Andrew's four week strength challenge.

As of yesterday, I begin a challenge. I challenged myself to gain between 10-15% strength on on a 10 rep max for a variety of lifts. 

Why am I doing this you may wonder? My response to that is I truly believe that achieving fitness is much easier than people want to believe. As Jeff wrote, (thanks for the lob) we can measure a lot of things, take simple steps and grow. I am applying this first hand in an effort to show people that you can easily achieve goals with the right preparation and action.

Ok so let's establish my baselines. I have been exercising with resistance for a long time, usually just working out with weights that are challenging and adapting exercises as I see fit. I can't say I have recorded, made a specific plan, or exercised with a program any more complex than a template of lifts for a long time. I am still strong as I have recently gotten into more of a strength training model rather than lifting for general fitness.

Here are my baseline scores:
Deadlift: 10 rep max=265
Squat: 10 rep max=225
Strict overhead press (no momentum): 10 rep max= 120
Pull-up: Maximum strict= 20

Here are my goals:
Deadlift 300+
Squat 265
Overhead press 140
Pullup 30

Oh did I mention that I will be working out two times a week, for no more than 30 minutes? This is the real kicker. People spend hours in the gym, I am spending one hour a week, over 4 weeks this is 4 hours. I am keeping my weight constant, and still training intensively for endurance events. Let's see what I can do!

Start date: 3/10 End 4/10

Here is the data of my first workout on the program.
3/10
Squat (pause at bottom) 205 x8
Pullup slow descent pause at top x8
Walking lunge: 50x8 ea leg
Standing DB press (slow reps) 40lbs, x8
I did 5 rounds circuit style in 26 min.

Sound too good to be true? Follow me on my journey as I look to prove how easy it really is to reach goals with the right program, action, and data.

Interested in reaching a fitness goal in limited time and effort? Email Dynamic Training and Nutrition and get help today!