'Journal' of a Westside (and PL'ing) Newbie
Seeing as how a number of individuals on this section of the board were more than willing to assist me in my initial foray into powerlifting (or, at least my 'version' of what i imagine powerlifting to be), I thought i would post a little update as to my progress as a true PL'ing virgin...now almost halfway through the Westside 9-Week Beginner's Routine (with my own modifications made, i hope, intelligently from info gathered on this board). In addition to you guys and gals maybe having an interesting read that might help you a bit more in offering up your knowledge to other newbies, I'm hoping maybe one or two of you will notice something in this summary that sets off a light bulb in your head as to waht I may be doing either right or wrong. So, away we go:
First and foremost, I've never, EVER, hit my hamstrings like this in my entire life. BPL (before powerlifting), standing, lying and seated leg curls comprised the entirety of my hamstring work, with the occassional stiff-leg dead thrown in for good measure...it is little wonder why the back of my legs had all the sweep of kitchen tabletop. With no reverse hyper set-up accessible, I've had to improvise - climing atop the roman chair set up and having a training partner strap my ankles into the low pulley so that i can at the very least perform a facsimile of the movement. I am definitely feeling it in my hams; and while it isn't the "real deal" it keeps me hobbling after a set and well into the next day! I'd heard it bandied about that hamstrings were critical to squat power, but never believed it until now...i am consistently setting PR's on my ME squat days at a rate that frightens me. Halfway through this routine, I am speaking quite honestly when I state that I confidently believe I will add over 100 pounds to max squat by routine's end...possibly 150. Of course, while this might seem cocky, much of it has to do with the fact I had never trained the squat with any degree of deliberateness in my life - much of this gain comes from learning the most efficient form and hitting those stabilizer muscles that never got hit correctly. So, it is not so much that my leg strength is shooting up...rather, I am learning to utilize the strength that has essentially been there "all along".
As with hamstrings, I have also never attacked my triceps with this kind of ferocity...i've added a half inch onto my arms since beginning this program, all of which can be attributed to the fact that I previously maintained that pushdowns and nosebreakers were all my tris needed to grow, believing that, given the amount of pressing present in my workouts, anythign more would constitute overtraining....boy have i been proven wrong! Of course, it's the middle of winter weight gain, so this 1/2 inch gain is not pure tricep - nonetheless i'm incredibly pleased with this. Insofar as this translating into strength gains...i've progressively narrowed my working grips on my bench press during these four weeks, taking, I believe, the weaker portions out of the shoulder out of my benching and utilizing the tris more. I (of course) do not expect similar gains on my bench that I am forecasting for the squat, but I do feel confident that my gains will be quite impressive...just yesterday I close-grip benched for ten reps what I could (normal) bench for only 5 a year ago.
If there is a cloud to this silver lining, it is my frustration that comes every DE day. While I'm making progress on my speed, it is not coming nearly as quickly as the strength gains. On my DE bench days, I am particularly dissapointed, since, as a boxer/kickboxer for MANY years, I have very quick hands. I realize they are two entirely different categories of speed, neither of which necessarily translates into the other, but I'd hoped to see better progress in this regard. I'm left with this nagging feeling that this lack of explosiveness and speed might end up hurting me in the end (not physically, of course, but in terms of progress). Any thoughts?
Anyway, rather than type a book that may never get read, I'd love to get some feedback or have some questions asked since this section of AR has quite literally shaped the last four and a half weeks of my workout and it is largely the "conversations" and tips on these pages that inspire me and equip me with the knowledge to act on that inspiration. Thanks in advance for anything you can offer...i'll be happy to answer anything in more detail if that'll help as well.
Re: 'Journal' of a Westside (and PL'ing) Newbie
Quote:
Originally posted by BigGreen
...now almost halfway through the Westside 9-Week Beginner's Routine (with my own modifications made, i hope, intelligently from info gathered on this board).
Where would one find an outline of this 9-week beginner's routine?
--dnb