New to WSB Training, And Q on First Bench Shirt

[JDarty6173]

First of off this is my first post here...A little back ground ino here: I have been on the WSB program for 1 week now after 5 years of training BB style...I'm 24 years old and currently weigh in at 210 and 11% bf apx and 6ft tall.

My first ME Bench day on Floor Press I maxed at 295 plus 2 sets of 5/8 chain, so about 375 at the top.. I know that my current max on Bench Raw is 405 paused and struggled up.

I definitly need to work on my speed on lowering the bar..Its like I have a mental block that prevents me from bringing even medium weight down quickly..For instance on my ME Bench day my workout partners timed my bar decent on my Max at about 6 seconds..I can easily increase my poundages by curing this problem.. So on DE Bench day I'll probably drop from 50% of max to around 40% untill I can get my speed up..

I havent squatted more than 315 in over two years due to slipping 3 disks in my back, so on DE squat day I went 185 for 4x3 and 225 for 4x3... But will go lower next time to get a better speed..

My first ME Squat/Dead day I maxed on GM from Pins at 350 for 3 reps...And I feel I could have managed another 25 for a single, but damn they lit my lower back up...

As far as my deadlift is concerned, I always do them out of a power rack anywhere from 4 to 6 inches off the floor...My problem is that I have been deadlifting with straps on anything over 495.. My best pull in the past year from 6 inches was 725 for 3 reps with straps... Off the floor I would say around 600 with straps...So I have a lot of grip work to make up for, but I have been trashing my grip twice a week with the captains of crush grippers...I am up to 15 reps with the #2, 20 seconds holds with the #2, and can close the #3 if i support the top of the spring with my other hand..

Ok, I intend on competing in a 3 lift in September.. Double ply shirts are allowed.. I was planning on going with a double radical denim shirt open back or velcro, probably from Karens.. I want to have the shirt a couple months prior so I can work with it.. How forgiving are denim shirts to weight fluctuations? Like if I gain 15 pounds after getting the shirt, will it still work for me like poly would? I want a shirt that I can use for a long time without working my way up throught the different shirts...I know I could always have it adjusted if weight change affected the shirt though.. I will be ordering it with exact measurements to start with.

Also, what would you suggest for a good solid squat suit? I was considering the Inzer Z suit...

Sorry for the long first post everyone.. And please feel free to comment and criticize, I can use all the input i can get.

Thanks
Jon

 

[benchmonster]

First of all, congratulations for seeing the light.

Second, you are already a strong sonofabitch.

Third, you are in the right place to be asking question. Karins is the place to go for a double denim shirt. Denim is very unforgiving in every way. Gaining weight, though, is usually accompanied by an increase in strength, so provided that you are regularly using the shirt during the weight increase, you should be fine. Just make sure before entering the meet, that you can get a weight to touch your chest that you can lock out.

I wear a Z-suit. I like it. But if you are wearing it for a meet, get a double layer if it is allowed.

Throw the straps away. It can go out with all the bodybuilder magazines. Read Powerlifting USA, Powermag, and Milo instead.

Let me be the first to welcome you to the board.

B.

 

[Screwball]

Hummm, let me get this straight - You can't squat heavy but you can pull 725 lb. rack-pulls. That's just not right. You need to squat. You can rehab the back as you go. Squat off of a box and teach yourself how to use the entire rear chain to take some of the strain off of your lower back. Just train smart and listen to your body.

It sounds like your grip is fine so lose the lifting straps. You should use them only when your grip fails to push the weights a little heavier.

If your serious about competing then I would try to get the best equipment available (also the most expensive unfortunately). I would get my shirt from Karen and my squat/deadlift suit would be an Inzer Hardcore or Titan's Custom Quad Boss. New equipment will be available from all manufacturer's in the upcoming months so keep your eyes & ears open.

Welcome to the board and good luck with your training!

 

[JDarty6173]

Thanks guys for the warm welcome...It is entirely due to you two and the other regulars on this forum that I've now dedicated myself to WSB training..

Screwball, I mostly just have excuses for having not squated heavily.. And I never said I couldnt squat heavy, I've just been afraid to try it again....When I fuked up my back I did it doing squats....I was using the infamous narrow stance BB's quad squat with 495, lost my footing (Slipped on sweat from what I could figure) and dumped the weight over my back and POP, there go my disks...

I kept deadlifting heavy because the stronger my lower back stayed the less pain I felt in it... But now I'm ready to hit some serious squat poundage...

Also, two weeks ago just before starting WS I hit rack lockouts at 4.5 inch lockout and 6 inch lockout.. At 4.5 inch I pushed 600 for a double(not pretty though) and 555 for a triple at 6 inches.. I had been doing these for about a month and went from 525 single to 60 Double, which I was very happy about..

I currently have every single article ever written by Louie and Dave Tate printed out and have read them all several times, and on Friday I ordered the Westside Training Seminar...But it will be about 3 weeks before it arrives...Grrrrrrr, I feel like a kid at christmas time..lol....I'm hoping the videos will help me improve my form quite a bit..

I forgot to mention that my DE squats were off a 12 inch box, and I loved them..

Looks like Karins it will be for my shirt...Double Denim Radical...But should I go with Open Back? I am hoping to hit a 500 Bench in September with the shirt if that helps..

I believe I can reach 500 by then..As soon as I adjust to be able to lower the bar quickly at heavier weights I feel I should pick up at least 10 pound there.. Plus my previous Bench Max of 405 was in BB form to the mid chest line with my back completly flat on the bench and no leg drive...So I should get a nice increase by perfecting my newly learned bench form..

Screwball, Thanks for the input on which suit to go with..I'll be checking out both of the ones you recomended..

And again, thanks for the help guys

Jon

 

[Screwball]

Go with the Double Denim Open Back (Karen told me she doesn't make a shirt with the Inzer radical cut). I have one and it is awesome but I'm still trying to figure the thing out. Once I do, I will get at least 75 lbs. out of it and probably closer to 100 lbs. I need to get my tricep strength up (lock-out power) to complement the shirt.

The best rehab you can do for your back, so that it doesn't give you problems in the future, is to make those muscles and the supporting structures stronger. One bit of advice for you is to train your abs & obliques consistantly. The core muscles are the most important muscles in the body. Your core supports all of the other muscle groups and it allows the transfer of energy between the upper and lower body. My core is one of my weaknesses and I know once I get it up to speed my other lifts will increase, as will my total.

You are already well on your way as far as strength is concerned and I know with your enthusiasm and dedication you are going to make some tremendous gains in the coming months. I look forward to your input on this board.

Oh, one more thing. You are 6' tall so you will probably end up in the 242 - 275 weight classes if you become serious about competing. Size = Strength

 

[JDarty6173]

Thanks for the shirt recomendation Screwball, that is exactly what I needed... I'm already very anxious to purchase my first shirt, but I know I need to wait a couple months anyway..Since I may decide to compete 20 or 30 pounds heavier, I would hate to have to have the shirt sent back so soon...But I'll make sure I have it in Plenty of time to send it back a couple time for alterations if needed..

I've already started hitting Abs 5 Days a week, Alternating Between 5 Sets of 10 of Heavy Lat Pulldown Abs one day and 5 Sets of 5 Heavy Oblique Side Bends the next.. Three of my Abs workouts were on actual workout days, and the other 2 I included in my 2 extra workouts along with Barbell Rows and Reverse Hypers... Once I get my workouts functioning a little more smoothly so that I don't go over an hour, I will start hitting some Ab work at the end of every workout plus my extra days..

As far as my weight is concerned, I have hit a previous high bodyweight of 260 around February 2001 while bulking..So I can very easily move up in weight when it becomes necessary...

I ended up taking about 7 months off from any serious lifting to rehab an injury to my left bicep... I had an incident at work where we were having new security cameras installed.. The installer need some help applying pressure to a drill which was using a 6 foot carbon shaft drill bit to hole through a deep rafter... Well the bit got in a bind with me pushing very forcefully up on the drill, and the shaft broke and went in the the outside of my left bicep and come out the other side..This produced a nasty jagged hole which had carbon fibers splintering off into all directions...Well it took forever to completly heal due to the extreme muscle damage, but it is now 100%..

But anyway, I have only been back in the gym now for just over 3 months.. And am as strong now as I was when bulked up to 260.. Well maybe aside from 1 lift...Before my injury on about 3 separate occasions I did a rack pull from about knee high with 825 pounds, a couple times for doubles..And with Straps of course..But then again thats not very far to pull, but I was doing them to thicken up my back...

Well I'm sorry if I'm boring yall with my ramblings, but I figured I might as well go ahead at get as much background info on myself out there as possible.... I hope I can give some valuable input on this forum in the coming future...

Thanks Again

Jon