This link has been bookmarked by 1 people . It was first bookmarked on 19 Jun 2008, by palindrome emordnilap.
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19 Jun 08
palindrome emordnilapNice suggestions for measuring your progress.
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1. Start keeping a training journal. Your numbers should go up. After gritting out more reps with the same weight, the weights should increase. If they don't, that's a problem.
2. I learned a really valuable lesson from the Velocity Diet: Before and after pictures are worth their weight in gold. I noted in my summary of the V-Diet that Clarence Bass takes an annual photo shoot, and the pressure of this event leads to keeping on the details.
3. I started keeping a food log after some advice from Josh Hillis. I have to admit that writing down the fact that I ate two old-fashioned doughnuts stopped me from wondering why I've been putting on weight.
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Measure your progress in the weight room one of three ways:
1. Your deadlift max increased.
2. You did more real pull-ups.
3. Your "three jump" increased.
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Why the deadlift? Well, I have yet to see, besides straps (so don't use them), any aids that make deadlifts easier. In fact, I don't even know a trick that really works besides just getting stronger. Your buddies can help you bounce a bench off your chest, "help" you through the sticking point, and assist the top part "just a little," but I don't know anything that can aid a deadlift. So, when in doubt about your program, try a new max in the deadlift.
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The pull-up also fits this bill. A pull-up is done on a horizontal bar without your feet touching the earth. You start with absolutely straight arms and pull until your chin can rest on the top of the bar. Be as strict as possible. Why? Because no one gives a damn about how many pull-ups you can do. There's no professional league, no Olympic gold medal, nor any celebrity endorsements. It's a "measurement." So don't cheat and turn this into some kind of dance move, just use your arms and back.
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The final test I use is the "three jump." It's three continuous standing long jumps without a pause after the first and second jumps, so it looks like "boing, boing, boing." I used to use vertical jumps, but I found something interesting. A 118-pound freshman might jump 26 inches. As a senior weighing 188, the same kid will again jump 26 inches. So, did we fail the athlete over these four years? No. Simply, the vertical jump has two faults: There aren't enough "increments" and it takes little into account besides one pop.
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