The competition: The week before

    I will be performing three strength events (The Bench, The DeadLift, and the Squat).   Immediately after these three lifts, I will be getting timed in the 60 yard shuttle, the 40 yard dash, and the 400m run.  The optional events i'm not doing include the standing military press and the broad jump.  It will also be a test of durability as this set of events in succession puts a great strain on the entire body.

For the last 3 weeks I've been dealing with low back pain.  Probably related to overtraining in the Squat and Dead lift as these two exercise days have been followed by extreme soreness in the lower back muscles.  The degree of soreness has worsened over time and now there is a constant low level discomfort.  This has meant that I have had to back off heavy training for the last 3 weeks leading up to the competition which indeed will likely curtail my chances of hitting PRs.

Nevertheless, deloading is a known but controversial subject in weightlifting and competition in general.  Elite athletes must push their training efforts to the brink of what their bodies can tolerate without getting injured.  This is often a fine line, which becomes even finer as we age.  At age 41, I've realized that I must carefully find that line as it is easy to cross over.   This is particularly problematic as I've gotten older.

In general, most athletes agree that deloading about 1 week before they are to perform is ideal.  7 to 8 days of rest allows the body to heal itself so that on event day you are 100%.  During heavy training, the stress loads on the body put it in a constant state of repair and as that stress increases, the duration required for recovery also increases.  I performed my last maximal effort in squat on 6/17.  this is nearly 4 weeks before my maximal effort in squat tomorrow (7/13).  This was not intended as my workouts in squats were hampered by low back pain issues which required me to decrease the intensity and weight lifted in the last several sessions.  My last maximal workout session in the deadlift was performed on 6/21.  Once again, back pain has limited by last two sessions to come out full bore.  Fortunately, I was able to perform a maximal bench exercise session on 6/28 putting me at only 2 weeks out.  I will be curious to see how this much time off effects my output tomorrow morning.

Speed Strength Combine: Agenda (Saturday July 13, 2013)
Wake up 7am-light breakfast (carbs)
7:30-to Gym, soak in Jacuzzi with jets to loosen up back for 10 min.
8am: warm up and perform maximal bench.  My plan is to do 305 lbs for as many reps as possible to calculate a 1 RM (permitted by the rules of the combine). goal is 5 reps.
8:15am perform Squat (plan on doing reps with 415 lbs to calculate 1 RM). (goal is 3 reps).
8:45am perform DL.  My goal was 500 lbs; I believe given the issues of the last few weeks, i'm going to try for only 485 lbs 1 rep with wrist straps (this is permitted in the speed strength combine).
9:15am track: warm up then perform the 40 yard dash, 60 yard shuttle and 400m run
done by 10:15am.

goals: 40 yard dahs (4.78s), 60 yard shuttle (12.9s) and 400m (58s).

To see my score see this link.