ME Bench (Tate's Cure, Week 1)
Decided to give Tate's Cure a try since I'm willing to try just about anything to improve my bench. Bad day for ME bench, though -- I must have slept weird last night when my damn dog was hoggin' the bed. Woke up with some kind of kink/catch in my mid-upper back on the left side. Stretched and warmed up for 20-30 minutes and did a bunch of just straight bar work with more stretching in between sets. The damn thing needs to pop; but it just wasn't going to happen this morning.
Excuses, excuses ... blah blah.
Floor Presses
45 x lots
65 x 10
75 x 8
95 x 6
105 x 6 (it's about here that I started finding my groove)
115 x 5
135 x 5
150 x 5
165 x 5
175 x 5 (the 5th was sllloooooowwwww) -- my 1RM on floor presses was 205; so I've gotta think I could hit 185 x 5 if my back wasn't weird.
Should have done 140 x 8; but just totally forgot that it was on my sheet. Oops.
Dumbbell Extensions (standing)
50 x 10
55 x 8 x 2 sets
CSR (plate weights b/c don't know how much the bar weighs)
45+ x 10
90+ x 8
115+ x 8 x 3 sets
115+ x 7 (6 & 7 on what was supposed to be my last set of 8 were sloppy)
Rear-Delt Lateral Raises (seated, machine)
130 x 12
115 x 12
115 x 10.5
I was pretty beat at the end of all that. Wanted to cool down a little, though, so I decided to go play with my new EFS bands on the bench press -- figured that'd give me a sense of what they're like, stretch me out a little, and let me practice form. Threw the micro minis on first (+30lbs @ top); then I used the minis (+90lbs at the top); then I added the micro minis back on (+120 @ top). That was fun! I can really see how these are going to be helpful for lockout and speed training.
Anyway ... that was my day. I might hit up the chair masseuse at the coffee shop for some deep tissue work on my back -- the might loosen everything up to really open up and realign.
Also, I ordered a foam roller from EFS for $10 ... partly because of the free beanie.
Happy lifting to all!
