre which is home
to a power lifting club , got there at 6pm and met 1 powerlifter who left 5 minutes later ,must have been a slow night.So got no tips for my very dodgy bench press. Did manage to find a spotter though and it made a big difference managed a double on 100k which a week ago I only just managed for 1 . and managed to get 5 out of 90 paused which id only managed to get 3 previously.mutch better than training at home more buzz and more focus
( and much less chance of getting stuck under the bar)

Bench press paused 90k x5(pb for reps), touch and go 100kx2x2,(pb for reps)paused 90kx3 85kx5x2

pulups 3x8

close gripbp 80k x5 x2 90kx2x2 (pb for reps) 70kx8

dumbell curls seated 20kx10 22.5x6

barbell curl 45k x8 x2

really good enjoyable session just a shame I missed all the powerlifters who train there apparently they train between 4 and 6, must have great jobs.

will try to get up to the farm in Northampton for my next session and hopefully pick up some tips.

[Ben "tricky" Burgess]

really good enjoyable session just a shame I missed all the powerlifters who train there apparently they train between 4 and 6, must have great jobs.


hahaha WORD! thats what i say to my team, they train at 4 in the week. I can only train with them Sunday morning...when i tend to be hungover. :evil:

[Ed Clarke]

they must all have part time jobs, is that a gymn team that competes against other gymns?

[Ed Clarke]

went to train tonight was on my second warm up set of squats finished set racked the bar and stepped away and got shooting pains through my right knee, cant put any weight on that leg now without getting a lot of pain!
sacked session off and am hoping I havent done anything seriouse, there's no swelling but its really painful ,Gutted!

[back2basics]

Hope it's nothing serious mate. I had a similar pain with no swelling a while back and it turned out that my iliotibial band ( muscle sheath that runs down the side of the thigh) was tight, this pulls the knee cap out of line causing pain. Foam rolling and stretching sorted it out in no time for me.

[Ed Clarke]

knee seems fine now so going to try squatting tonight see how it goes!

[Ed Clarke]

Knee wasnt fine tried squatting and as soon as I put any weight on the bar
stabbing pains through my knee so no squats or deadlifts for the next week
and see how It is.Did bench today and managed to get 100k witha pause which is a paused pb.i feel that this is a big mental barrier to cross I know 100k is nothing to most people on this site but as a total beginner I feel like I have passed a significant milestone (thoughtI had passed itweeks ago until I
found out competition benchpress has a pause).
Bit concerned about my knee there is no pain atall walking but if i try to squat with any weight try to run or twist atall there is a stabbing pain down the inside of my knee. Im hoping if I rest it for a week it will clear up on its own.

Paused bench press 100kx1 x3 90k x4 90k x3
close grip bp 60 x10 70 x8
skull crushers 30 x12 37.5 x8
barbell curl 46k x10 x2
dumbell curl 20kx10 x2

was going to do pullups but discovered they are almost impossible after really pushing yourself on dumbell curls, managed 3 before I gave up.

Have decided to buy a power rack so any recomendations on what is a good make would be appreciated and I'm also wondering if some knee wraps would offer my dodgy knee some protection again any advice appreciated.

[Ben "tricky" Burgess]

thats awesome Ed, 100kg is defo a big milestone on the bench, and it puts you in the "strong" category of any commercial gym. Onwards and upwards...

Id say always do your compounds before your isolations that'll prevent problems like you had with the chins and curls.

I dont imagine knee wraps will do any good for an existing knee problem, they actually pull the kneecap back into the knee which is in theory a more dangerous position. Id try see a quack if its no better in a week.

[Ed Clarke]

Cheers mate ,ive been walking round the house thinking Im the dogs bollocks
for the last half hour , if the knee's not better in a week I might see a physio
but I dont think Id see a quack they no Fuck all about anything to with muscles bones ligaments etc in fact my general rule of thumb is dont go to the doctor unless your dieing.

[Finch]

Did bench today and managed to get 100k witha pause which is a paused pb.i feel that this is a big mental barrier to cross I know 100k is nothing to most people on this site but as a total beginner I feel like I have passed a significant milestone (thoughtI had passed itweeks ago until I found out competition benchpress has a pause).

The 100 kilo bench is a major milestone for every new lifter.
It is amazing how many regular gym users cannot manage this.

[back2basics]

Well done Ed. I know that 100kg (with a pause) was a big milestone for me. Hope your knee feels better / gets sorted soon.

[Ben "tricky" Burgess]

Cheers mate ,ive been walking round the house thinking Im the dogs bollocks
for the last half hour , if the knee's not better in a week I might see a physio
but I dont think Id see a quack they no Fuck all about anything to with muscles bones ligaments etc in fact my general rule of thumb is dont go to the doctor unless your dieing.

im pretty sure you'll have to go to a quack to get referred to a physio but good luck

[Ed Clarke]

cheers for the encouragement lads, I wish I'd taken up this up years ago there really is nothing quite like grinding out a pb.

Ben under normal circumstances your right i would have to see a quack ,but being a wiley old bastard I have a friend who I played Rugby with who is a physio so I'm back to Coventry on saturday for a free check up.(spoke to him
on the phone tonight and he diagnosed my Knee as sounding like its fooked ,which I think is a surgical term,and that its probably all in my mind and moving down south has probably turned me into a shandy drinker )

since I cant squat or deadlift ,this week and next week is all about bench
102.5 paused I can feel it in me water .

[Ben "tricky" Burgess]

yeah i am lucky as our lass is a phsyio. And in fact so are 2 of my best mates.

[Ed Clarke]

just a quick session tonight ,concentrating on bench ,and managed another Pb although I was doing touch and go bench press tonight which i suppose most people on this site consider cheating, but in an effort to protect my dodgy shoulder I am doing one paused bench session a week and one touch and go/cheating session. My father in law popped round for a cup of tea so I made him spot me for a couple of sets and he didnt do bad for a 65 year old , tried to convince him to startlifting weights but he was having none of it.

Bench press 105x1 100x2 90x5 ( got confused and tried to pause the 6th rep
and got stuck under the bar cause my spotter had had enough)
80x8 x2

very short session but really satisfying ,really feel that my bench press is coming along ,next week im going back to 5x5 with no max attempts for a few weeks .

i have been really concentrating on eating shitloads of food for the last couple of weeks and i wonder if this is why my bench press is improving,my weight has gone up to 89 k which is 5 k heavier than when I first started
just before xmas , how much of this is muscle and how much is belly is hard to tell ,but I cant do up some of my trousers any more.

Knee feels better but not totally ok yet so therest seems to be working
hope itclears up soon so I can get back to squatting and deadlifting , actually if im honest I dont miss the squatting that mutch but thats probably cause im shite at it!

[t,bench]

hi ed like you i have just started powerlifting training 100kg is a great start makes you want to get 200kg tomorrow.im 44 started training at home by myself 2 months ago bench was 85kg squat was 110kg and deadlift 140kg,
now bench is 120kg squat is 160kg deadlift 180kg,i am well over weight at 111kg and only 5"9 and train in my t,shirt and jeans all the best to you.

[Ed Clarke]

Hello mate thats some seriouse improvement in a short time,I mostly train at home because I have my own business and a young family ,but I have to say its loads better training down the gymn ,having a spotter make sa huge difference ,and the general buzz seems to improve my lifts.
Good luck with the lifting

[t,bench]

yes ed its good improvment,i have a young family too,5 children under 12,i would love to go to gym but at mo isent an option,i train 105% at home but agree i could train to a higher degree at a gym knowing if i make a mistake thers somebody there to help,anyway ill keep training and when im benching 200 plus kg in my tshirt ill let you know all the best tom

[Ed Clarke]

5 kids under 12 well done mate, have you ever heard of a telly?
Ive got 3 under 5 and thats hard enough work.
good luck with that 200k bench

[Ed Clarke]

Got back late from work and only had time for a short session tonight,felt tired and everything felt heavy. Started smoking again at the weekend after having given up for 3 months(what a cock) and boy did I notice the difference
short of breath and coughing after every set of bench press , definitely giving up again tomorrow.

Bench press 80kx10 90k x5 x3 100k fail
bent over row 60k x10 x3

Gutted about failing 100k did 105 last week, can smoking a few fags really make such a difference?

not a good session not happy ,thouroughly pissed off ,binning the weights and taking up knitting.

[t,bench]

hi ed dont give up mate i think your reps are to high try lower reps and more sholder press,dumbell rows,5,5,4,3,sets of 4,build your strenght that way high sets are great for a bodybuilder,im a beginner to but works for me cheers mate.

[Ed Clarke]

Cheers mate not going to quit just pissed off ,probably right about the reps just fancied a change.

[t,bench]

ok ed stick to it best of luck.

[Finch]

You'll probably have a great session next time, I generally get really pissed of about once every 2 weeks.

I would suggest that you warm up on the bench at 40 or 60, then do 4 at 80, 2 at 90, then go for your big single. After your big single, then go for the 6, 8 or 10 reps.

By the way, I've got 4 kids, all over 20 and they get more expensive to keep the older they get.

[Ed Clarke]

finally managed to squat today ,seems like my knee is recovered although I did get a slight twinge at the end of deadlifting and sacked the last set off,
hoping it will be ok!
Squat bar x10 40 x10 60x10 80x5 90x5 100x5

deadlift 60x8 100x5 110x1 120x1 130x5x4

really noticed that ive been smoking really short of breath after each set of squats and deadlifts, felt really hard even though I kept it light to test out my knee.Didnt smoke today and I wont smoke tomorrow ,dirty filthy disgusting fucking habit,costs afortune and makes you feel like shit!

This will now be not just a training journal but also my not smoking journal
and if I start smoking again I hope everyone who reads my journal will
abuse me horribly for being a weak willed cock!!

[t,bench]

hows it going with the cigs ed?

[Ed Clarke]

didnt smoke saturday havent smoked today ,been a miserable bastard though!

[t,bench]

yes ed its very hard ive smoked for 27y and even though ive been told im now a chronic ashmatic i still havent stoped,but i have just got 2months worth of patches to help me stop,from the day i started training i havent had an attack,but before i was in hospital twice within 6weeks unable to breath very scary,im stopping tomorrow,and it wont be willpower its a must,so get rid of them cigs ed.

[Ed Clarke]

good luck with the giving up best advice i can give you is dont go to the pub
anymore and avoid all your friends who smoke,and dont listen to that little voice in your head which says i'll just have one it'll be alright ,training helps cause if your trying to get fit you dont want to fill your lungs up with a load of shite,big bonus is if you do finally manage to quit you'll definitely get stronger so that 200k benchpress could definitely be on the cards.
Just think of smoking as poisening yourself!

put all the money you spend on fags to one side and spend it on powerlifting gear.

I put all the money I save from fags to one side and my wife spends it.

If you work it out though 20 fags a day = about £5
365 days a year thats £1825 which means youve probably got to earn about
£2500 to buy those fags, you can buy a lot offagswith £1825

good luck with quitting ,(I havent smoked today)
Ed

[Ed Clarke]

Good session today felt fresh and really up for it was going for 5x5 on bench but could only manage 5x4 still pretty pleasedthough,doing 5 sets at the same
weight is really tough ,so it must be good for you , I'm going to stick with 5x5 for the next 4 weeks and then go for a 1 rep max .

pausedbench press 90k 4/4/4/4/4
pullups 8/8/8
lying dumbell press 30k 6/6/6
seated hammer curls 20k 8/9/8

Have swopped close grip bench for dumbell presses as I reckon my chest is the weak point of my bench press ,not sure whether I should be pausing theses as well ,didnt today but might try it tomorrow.

Didnt smoke today and am starting to taste my food again.

[Ed Clarke]

just a short session today as I worked late, have decided to try box squats for a while as my legs seem to have no explosive power at all.

paused box squat 60x2 80x2 1002/2/2

paused box front squats 60 x2 70 x2 80 x2

tried to be as explosive as i could and really sat back on the box.

next session friday at the farm with mr Finch ,looking forward to putting faces to names and getting a good beasting and maybe a pb

[Finch]

Looking forward to Friday.

If you are coming from Oxford down the A43, get to the M1 at J15A, go down to J15 follow the dual carriageway towards Wellingborough, come off at 5th major junctio/roundabout, towards Kettering. Down the dual carriageway then left at 1st roundabout, then 1st left, then right at the end of the road, down to the end, through the green gates (Russell House I think) and park in the courtyard on the left, follow the sound of bars being dropped. Just come in and introduce yourself.

[Ed Clarke]

went to the farm in northampton today and met up with mr Finch ,who'se first name I forgot to ask. Had an excellent session of benchpress and deadlift,got a pb in the bench and deadlift ,amasing what an audience can do. met a few guys there who's names I have forgotten , but they were very friendly and helpful with advice ,great place to train with good equipment and a good atmosphere,I will definitely be returning in the near future.

Mr Finch got a 200k deadliftwhich I think was a pb and another guy who was an ex british champ got a 275k dead which was pretty impressive.

i learnt that my deadlift technique is poor (which I already suspected) and thatI am all back and no legs ,I have been advised to drop the weight down
and concentrate on proper form, so asof next week theweight (and ego)
will be knocked right down and my weedy little legs wiill be beasted.

Bench press 70kx5 80k x5 90kx5 100k x1 107.5x1(PB) 110 fail 90k x5 90k x5

Deadlift 70x5 120x4 140x2 160x1 175x1(pb) 180 x1(PB) 120x4

60 x5 x3 (concentrating on technique)

Really enjoyed the session ,big thanks to Finch for the invite will be back as soon as I can wangle an early finish from work.

[t,bench]

well done on the pbs ed sounds like you enjoyed yourself.

[Finch]

Picture of your 175 attached.
Did you realise that the combined age of the 4 guys (Me, Mark, Kevin & Little Pete) you were training with is 221 years?
It was great to meet you, come back any time.

[Ed Clarke]

cheers for the picture Finch ,looks like I win the beetroot head comp.

Just a short session today as I finished work late

Squat 110k 5x5

5x5 is really tough so it must be good for you have, cut the weight down a little and will try to add 2.5k each week whilst still trying to maintain good form,found myself falling forward a little on the last couple of reps on the last 2 sets. tried to take more restbetween sets ,2mins instead of 1 min and it seemed to help keep good form.in fact was quite pleased with the technique nice and deep , sitting back before squatting and leading with the head ,all I need to crack now is the low bar position ,which I cant seem to get at all.
Power rack should arrive this week so no more worrying about getting stuck at the bottom of a squat.

[mrINCREDIBLE]

hey Ed, things seem to be developing quite nicely and well done with the PBs
have you got any comps coming up?

[back2basics]

Well done on the pb's mate.

[Ed Clarke]

cheers lads,im pretty pleased,justwish I could see some progress with my squat.

comp in july fornovices ,juniors and masters at the farm in northampton sometimein the summer dateto beconfirmed. How did your comp in Dover go?

[t,bench]

cheers lads,im pretty pleased,justwish I could see some progress with my squat.

comp in july fornovices ,juniors and masters at the farm in northampton sometimein the summer dateto beconfirmed. How did your comp in Dover go?

hi ed what categorie will you be entering in,ie.age weight ect.

[Ed Clarke]

I,ll be entering the novice section in the 90k class,im 36 so I think Ill be too
young to be clased as a master which I think is at 40, how is the smoking /not smoking going, I'm still off the cancer sticks !

[Ed Clarke]

really short session tonight as I finished work late ,felt knackered and ran out of steam.Wastrying for 5x5 at 92.5k but it was'nt happening for me ,just felt really heavy, will stick at the same weight and try to build up to 5x5.

Bench press 92.5 5/4/4/3 90/4

called it a day after that ,counting the days till my power rack arrives.

[t,bench]

I,ll be entering the novice section in the 90k class,im 36 so I think Ill be too
young to be clased as a master which I think is at 40, how is the smoking /not smoking going, I'm still off the cancer sticks !

good luck with your comp ed,claire had the biopsy on monday shes a bit sore and can only whisper now,although she isent sposed to talk at all for 10days,
so she wont stop the cigs till she gets results,in case its the big C,IF IT IS DAMAGE IS DONE.if its an infection then the ashtray cigs will be in the bin shit hot,im a bit stressed so im waiting for results to will stop then.all the best ed.

[Ed Clarke]

hope its good news!

[t,bench]

hope its good news!

thanks ed well done with the cigs.

[Ed Clarke]

another short session due to finishing work late again ,deadlifts today , dropped the weight down and really tried to concentrate on using my legs,
found it really difficult and found it hard just to get the bar off the floor even with quite light weights.

deadlift 100x5 110 x5 120x5 130 x5 140x3

will continue trying to improve my technique and not worry too mutch about the weight for now.

[t,bench]

another short session due to finishing work late again ,deadlifts today , dropped the weight down and really tried to concentrate on using my legs,
found it really difficult and found it hard just to get the bar off the floor even with quite light weights.

deadlift 100x5 110 x5 120x5 130 x5 140x3

will continue trying to improve my technique and not worry too mutch about the weight for now.

hi ed try the 5x5 with the same weight 100kg all the way to the last set lift it with speed,then try 105 ect if last set is ok build from there your trying to hard i did the same higher kgs look good but you need to build your core strength this is advise ive had from the best im happy with my training at the mo hard but good all the best tom

[mrINCREDIBLE]

did ok in dover, set my 1st lifts a little low but ill no better next time!
squat 160kg -- now at 180kg
bench 135kg -- now at 140kg
d/lift 200kg -- now at 205kg
next comp is the kent, surrey and sussex on 10th june.



cheers lads,im pretty pleased,justwish I could see some progress with my squat.

comp in july fornovices ,juniors and masters at the farm in northampton sometimein the summer dateto beconfirmed. How did your comp in Dover go?

[Ed Clarke]

looks like things are progresing nicely for you too! thats an impressive benchpress for a begginer.
what was the atmosphere at the comp like?

[Ed Clarke]

had a great session today, had a light day at work and got home early,so was really up for it.

bench press 92.5k 5/5/4/4/4

box squat to paralell 80k2/2/2/2/2/2

seated dumbell curl 20k 10 22.5k 8/8

lying dumbell press 22.5k 8 27.5k 8/8

felt so good afterwards i even thought about doing some situps before discarding it as a stupid idea . walked back into the house after finishing training andthe wife tells me my power rack turned up this morning, going off
to assemble now.

[t,bench]

walked back into the house after finishing training andthe wife tells me my power rack turned up this morning, going off
to assemble now.[/QUOTE]

did you get that power rack together ed n have you tryed it out?

[Ed Clarke]

half assembled at the mo, will use it friday for the first time ,if I get off my arse and finish assembling it.

how'se the smoking going I'm still clean !

[t,bench]

[QUOTE=Ed Clarke;52755

how'se the smoking going I'm still clean ![/QUOTE]
well done ed im still smoking the cancer sticks get my head round stopping when claires sorted,did you get power rack from ebay or else where?

[mrINCREDIBLE]

looks like things are progresing nicely for you too! thats an impressive benchpress for a begginer.
what was the atmosphere at the comp like?

was real good, all the people were real nice and helped me out loads all day. glad i started off in a novice comp tho! few other new guys there so i didnt feel as out of place as i thought i would :)

learnt a few important lessons as well, like dont tell people that i train at fitness1st ;)

my bench is the only part that has seem to hit a wall... havent had any progress with it for ages now... tend to train on my own so dont no if thats part of the reason? any ideas on how i can get more progress in this area?

[bulldog]

what area are you in mr increadible

[kitch]

He is from Reading

[bulldog]

im about 40 mins away

[mrINCREDIBLE]

what area are you in mr increadible

yeah im from Reading, train at fitness first as its a 5min walk from my house! would invite u over for a training session although the facilities arnt geared towards powerlifting and they only have 1bench, 1squat rack and 2bars... gets busy in there as well :mad:

where bouts do you train?

[Ed Clarke]

almost didnt train tonight but made myself and was really pleased as I got a squat pb, the depth was probably a bit borderline if i'm honest ,but fuck it im claiming it anyway!

Benchpress 92.5 5/4/5 100 1/1

squat barx10 60x5 80x3 100x3 120x2 140x1pb

dumbell curl 20k 10/10/10

lying dumbell press 27.5 10/9/8

good session considering I nearly did'nt do it , my wife told me that I am officially a fat bastard today , I was 13 stone in January when I started
training and I tipped the scales at 14 stone 3 last night, not mutch evidence of muscle growth but I have grown my self a lovely pair of man boobs or moobs as I like to call them, reckon i'd fit a 42 b cup.

[t,bench]

well done on the pb ed :) o and the moobs:rolleyes:

[back2basics]

Well done on the pb mate. Consider the moobs a nice bonus.

[Ed Clarke]

thanks lads, my moobs are extremely grateful for the compliments!

[t,bench]

thanks lads, my moobs are extremely grateful for the compliments!

your welcome ed did you sort the rack out,your moobs will be even more grateful if you have:D did you get rack from ebay? im after one myself so intrested in your opinion:)

[Ben "tricky" Burgess]

Nice one mate, the 3 plate mark is no more!

[Ed Clarke]

cheers Ben ,

Tbench power rack is great got it from gymnrats in bristol ,the bloke on ebay
never answered my email, if you search on google gymnrats are one of the first search results,the make is powerline and as far as I can tell its pretty good(havent had much experience of power racks so cant really compare)
seems pretty solidly built and handles the weight I'm lifting no problem.
Certainly gives you a load more confidence doing heavy squats and yes the moobs love it!