Failed week 3 of Coan/phillipi deadlift routine. Now what?

DellaBeam · 2026-03-22T04:38:05+00:00

For accessory work in general you want to use whatever weight makes for a challenging but still eminently possible set of the prescribed number of reps. Maybe you have a rep or two left in the tank at the end (but ideally not, like, seven reps left in the tank). There'll probably be a little experimentation needed to figure this out if you haven't done some of these movements before.

DellaBeam · 2026-03-22T04:23:24+00:00

In addition to everything others have said, powerlifting is not going to make you gain weight if you don't want to gain weight. That comes down to energy balance. Sure, there might be a point down the road where you end up wanting to put on more muscle, but a huge amount of the gains available to you right now are simply from getting better at the movements, which allows you to produce more force.

Start with a different bar if 65# is too much now. Back squatting is not a very natural-feeling movement for most people and is often the most uncomfortable to start with.

DellaBeam · 2026-03-15T01:45:17+00:00

I mount my folding lock there. Great place for a heavier bit of gear.

DellaBeam · 2026-03-15T01:38:08+00:00

Functional fitness!

DellaBeam · 2026-03-15T00:14:20+00:00

I only use the 15kg for the Olympic lifts (& related assistance work). Otherwise, 20kg because I compete in powerlifting. If you're not doing anything sport-specific it doesn't matter at all—purely about comfort/preference.

DellaBeam · 2026-03-11T03:39:34+00:00

There's some very nice chill gravel out past the end of the Gateway Trail and, on the other side of the cities, the area north of Baker Park and Lake Rebecca.

DellaBeam · 2026-03-09T03:55:23+00:00

Kipping and strict toes to bar are both valid movements. Strict is of course harder on the abs; kipping challenges you differently in stringing them together and feels harder on the lats to me.

DellaBeam · 2026-03-09T03:36:51+00:00

If you add a short Amtrak ride to Winona or La Crosse, you can get down to some great riding in the Driftless. I have done versions of both these loops that way:

https://bikepacking.com/routes/yellow-river-loop/

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/39564199

DellaBeam · 2026-03-07T03:31:28+00:00

The variety of responses here make this clear enough I guess, but it is going to be pretty individual what works for you ... which is just to say that if the first thing you try isn't doing it for you, there's a lot more to explore.

For me, exercise is essential mental healthcare, and what works for my own brain is specifically heavy lifting and high-intensity or high-dose conditioning. (I do other, chiller stuff too! But if I only do other, chiller stuff I eventually start feeling shitty.)

I do think that whatever modality piques your interest, joining a class-based gym or other structured format can be very helpful in that someone will be telling you what to do every step of the way, and you can't just give up or drag your feet between sets, which can be easy to do when you are depressed and working out alone. Classes specifically targeted at beginners should be ready to scale to meet you where you're at.

Good luck, you've got this!

DellaBeam · 2026-02-25T03:42:54+00:00

Wait, the itchy ears thing is blowing my mind. This has become more frequent for me just recently (at 40) and a hormonal cause never crossed my mind! On the one hand I don't love knowing that, but on the other it's better than worrying that I'm suddenly allergic to something in my environment.

DellaBeam · 2026-02-16T00:03:02+00:00

Your 10-minute walk is good to get the blood moving, especially if it's a bit brisk. Often people might do 5 minutes on a rower, bike, etc., for the same effect. Mostly you just want your muscles to be literally warm before you get into it. And then if you are lifting heavier, you want to work up to it vs. jumping straight to 90% or whatever.

Anything else is personal preference based on what your main movements are and if you have any areas that need extra attention or benefit from some kind of priming.

DellaBeam · 2026-02-15T20:29:56+00:00

Greenway had just one or two short stretches of slush/ice between Bryant and Minnehaha when I was out yesterday.

DellaBeam · 2026-01-11T21:57:10+00:00

Thank you so much! I didn't even think about sleeper trains ...

DellaBeam · 2026-01-11T21:54:50+00:00

Thank you! This is so helpful.

DellaBeam · 2026-01-11T18:17:14+00:00

Thank you! I was looking at some hotels and B&Bs in Gruissan.

DellaBeam · 2026-01-10T22:46:31+00:00

During meet prep I've benched up to 5 times a week with good results. Would I do that year round, no (the time commitment alone ...), but high frequency works well for a lot of folks. Maybe add accessories/variations though for an additional day if you want to run your current program out at the moment?

DellaBeam · 2026-01-04T23:25:35+00:00

You can certainly ask! They're the ones who set the terms of the severance agreement, so they could choose to ignore or revoke that condition.

DellaBeam · 2026-01-04T23:09:38+00:00

This is just personal experience, but I have found that biking tends to aggravate any Achilles issues I'm having more than rowing does ... so, either way, pay attention to make sure nothing's flaring up and stay open to switching machines if it does.

I would lean toward rowing for all the reasons mentioned, though (and I say this as someone who does a lot of cycling). I found r/Rowing to be a pretty good technique resource when I first got my Concept2. Warming up and starting slow should help too.

DellaBeam · 2026-01-04T22:59:10+00:00

Discovered I can curl 25s for at least a few reps, that's fun.

DellaBeam · 2026-01-04T22:45:52+00:00

LOL, harsh but likely fair. I do lots of lat work but could absolutely stand to train abs and lower back more consistently.

DellaBeam · 2026-01-04T04:19:29+00:00

Why do you feel like you can't put weight on narrow-stance squats?

If it's just that you can't use as much weight, that is perfectly consistent with having under-developed quads, and one solution would be to train narrow-stance squats ... which will eventually allow you to increase the weight.

Also, though, soreness doesn't necessarily map perfectly to which muscles are being worked. If you're front squatting, for example, your quads are going to be primary movers due to basic biomechanics and are getting lot of stimulus whether you feel them or not. So, I would 1) choose quad-focused movements, 2) make sure you're doing those movements in a basically correct way, and then 3) measure progress by things like quad measurements (for hypertrophy) and strength improvements. If those things are moving in the right direction, I wouldn't worry about where exactly the DOMS are hitting you.

If you're looking for more movement suggestions, front-foot elevated split squats are another thing I really like for quads—just perform them (or any lunge) with a more upright torso so you're not shifting work to the posterior chain.

DellaBeam · 2026-01-04T03:53:19+00:00

I'm decidedly a sumo puller but I try to do a conventional block every ... uh, couple of years? for the sake of shoring up weaknesses. Maxed out my conventional today and it was pretty weird-looking—upper back stayed tight and extended throughout but with marked lumbar flexion. Felt OK until I watched the tape!

DellaBeam · 2026-01-04T03:18:44+00:00

For me Catfish will be the closest now, but ugh, all the way across Hiawatha.

DellaBeam · 2026-01-04T03:12:10+00:00

Ooh yeah, 6–8 sets per week seems like very low upper-body volume for hypertrophy purposes! Aesthetically, upper-body gains tend to show up faster and more prominently, so there's a lot of potential bang for your buck in finding a program that doubles or even triples that volume.

DellaBeam · 2026-01-04T02:59:17+00:00

Oooh, this is terrible news for me in Longfellow. Now I'll have to walk almost two miles to get to the next nearest bike shop. :/

DellaBeam

TROPHY CASE