NerdStrong Gym - Deadlifts and Strict Press'

Today's STR workout look simple but looks can be deceiving. We started with some good stretches since we were going to be doing some bar work.

We are continuing with "Finding our Max Reps" week and today we worked on a Deadlift and Strict Press.

We teamed up and my teammate was Jim. We didn't start with our heaviest weight, we actually worked up to it. Coach Andrew had us to 5/3/3/1, so 5 at 60%, 3 at 70%, 3 at 80% and finally 1 at 100%. I knew my deadlift max from two month ago was about 225 so we started at 95 lbs and did the 5 reps, we then added more weight for the next set of 3 and even more weight for the 3 that followed that. Jim's max rep was 265 lbs so he repeated that weight. Instead of taking weight off I figured I'd give it a go and sure enough I lifted it. We then added more weight to 275 lbs and we both lifted that but it was defiantly getting harder. We then added 5 more pounds to make the total 280 lbs and I manged to get that up as well. I could have continued but I didn't want to push my luck. I went from 225 lbs to 280 lbs in two months. Not only do I think I've grown stronger but my form was so much better with these deadlifts. I could feel myself doing it correctly and I think that helped with my confidence so I was able to lift the weight. Next time I do a deadlift my new goal is to max rep 300 lbs.

As for Strict Press' I didn't have a max rep so today I would be establishing it. Again coach Andrew asked us to do 5/3/3/1. We started at 45 lbs (just the bar) and did the 5. We then went up to 95 lbs and man that was tough. My arms were shaking like crazy but I manged to do my 3 rep. I kept that the same weight for my next 3 rep as I didn't think I'd be able to go any higher with the weight. For my final 1 rep we added ten more pounds to make it a total of 105 lbs and I managed to get my one rep in. I increased it another 10 pounds for a total of 115 lbs and though I did it I felt my form break and I used muscles that I shouldn't have so I didn't count that rep. I was exhausted but wanted to try one more time but couldn't complete the rep. So my max rep for Strict Press is 105 lbs. My goal for when we do this again in 8 weeks is to be able to strict press 125 lbs.

Overall it was a great strength day. The deadlift really showed me how far I have come in the three months that I have been at NerdStrong. Thanks to coach Andrew and coach David for all that you do.