Montreal Barbell The PR GYM

WOW! another great bench night!! Carmine and Chris hit incredible PR's tonight, both were on fire. BIG Leo worked on max reps with 445 and 455 lbs raw, Alex a guest learned form quickly and hit a nice 300 lbs raw bench and Shawna is waiting for her MRI results and taking care of her shoulder and tried to see how much she can bench raw.

warm-up included Shawna light stretching my shoulders, biceps and triceps and pecs

lat pull down, chest press machine

bar x reps

135 x reps about 10 explosively

225 x 5

315 hold only

loose shirt

425 x 1

475 miss at top

tight shirt

500 miss

500 miss

It looks bad, but I am fine with the training, just working on form and still managed to fry my triceps. I am patient and will just wait until i get a good bench night. Weights felt very heavy tonight, don't quite know why and am not going to over analyze it, just will go at it again next week.

Carmine put on a tighter shirt which really bit up his triceps and he didn't complain at all, if fact kept saying this was the most comfortable shirt ever, the Eddie grey double denim. His form was great and he did 455 very easy, then did the same with 475, and got psyched for 500 and got that nice and smooth with a short stroke. next 525 and he got that nice but I think missed locking it out because he didn't get a good grip on the floor. Then he went 535 and missed at lock out - a great bench night for Carmine which build lots of hope, confidence and excitement for him. Oh, and I think he benched a 365 raw before putting on the shirt.

Chris was worried about his collar bone pain, its swollen and hurts but doesn't affect his strength, so he is pushing through it carefully. With Carnime benching just before him, Chris had to get down and do the same weights. 405, 455, 475, 500, 525 a new PR, and then was done. congratulations Chris can't wait till the pec heals.

Shawna, well, this was supposed to be an easy day. She stayed raw because the shirt aggrivates her shoulder. Her tricep has a big lump that I can't massage out and her bicep at the elbow is swollen and very tight which I also can't seem to loosen. Her shoulder is very sore and has limited range of movement. We should find out exactly what is wrong within a week after her MRI that she got on Thurs - they put a big needle right into her shoulder and injected dye which stiffened up the whole area and made it more sore.

Shawna has never focussed on raw lifting but on Tues she tried to see the max number of reps she could do with 135 and got 7 reps. She has never gone higher than 135 because there was no need to. Tonight she tried 150 lbs and got it easily for a new pr, then missed 165, came back and did 4 reps with 145 and 3 reps with 150 lbs. We are going to keep her in an easy and maintenance mode until we find out what is wrong, and how to repair it and until she feels like pushing hard again. Plan is to go easy for about 3 to 4 weeks, but knowing her she won't wait that long.

Great deadlift day, BIG Leo, Chris, Carmine, Shawna and me. BIG Leo comes in, "so Ross, are you going to pull 6 plates today?" "I don't think so Leo, I lost weight, didn't eat or drink, blah, blah blah, but maybe, who knows..., maybe I'll try". Ha, who knew.

135 x 6 conventional, x 6 singles sumo

225 x 4 conventional, x 6 sumo

315 x 3 singles conventional x 3 sumo

briefs and suit on, all sumo now

405 x 2 singles

495 x 1

545 x 1 pr sumo, first real sumo, flew up fast

585 x 1 - 6 plates finally!!

Oh, what a feeling! After forcing myself to do sumo and to do it fully geared for about 6 weeks, it is finally starting to feel good. And, I feel that it will surpass my conventional max of 600 about three years ago when I got it once in a meet and never again since. I was really happy the way 545 felt, it went off the floor straight to lockout. Getting the 6 plates felt good too but it stopped at my knees and many thoughts came into my head all helping me to pull it through, plus all I heard is Leo, Carmine, Chris and Shawna yelling at me to finish it, so I did. I finished it with their strength and support.

Then, came Chris. Determined after the meet to pull 500, Chris pulled it smoothly for a new PR. Then, he went for 545 and missed it. After a rest, he was determined to pull it,  and this time he got it to near the top and fought with it and won and finished it, for a 100 lb PR. What a night.

Still tired and not up to feeling full and strong, so wanted to just maintain  today.

145 x 10

235 x 6

briefs

325 x 5

415 x 5

canvas suit

505 x 3

knee wraps

595 x 2 singles

Felt good, felt the weight on my back, will go heavier next week.

Squat with Carmine, Mike Guay, Ghislain.

Body weight is down, gear felt the most loose ever.

Body weight 224 lbs

Still physically and mentally tired from the meet 6 days ago, but wanted to get down on bench and see what I could do.

bar for reps

135 x 10

225 x 5

315 hold only

put on loose shirt, shirt was very loose in the arms, lost weight

425 x 1 flew

475 miss at lockout

tighter shirt, was loose, able to turn my arms inside the sleeves.

500 miss

475 miss

They all felt good, they went up fast, but stopped at the transition point, so I was doing something wrong in technique

455 x1 got it right this time. Pushed my arch harder and kept my head down

Felt strong and not right at the same time. Need to refocus on my form again next week.

Benched with Shawna who went up to 250 lbs, Carmine, BIG Leo, and Chris Skoda.

The meet was a huge success!! I think it was our best meet ever. Each meet is a little different and each one seems to get better.

What made this meet stand out is the number of lifters, we had 38 lifters, and the number of new to CPF and new to our meets lifters and first time lifters. Also, we had more volunteers than before and we had big name lifters there lifting with the rest of us. Bill Crawford came and had fun, he handled Glendy and she didn't even know who he was and he helped Al Mehan hit his stride on his squat and huge bench PR.

What stood out for me in the is meet was the energy level of the lifters, the volunteers and the audience. We had three flights of squatters which made for a longer meet, but by the end of the day, the audience still packed the house, no one left. There was a supportive energy where everyone was equal from the beginner to the Pro each helping each other, rubbing shoulders in the packed warm-up area which nobody complained about. It was also the first meet where it was run by the volunteers and I was able to focus on handling Shawna and being be her side for her first real important meet. Cameras, videos, everyone was trying to capture the moment, but you really just had to be there to experience the energy, the camaraderie, the courage, effort and successes and excitement of both the new lifters and the experienced lifters.

All-Time HIstorical World Records were set by Glendy Randal in her raw with knee wraps squat 330 lbs and total 865 lbs, and by Al Mehan in the best meet of his life with his 1157 lb squat and 2657 lb total. Clint Harwood benched a very impressive 783 lb bench press which he made look easy, then missed his attempt at regaining his All-Time Canadian Bench Press when he tried to press 815 lbs. 

Equally impressive were the real courageous and eager first time lifters

Janet Warne not only went 9 for 9 which is a great day but also got all white lights, the 27 white lights and not a single red light, now you know that is a great day of lifting.

The Metal Militia Montreal Team did very well. Chris Skoda just joined us and started powerlifting as we were ramping up for the meet, so he got thown right into it with heavy training and trying to learn to use gear right from the start. Chris showed up nervous for his first meet, but well prepared and he fought like a warrior and had a fantastic first meet with a 601 lb squat. Joanick Boilard got his 800 lb squat in and asked and paid for a drug test to lock that in as a Canadian Amateur Record and he also benched an easy 540 lb bench PR. Shawna, well she had what she called the best day of her life. She got an easy 380 lb squat a huge PR, and did a perfect 281 lb bench press which was her biggest goal of the meet and a 330 lb deadlift all for a 991 lb total. This was the first meet that Shawna really trained and prepared hard for and put it all on the line. Me well, I decided that my bench was in a pretty good place and I would do the bench only. I opened with 474 lbs and threw it up like I never did before, it shocked me because I didn't really know if it would go, but it just flew. Then I went to 529 lbs and missed it at the top and on the third I didn't get my feet right and lost my arch and blew it right from the beginning. Next time....

This meet was also has a special memory and feeling for me because I got to support and work with my daughter. Anyone with a daughter or son probably knows the feeling, but I got to share a raw closeness and bonding with Shawna and see her strength and desire come out and see her risk more andr try harder than ever in her life and see her happiness when she succeeded. The day spent quietly with her amidst the energy of the packed gym was filled with special moments and feelings and all this was unexpected extra.

The volunteers - I know that every meet director goes on profusely thanking the volunteers, but our meet volunteers really were incredible. Everyone worked very, very hard and kept the meet running. Leo Tilly and Niko moved the whole gym into the container outside, Pamela Harwood came from Toronto and worked the scorers desk running the meet from the computer and keeping everything smooth. Imagine, she sat at the desk focusing from the time she walked in in the morning when lifters were weighing in, all the way through to the end of the day when she and Clint totaled up the results of the day and she presented the Awards. Also, Imagine Phil Bourret who emailed me weeks before the meet to volunteer and we put him as a platform manager where he had to make sure that every lifter's weights were loaded accurately - I've done this job and it takes a lot of concentration. (Phil later wrote on his Facebook status, "who knew that staring a coloured charts all day could be so stressful". LIfters were spotted by some of the best in the world. People were back spotted by Jay Nera one of the strongest raw squatters in the world and by Mike Guay a huge squatter and Canada's current biggest bencher. On the sides they had BIG Leo Tilly, Jared, Carmine, Leo Tsakalofas all very strong and experienced spotters, as well as some extra spotters who we asked to help on the big lifts. Shany Gilbert two time ALL-Time Historical World Record holder was operating the arm on the monolift, also a very important position. All these spotters, most of them drove in from out of town, came to help the lifters and make them feel safe. Then, there was Martin Cormier, a famous Canadian bodybuilder and judge who greeted everyone at the front desk, and Nicole Hebert who happily volunteered to come in mop the floors and then on Saturday do everything that needed to be done to keep the meet running smoothly while she also sold t-shirts. Ooops, I forgot Cheryl McKenzie, after being away from home for three weeks working, she flew in Friday at midnight and worked and judged all day to make the meet "run by itself", got up the next day had breakfast and flew back to Florida to go to work on Monday. For judges, Clint Harwood sat in the judges chair all day after benching, Mat Court came down from Sherbrooke and also judged all day, Bill Crawford judged for a few flights, Shane Church judged and administered the drug test. Art Chan brought us 6 x 25 kg plates so Big Al Mehan would have enough plates to squat 1157 lbs. and Art brought lifters and helped them and helped spot and load as well. (Art is my silent partner / hero who just shows up and does what needs to be done quietly to run the meet.)

I didn't get to see all the lifters, but some of the highlights for me for what I saw were: Scott McDiarmid benching 474 lbs, Ryan Tingman attacking all his benches and getting 524 lbs, Nathan Robertson hitting a 568 lb bench, Jamie Seguin bombing and still excited saying it was the best experience of his life, Kevin Lacombe disappointed with twisting his knee in the squat and then against all advice getting up there and benching 320 lbs raw, Clint Harwood's 783 lb bench made to look so easy, Jane Stabile pulling though on her 375 lb deadlift when it wanted to pull her back down. Glendy Randall who dropped weight until it hurt then came back and hit an All-Time squat record of 330 lbs raw with knee wraps on her fourth attempt, Janet Warne with 27 white lights, Stacey Jensen squatting 347 at this meet one week after doing a meet in Ontario, Gracie Vanasse just beginning and attacking her goals aggressively, Hilda Siegel pushing really hard and enjoying it, Andrea McDougall's impressive 402 lb squat at 148 lbs body weight, Nicole Gervais doing her first full power meet and squatting 292 lbs raw with knee wraps, Leslie Hammil, Wie Seah, Sean Fahey, Mathew Giesa, Jordan Moffit, Andrew Kueber, Alastair MacNicol, Simon Beaulieu, Steve Sidhu, Matt Brass, Chris Skoda, Marc Demers, John Kolesar and Thom Lamb all first time lifters at our meet and doing very well. Big squats by Joanick Boilard, 800 lbs, Joffrey Laurinn 733 with a really bad knee that was swollen up to 27 inches just four weeks before the meet. Shane Church with a smooth 931 lbs, Mario Piatelli with a nice 900 lb squat until he lost his balance at starting back up, Ryan Selk with a 904 squat opener, Al Mehan with the best meet of his life, strong squats by Chris Skoda, Marc Demers, Nicholas Morneau and John Kolesar. Also, very impressive was Thom Lamb who came from New Brunswick for his first meet in years and managed a 661 raw squat and a 705 raw deadlift, all looking very strong.

The after party was fun too. We started at Cage Aux Sports for food and drinks and then we got convinced to go to Traffik a dance bar, where the owner recognized Al Mehan from 8 months ago, and brought out 4 bottles of Champagne and keep bringing us all free drinks and shooters all night. I think we are happy that we didn't bring our cars and took cabs back to the motel and home. It was great to spend time with everyone.

Nicole and Shawna cleaned up and mopped the gym and Tuesday Jeffrey Morse, Carmine and I unloaded the trailer and put back all the gym equipment in record time, 1 hour and 20 minutes - unbelievable, including moving the three monolifts. Jeff is a master with the jigger.

I guess the best thing about this meet was that everyone is really motivated to get back in the gym and train harder and people are already starting their training for the next meet - THE 2011 CANADIAN PRO/AM CHAMPIONSHIPS!!!

Everyone did openers today, I went light in case I am able to do the bench only.

bar x reps

145 x 10

235 x 5

briefs

325 x 5

415 x 5

415 x 10

I've gone heavy last two weeks, so decided to take an easier day today and also focus on helping everyone with their openers.

Shawna, Ghislain, Joanick, Chris and me on one monolift, Carmine, Jared and Daniel did box squats on the other monolift.

For the warm-ups we used the pound plates, and for the openers, we used the Kilo plates. We upped Shawna's opener from 325 lbs, to 353 lbs, so we will throw her 325 lbs back into the warm-up with knee wraps. Good atmosphere again today, great training session. Everyone is ready!!! this was the last training session before the meet next Saturday.

Body weight 230.2 lbs

Another Great bench night! Openers for everyone and max for me

bar x reps

135 x 10

225 x 3

315 just hold and rack

loose shirt on

425 x 1

475 x 1

tighter shirt on

525 miss

Very happy and upset at the same time, happy that the 475 went up so well and that the 525 went up so quickly and almost to lockout, upset that I didn't finish it and actually get it. I was determined to get it. Next time, maybe will bench at the meet if the meet preparations go well and I have time to go and bench during the meet.

Scott MacDiarmid, Jamie Seguin, BIG Leo Tilli, Carmine, Joanick Boilard, Chris Skoda, Shawna and me. Shawna practiced ramping up with bigger jumps to reduce the amount of work done in warming up and it worked really well, did her opener of 250 perfectly. Jamie hit a great 500 lb bench pr, we have no idea what his max will be... Scott played with his opener and his second lift both 500 lbs +. Good atmosphere, focus and great lifting. Meets have a way of focusing people.

Body weight 229.8 lbs

Carmine, Shawna and me. No Chris - first training session he ever missed since he started.

135 x 10 conventional x 6 sumo

225 x 3 conventional x 5 sumo

315 x 4 sumo

suit and briefs on

405 x 1

495 x 1

545 x 1

Balance is getting better each week with sumo. Still not there but the 545 felt not too bad. Got nosebleed at 495, and it poured at 545 so stopped there.

Bodyweight 229.1 lbs.

11 days before the meet, but I am not doing the meet, unless everything goes really well and I feel pretty good. Bench today with Shawna, Chris, Carmine, and new guy Florian.

bar x reps

135 x 10

135 x 6

225 x 7

225 x 10

225 x 9

focussed tonight on bringing the shoulders back and tightening my back and benching with my back. It actually took a lot of stress off my shoulder and the weight flew easier. It's all about learning to keep everything super tight.

biceps and triceps

fixed barbell overhead press 10 x 65 lbs, curls 10 x 65 lbs, tricep push downs 10x 120 lbs

cable pulls 6 +3 halfs bicep curl with two holes in the big plates each arm, then 6 x tricep pushdowns each arm

cable crossover standing fly's

Feeling pretty pumped...

bodyweight this morning 228.8 lbs - ate and drank alot today.

Pretty good squat day for me

bar x reps

145 x 10,

145 x 6

235 x 5

briefs

325 x 3

415 x 1

suit on

505 x 1

knee wraps

595 x 1

700 x 1

Everything felt heavy, pushed through anyway, saw the video and saw that the weights felt heavy because I was not locking my knees out and standing up fully before squatting. Will work on a better stand-up next week.

was great to have Hilda, Mike and Shane Church visit. Shane benched an easy 545 lbs in a tighter denim shirt. Hilda did a very strong 300 lb squat in full gear and Mike did a perfect 465 lb squat in a suit. Chris Koda came in to get 600 lbs and he got it like he wanted to, great. Ghislain went up to 775 again and tried 585 on the deadlift. Joanick did his opener a couple of times, three I think at 750 lbs. Shawna sunk 325 and 350, then took 385, 400 and 425 lbs and then 360lbs. The 425 was just supposed to be a half squat to get her nervous system used to it and then go back to her 360 lb opener and do it again. Cheryl is working hard in the US and we missed her today. A great group, everyone serious and trying hard.

My bodyweight this morning was 226 lbs. down two pounds this week. I want to go back up to 242 but I keep losing weight and not gaining yet. But, strange at this bodyweight my lifts are all higher than ever before even when I was up at 262 lbs. Right now my briefs and suit go on and off easily. My bench shirt sleeves are loose.