Wednesday's Quads

Quad day- How many times have I written about my legs? I have been trying to bring up the size for ages, and Roy seems as serious as I am, so I am seeing improvement, but it’s not easy that’s for sure!

Monday was hams and my calves were still super tight and bordering on painful when I got to Roys at 5:30 pm on Wednesday. I stretched and rolled trying to loosen up a bit before the squat marathon.

Back squats- we started with a warm up of 8 reps at 95 pounds.  He reminds me to do what we did last week, no resting at the top, we all do it, and we shouldn't. You squat all the way down,  explode up and stand for a few seconds and catch your breath.  no no no! No resting!

Today there would be none of that. If I need a short rest do it at the bottom, but keep the legs tight, as soon as I get to the top standing position, thrust my hips forward, squeeze the glutes and head right back down again., and I mean all the way down to the ground. Everything is timed, it’s all about the “time under tension”.

Try it, you will find a whole new world of squats exists.

Another warm up set of 8 reps at 115 pounds. Rest

On go the chains, there are two and they weigh 22.5 pounds each, so we are at 160 pounds.

10 squats, low as I can get, all the way to the ground, way past parallel, shoot up, no rest, back down again.

The sweat is dripping off my face already and yet again, I haven’t even moved my darn feet.

I lost count, I just wanted to stop and I think we did four sets. Rest.

Take the 35 pound plates off and add the 25 pound plates, another set and although the weight is lighter now, I am fatigued.  It’s 140 pounds.

Off come the 25 pound plates and all I have left are the chains so it’s a light 90 pounds. But Roy tells me this is a burnout set I will do 25 reps.

“All at once?!” I exclaim. “No, I will tell you when to stop” he says.

I start and am wiped out already, I get to 12 and barely make it “Rack it” he says. He quickly strips off the chains and adds plates, I think it is now way down to 65 pounds, but really my head was spinning, my eyes couldn’t focus and I am not sure (but he has it all written on my chart). “Go!” he says and I launch into more, I think I got to 8. “Rack it!”, then he strips off all the plates and I am at 45 pounds, “Go!” and down I go, I have 5 more reps.

Talk about burn….

I rest a while and its now time for Poliquin dips for the VMO’s super set with walking lunges, slow, long stretch, 15 on one leg, 15 on the other. Four sets of each. With each set of lunges I end up outside in the drive, the cool air feels good, but I smell food and it is making me hungry.

Finally we are done, it lasted 75 minutes.

I arrive home at 7:00 pm and am famished. Cooper, Lauren and David are enjoying brisket I made previously; I will have a vitellone patty, wild rice, asparagus and Brussels sprouts.

That night, as I lay in bed, my calves still throb from Monday.