Thursday 16 September 2010

Video of Deads & Post Workout Fat Bonanza

Location: Woodcock Sports Centre, Aston University
Day:6.55 - Thursday - 16th September

Chin Ups (2 x 5 weighted @15kg, 1 x 7 @bodyweight)
2 x 10 Hanging Leg Raise
One-Arm Bent Over Row (2 x 10 @24kg)
Romanian Deadlift (5 x 5 @ 115 kg)

45 - 60 seconds rest between sets.

Total Time: 30 minutes

Nutrition (low carb today, having decided to only have one high carb workout day per week for my Leangains experiment):

20 minutes before: 10g BCAA
1 hour after: 10g BCAA
2 hours after: 10g BCAA

Lunch (12:00pm) - Good fats bonanza! - 6 organic eggs + parsley & olive oil, tin of salmon, avocado, walnuts, coconut cream

As planned, I took it easy on chins by doing only 3 sets and making the 3rd bodyweight only. On dumbbell rows and hanging leg raises, I stuck to 2 sets and avoided coming close to failure.

But I nailed Romanian Deads, which I omitted last week to ensure I was in good shape for the evil mountain race at the weekend. I did 5 x 5 at 115kg, a distinct improvement from three weeks ago, since the intensity was roughly the same. More evidence that easy (or excluded) sessions can lead to gains (for me.)

I videoed one of the sets, because I was interested to see whether my form is okay. I think it's pretty clear it could be better. I am thinking a flatter back is needed and shoulders further back. Comments welcome.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ya you need to roll your shoulders further back and straight out your lumbar spine. Try looking up at where the wall meets the ceiling and feel your lower back flex. That should do it.

Methuselah said...

Thanks Anon - similar feedback on youtube. I can work on that.

Chris said...

I'd agree - I think your back needs to be flatter. Try squeezing your scapulars together and keep them together.

Methuselah said...

Thanks Chris. I will go light next week and work on form. Also hoping to do some rowing on Sunday, which I will video and put into practice the advice from last time!

Dan said...

agree completely with the flatter back comments. in addition, you are doing regular deadlifts, not RDLs. the weight is touching the floor each time and you have the same leg bend as on your initial pull.
for an RDL, you start from the top, descend with a straight back and straight legs to where the bar just passes your knee, then pull with your glutes/hams/low back. a very slight knee bend is ok, but generally would indicate poor hamstring flexibility.
enjoying your leangains experiment. gained any weight?

Methuselah said...

Thanks Dan - I must admit, I would prefer to start from the top because it feels especially hard to retain form on the first rep when you start at the bottom.

The reason I am keeping my legs bent except at the top of the rep is the article and video on my page about Romanian Deadlift. I also notice that in the video, that dude starts at the bottom - but in Lyle's article differentiating stiff-legged from Romanian, he does say they both start from the top. Perhaps I should just bend my legs a little less? Hamstring flexibility is not a problem, but I recall that keeping my legs totally straight (i.e. SLDL) irritate my hams in the past.

Leangains is going okay so far. About 5 weeks in. I reckon I will be able to judge at the 3 month mark. Getting a little stronger and not piling onthe fat - both good signs.

Rachel said...

Start at the top, keep upper back flat, squeeze scapulars together and poke your ass out towards the back wall like a prison bitch! The bar looks too far out from the front of your legs. When I deadlift from the floor I get awful scabbing on the front of my calves. That is why I don't deadlift. I do RDLs instead.

Methuselah said...

Hi Rachel - in theory, it's RDL I am supposed to be doing here. The scraping is one of the reasons I do it too. Just need to get the RDL form right.