Drive to 400

Every year I come up with a crazy workout goal to keep things interesting. A couple of years ago it was going through Eric Cresey’s plan and last year it was going through Dave Tate’s Strong(e)r workout series (which ironically didn’t leave me stronger, but I think it did improve overall physical fitness).

These are the totals from the last time I tested max lifts.
Bench: 335
Squat: 375
Deadlift: 385
————-
1095

This year I want to push those three lifts to either hit or get close to 400 lbs.

Bench: 365
Squat: 405
Deadlift: 425
————-
1195 (Just shy of the 1200 lb club)

Not great numbers for a powerlifter, but not awful for a mid-30s computer geek.

The workout plan will be close to Wendler’s 5-3-1 workout with an emphasis on assistance exercises that focus on grip strength (my biggest deadlift weakness) and lower-back health. I’m pretty confident in the squat and deadlift goals, but benching makes me nervous since I don’t have a spotter. Once you get 300+ lbs balanced over your throat you better be pretty confident that you’ll be able to push it back up.

April 29, 2010 | Filed Under lifting | Comments Off 

Reading progress

Updated my reading list for 2010. Pretty happy with the results so far, a decent mix of fiction/non-fiction (and biz stuff, which usually is more like voodoo than non-fiction).

I blew through Lipsky’s book on David Foster Wallace in two sittings. The times that Lipsky inserted himself or his thoughts was distracting, but it was great to dive into Wallace’s head for a nice chunk of time. I was happy with how ended, it would have been easy to be morose, but instead I was left with much happier memories. I like thinking about how much DFW was enjoying the process of writing and how he was looking forward to working for a good length of time.

I have six other books in progress right now, but I should knock out a couple of them this weekend. It’s slightly nutty, but I like the mix right now. I was planning to be working on more music this month, perhaps next week when Jen will be gone for a couple of days. Right now my evenings are nothing but a White Sox game on in the background and a book in hand. Things could be much, much worse.

Overall things seem pretty solid. Made some great progress at work and got rewarded for it, and today finished off a nice project that took longer than I hoped, but it was done the right way.

Yesterday someone at work asked how it is that I seem so happy all the time. I really didn’t know how to answer that. I feel like I’ve been pretty buried for awhile but it’s starting to burn off like fog. It comes and goes in waves, but right now things are well. It’s strange to be happy, but I never lose the feeling of other shoes dropping.

April 14, 2010 | Filed Under Books, personal | Comments Off