March 30, 2017 – Week 4, Day 2

5 Minutes Percor AMT

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx15

One Leg Leaning Calf Raises
BWx5/5
BWx5/5
BWx5/5

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx25

Hip Airplanes (supported)
BWx3/3

Squat Therapy (16” Box)
BWx25

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx25

Hip Airplanes (supported)
BWx3/3

16” Box Squats
45x10
95x5
135x5
185x5
225x3
275x3
315x3
350x3

Deadlifts
45x10 (bar on bumper plates)
95x5
135x3
185x2
225x1
275x3
275x3
275x3
275x3
275x3

Leg Raises
BWx35

Band Side Bends
ABx25/25

Stretching

Comments: SI and lower back have had slight aches this week. Possibly just from doing new movements (hip airplanes) or adding weight to stuff (50lbs increase on viper presses). It hasn’t gotten to the point where it is anything to the level of what I would consider pain and is still minimal discomfort. Just continuing to monitor it and make sure form is strict and nothing exacerbating it. Started out with the AMT. Heart rate up to only 155bpm. Not bad. Calf raises were good with both leg style. Still a little disparity between the legs on the single leg style but getting better. Still a bit weird the weak side is having a better time compared to the strong side. As with last session, next was a kind of superset of box touches with hip airplanes. The achiness was more present with the sumo style compared to conventional style on box touches but it could just be because it was first in order and I was bit warmed up and loose. Hip airplanes definitely need work. Trying to improve my form and performance to get the benefits of the exercise. Squat therapy broke up the superset. Some knee achiness on the first few reps in the right side but it went away as I got the cues down better. Lower back was feeling pretty fatigued by these. Box squats after that. Plan was to work up to 350lbs and see what happened, just like last time I went heavy on these. One to three reps. While the weight isn’t heavy really compared to what I used to do, it is better to be safe than sorry so I had the safety pins put in. May need to lower them if I go heavier as the weight pushing down might cause me to kiss the rails with the bar with heavier weight. Again, working on sitting into the arch while bracing. A bit tougher than last time since this was decent jump in weight compared to previous box squat sessions and the preceding set was the top set last time. Tough but it was done. Deadlifts from the floor after the box squats. Same weight as last time but less sets, more reps with the touch and go style. I wasn’t too sure how this would go. Warm-ups felt slow and heavy. Perhaps I was unintentionally saving myself for the money sets. I remembered that the weight felt slow last session too. However, the first pulls of these sets felt quite speedy. The subsequent reps felt slower though but video seems to suggest otherwise. The time under tension with the controlled lowering of the weight seems to be doing the trick here. I feel like I reached peak speed by the third set and stayed near that level the remaining sets. Really surprised me how crisp these felt compared to my warm-up sets and to last times deadlifts. After the squats and deads, I finished up with a set of leg raises. Felt good on the tender areas in the lower back. Then side bend with a band. Got the reps right this time. Felt like a good session and felt less aches by the end. Could just be from endorphins and the like from lifting. Home to stretch and eat and sleep.

March 28, 2017 – Week 4, Day 1

5 Minutes Percor AMT

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx15

One Leg Leaning Calf Raises
BWx5/5
BWx5/5
BWx5/5

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Hip Airplanes (supported)
BWx3/3

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Hip Airplanes (supported)
BWx3/3

12” Log Viper Presses
Dumbbells
10’sx10
20’sx5
30’sx5
40’sx5
Log
100x3
170x1
170x1
170x1
170x1
170x1
185x1
200x1

Chest Supported Rows
100x10
180x5
210x5
240x5
270x5
300x5

Dead Floor Presses
45x10
95x5
155x3
190x3
225x3
260x3
295x3

Stretching

Comments: I felt ok before the workout today but as soon as I left work my back got all tense. Not sure what that was about. Didn’t seem to be an issue while I was at the gym though. Warm up on the AMT. Felt good and easy. Heart rate at 155bpm. Calf work after that. The dual leg style is pretty easy compared to the one leg style. My “strong leg” seems to be having a harder time with these compared to the “weak leg”. Box touches with wide stance after that. Little achy but felt alright. A new exercise after that was hip airplanes. Pretty much attempting to work the hip mobility to see if perhaps something is still not firing correctly. Not satisfied with how I am being the new normal. I watched several videos to try and get the form down. Balance is tough on the lower legs (especially the “weak side”) so these were done with me holding the power rack for support. Will just have to see how these go. Regular box touches and then more hip airplanes after that. Then on to the weights. Viper pressing again on the agenda. Same warm-up with the dumbbells. Attempted to adjust the form from last time to be less of a hip hinge and more like how the actual lift with the log is. No spine jolt on these like last time haha. I had to slow things down a little on the set with 30lbs as there was just the one not in use and I had to put magnets on a 25lbs one to have a set to use. The first set with the log wasn’t the best. It was light but the drive form the hips was getting me off balance on the first two reps. I got it corrected by the last rep though. Then on to the working sets. Increased the weight with the aim for five singles done EMOM style. Aim for smooth reps, no excessive force. Definitely not as easy as last time but the weight had been increased. Since there were no issues, the next thing was to go for two heavier singles. The first one, I felt like I had the log too far away in the lap. Looked fast on video though. Don’t want the log to get out in front of me as that wouldn’t be good for the back. The next one, I made sure it was close but I think I hesitated on the hip drive so it was a bit slower of a lift. Still somewhat comfortable a lift. Technically the most I’ve done on this variation of log lift but this is also only the fourth time I’ve done it and the previous two sessions from years ago I was doing it wrong. From there, on to chest supported rows. Same as last time I went heavy; light warm-up and then five sets of five up to a smooth set of five. Aim being 10lbs more than last time. First work set told me that I would crush it as long as I kept my form tight. As I went up in weight, I made sure I was bracing the midsection. I was feeling a little ache from the two heavier viper presses. Feel good for more on these rows. Dead floor presses to finish off the session. Five sets of three with weights based off of percentages of the 1rm from last cycle. The way it worked out was going for the 3rm from last cycle as well. All the sets were pretty easy. No psyche up needed. I was briefly entertaining not using wrist wraps for the last set to make it more challenging but I figured I’d use them and just crush the weight. I feel like I could have made that a set of five or six if needed. Home to stretch and eat.

March 25, 2017 – Week 3, Day 3

5 Minutes Sled Drag (55lbs for .25 miles)

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx15

One Leg Leaning Calf Raises
BWx5/5
BWx5/5
BWx5/5

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Band Rows w/Biceps Stretch
MBx25/10 seconds

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Band Rows w/Biceps Stretch
MBx25/10 seconds

Yoke
217x50’ in 6.84 seconds
217x50’ in 6.69 seconds
307x50’ in 6.64 seconds
Minute Runs
402x50’ in 7.29 seconds
402x50’ in 7.15 seconds
402x50’ in 7.28 seconds
402x50’ in 6.64 seconds

Stone of Steel Over Bar (57”)
138x5
189x10

Stretching

Comments: I had every intention of getting up early and going to a strongman gym to train. I wasn’t expecting to have SI joint aches this week so I felt it was best to hold off on traveling to train for a little bit longer. So I slept in and got things set to train solo event work. Sled drag for my short warm-up. Heart rate did get up to 153bpm at the highest, which is the highest it has been doing this particular warm-up. Hips felt off but felt better as I kept walking. Got a decent lower back pump on the left side where things are tender so it leads me to think the soreness is more from muscles than nerve irritation right now. I had things setup for working out after the sled drag walk so I was able to do the corrective warming up exercises with short rests like a circuit. Calf raises felt good and moved right into the one leg style. Felt better than last workout. Box touches were good on the hamstrings. Hips ached but the movement felt good on the hamstrings. Band rows were good, feeling the pump mostly in the rear delts on these. Best the biceps stretch has felt so far. All the easy stuff was done so on to the difficult-ish stuff. This was going to be different in that I didn’t have as much rest between my previous workout (heavy lower body focus) and this one like the previous two weeks. Yoke with three warm-up sets into minute runs with the working weight for four runs. 50’ for all the runs like last week. I moved the yoke gingerly into place from the garage to the start as I didn’t want to overdo it. This time, I timed every set, even the warm-ups, just like farmer’s walk last week. Temperature jumped up from 57F to 72F during the course of the workout. Two weeks ago it was below freezing. No knee aches on yoke this time. I figured that would go away pretty quick. Hips felt off on my warm-ups. Wasn’t going all out as it was a warm-up but it definitely shows I take a bit to get into top gear. Last warm-up was with the weight I did the minute runs last time. That felt better than the previous two lighter sets. The increase in weight for the work set was noticeable but I knew that this wasn’t going to be a troubling weight since I had already used over 400lbs in two different workouts on different exercises. A bit tougher doing the minute runs solo, focusing on a lot of things. My starts weren’t as good as I would have liked them on the first three runs. It was more or less trying to guess when the timer would go off on those. On the last set, I realized that I should just count the start to myself and go when I felt ready, even if it meant beating the timer. In competition, there are going to be auditory cues but they won’t be as sudden as a timer going off. This pick was much better and it ended up being my fastest run. After that was the stone of steel. Thankfully, this was inside the garage which was about 10-15F cooler than being in the sun. Again, solo so I had to make a setup that would allow for me to bring the stone of steel back without issue and have something in place that would keep it from escaping the garage in the event of an error of judgement haha. I had ordered a grip shirt but it had not arrived in time to use it the previous session. Some shows may not allow it but the one I am aiming for does (I checked) so I figured it was best to be ready. Empty stone of steel for a set of five to warm-up. I was nervous even doing this. Fear of failure, regression, stagnation, embarrassment. But it is in my head and I need to push it out. One of the reasons I keep coming back to strongman/strength training. It was easy. The overcrushing didn’t take as much out of me this time. The next set was planned to be 50lbs more for a set of 5-10. Adding 50lbs more doesn’t mean it will be 50lbs more since the spacers need to come out to adjust the stone of steel. So I put in 52.5lbs and weighed it to make sure it was as close to the increase I wanted and it was just over. I’ve only done singles really besides the previous session so technically anything over that first session for reps will be PRs. Again, pretty nervous. This weight was what I figured I was safe doing a few weeks ago. But I wanted my ten reps. To be honest, this only felt slightly harder than last time with just the empty stone of steel. I was little more winded but I felt about the same fatigue. I noticed I started lapping the thing up higher around seven reps in as my hamstrings got fatigued. I felt the shirt definitely helped with slippage as I was able to get it even higher on my chest on some reps. My crushing strength felt better and I was able to touch my hands and almost interlock them. Last session, I only had stone rash on the forearms but this time I got some on my biceps. Exhausting but it felt good. Stretched a good bit to end the day.

March 23, 2017 – Week 3, Day 2

5 Minutes Percor AMT

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx20

One Leg Leaning Calf Raises
BWx5/5
BWx5/5

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx25

Squat Therapy (16” Box)
BWx25

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx25

16” Front Box Squats
45x10
95x5
165x3
165x3
165x3
165x3
165x3

16” Rack Pulls
45x10
95x5
135x3
185x3
225x3
275x2
315x1
365x1
405x5

Crunches
BWx35

Band Side Bends
ABx35/35

Stretching

Comments: Still have aches in the SI joint area but it hasn’t gotten worse and it has been about the same, maybe slightly less, then it was earlier this week. Nothing I’ve been doing (sitting, walking, standing, etc;) has really affected it so there is that. Started out with the AMT. Heart rate up to only 155bpm. Not bad. Calf raises were good with both legs but really tough with just one. More sets of one leg this time. I think it was because this session I went right from two leg style to one leg and all sets with no break. Calves need to get used to it to improve. Both styles of box touches went well. Getting the hips and hamstrings ready. Felt the ache more so on the sumo style than the regular style. No issues with squat therapy. Felt pretty good. Tried to work on bracing and squatting into the arch. The power rack was kind of in use so I used the tiered squat rack for front box squats. Still fairly light so not really an issue at this point. Same as last time with working weight for five sets of three but more weight. Kept to the EOMOM style to keep on some kind of pace. I feel like my third set was my best one on these. But they all felt good. Breathing was better this time. Rack pulls after that. As it has been the previous two sessions, working up to a top set of 1-5 reps with the goal weight. Goal weight was 400lbs but it was so close to four plates. Four plates looked nicer, sounded better. I wanted four plates. Didn’t feel as exhausting to keep my form this time. No SI joint issues with just the bar so I figured I’d be good to go as long as my form was strict. Brace, pull, big breath and controlled lowering each rep. I put chalk on my hands for the top set to improve grip to keep my hands from slipping with the worn down knurling on the rack bars. Grip was tough but held up until the end of the set. Very happy to be at four plates. Just 150lbs under my PR on this (that is with belt and straps). After that, it was an easy set of crunches and then some side bends with a band. I was did 35 reps on the side bends instead of 25 reps by mistake. I had glanced at my sheet for the workout and assumed it was 35 reps for all the abdominal stuff. Hopefully nothing from today flares anything up tomorrow. It can be hard to tell as sometimes it shows up two days later. Home to stretch and eat.

March 21, 2017 – Week 3, Day 1

5 Minutes Percor AMT

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx25

One Leg Leaning Calf Raises
BWx5/5

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Incline Bench Presses
45x10
75x5
105x3
135x1
165x1
195x1
225x1
255x1
285x1
2 Second Pauses
225x5

Chest Supported Rows (1 second holds)
100x10
180x8
180x8
180x8

Circus Dumbbell Clean and Presses (3 stage 2 second pauses)
Regular Dumbbell with Fat Gripz Extreme
10x1 R
10x1 L
Plate Loaded Dumbbell with Fat Gripz Extreme
20x1 R
20x1 L
30x1 R
30x1 L
40x1 R
40x1 L
50x1 R
50x1 L
60x1 R
60x1 L
70x1 R
70x1 L
80x1 R
80x1 L
90x1 R
90x1 L
100x1 R
100x1 L
110x1 R
110x1 L
120x1 R
120x1 L
Circus Dumbbell
130x1 R
130x1 L
140x0,1 R
140x1 L

Stretching

Comments: Some aches from the previous session. A little irritation in the SI joint but it is hard to say if it is from just doing the movement or if the combination of the back work with the big jump in weight. Lower lats and supporting muscles were pretty sore. Not as bad as it was when I first did rack pulls with any kind of weight though. I think it will calm down after a bit. It was about 100lbs increase in moving events from the previous week. Warm up on the AMT. Felt good and easy. Heart rate only got up to 157bpm. Calf work to help get them primed. New change with the calf raises doing both legs and then doing one at a time. Plan is to decrease the two leg variation and do more one leg stuff. Box touches went well. No real aches in the SI joint which is what I usually get when it is irritated so that seems to suggest it will not be an issue. Then on to incline pressing. Gym was busy so I had to wait about 20 minutes after I finished the previous stuff to use it and I was already going pretty slow between those exercises so that I wasn’t waiting for so long. Like last time, work up heavy and then do a set of five with pauses. Instead of doubles, it was singles. I had been debating between going for 275lbs or 285lbs. Numbers supported the 275lbs but I wanted to get back to 90% of my pre-layoff number. The long wait kind of nudged me to go heavier. Not bad. However, but came off the bench again on the top set as I was sticking at lockout. I got the lift but I really want to be getting these clean. Can’t just be chasing a weight. Ego needs to calm down haha. Paused set was great. Same plan to do it with being explosive throughout the set. Lockout was slow and tough (relatively) on these again but the power off the chest and through the sticking point was great. Quickly moved on to chest supported rows after that. Light weight with holds at the top each rep. Again, really trying to focus on the muscles doing the work and trying to be consistent in how they move and controlling the weight. I took shorter rest than last time. Then on to the circus dumbbell work. Same drill as last time, starting super-duper light and working up to what would hopefully be a new heavy perfect single. Pauses on the shoulder in the rack position and in the bottom of the dip and then hold at lockout. With last session, there was adjustments based off of how that went. The change from regular dumbbell to the circus dumbbell was too much last time and it really threw off the form. This time, instead of the regular dumbbells right off the rack, I used the plateloadable handle. That way when it got heavy enough, I could use a bigger diameter plate to closer simulate the circus bell. Another adjustment was putting on collars to push the weight out from the center. This would allow for me to get used to a longer implement. The potential contest I want to do will have a circus bell with globes so this could help getting used to it as well. I kind of kicking myself for not thinking about this earlier and trying this in the past when warming up for circus dumbbell work. Things seemed to be going well with the changes. I feel like the jump to the circus bell wasn’t as bad this time and the rep with each side felt better. Other than hitting my ear on my right side, they were good reps. Adding weight on to that was not as good though haha. My first attempt with 140lbs on my weak side wasn’t good. Missed the press bad and of course my first instinct was to try and catch it and control it back to the floor. Looks of pops and cracks in my upper back (no pain). Obviously not a perfect rep and the plan was not to go for a max. I didn’t want to leave it on that note so I gave it another shot. Much better but my press was more of a jerk so I don’t know if I can count it. Left side went much better and more in the tank but it was a good place to stop for a perfect rep. Home to stretch and eat.

March 19, 2017 – Week 2, Day 3

5 Minutes Sled Drag (55lbs for .25 miles)

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Band Rows w/Biceps Stretch
MBx25/10 seconds

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Band Rows w/Biceps Stretch
MBx25/10 seconds

Farmer’s Walk
112x50’ in 7.97 seconds
112x50’ in 7.64 seconds
202x50’ in 9.29 seconds
202x50’ in 8.58 seconds
202x50’ in 8.85 seconds

Sandbag Load Over Bar (57”)
150x10

Stretching

Comments: Quite a bit of the snow has melted and it is warming up. Had little better idea of what to expect with how last week went going into this workout. Sled drag warm-up around the block like last time. Didn’t time it as it was going to be about 5 minutes to make the course from timing last time. Heart rate only got up to 147bpm. After that was calf raises. Ankle flexibility felt good and almost rhythmic movements on these. Some fatigue but to be expected with the sled drag course having uphill components at times. Box touches with the band rows and biceps stretch after that. First time through with wide stance and then second time with regular stance. Box touches felt good on the hamstrings and hips. Decent pump in the back on the rows. Stepped a little farther out and sat down a little into the stretch for the biceps this time. A bit better I think this time. Now for event work. Starting things off with farmer’s walk. I had weighed my handles and they turned out to be 3lbs less than I had thought they were. I figured I’d check since I was weighing other stuff. I always feel like I’m a bit of a slow starter with farmer’s walks. I reset the handles rather than starting where I stopped like yoke. Keep the course consistent (slightly uphill) and gave me a good period to rest. Started with warm-ups with a plate each side. Didn’t feel heavy but felt slow. Left oblique woke up on that first run. Got to stay tight in the midsection. Paired with yoke, this is similar enough and different enough if that makes sense. Pick is a set height as opposed to yoke being (usually) adjustable so little more ROM on the pick-up. Moving about the same besides the muscles supporting the weights. Now on to work sets. Idea being to pick a weight that was easy and smooth. That can be hard to gauge with farmer’s walk. Depends on how the grip and shoulders feel some days. Pick up of the implements is always the hardest for me and usually I warm-up just doing picks to save energy and get used to the implement. Sometimes that is all you can do at a big contest. I want to go heavier but I need to be smart about this. Picking between going up a quarter to a plate a side. I elected to go another plate. Definitely felt heavy that first set. Second set, it didn’t feel as bad in the hands but still pretty heavy in the shoulders. I tried to do a faster start but my left calf didn’t want to listen and I stumbled a little. I told myself that the last set had to be perfect. I got my upper back tight and got everything set just right. I waited until I was fully locked out before moving. Felt light this time and I held it for a bit at the end. This was slightly slower than my second run but it felt like my best of the day. Might have to adjust for next time. Last thing for today was loads with a light sandbag. I was debating over loading to a platform or over bar. Platform would probably have been my preference but with how lively the bag is and how the added height on the platform isn’t stable, I went with over bar. This meant going to the other side of the yoke for the next rep. I wasn’t going to go under since bending and rushing under could lead to a mishap with the back. Didn’t feel heavy at all. Just throwing it over the bar. But what usually happens is the repeated abuse of the drops and tumbles opened up the sandbag after the eighth rep so the last two reps I was trying to not have sand spill out. Resulted in me banging my head into the crossbar of the yoke on the second to last rep. Not as winding as last session with the stone of steel. Maybe I’m getting used to it or just the fact I didn’t need to over-crush the sandbag like with the stone of steel meant better breathing. Hopefully the winter weather will stop and I can get back to a normal workout schedule this coming week.

March 17, 2017 – Week 2, Day 2

5 Minutes Percor AMT

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx25

Squat Therapy (16” Box)
BWx25

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx25

16” Box Squats
45x10
95x5
135x5
185x5
225x3
275x3
315x3

Deadlifts
45x10 (bar on blocks)
95x5
135x3
185x2
225x1
275x1
275x1
275x1
275x1
275x1
275x1
275x1
275x1
275x1
275x1

Leg Raises
BWx35

Stretching

Comments: Definitely need to catch up on sleep. Felt some of the ache symptoms in my hip/SI joint. Nothing has changed that I can think of and it may just be my body catching up from the shoveling and with the increasing workload on the lower body. But I’m not concerned. AMT for my workout warm-up. Heart rate read 164bpm at the highest. Calf raises were good. Left calf felt like it was giving me some resistance rather than passively getting into position so maybe that is improving a little as well. Slight ache in my left hip on the box touches but the high reps felt really good on the hamstrings. Squat therapy was pretty easy. Didn’t feel like I had to fight myself to keep good form. My lower back was feeling a little stiff when I finished and relaxed haha. Box squats after that. Plan was to work up to 315lbs and see what happened. Aim for at least one but no more than three. Any time I get the max and min for the reps or weights, I’m aiming for the max. I knew I was getting it and only if something was seriously wrong would I not get three. Warm-ups on squats felt pretty good on the lighter weights. Still getting used to the heavier stuff (relative at this point) on my back. I could definitely do more with 315lbs but the reps I did were slow and controlled. More could be done but not like a million reps with good form. Deadlifts followed. Kind of a hybrid of the first deadlift singles workout and the previous doubles with touch and go. Ten singles with heavier weight done EOMOM style. Working on a getting a strong and solid start and then very controlled lowering of the weights. Didn’t feel as speedy as it had been with 225lbs but it is 50lbs more and technically the most weight I’ve pulled from the floor since the injury for a single anyways. Weight is increasing and it doesn’t feel like my form is breaking. Hamstrings started to feel a little tense by the eighth set but still felt good on all sets. After the squats and deads, I finished up with a set of leg raises. Not as easy as crunches but felt good after the squats and pulls on my abs and hips. Home to stretch and eat.

March 15, 2017 – Week 2, Day 1

5 Minutes Percor AMT

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

12” Log Viper Presses
Dumbbells
10’sx10
20’sx5
30’sx5
40’sx5
Log
100x3
150x1
150x1
150x1
150x1
150x1
150x1
150x1
150x1
150x1
150x1


Chest Supported Rows
100x10
170x5
200x5
230x5
260x5
290x5

Dead Floor Presses
45x10
85x2
120x5
172.5x5
225x5
275x5

Stretching

Comments: Week 2 of this training didn’t want to cooperate. Hit with a snowstorm yesterday for about 18” of snow. A day and a half off work pretty much. I didn’t feel like I did a lot on the last day of Week 1 but going for a walk on Monday and shoveling snow on Tuesday told me otherwise. Legs really sore and forearms feel like they did after my second strongman contest. Amazing how much the body can detrain while still having the memory haha. Probably for the best I had a day off from the gym with the snow. Still a mess out there but hopefully by this weekend enough will have melted. I had a med check today and got to compare from January 2017 and October 2016. I was over 285lbs in October and my blood pressure was elevated. That was right before I started PT and I wasn’t able to do much of anything. January I was 261lbs but blood pressure wasn’t checked. That was about a month into training again. Today blood pressure was good and bodyweight was 270lbs. I look bigger than I did in October. Warm up on the AMT. Felt good and easy. Heart rate came up as 160bpm but dropped down to 152bpm sharply after that. I’ll just keep documenting even if it fluctuates. Calf work was pretty good. Not feeling of tightness or super fatigue or lactic acid build up. Last three reps actually felt easier than usual. Hamstrings and hips were tight (already knew that from just sitting after all the shoveling haha) and both styles of box touches felt good to loosen things up. Little bit of a change up not having a heavy bench type press to start this session. First up was viper style log pressing. Warm-up involved dumbbells. Cheat hammer curl into neutral grip overhead press. Trying to mimic the drive from the hips for log. I was slightly concerned when I felt something in my spine with just the 10lbs dumbbells but I realized it wasn’t the disc issue and was just soreness from shoveling the day before. After that, things went well. Been a long time since I used the log. I know other people use it but it had dust on it when I put weights on it haha. Never really focused on viper style press. I think I tried it when I started but it didn’t feel right then. Goal was to work up to between 125lbs and 150lbs for ten singles done EMOM style. Aim for smooth reps, no excessive force. These felt like they went well. But the weight is still light. Didn’t feel the off putting feeling I felt back then. Maybe I just know what I’m supposed to be doing now. Good drive off the hips. Got off balance on one rep and had to put my one foot forward to keep balance. From there, on to chest supported rows. These are improving at a good clip. Light warm-up with plan to work up over five sets to a smooth 5rm. I made a gamble for a big jump and it paid off. I had thought the shoveling would have hampered me but I hit the big number I wanted. Back up to over 3 plates on this and when I first tried these after so long I couldn’t budge 2 plates. Last thing for the workout was dead floor presses. Four sets of five reps with the weights based off percentages of the 1rm I achieved at the end of the last cycle. Essentially lead to a top set of five that would 10lbs more than my best last cycle. I had no doubts I would get it. No psyche up need to hit this weight and I easily had more reps in the tank. Home to eat pot roast and try to get some more sleep.

March 12, 2017 – Week 1, Day 3

5 Minutes Sled Drag (55lbs for .25 miles)

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Band Rows w/Biceps Stretch
MBx25/10 seconds

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Band Rows w/Biceps Stretch
MBx25/10 seconds

Yoke
217x50’
217x50’
Minute Runs
307x50’ in 6.73 seconds
307x50’ in 6.57 seconds
307x50’ in 6.28 seconds
307x50’ in 6.70 seconds
307x50’ in 6.64 seconds

Stone of Steel (57”)
Platform
138x1
Over Bar
138x10

Stretching

Comments: This was going to be an interesting workout. New exercises for upper body to help get blood flow going as well as two events that would put stress on the stuff that I injured. One of the exercises being the one where the injury occurred (not necessarily the exercise/reason that caused it). Extra day between the second workout and third workout this time due to family obligation. I think I needed it with how much work my lower back did last workout haha. Anxious but excited for this one. Did something different for warm-up. I could have gone to the gym to use a machine but it felt like a waste of gas since I would be doing everything else at home. I had done some thinking on my rest days and figured I could just go for five minute sled drag. Just used my empty push-pull sled and truck pull harness and took a walk around the block (about .25 miles). Felt good if a little noisy haha. Just about 2 seconds over 5 minutes to complete the lap. Heart rate only got up to 146bpm but was closer to a little over 135bpm for most of it. After that was calf raises. Ankle flexibility felt good and almost rhythmic movements on these. Little fatigue by the last 3-5 reps. Didn’t have a box for box touches so I stacked scrap wood to the appropriate height. Wide stance felt pretty good. New exercise for upper body was band rows followed by a biceps stretch. Only a mini band for the rows, starting slow, feeling the muscles and getting a good range of motion and feeling the shoulder structures working and moving. Little stretch after the set (using my heavier yoke) for the biceps. Repeated the sequence again but with the regular style box touches. Might have held the stretch a little longer this time as I forgot I was to count it haha. Now on to the body beating event work. Pretty much as light as possible, making sure that everything is cool. First test being to see if the movement hurts or if it is the weight. Unexpectedly, I also got a bit of information on how my body will handle travel to competition. Had to be in the car as a passenger for a little over 2 hours twice yesterday. Not painful but not comfortable to be like that. No show is really that short of a distance (only one that was 15 minutes away was my first show ever in 2008). So I have some idea of what to expect with a longer trip or being on a plane (No idea when I was last in one of those, maybe 2000). Anyways, on to the event work. Yoke to start off the party. Empty yoke for two sets and then working weight for five sets with a minute rest. I was to only do 300lbs but it was easier to just put a plate each side on the yoke. No issues with the empty yoke. I was cautious getting the thing out of the garage and assessing with each step how it felt. Goal was to pick and walk aggressively while keeping my core tight. Speed not as big a focus but I still tried to go as fast as possible with short choppy steps. Treating it as if I were doing a heavy weight in contest. At least how I hope to make it look haha. Knees were a little achy the first two sets but go better as I did the runs. Third run was my fastest run. Then on to stone of steel work. I actually weighed it to make sure I was accurate. I had thought it was only 120lbs when I first was using it but I had heard it could be up to 145lbs empty. Turns out it was 138lbs so 18lbs PR on what I was previously doing. Goal for this session was do a set of 10 with the empty stone of steel to a height that required me to reach triple extension. On top of that, I was to treat this as a heavy weight with no one motions and to try and crush the bejesus out of it. I got some new things in preparation for this. Most arrived (crash pad, receiver gloves) so it was good to test these out. While height to one thing should be the same, I figured it was best to practice over bar at this time. I rarely have issues when it is stone load to platform but sometimes I do with over bar. This was a lung buster. Chest and upper back worked hard on the isometric crushing and lower back was feeling it on the extension. Breathing was tough with the constant crushing and I was surprised I was a bit winded by the end of it. I know I can do more and go faster so that is awesome. No grip issues at all. Got a little love tap on the last rep when the stone came back to me haha. Stretched and cooled down. Good to be touching implements again, even if very light. Hopefully this nor’easter doesn’t shut everything down this week.

March 9, 2017 – Week 1, Day 2

5 Minutes Percor AMT

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx25

Squat Therapy (16” Box)
BWx25

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx25

16” Front Box Squats
45x10
95x5
135x3
135x3
135x3
135x3
135x3

16” Rack Pulls
45x10
95x5
135x3
185x3
225x3
275x2
315x1
365x1
375x5

Crunches
BWx35

Stretching

Comments: No issues from the previous workout so that is good. I was expecting more aches in the SI joint but nothing of note as of today. Started out with the AMT. Heart rate up to only 151bpm. Calf raises were alright, just didn’t feel as on point as the last workout. Right calf felt tight but it was still quite easy. Both styles of box touches went well. Getting the hips and hamstrings ready. Felt the squat therapy in my quads a lot more than I usually do. It wasn’t like I changed the box height by mistake or anything. The both power racks were in use so I waited a bit. The tiered one opened up but I was hoping the guy in the adjustable one was done with squats but then he went on to do overhead and I knew I couldn’t sit around anymore. New one this training with front box squats. Warm-up to the working weight for five sets of three. Not heavy at all but getting used to it again. I have been doing front squats with straps for a few years now but I don’t feel I have flexibility issue so back to no straps. Felt weird having weight on my clavicle and so close to my throat at first. But I got better as I did more. I set these up as EOMOM style to keep myself on some kind of pace. Moved well. A little harder to brace like regular box squats but still felt in control on these. On to rack pulls from there. The guy doing overhead pressing on the power rack finished and then proceeded to do pull-ups. Wasn’t having any of that with other pull-up spots around haha. Same as the last time, working up to a set weight for anywhere from one to five reps, depending on how I felt. Of course I was aiming for five. No question. Bar felt light at the start but really hammering this form stuff is tiring for sure. I put chalk on my hands for the top set to improve grip to keep my hands from slipping with the worn down knurling on the rack bars. Felt heavy. Grip held up but it was tough. I thought I had only put 10lbs on to what I did last time and was surprised it felt so tough. I didn’t realize until I got back home that it was a 25lbs increase and I felt better haha. I feel like I will be going over four plates soon. Easy set of crunches to finish up the session and then home to stretch and eat.

March 7, 2017 – Week 1, Day 1

5 Minutes Percor AMT

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Incline Bench Presses
45x10
95x5
145x2
175x2
205x2
235x2
265x2
2 Second Pauses
215x5

Chest Supported Rows (1 second holds)
100x10
170x8
170x8
170x8

Circus Dumbbell Clean and Presses (3 stage 2 second pauses)
Regular Dumbbell with Fat Gripz Extreme
10x1 R
10x1 L
20x1 R
20x1 L
30x1 R
30x1 L
40x1 R
40x1 L
50x1 R
50x1 L
60x1 R
60x1 L
70x1 R
70x1 L
80x1 R
80x1 L
90x1 R
90x1 L
100x1 R
100x1 L
110x1 R
110x1 L
120x1 R
120x1 L
Circus Dumbbell
130x1 R
130x1 L

Stretching

Comments: Back at it. No stops. Have a full 12 weeks of training under me with no real issues. This next cycle is picking up right where the previous one left off. Made sure I was good to go by getting a deep tissue massage the day before. Also up to three shakes a day, which is what I was doing before I got injured. Felt ready to go. Warm up on the AMT. Felt good and easy. Heart rate only got up to 156bpm. Calf work to help get them primed. Trying to get the left one to wake up but it will be a long process. Not as tight in the right as I have been. I was a little worried with how the hamstrings would be after the massage on box touches but no issues. Incline pressing to start off the weights. Plan was going up in jumps to a top set of two over five sets. I was only going to go up a little bit but I felt good so I went big. I just wanted to do more than bodyweight. I got a spot for the top set. I got the reps but nowhere near as good as the form should have been. No uneven lockout but butt came off the bench on the second rep. Lockouts felt tough. A set of five with pauses after that. Aim was to be moving it explosively and try for a little more weight than I did last time. The weight was fast off the chest but definitely slowed the last inch or so to lockout. But it moved fast haha. Chest supported rows after that. Lighter weight but working on pulling with the back and shoulder appropriately. I had wanted to do two plates a side with how strong my back has been feeling one these but I knew after the warm-up set that in order to get the hold at contraction each rep with no issues, I had to lower the weight. I think the last set was the best one. Then came something I was looking forward to; circus dumbbell. Well not at the start. Started with 10lbs and went up 10lbs a set. Working on getting used to the movement again and getting the rack position right on both sides. Pause on the shoulder for two seconds, pause at the bottom of the dip for two seconds and then hold at lockout for two seconds. And no jerks, pure push press. I had told myself that I wanted to work up to at least my empty circus dumbbell. The gym was pretty crowded so I was in one part of the gym when it was light but I moved closer to the dumbbell rack as carrying the dumbbells across the gym was getting tedious. As the weight got heavier, I noticed a few things. My normally strong side (left) definitely didn’t feel as stable at lockout as in the past. I also noticed the my left oblique was pretty tight as well as the lower back on that side. Finally, my calf on that side definitely has no fight a bit more to keep myself under the weight. I got through the regular dumbbells with the fat grip and went for the empty circus bell. It had been so neglected in my absence. It truly is a different beat with the length of the handle and diameter of the bells. It was tough to get it on both sides so I knew it was time to call it there. I’m about where I thought I’d be for the circus bell, just need to get comfortable with the implement again. Home to stretch, eat meatloaf and relax.

March 4, 2017 – Week 12, Day 3

5 Minutes Percor AMT

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx15

Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Presses
20’sx10
40’sx4
40’sx4
60’sx5
70’sx5
80’sx5
90’sx5
100’sx3/1
100’sx5

Seated Dumbbell Lateral Raises
10’sx10
25’sx8
47.5’sx6

Seated Bent Over Dumbbell Raises
10’sx10
25’sx8
45’sx6

Seated Alternating Dumbbell Curls
25’sx10
45’sx8
65’sx11

Triceps Pushdowns (straight bar)
45x25
80x20
125x13

Neutral Grip Dumbbell Overhead Presses
20’sx10
40’sx39

Stretching

Comments: Last workout of this 12 weeks cycle. Come a long way from the start. Not where I need to be yet but considering when I started I was seriously doubting myself, I’ll take it. Lot of accessory stuff to get through this day. Not really feeling much SI issues today. AMT felt good on the lower body. Helped with blood flow and loosening up my back and hips. Heart rate up to 155bpm only. I felt relaxed. Box touches both styles felt good. No issues, felt good. Seated dumbbell shoulder presses again to finish off the cycle. Plan being to do same as last time just hitting 5lbs more. But plans don’t always work out as cleanly as they may be laid out. I noticed I was having issues with shouldering the dumbbells. Just felt too far away from me and having to muscle them up. 90lbs felt a lot slower than I would have liked on the presses. I had hoped that I would pull it together on the top set. But it didn’t happen. I really messed up the shouldering and it was tough to get the dumbbells into position. I missed the first rep and readjusted and got three before I got out of position again. Fatigue at that point. I was really displeased with myself. I figured I’d see if I could salvage the set by trying to get two more reps to get five total. I scrapped trying to shoulder the dumbbells at the same time and I found it was a lot more manageable. Only got one more rep but I figured I could do it. I knew I could do. I told myself I would rest a bit and give it true try. This whole cycle, I had been aiming to not miss lift and this was the first time. I got set and shouldered the right one first and then the left one. Felt so much better. Got the five with 100lbs with some in the tank. I was so amped after that. Just pleased with myself for getting the set of five reps. I think it is the happiest I’ve been with myself since I got back to working out. More shoulder complex work after that. Again lateral raises, light warm-ups to a heavy top set. Tried to modify the form to get it right. Slightly having the pinkies higher, slight bend in elbows and trying to have elbows above the wrists. I felt alright on the warm-ups and tried to get that to be present in the heavy set. Next was rear delts. I used the same weights as the lateral raises to warm-up. Might have been too big a jump on the heavy set at this time. It was tough. Last time it just felt like I left a bit in the tank. Biceps and triceps after that. Same weights for the curls as last time, aiming for more reps on the top set. I made a conscious effort to control the negative. Ate into some of my energy but I need it. Pushdowns after that for triceps work. High rep warm-ups pretty fatiguing at this point. Still taking big jumps and first time getting less than 15 reps on the top set. Really trying to keep the body English out of it as much as I can but it pops up as I fatigue, trying to extend the set. High rep standing presses to finish off the day. Almost got 40 reps but I was slowing down too much and the goal is no grinders. Home to stretch and rest. Time to get ready for the next cycle of training.

March 2, 2017 – Week 12, Day 2

5 Minutes Percor AMT

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

Sumo Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx25

Squat Therapy (16” Box)
BWx25

Regular Box Touches (12” Box)
BWx25

16” Box Squats
45x10
95x5
135x5
185x5
225x3
275x2
300x1

Deadlifts
45x10 (bar on bumper plates)
95x5
135x3
185x2
250x2
250x2
250x2
250x2
250x2
250x2
250x2
250x2

Step Ups (18” Box)
BWx25/25

Hyperextensions
BWx25
BW+50x10
BW+100x22

Crunches/Leg Raises
BWx30/BWx30
BWx30/BWx30

Stretching

Comments: After the stressful days, it was good to be able to catch up. Still need to get sleep. Getting more feeling (good and bad) in the left calf muscle. Not sure if that means the nerve is getting better or not. As I’ve been noticing the past few sessions, walking and warm-ups seem to calm the symptoms quite a bit. AMT for my workout warm-up. Heart rate read 162bpm at the highest but it went down to 155bpm pretty quick. May not check it in the future if the readings jump like that. Calf raises were good. Right calf still feeling pretty tight on these but it wasn’t like last time where it felt like it was cramping. Both styles of box touches were good. Felt like I just getting a good sweat going and getting the blood pumping. Squat therapy also felt pretty good. Any time I felt like something was slightly off, I corrected it the following rep. I also didn’t mess up the heights on these or box touches this time. Box squat after that. Goal just to work up to 300lbs for a single. Didn’t feel like that would be that hard since I did several reps with 275lbs last time these were the focus. I was feeling quite a bit of lower back fatigue and the jump from 225lbs to 275lbs was noticeable. 300lbs was solid though. Then on to deadlifts with the touch and go style. More weight, less reps but more sets. Did these with EOMOM rest. Lower back definitely felt fatigue and I didn’t feel as speedy as I did when the bar weight was 225lbs. Still working on the form, trying to not hyperextend at lockout. I feel I got better as I did these. Scraped my right shin a little and drew some blood. The high rep stuff followed. Step ups felt good. Good little sweat going and no knee issues. Hypers after that. I went up in weight and I didn’t think I would do so great with how my lower back was feeling. Did the same thing as last time doing half the top weight for a set to prep. Surprised myself by getting two reps more than last time with 10lbs more. Felt good and tough on my lower back and hamstrings. Finished up with abdominal superset. Still tough but easy if that makes sense haha. One more to go.