May 14, 2016 – Week 7, Day 3

Dynamic Warm-ups

Super Set: Face Down Rear Delt Swings /Head Supported Bent Over Lateral Raises (1 second holds)
60’sx30/15’sx15
60’sx30/15’sx15
60’sx30/15’sx15

Crucifix Holds
25’sx45 seconds
20’sx45 seconds
15’sx45 seconds

Lying Dumbbell Front Raises (3 second negatives)
25’sx10
25’sx10
25’sx10
25’sx10

Dumbbell Pause Bench Presses (1 second pauses)
70’sx3
90’sx3
110’sx8
110’sx8
110’sx6

EZ Curl Bar Triceps Extensions (5 second negatives)
90x13
90x11
90x10
90x8

Rope Triceps Pushdowns (400 total reps, 10 seconds rest)
80x82
80x36
80x37
80x33
80x27
80x28
80x33
80x25
80x26
80x24
80x24
80x25

32 Minutes of Stretching

Comments: I’ve been frustrated this week. Feeling anger as others improve and I feel like I’m struggling to stay in place. It’s not rational and I hate when I’m thinking like that. One positive is that I’m not feeling DOMS from these past two workouts so perhaps I’m adapting in some sense. I kind of wanted to sleep in later but I had to be up to let the contractor in. Lower back still a tight ball of hurt. I had ibuprofen in the morning and at night and Icy Hot after I got home from work. Also using the lumbar massage pillow too. Used it twice yesterday and twice before I went to the gym. Also doing stretches and poses to alleviate it too. It won’t be much of hindrance for this workout but my concern is deadlifts for tomorrow. Hopefully things improve. Lots of assistance and high rep stuff with dumbbells so right into it. I felt like I was getting tired quick on the dumbbell swings. Lactic acid definitely present by the end of that last set. Thankfully the bent over laterals were with a head support as this might have been a touch painful without one. Again, slight rest pausing on the lateral raises on the last two sets to finish. Crucifix holds after that. Same weight as last week but increased hold times to 45 seconds. My upper body was definitely tensing like crazy to make sure I hit the time goal. My right forearm and wrist are still slightly cramped. None of these sets were easy. On to lying dumbbell front raises. Increase in weight but big decrease in reps. Still short rests but much better this time. Only had to do the rest pause for the last two sets. I did feel these in my lower back but only a mild annoyance for the first rep or so. Pause dumbbell benching next. I was worried with these not because it would be hard to press but because I’d have to bend over to get the dumbbells from the rack and I’d have to pick them up to get them to my lap to get into position. Perhaps I could have asked someone to help but I’m stubborn and I needed to feel it, to deal with my stupidity from the last workout. The presses felt good but I lost steam on the last one. Right side lags as per usual. Triceps with long negatives after that. I guess it was too easy last time as the reps were drastically increased. Still feeling good but gets tiring. Then on to the 400 reps of rope triceps. I ended up getting the reps in the same number of sets as last time but I got more on the first set than last time but I fatigued faster. Maybe the increased reps on the extensions had something to do with it. I did some more stuff to try and loosen up my back after I stretched. Home for more lower back massaging and Icy Hot.

May 12, 2016 – Week 7, Day 2

Dynamic Warm-ups

Hatfield Overload Squats
45x15 (barbell)
95x15
135x15
225x12
315x9
410x6
465x5
510x4
325x15
235x15

Band Pull Thrus
SBx20
SBx20

Dead Stop Leg Presses
+470x15
+470x15
+470x15

Nordic Leg Curls (3 second negatives)
bwx3
bwx3
bwx3

Stone of Steel Loads (48.5” Platform)
120x3
165x1
210x1
240x1
240x1
240x1
120x1

Reverse Crunches (5 second negatives)
bwx8
bwx8
bwx8
bwx8

35 Minutes of Stretching

Comments: I was dreading this workout this go around. Especially since my previous workout was lackluster in spots. I woke up and cursed to myself that I was doing this workout in 10.5 hours. I’ve been trying to get to bed earlier so that I can have more sleep and be able to recover better. Work kept me busy but then it was time to lift. Same “warm-ups” for the volume squat work. The soreness in my legs was mostly gone from last week but it was noticeable. Fatigue was felt even at 225lbs. Maybe it was mental. After the set with 315lbs, the weights increased from last week. J-hooks on the power rack so that made things a bit nicer. Weights felt about 100lbs heavier from all the previous reps in my midsection. Much like last time, the last two sets were not fun. I tried to keep continuous tension for the reps as best as I could. I did realize I wasn’t as dead as last week even though it felt tougher. Band pull thrus next. I was cognizant of things this time so I did feel the exercise beating my hamstrings and glutes. I had meant to use this band tension last week. I wasn’t fighting for balance this time but that might be because I wasn’t walking on bloated legs. It was the leg press from hell after that. My main goal for this was not to puke this time. I tried my best to not drink anything after I finished up the squats. The new brand of BCAAs I’m taking is quite strong in flavor and given me the burps so it was possibly going to be tougher than I expected. My brain wasn’t as fried as last week (still hot, head beating, dripping sweat) so I didn’t feel like death doing these this time. I might have miscounted the last set by one rep but it wasn’t due to not being able to do the lift. Took a bit to cool down before moving on to nordic leg curls. Better this time, didn’t feel my glutes cramping staying in position. Definitely better control. Home to do the last bits. I stuck with the stone of steel and did less sets and reps to warm-up. My small 45lbs plates fit inside so that is good to know for the future. My grip was slipping when I first tried for 240lbs and I gave it three shots but barely got it a few inches off the ground. I figured I’d try chalking up my arms and didn’t think it would make much of a difference. Boy was I wrong. Made the pick and lap way easier. However, this didn’t make the load any easier. The implement doesn’t stick to the body like a tackied atlas stone so it was out quite a bit on that first single and felt something shift in my lower back on the right side. It is uncomfortable but I will do what I can to alleviate the discomfort. Did two more trying to avoid irritating my lower back. Abs and stretching to finish up the night.

May 10, 2016 – Week 7, Day 1

Dynamic Warm-ups

Super Set: Dumbbell Lateral Raises (5 seconds negatives)/12” Log Push Presses
90x5
90x5
120x3
120x3
150x3
150x3
180x1
205x1
230x1
20’sx10:255x1/2/1
20’sx10:255x1/1/1
20’sx10:255x1/0
20’sx10:255x0

Super Set: Incline Dumbbell Flyes/Push-ups
35’sx10/bwx35
35’sx10/bwx16
35’sx10/bwx11

Incline Dumbbell Bench Presses
65’sx3
85’sx10
85’sx5
85’sx4
85’sx4

EZ Curl Bar Curls (21’s)
90x7-7-7
90x7-7-7
90x7-7-7

Dumbbell Hammer Curls w/ Fat Gripz Extremes
20’sx20
20’sx20
20’sx20
20’sx20

Iso Prone Abs
bwx30 seconds
bwx30 seconds
bwx30 seconds

32 Minutes of Stretching

Comments: Last week was rough. This one looks to be much the same. Fatigue makes cowards of us all. This will be hard but hopefully I should adapt to this training. Maybe I’m just telling myself these things to keep going or deluding myself. Got bruises behind my knees from the duck walk on Sunday from the plates hitting my legs. By the end of the workouts, I’m beat. Anyways, on to this workout. Same thing this time with the super set of dumbbell lateral raises with accentuated negatives and log push presses. I didn’t add the laterals until I got to the work weight for log. Abs, triceps and legs were sore and it showed on the log press. Dumbbell wasn’t tough but it definitely didn’t help the log work. Thing is, the last warm-up flew up so I thought I’d have a good session. The goal with log had been 6,5,3,max. That didn’t come close to happening. Ended up just rest pausing until I couldn’t get lift. Triceps had nothing in them. Probably still fatigued from Saturday. I felt like stopping after I got just a single on my first attempt but I kept plowing through. The next super set incline flyes and push-ups. Weight increased for flyes but reps dropped. These felt better this week (they gave me major DOMS last time) but again my triceps held me back on the second half. I beat my best on the first set but it dramatically dropped off on the following sets. This also popped up in the incline work. The dumbbells at this weight are mismatched so I tried switching sides (on is a plate one with a thicker handle and the other is a hex one with a longer thin handle) but not much difference. Weight is weight sometimes. I hit the goal on the first one but failed to get close on the following sets (plan was 10,8,6,max). My right triceps just died during the set as I felt I had power off my shoulders. Even felt like my upper back muscles were resisting me as well. Definitely having me concerned about going forward. Biceps work thankfully wasn’t hampered by my current fatigue and funk. EZ curl 21’s again with a little more weight. These felt better (until the last set) this time. Struggled to get the last third of the last set done. No occlusion training this week, just regular hammer curls with the Fat Gripz Extremes for short rests and high reps. No hard on my arms but it did start to fatigue my grip a little (3” thick handles tend to do that). Abs followed that and finished up the day. I will say two positives were I didn’t need ibuprofen or Icy Hot after this workout like last week and my arms and chest were looking and feeling big and strong. Home to stretch and eat a over a gallon of food (I measured it).

May 8, 2016 – Week 6, Day 4

Dynamic Warm-ups

Deadlifts
No Straps
135x5
135x5
225x3
225x3
315x1
315x1
Added Straps
365x1
405x1
455x1
500x1
500x4
500x3

T-Bar Prison Rows
+145x12
+145x12
+145x12
+145x12

One Arm Band Rows
ABx20/20
ABx12/12
ABx8/8
ABx6/6

Neutral Grip Pull-ups (55 total reps, 10 seconds rest)
bw+12.5x8
bw+12.5x4
bw+12.5x2
bw+12.5x2
bw+12.5x2
bw+12.5x2
bw+12.5x2
bw+12.5x2
bw+12.5x2
bw+12.5x2
bw+12.5x2
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x2
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1
bw+12.5x1

Wide Grip Pulldowns
120x14
120x14
120x14

Duck Walks
155x30’
155x30’
235xpick
270xpick
270x60’ in 20.91 seconds
270x60’ in 19.24 seconds
270x60’ in 18.76 seconds

41 Minutes of Stretching

Comments: On paper, this workout looked like the least painful to get through. Of course, I was wrong. Even though yesterday’s workout was tough, a lot of what I did wasn’t going to really impede this one. The main thing was going to be my leg fatigue with the deadlifts. Regular deadlifts and boy did it hurt my legs to just get down to the bar. I’ve worked through soreness before as well as pre-fatigue so I wasn’t too concern with deadlifts being a pain. I alternated between a narrow and wide stance, trying to see which one was less affected by my sore legs. Definitely not feeling easy either way. I smaller jumps then usual since this was the first thing of the day and I wanted to make sure my form was down. The plan for the working weight was 1,5,3. I stared off with the wide stance and that felt slow and heavy. Really concerning me that I’d fail this workout as well. I switched to the narrow stance for the next set and It felt slightly better but I was really slow off the floor. I stalled after three and took a breath before going for a grinder of a fourth rep. I took a knee after that and tried to regain my composure to attempt a fifth but it barely broke the ground. Absolutely livid at my weakness here. I did watch the video and it was apparent to me that my legs were fatigued and they were finishing the lift first, leaving my lower back to fight through it more. Still disgusted with myself and I attempted the last set with the wide stance to see if this improved things. About the same another grinder to finish the set. Misses on deadlifts really eat at me so I had to distract myself to get the workout done. Next two exercises were fairly light so it wouldn’t be an issue. First was the t-bar prison rows. Previously these have been done as part of a circuit and for lower reps. Higher reps this time. These were quite easy, barely any fatigue by the end of it. Next was one arm band rows. The reps started high but dropped quickly so these weren’t as bad as they could have been for my back fatiguing. Then came another nightmare of an exercise; pull-ups. Not normal style as these were much like the triceps the day before with sets to failure and super short rests until the goal reps reached. In this case, it was 55 reps total. I had hoped to get more early on but I only managed eight and four on those first two sets and then it was doubles until around 33 reps and then singles the rest of the way. This was tiring. Of course the back work wasn’t done. More work in the form of wide grip pulldowns. The reps were high but the weight was light. Definitely feeling the fatigue each set. Home to finish up the workout. My legs feel like cooperating to a certain extent so I elected to do a moving event. Something light. I went with duck walks using my pipe t-bar I had made to help with rehabbing my back a few years ago. Wasn’t sure how it would hold up with a decent amount of weight and duck walk itself is an awkward movement. Luckily, it held up. I only went so heavy as I wanted to keep this at the right intensity and I’ve only really trained this event a few times in the past and not for such distances. As I said, awkward, especially with the long handles and the big plates. Then I needed to stretch forever. This part of this cycle is really tearing me down.

May 7, 2016 – Week 6, Day 3

Dynamic Warm-ups

Super Set: Face Down Rear Delt Swings /Head Supported Bent Over Lateral Raises (1 second holds)
60’sx30/15’sx15
60’sx27/15’sx15
60’sx25/15’sx15

Crucifix Holds
25’sx40 seconds
20’sx40 seconds
15’sx40 seconds

Lying Dumbbell Front Raises (3 second negatives)
20’sx15
20’sx15
20’sx15
20’sx15

Dumbbell Pause Bench Presses (1 second pauses)
70’sx2
90’sx2
110’sx6
110’sx6
110’sx6

EZ Curl Bar Triceps Extensions (5 second negatives)
90x10
90x8
90x6
90x5

Rope Triceps Pushdowns (400 total reps, 10 seconds rest)
80x75
80x30
80x35
80x46
80x48
80x34
80x28
80x26
80x23
80x17
80x24
80x14

38 Minutes of Stretching

Comments: Very sore going into this workout. Getting over the DOMS from Tuesday’s workout and experiencing peak pain from Thursday’s workout DOMS nicely. Legs are hard and feel like they are stuffed with angry and confused jellyfish. I knew this workout wouldn’t make me puke but I figured it would make my shoulders and triceps beyond sore. A soreness I couldn’t contemplate and wouldn’t know the full depth of until days later. Lots of assistance and high rep stuff with dumbbells so I really wasn’t sure how to warm-up. I figured that only the heavy stuff would really need it as the other stuff would warm-up me up pretty quick. First up was an upper back/rear delt match made in hell. First was a momentum based dumbbell swing with a hefty dumbbell and it was followed up by rear delt raises with holds at the top. I’ve done momentum based stuff for rear delts and upper back in the past to help with stones. I’d seen the swings done before but never really knew how to implement them. My upper back and shoulders got warm pretty darn fast into the first set. I knew it would be much harder each set that went by. Slight rest pausing on the lateral raises on the last two sets to finish. Then onto crucifix holds. Not a lot of weight here compared to what I’ve done in contests but it was more of an extended drop set. Fatigue built upon fatigue. By the end of these, I was happy for the timer to go off haha. Then another new one with the lying dumbbell front raises. Slight incline as my arms are so long. The extended eccentric was killer. I got through the first set with no issues but ended up doing a spit take at how short the rests between sets were on these. The other sets took a lot more effort and the reps were not all in one go. Then on to some standard lifting; paused dumbbell bench. I was cautious with this since last time my energy was sapped and I had to lower the weight quite a bit from the recommended range. These went quite a bit better. Right side was definitely lagging in the lockout. Would have been a struggle trying to get more reps here I think. Then triceps with extended negatives. Thankfully, the reps decreased as I went. No joint issues. I knew it was easier than expected here because of the finisher; 400 reps total of rope triceps pushdowns with 10 seconds rest between sets of failure. This was going to take a while. I really surprised myself with how many I got on that first set. This was a long long exercise and I think I got blisters on my fingers and hands from it. I think the rope took quite a beating as well. I really don’t know what is going to happen when I wake up tomorrow to my triceps. Lots of stretching. One more workout to finish this crazy week.

May 5, 2016 – Week 6, Day 2

Dynamic Warm-ups

Hatfield Overload Squats
45x15 (barbell)
95x15
135x15
225x12
315x9
405x6
455x5
500x4
315x15
225x15

Band Pull Thrus
SBx20
SBx20

Dead Stop Leg Presses
+180x1
+460x15
+460x15
+460x15

Nordic Leg Curls (3 second negatives)
bwx3
bwx3
bwx3

Stone of Steel Loads (48.5” Platform)
120x1
120x1
120x1
120x1
120x1
120x1
120x1
170x1
170x1
170x1
220x1
220x1
220x1
120x1

Reverse Crunches (5 second negatives)
bwx8
bwx8
bwx8
bwx8

33 Minutes of Stretching

Comments: And I had thought the first workout this week was tough. Feeling the extreme DOMS in my chest and biceps with general soreness in my triceps and upper back. I’m thinking I will stick with the Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday lifting schedule for now, especially with how long these workouts can take. I wasn’t looking forward to this workout with the loads of squats and leg pressing planned. Hatfield squats starting things off. Well kind of. This exercise had even “the warm-ups” planned so I was to do a lot of reps even with the empty bar. Started to feel fatigued during the first set with 315lbs. The fatigue from the reps was making my legs shaky and they were definitely pumped. Normally easy weight was very tough. There was a sign by the power rack that new j-hooks should arrive shortly so hopefully this will be more comfortable next time. On the lighter weights for higher reps, I tried to keep constant tension by doing ¾ style reps, not locking out the weight until I got tired. Obviously not doing that with heavier stuff. The last two sets of 15 were awful, especially with 315lbs. Definitely reminiscent of the breathing squats haha. I was really out of it after all the squats as my legs were stiff and I kind of had to waddle around. Barely lift my knees to walk normal. Staggered over to setup pull thrus with a band. I was just plain beat from the squats and I just did the reps with the band. Fighting falling on my face with how shaky my legs were. I was sweating profusely and my heart beat was in my head. Really had to mentally suppress my fear going into the next exercise; dead stop leg presses. Initially, I was going to try doing paused leg presses as the ROM wasn’t enough normally on the leg press but with how my legs were doing, I didn’t know if I could budge a feather on it. The leg press downstairs was in use. So I made the painful trek upstairs to try that leg press out. It had enough weight to do it so I made a return trip to downstairs to get my camera and stuff. I saw that the other leg press was open so I went back to my original plan. I adjusted the seat so that it increased the ROM as much as I could so that I could just press right off the pins as originally intended. This was going to suck; three sets of 15 reps with 10 seconds rest between sets. I got through the first set no problem. Second set was definitely a lot tougher. The third set was an out of body experience to finish. Mid set I went from a hot sweat to a cold sweat but I wasn’t going to stop. It was done and I slowly got out of the machine and felt a rumble in my stomach. I thought it was just nerves. I went outside the weight room to cool off and then I ran (well as fast as I could move) to the bathroom and puked on the floor. I puked about five more times (got to the toilet those times) before all was said and done. No food, just my BCAA workout drink (about a liter). I cleaned things up as best as I could and then went to the front desk to ask for a mop. The guy said not to worry about it that he’d clean it and asked how I was doing. Normally, this would be the end of not only the workout (this is the first time I puked big time working out) but the end of the day but I still had things to do haha. I was upset that I lost my precious nutrients. Nordic leg curls next and these were pretty darn tough, even with the reduced eccentric time, from everything else so far. I had more trouble staying upright at the start of the lifts then the lifts themselves. Calves cramping up pretty fierce. Home to finish up (brought a second shirt this time haha). The agenda was to do three sets of a somewhat medium effort event. I knew a moving event was out with how wobbly my legs were so I went with trying out my Stone of Steel on the platform my dad made. I spent several singles practicing with the empty implement to get used to it as this is only the second time I’ve touched one and I haven’t done any stone lifting for almost two years. I’m out of practice. This is definitely tricky getting the balance right on the pick as well as the hip extension on the load. I had a few misses on the first set and last set with the top weight I used from not getting the balance right so it didn’t roll on me. The lack of tacky changes the lift a lot and will require some fine tuning to put the right effort in the right part at the right time. I got time to get better but still humbling. Finished up with ab work. I was expecting these to be a lot tougher with the accentuated negatives but it was pretty good. Stretched a ton and ate a lot.

May 3, 2016 – Week 6, Day 1

Dynamic Warm-ups

Super Set: Dumbbell Lateral Raises (5 seconds negatives)/12” Log Push Presses
90x5
90x5
125x3
125x3
155x3
155x3
185x1
215x1
20’sx6:245x7/2/1
20’sx6:245x1/2/1
20’sx6:245x2/1/1

Super Set: Incline Dumbbell Flyes/Push-ups
30’sx15/bwx31
30’sx15/bwx21
30’sx15/bwx14

Incline Dumbbell Bench Presses
60’sx1
80’sx1
100’sx2
80’sx10
80’sx8
80’sx6
80’sx5

EZ Curl Bar Curls (21’s)
85x7-7-7
85x7-7-7
85x7-7-7

Occlusion Hammer Curls
15’sx20
15’sx20
15’sx20
15’sx20

Iso Prone Abs
bwx30 seconds
bwx30 seconds
bwx30 seconds

26 Minutes of Stretching

Comments: This workout kicked my butt and I know it is just the beginning. I almost threw up in my mouth upon seeing the workouts for this week. Lots of work ahead. Right shoulder and side of my neck still being a pain. Misplaced my camera so no videos for this one. On the first item of the day was super set of dumbbell lateral raises with accentuated negatives and log push presses. I didn’t add the laterals until I got to the work weight for log. I was a bit confused on the reps and sets for log so I did what I could. I was expecting the laterals too be tougher but they felt light and I wasn’t fighting the weight on the negatives at all. Log crushed me. I was trying to get 10,8,6 for the sets. Eight is my best with this weight fresh so it was a tall order. I ended up rest pausing to get 10 on the first set. That first set drained me as only got four reps total on the next two sets. And it was just starting. Another super set after that for the pectorals and upper body stuff. The flyes were a good stretch but very tough for the reps needed. I felt pathetic doing the push-ups to failure after the flyes and it was struggle. Of course incline dumbbell pressing was next. I was supposed to use a heavier weight but I was whipped by this point and I weight I could get +10 reps on was stopping me at two today. Soaked with sweat and just wrecked. Then on to a lot of biceps stuff. EZ Curl Bar 21’s are something I haven’t done since I first started lifting in middle school. Maybe high school. I’m fairly certain I used the same weight back then too but it was all out and I did just one set. I forgot the order so I did bottom half, full, top half as that way makes it the toughest for me as I get quite a bit of a stretch relax with my arms. I was near death on that last one. A new one for me was the occlusion style hammer curls. Light tourniquet around the deltoids/upper arms and doing a lot of reps with short rest. I tried using my wrist wraps but I couldn’t do it myself and I think they are too small. Luckily, I had bands in my bag and I applied them to my upper body as best as I could. Finished up the workout with static ab holds. Been a while since I did these. Not bad. Home to stretch and eat. Icy Hot and ibuprofen for my neck and shoulder.

May 1, 2016 – Week 5, Day 4

Dynamic Warm-ups

Deadlifts
No Straps
135x5
135x5
225x3
225x3
315x1
315x1
Added Straps
405x1
405x1
405x1
405x1

Neutral Grip Pull-ups
bwx3
bwx3
bwx3

Nordic Leg Curls (5 second negatives)
bwx3
bwx3
bwx3

38 Minutes of Stretching

Comments: Last one for this deload. Getting excited for the next part of this cycle of training to begin. Still got tightness in my right side of my neck and shoulder. No sprints today. Would have been tough anyways as it rained last night so it would have been very slick. J-hooks in the power rack not fixed yet, may need to buy a pair to keep in my bag. Deadlifts to start things off. Attempting find the form that works best for me. I alternated between sets with a narrow stance and a wider stance (dubbed the “Shaw Stance”). Deadlifts from the floor have felt tough the last cycle and from the past four weeks. I’m thinking that I had moved out my feet due to the stance I was taking for the trap bar pulls in preparation for the frame deadlift at the last contest. I feel that the narrower stance had been my old stance that I was using in the past. I definitely noticed that the narrow stance put a lot more stress on the lower back while the wider stance put a lot more stress on the hamstrings. Not sure which one to focus on, perhaps the other can be used as assistance stuff. Will have to see but not going to throw out either idea just yet. On to pull-ups. B.A. got an attachment for the rack so I can use a more stable surface if the need arises instead of the rings. I had to use the station at the Y for the assisted pull-ups and it can be a little claustrophobic haha. My left biceps was very sore doing these. It got better as I did them thankfully. Then the manual leg curls. While I was upstairs on pull-ups I had a thought that I don’t know why I didn’t have it sooner. The issue I’ve been having with this exercise has been my foot slipping at the bottom of the lift when I try to initiate the concentric. The smith machine base is slick. I realized I could just use the entire wall as my foot pad. Works great and I was stable enough to do all the reps without needing any assistance on the concentric part of the lift. Of course my hamstrings and calves got very tight from these. Loads of stretching to finish up the day.