Squat + Bench 20th December 2012

Squat
117.5kg * 3
135 * 3
152.5 * 3
170 * 3, 1

Warmed up using the 25kg plates instead of the 20kg ones. Warm up weights sequence was bar, 70, 100. I didn't count the number of sets I did for my warm ups, but I did quite a few with the bar. Right glute still feels stiff and tight despite all the rolling, but definitely much better than the last session. However, felt the strain during my 2nd rep of the 2nd set of 170kg, so decided to let this one go instead of risking blowing out the muscle. Stopped the squats here and decided that given all the various disruptions to training, there was no point in continuing the intense phase. I will run this another time in the future. In the meantime, I think I will 'deload' the next 2 weeks or so for my squats and go with lighter weight and higher reps.

Bench
125 * 3 for 10 sets

Bench felt good and strong. Took longer rest in between than usual (2-3 mins). Nothing much to say except that my technique still needs alot of work, but I've really starting to get used to tightening up even more. Also, I need to control the bar more since Max and Basil pointed out my bar path was still inclining backwards on the ascent.

A1: Standing Ab crunch
Stack + 15kg plate * 10 for 3 sets
A2: Weighted back extension
40 * 10 for 3 sets
Standing crunches and weighted back extensions were done with a tempo of 32X. Just started including the back extensions, and they really flush the blood into the spinal erectors. Really awesome stuff. Probably should start adding in some anti-rotational core work as well.

Seated Lateral raises
10 * 12 for 3 sets
These were done with a tempo of 501. Haven't done direct shoulder work in a while, so decided to add some in. Controlling the tempo allowed me to really get in some time under tension without fatiguing the muscle too much.

High Bar face pull
26 * 10 for 3 sets
Done with a 211 tempo.