Last Bench before da meet...

I've been working ridiculous hours the past couple of weeks and it's been hard to get training in when I get home at 9PM or later, so today I took a longish lunch to head home and get a bench session in with Jess. We rocked it.

A1. Mobility

Leg Swings

Squat Pulls

Band Scapular Pulldown

B1. Bench Press

8 x 95#

5 x 135#

3 x 185#

1 x 205#

1 x 225#

1 x 250# did this one with competition calls

1 x 270#

I brought the 270# way too high but still ground the rep out. I think my 3 attempts for bench will be 250#, 270-275#, 290#.

This leads me to my dilemma. 12 days before the meet, and I want to get one more deadlift session in, but it's the most taxing lift. I'm not sure what to do- maybe just warm it up? I feel like I need to get it in somehow... Discuss.

seas of cheese and the like

Mmm, should see if Primus is on napster...Sailing the Seas of Cheese is an interesting album, mainly due to the fact that it was one of those albums that defined a significant portion of my high school years, in other words it fills me with a terrible fondness interspersed with all kinds of rage and anger. But lest this devolve into yet another rant about how horrible my high school years were, Noisuf-X. Also...search by label Napster? Oh my, we will certainly be friends for...a little bit at least until you start removing all the music i need to listen to. Anyway, afternoon numbers:

• Face Pull: 4x10 130
• Seated Row: 4x10 140
• Bent Lateral: 4x10 40
• Standing Uni Shoulder Press: 4x10 45
• Cable Curl: 4x10 110
• Standing Uni EZ Bar Preacher Curl: 4x10 Bar
• Standing EZ Bar French: 4x10 75
• Straight Arm Pushdown: 4x10 140

I imagine HR is very soon going to ask me to stop destroying whole roasted chickens in full view of my co-workers...ah well.

i'll laugh last

Yay, no wanting to puke this time! Seriously, that's the worst feeling in the world. Easing into this high rep superset thing for now, esp as it's a two-a-day. Landmine rows are interesting, will take a bit of time to figure out technique on those...is cool, is cool.

• Rack-n-Run DB Bench: 20,15,12,8,6 35,40,45,55,70
• Wide Grip Pulldown: 15,12,12,8,8 120,130,130,150,150
• A1. Incline Press: 5x10 115
• A2. Landmine Row: 5x10 90
• B1. Elevated Plyo Pushup: 5x15
• B2. Seated Row: 5x12 120,130,130,140,140

Nutrition and recovery are really the things i need to work on, to be honest, and really recovery. As much as i'm enjoying writing the articles and doing the GDC madness and such, I'll be happy when i can go back to just training and sleeping. Being part of the hipster coffeeshop author crowd was fun today...looking forward to producing tunes in said environment.

Last squat before the meet...

Today was the last squat session before the comp in 2 weeks. Only a bench and deadlift session left, then a week at GDC, and then the meet. It's a comin' fast.

A1. Mobility

Leg Swings
Squat Pulls
Band Scapular Pulldowns
Glute Ham Bridges

B1. Squat

8 x 45#
5 x 135#
3 x 185#
3 x 225#
1 x 275#
1 x 315#
1 x 2 x 335#

The 335# was going to be my opener, but it felt like garbage on both attempts, so I am going to lower my opener to 325#. My squat attempts for the meet will be 325#, 350#, 375#.

C1. Prehab

X-Band walks
shoulder int/ext rotations
Lateral Step-unders

D1. Uphill Sled Drag/Downhill sprint

4 x 30yds x Prowler + 140# forward drag uphill, sprint push downhill

Goal for the meet is to get a qualifying total for Raw Nationals in August. I think I'm ready...

Before nationals, we may try this Strongman Comp in Ohio in May: http://nastrongman.com/central11.pdf/central11.pdf

Depends on if I can get the time off from work, and the budget works out...

the time has come

As much as i keep telling myself I'm not the sort that trains till they puke anymore, that's probably a lie...

• Snatch Grip High Pull: 5x3 145
• Bent Over Row: 4x10 175
• 2 Point DB Row: 5x5 90
• DB Shoulder Press: 10/10/10/8 45
• A1. Wide Grip Pulldown: 3x10 150
• A2. Neutral Grip Pulldown: 3x10 120
• A3. Kneeling Neutral Grip: 3x10 200

And that is as far as i made it today, damn. You know, you hear different things, "when you start back after a break, start slow," all the way to "I pulled a PR first workout after 3 weeks off!", i guess you just have to find an inbetween. The 2 point dumbbell rows may be my new favorite exercise, what a great pre-exhaustion set. Let's see how big i can get in the week before GDC...

It may be time to clean the garage...

...judging by the spider that decided to say hello to my forehead while benching. Yeah.

DE Upper day

A1. Mobility

Leg Swings
Squat Pulls
Band Scapular Contraction
Glute Ham Bridges

B1. Bench w/ 20# Chains

2 x 8 x 45#
2 x 5 x 95#
2 x 3 x 135#
2 x 2 x 185#
6 x 2 x 205# + 2 chains

On the 4th set, right before I was about to press the second rep, I saw a dark spot grow larger and larger coming towards my face. The spider landed on my forehead and I swear I heard it yell "Press MUTHAF*CKA!" Maybe it was my internal monologue yelling at me to get the damn spider off my forehead. Awesome.

C1. BB Row

6 x 4 x 195#

I practiced dropping the bar, under control, on ever rep and resetting, to try to eliminate the eccentric part of the lift to see if it helps with recovery.

D1. Forearm Roller

3 x 25# up and down

D2. Shoulder Prehab

Internal Rotation 3 x 8 x small band
External Rotation 3 x 8 x small band
Lateral Raises 3 x 8 x 10#

Starting to taper down a bit for the meet in 2.5 weeks. Getting a bit antsy now for it, too...

Strongman Sundays are back!

I have horrible, and I mean horrible, conditioning right now, and I need to fix it. So I decided to work some strongman GPP back into my life. It helps that the weather is getting nicer and it's not pitch black out at 4pm anymore.

A1. Mobility

Leg Swings
Squat Pulls
Glute Ham Bridges

B1. 300# Tire Flip

4 x 12 flips on 1 minute rest

This kicked my ass. Yeah, nowhere near the shape I was in last summer.

C1. Farmer's Walk

4 x 30 yards w/130# per hand. Alternating Uphill/Downhill/Uphill/Downhill

These were surprisingly not as hard as I thought they'd be. But I had some serious lower back pump after the tire flips and these, so I rested a bit while Jess did some forward sled drags before I did them.

D1. Forward Sled Drag

1 x 15 yards x Prowler + 140# Uuuhhhh, yeah. Too much weight, esp. going uphill...
3 x 40 yards x Prowler + 110# Much better. Dragged it uphill while mimicking hand motions for a truck pull, and pushed it downhill in a sprint.

Overall a good session. I am beat, but man it was fun. And that's what this is all about, right?

Bench bench bench, down in my belly

After watching 'Cuse lose pathetically to Louisville, I decided that I needed to rage lift. So I did, forgetting until I was halfway through that I had to come into work today. So this training log is gonna be dry. Scotch.

A1.

Leg Swings
Squat Pulls
Band Scapular Pulldowns
Band Internal/External Rotations

B1. Bench

2 x 8 x 45#
2 x 5 x 95#
2 x 5 x 135#
2 x 3 x 185#
1 x 225#
1 x 245#
1 x 265#

After bombing the bench last week, I wanted to lower the weight and get something competition-worthy.

C1. Push Press

12 x 185# (3,3,3,3)

I think I had 200# in me for these, if I could rest a bit longer. But, I felt pressed for time (no pun intended) to get to work sooner so I wouldn't be here all night.

D1. 1-Armed Rows

4 x 6 x 95#

D2. Dips

4 x 6 x bw

Dips were killer. I noticed my triceps were feeling a bit weak on the bench, so I decided to work these in today.

E1. Front Plate Holds

3 x 45# x 30s

Overall a solid training session. It's beautiful out and I wanted to do some sled dragging at the end, but I needed to get in to the office for a bit. Now, I am off to animate in magicland.

Me Likey To Deadlifty

Another long day at work, got home and forced myself to lift tonight. I'm happy I did. I'm also thankful that my lovely wife was willing to wait on dinner till 9pm.

A1. Mobility

Leg Swings
Squat Pulls
Glute Bridges

B1. Deadlift
2 x 5 x 135#
2 x 3 x 225#
2 x 2 x 275#
1 x 315#
1 x 365#
0 x 405# It was glued to the floor, so I reset and tried again
0 x 405# BAH! Got it 2-3" off the floor, pulled as long as I could and let it go. Lame.
1 x 385# I couldn't let the session go with only 2 singles, so I pulled some weight off and ripped this one out. A few weeks ago I wouldn't have been able do this, so I guess I am getting stronger...

C1. SSB 12" Box Squats

12 x 290# (2,3,3,2,2)

D1. Pullups

4 x 6 x bw + 1 medium band

D2. Blast Strap Ab Fallouts

4 x 6 x bw

E1. Hip Prehab

Step unders
X-band walk

Overall, not a bad session, esp. for being as late as it was. 3 weeks of training left and 4 weeks till the comp.

an army of mummies

And now a bunch of stuff from Sunday, the net effect of ramming two workouts together since my weekend took an unexpected turn.

• Squat: x8/x8/x10 245/225/225
• Deadlift: x8/x8/x9 245/225/225
• Good Morning: 3x8 165
• Uni Shoulder Press: 2x10 45
• DB Row: 2x10 90
• Snatch Hi Pull: x3/x3/x3/x3/x5 125
• Bar Bent Row: 4x10 175
• DB Shoulder Press: x10/x10/x8 50
• A1 Lat Raise: x10/x5/x20 25/30/15
• A2 Front Raise: x10/x5/x20 25/30/15
• B1 Lat Pulldown: x10/x10/x8 150/140/120
• B2 Neutral Grip Pulldown: x10/x10/x8 120/120/120
• B3 Kneeling Neutral Grip w/Hold: x10/x10/x8 120/120/120

Anyway, totally unrelated rant aside, yeah my weekend sucked but who cares? This was one of the best workouts i've had in a long time. Having to lay out for a bit between sets is a good feeling. I think this might be the first time i've actually worked out for more than an hour at a time. It was good...it was good. Actually, before you read any more of this, go here now:

Intermittent fasting diet for fat loss, muscle gain, and health

One of my new fav blogs, really diggin what's here, you may find something you enjoy. Or you may just feel like you know it all and have your own opinion, which you're certainly welcome to. Just post it in your own damn facebook instead of being a little bitch and muddying up mine.

Blah...one of these days i'll know better than to work out when i'm feeling the onset of illness, but man, that flood of positive chemicals just makes you feel like you can take on the world.

Shower food and stuff.

boring, boring, boring

Nothing to see here, move along to the next post.

• EZ Curl: 3x10 90
• Bent Hammer: 3x10 45
• Strict DB Curl: 3x10 30
• Zottman: 3x10 20
• Rope Extension: 3x10 160
• Overhead Extension: 3x10 120
• EZ Reverse: 3x10 45

Friday, pre-travel.

What a week

Yeah, I totally slagged off on training this week. After Tuesday I worked 11-12 hours a day and just didn't have the energy to train when I got home. So Saturday was ME Bench day. Woot.

A1.

Leg Swings
Squat Pulls
Band Scapular Pulldowns
Band Internal/External Rotations

B1. Bench

2 x 8 x 45#
2 x 5 x 95#
2 x 5 x 135#
2 x 3 x 185#
1 x 225#
1 x 245#
0 x 275#

The bomb at 275# was spectacular. Jessica was spotting me and usually doesn't have a problem with me failing up to 315#, but on this rep I failed to fast and so bad that I pinned myself under the bar, Jess fell on top of me while trying to lift it off. Needless to say, the CNS strain was killer, since I as holding the thing off my ribs for a while. We finally racked it after a few seconds, my shoulders, elbows and ribs killing me. I rested a bit and moved on. Jess felt bad all night, even though she shouldn't. So everyone tell her to not worry about it, dammit. It happens.

C1. Push Press

12 x 175# (3,3,2,2,2)

D1.

Band pressdowns and band bicep curls (prehab)

After the push press my shoulder hurt too much to go on. I iced the hell out of it and feel fine today, thankfully. I was going to do the rest of the training session today,but I think I'll rest up for tomorrow.

fuzzy logic

I'm going to whine a little bit, so skip to the numbers if you want, because seriously, i'm just going to bitch. Ready? Dear lord, even at 200g of carbs, 210 if you care for minutia, i can barely think. Seriously, i'm so flattened right now i'm not sure how i kept my car on the road. From what i've heard, this is what it's like going into bodybuilding competitions for some people, now if only i looked like a bodybuilder. I feel like a fucking beached whale instead, times like this make me wish i'd bought a couch. Alright, after i'm all payed out for GDC i'm doing that, so i can come home and die on nights like this. Seriously, i'm even considering a reckless speeding drive down to IKEA before it closes just to pick up something to tide me over. Realizing that won't work, i'm thinking maybe i can rig something up with my extra pillows. Alright i'm not done whining, but i will be for now. The numbers:

• Romanian: 8/8/10 225/245/225
• Bent Over Row: 3x8 175
• Clean High Pull: 3x8 105 -> 115
• Incline Press: 2x10 155
• Bent Hammer: 3x10 40
• Floor Press:2x10 65

My incline press is just getting destroyed. I wish i could blame it on 24 Hour's shitty benches, but it's probably my short hobbit legs that don't let me get a good purchase on the floor. I'm liking the bent curls too, they're almost eccentric less in a way, tho not quite as much as band work. Yeah pretty much alot of things just worked in this split, i think i'll keep some of what i've learned today going forward. Alright screw this, i'm seeing monsters, i'm losing my mind and i feel it going...

Clean & Pressed For Time

Almost didn't lift tonight, on account of working late, but I forced myself to do it. I modified the workout a bit to be more realistic considering how tired I was. Clever remark here. Etc.

A1. Clean & Press w/ Fat Gripz

4 x 6 x 115#

B1. Blast Strap Pushups

Chain was around my neck- wouldn't stay on my shoulders...

3 x 8 x bw + 20# chain

B2. Straight Bar Curls

OMG I curled in the squat rack! I should be banned from my own gym!!!

3 x 8 x 65#

C1. Hip Prehab

C2. Shoulder Prehab

I was in no mood to train tonight, so I am happy I got in there for even a half hour.