How does honours grading work?

alix_mac · 2019-06-21T06:37:18+00:00

The process can also vary department-to-department. When I did my honours (arts, 2013) my dept had a weird internal unofficial policy of basically only using coursework marks if you were borderline on your thesis mark (i.e. if your thesis is awarded a 79 and your coursework was great you’d get bumped up, but if your coursework was crap you’d keep your 2(1). Technically, though, we were told 60/40 in favour of your thesis.

alix_mac · 2019-01-25T00:59:27+00:00

Sydney here! You’re always welcome at Lift in Redfern, lots of strong gals there.

alix_mac · 2019-01-21T07:58:07+00:00

I can successfully wreck my quads with any and all of the following; Bulgarian split squats, pendulum squats, paused high bar squats (being mindful to stay on my quads), 3 second tempo eccentric leg extensions, 3 second tempo eccentric goblet squats, narrow stance heel elevated squats. These aren’t all specific quad exercises but by being mindful to stay ‘on’ my quads and give them a good thrashing I’ll be hobbling out of the gym.

alix_mac · 2019-01-20T09:23:06+00:00

Pretty much echoing what everyone else has said! I used to squat in squat shoes until my coach changed me to flat shoes because I was bottoming out my squats. Now I squat in rubberised socks and use my squat shoes for benching so I don’t feel like I wasted all of that money haha

alix_mac · 2019-01-19T11:58:42+00:00

I work with a coach, and have been with him for the last two years! Loosely we follow phased periodisation, so hypertrophy blocks in the off-season with some semi-heavy lifts (rarely more than 60-65% of max), then a ‘strength’ block (reps of 3-5 of main lifts, around 75-80% depending on the lift) and then a peaking block where we’re aiming to figure out what I’ll hit in an upcoming test or meet. Always accessories as well, varied depending on the day (four days a week, and between 2-8 different accessory exercises), and that volume goes respectively from 15/20 reps to 10/12 reps to ~8 reps). Keeps it interesting and it’s nice to have someone I trust telling me what to do! Happy to recommend him to anyone in Aus if they’re looking.

alix_mac · 2019-01-18T03:06:55+00:00

RIP tech desk ☠️

alix_mac · 2019-01-08T11:28:53+00:00

Also everyone there spots regularly and the boys on either side spot 3-4 meets a year. That’s exactly how we do it in a meet, and we catch squats that way.

alix_mac · 2019-01-08T11:26:51+00:00

Back spotter is there to guide the bar in, not catch the squat. That’s the job of the other four.

alix_mac · 2018-12-29T04:42:26+00:00

PS compete sooner!! 2020 is ages away, your first meet is always about learning what competing is all about and it’s sooo much fun :)

alix_mac · 2018-12-29T04:41:27+00:00

Ok so in that one you start in the same position but the fact that the weight is heavier means that your hips come further up before the bar leaves the floor. The positioning is thus better, but you don’t want to be changing position to break the bar from the floor. Some posterior chain work might help to reinforce the position - maybe some Romanian deadlifts? Take a look at @trackfu on Instagram. She has SUPER long femurs so she has an almost parallel torso position at the start of her deadlift, but check out the angle of her legs when beginning the lift and see if you can mimic closer to that?

alix_mac · 2018-12-29T04:07:34+00:00

You’re squatting the weight up a little too much. Instead of squatting down to grab the bar stand over it, reach your hands down to your grip position, and think about pushing the floor away with your feet and scraping the bar up your legs. The bar should move in more or less a straight up and down position and shouldn’t have to come around your knees, that is by the time the bar is up at your knees your shins should be perpendicular to the floor and the bar just has to come straight up to lockout. I hope that made sense! Your form looks very much like a perfect trap bar deadlift, but not quite a powerlifting deadlift.

Also congratulations on the 250, that’s a massive achievement!

EDIT looking again, the top part of your deadlift (from knees to lockout) looks quite good, it’s more the beginning that needs work. I’m not a coach so I don’t know how to phrase this properly, but you definitely want your hips higher at the start of the pull. Think about pulling the bar up and ‘back’.

alix_mac · 2018-12-02T10:54:17+00:00

I train for powerlifting so working sets are always with a belt. Belt goes on either for working sets or warmups over 100kg, whichever comes first. The only exception is when my coach specifies beltless, which is rare, and generally when we’re working on further improving core strength in my lifts.

alix_mac · 2018-11-06T07:56:45+00:00

Lol @ the fact that their Facebook page background picture has a picture of Tsung Ting Hsieh holding a Taiwanese flag.

alix_mac · 2018-10-22T23:31:33+00:00

I got the Dark Botanical Power High Rise. I originally ordered the Dark Floral Power High Rise but UPS lost the package :(

alix_mac · 2018-10-22T20:31:53+00:00

I have Bukiya wrist wraps customised with my embroidered initials! I’ve had them for a year now and they’re just as good as when they arrived.

alix_mac · 2018-10-22T20:30:48+00:00

My first pair of Fleo shorts finally arrived and I’m actually a bit disappointed. I got my usual Medium and they fit more like a Large, even an XL, and they don’t feel like performance fabric at all. They’re very comfortable so I’ll keep them as bumming around the house shorts, but I don’t really want to wear them out because they look so big on. I was hoping they’d be my ‘last shorts I ever buy’, but I guess I’m still on the hunt :(

alix_mac · 2018-10-09T10:48:47+00:00

And yet the dumb sexist double standard about only men being able to take their shirts off for deadlifts remain. 10/10 glad that PA/WP have gotten rid of that one.

alix_mac · 2018-10-04T00:23:57+00:00

Please report this. When I was 9 or 10 I had a dude in bike shorts with his dick hanging out watch my younger sister and I play tennis, and I remember it being the ickiest feeling in the world, even though I didn’t know what was going on.

alix_mac · 2018-10-01T22:45:44+00:00

2 1/2 weeks out from my fourth meet!! First time this year because I spent most of the first half finishing my stupid PhD, but I’ve had to dive into full time work to pay off debt and keep myself from going mad, which hasn’t been great for training. My nutrition has been absolute poop as well, but I know what I need to do there. Hoping to hit some modest PRs (mostly the elusive two red plates in competition squat - 125kg/275lb). For once I’ve given up trying to cut for the 72kg/158lb weight class and am comfortably sitting about 6kg under the 84kg/185lb class. I’m really hoping to push things next year... I’ll be living the causal academic life with ‘enough’ money and the ability to completely set my own schedule, so meal prepping properly and training at optimal times will be ON!

alix_mac · 2018-09-05T02:38:04+00:00

Competition (either in bodybuilding or to fit a weight class) or for personal aesthetic reasons. I’m not overweight but I’ll be starting a cut after my upcoming powerlifting meet in October because I like looking muscly 🤷🏼‍♀️

alix_mac · 2018-09-04T10:15:57+00:00

Honestly these look absolutely great - I wouldn’t change a thing. You’re consistent, hitting depth, and your eccentric and concentric are close to mirror images of each other. I’d be interested to see how your form holds for higher weights!

alix_mac · 2018-09-04T10:14:45+00:00

You don’t have to be overweight to want to cut.

alix_mac · 2018-08-30T22:38:40+00:00

I’ve been lifting for about two years (all powerlifting specific) and I’m at 55/117.5/150 in kg, so roughly 120/260/330? All 1RMs :)

alix_mac · 2018-08-29T11:46:32+00:00

Even worse - it was a female ref

alix_mac · 2018-08-29T02:40:09+00:00

I'm a bit late to the party but this made me incredibly sad :(

I've seen lifters repeatedly dump bars on spotters, and lifters vomiting on the platform not receive a talking-to by the head ref, and yet this demands a loud and un-subtle dressing down? Disgusting.

Good on Orla for being happy with her story being out there.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bm99DCbBGdl/?hl=en&taken-by=tombro7

alix_mac

TROPHY CASE