Currently ~9 weeks out from the IPF/NAPF Pan-American Championships taking place in Ribeirao Preto, Brazil (Sept.16, 2015), and ~13 weeks out from USAPL Raw Nationals. I will be competing in the 72kg class, and this will be my first year as an Open Division lifter (no longer a Junior).
So I recently got invited/the opportunity to be on the U.S. National Team (Raw Division) for the IPF/NAPF Pan-American Championships happening this September in Brazil. While it was super exciting news, I was conflicted on whether or not to accept the invitation. The reason being, it's about ~4 weeks prior to USAPL Nationals.
So what to do? First thing I did was consult my coach. His first question for me was "well, what are our priorities? What're our goals?". While USAPL Nationals would usually be my top priority, since it's a qualifier for IPF Raw Worlds-- this being my first year in the Open Division, and being realistic with my goals, Open Worlds isn't likely in the cards this year. So all that leaves for Nationals is qualifying for the Arnold, which I will be able to achieve without any issues.
We see the Pan-Ams as an opportunity for me to get more International Meet experience, and even more importantly, International Meet experience as an Open lifter (a more competitive playing field). Now, this isn't to say that I won't still be coming in full force at Raw Nationals-- it just may mean that I'm coming in at 97% rather than the 100% I'd be at if I didn't compete 4 weeks out from the meet.
All in all, I'm stoked and ready to have 2 of my best performances to date this Fall!
Training: W1-D1
Squat w/belt x1 @8, then move to 80%x3 (-12%). (NL=27)
10-15min Dynamic Warm- Ups
bar x 10
135x5
185x4
225x2
255x1
(put belt on) 275x1
295x1
315x1
335x1
290 x 3 reps x 9 sets
Competition Raw Bench x1 @8, then adjust to 92%x1 (+0%). (NL=10)
Bar x 5
95 x 5
135x3
155x2
175x 1
185 x 1 x 10 sets
Cambered Bar 2Board x4 @6, x4 @7, x4 @8 plus 3 down sets (repeat) (Ran out of time, pushing this supplemental movement to weekend training)