June 28, 2018 – Week 8, Day 2

5 Minutes Expresso Interactive Upright Exercise Bike

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Deadlifts
135x5
225x5
Added Suit/Straps
305x2
366x2
427x2
488x2
550x2

Smith Machine Weighted Plank
BW+155x30 seconds

Weighted Plank
BW+155x30 seconds

Side Plank
BWx60/60 seconds

Stretching

Comments: This week started off ok but has gotten rough. Felt tired and sleep has been less and less. My injury in the lower back is definitely irritated some as I’m feeling some symptoms down my leg. It might be from some of the dumbbell jerks where my core got loose under recovery. I don’t think it is major issue and is more just that the area is a little inflamed and I will have to keep an eye on it. Got to bed late so I was slow in the morning. Wouldve been even later if I had done everything I was supposed to the night before but I pushed it off so that I could leave before I ended up late for work. Which meant I would have to head home after work to get my stuff ready for the gym. There was an accident so that ended up taking longer. I think I finally got to the gym about an hour later than usual. This was going to be a shorter workout so this was still doable. Fancy bike again. 140bpm highest reading this time. I picked a different course that seemed ok. Wanted to try a simple course this time. Easy calf work after that. Tight but not as tight as last session. Knees weren’t really bothering me on the goblet box squats too bad. Knees were stiff on the RDLs. Rows with the band were ok. Still keeping an eye on the biceps. Left shoulder is still tight. I was expecting some shoulder tightness on the push-ups and there was. Plank was easy and slightly less ache in the shoulder this time. Then the biceps stretches. Into the hallway for the hip swings. Felt pretty good. Today was deadlifts and planks. Platform in use so I was in the same spot as before. Knees and hips were stiff so I did a plate and two plates for sets of five since the suited work was just doubles. Plan was 90% of my best for a double, 10% jumps up from 50%. I wasn’t able to use the squat rack to get the suit on but I managed. It feels like it takes a set or two for it to really set in and just seems to go on more and more as I go. First set was rough getting myself into position. It seemed better after that lift. Not so much of feeling like my head was going to pop off after the first set. Really trying to adjust the plates with metal ones and bumper plates to get it feeling like big tires with the distribution. 550lbs felt heavy. Was hoping it would feel easier. Definitely more reps there and more control over the bar this time. It was pretty late so I went upstairs after taking off the suit do to weighted planks. My plan was to do a set and then come back downstairs to put away the weights and then do the second set. First set felt pretty good. It was still tough but not “oh no why” tough. I took too long downstairs as someone was benching with my weight plank weights when I came back upstairs. It looked like they were going to be there a while so I went downstairs and asked someone to stack weights on my back like I used to do. Smith machine version is way harder since I can get it at the most disadvantaged spot. Side plank to finish up the session. Didn’t feel too bad. It was really late so I just went to get burritos for dinner and then home.

June 26, 2018 – Week 8, Day 1

5 Minutes Expresso Interactive Upright Exercise Bike

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Circus Dumbbell Clean and Presses
Plate Loaded Dumbbell with Fat Gripz Extreme
(2 stage 2 second pauses)
40x1 R
40x1 L
70x1 R
70x1 L
90x1 R
90x1 L
110x1 R
110x1 L
Circus Dumbbell
130x1 R
130x1 L
143x0,1 R
143x0 L
143x1 L
(competition style/EMOM)
157x1 R
157x1 R
157x1 R
157x1 R
157x1 R
157x1 R
157x1 R
157x1 L
157x1 L
157x1 L
157x1 L
157x1 L
157x1 L
157x1 L

Pulldowns
70x15
130x8
160x8
190x8
220x8
250x8

Incline Bench Presses
45x10
95x5
144x3
176x3
208x3
240x3
272x3
1 Second Pauses
225x8 PR+20lbs

Stretching

Comments: Knee seems to be feeling better most days. Went for a walk on Sunday and Monday and almost got to feeling rested. Left shoulder still feels off. Picked a different course on the virtual bike. Feeling aches everywhere. Heart rate got up to 140bpm. On to the warm-ups. Calf raise stuff is still pretty easy. They were very tight today. Knees were a little achy on the goblet squats. Didn’t have the best bench to sit down on to for these. But still ok. RDLs I felt a little stiff. Knees tend to ache on these if I bend my knees. Want to keep stress on the posterior chain but I don’t want to lock the knees and have my lower back potential round due to flexibility issues. Then more normal stuff like band rows and push-ups. Right biceps was tight on rows. Some aches in my left shoulder on the push-ups. Making sure I’m not selling myself short on those doing full ROM. Then a short plank hold and biceps stretches. Better I think with the shoulder stiffness/ache on the planks. Biceps and shoulders were tight. Hip swings felt ok. Weight time. Dumbbell has returned. Same as last time, working up with the push press and pause style and then doing competition style for an EMOM workout. 85% for 7 singles each side, which I put as a 14 minute EMOM so no rest between sides. Things didn’t start out great. Knees were definitely stiff on the first few warm-ups. I felt like everything was clicking by 110lbs but the next jump was going to be to the circus dumbbell itself. It was then that I realized I didn’t have my wrist wraps with me. This could be a problem for the workout with the large handle diameter on the circus dumbbell. Didn’t seem to be too bad with the empty bell but the next set to work as a in-between to the top set was a bear. I missed it the first try on the right and had to redo it on the left completely. Thankfully my dad was able to drop them off for me so it wouldn’t be an issue for the EMOM set. I don’t feel I got as sweaty this time but it was 6 less singles in total. Some reps felt like I was sloppy and others felt like it was nothing at all. I had more good on the left side versus the right side. Shoulders get so sore from this thing coming back down. Left shoulder was tight after these. Pulldowns next. Warm-up and then 5 sets of 6-8 with 30lbs jumps. My plan was to do the whole stack for today for 8. Light warm-up for high reps (I wanted to make sure my back muscles and biceps and shoulders were cooperating with me). Felt pretty good. Left hamstring wanted to cramp on the last set. Weight is trying to pull me out of the seat. Had to brace myself against a support afterwards to make sure my left shoulder didn’t keep hampering me. Incline bench was next up. This was going to be rough if I didn’t have wrist wraps. These didn’t feel so great last time on my shoulder. I moved the bench closer to the wall so that I could properly brace myself this time. Made a big difference. Stuff felt like 30lbs lighter. While my top set definitely had slop, I feel it was stronger than what it was last time. I felt I could match the reps I did if needed whereas it felt like a near max last time. I went big on the pause stuff. Lockout is the toughest part on these incline presses it seems and I feel like the pauses would be helpful if I pushed them. Lockout is the only place it slows down. Like bench, this might have been pushing it too much in that it wasn’t powerful as the entire time. Felt the first six were very good. But I wanted eight. Still had reps in the tank so maybe I’m still good. Home to stretch, eat meatloaf just deload from the day.

June 23, 2018 – Week 7, Day 3

5 Minutes Misc Stationary Bike

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Keg Clean and Push Presses
27x4 (alternating Left Side cross body and Right Side same side)
50x2 (alternating Left Side cross body and Right Side same side)
80x2 (alternating Left Side cross body and Right Side same side)
100x1 Right Side (same side)
125x1 Right Side (same side)
150x1 Right Side (same side)
175x1 Right Side (same side)
200x0 Left Side (cross body)
200x1 Left Side (cross body)
225x1 Left Side (cross body)
225x1 Left Side (cross body)
225x1 Left Side (cross body)
225x1 Left Side (cross body)
225x1 Left Side (cross body)

16” I-Beam Farmer’s Walk (with drops)
125x100’ (drop at 50’) in 13.53 seconds
225x50’ (drop at 25’) in 10.93 seconds
275x50’ in 8.07 seconds
325x100’ (drop at 50’) in 25.24 seconds

Stretching

Comments: I managed to get to bed early on Friday so that I could be well rested for training. This week has been exhausting at work. I have scheduled breaks but I’ve just worked through them due to how much work there is to do. Maybe I do need a vacation or break of some kind. Day was a bit more overcast. I didn’t wear any knee sleeves as I think while they keep them warm, they are causing issues if they are on too long I think in the lower leg. Left shoulder is still buggy but I don’t think going to the chiro will do much of anything if it feels the same after the last adjustment (which helped my knee for sure). Did some soft tissue work on my right calf and hamstring before getting to the workout. Bike again. I feel that while it is uncomfortable, it does a better job warming up my legs. Calf stuff was good and easy. Goblet box squats were ok. Some knee aches but not as bad it has been the past two weeks. This was probably the best these have felt. Working on sitting back and spreading the knees/hips. RDLs actually felt not half bad today. Knees have been achy on these this week. Band rows were easy. Push ups I made sure I did them through a full ROM. Made these harder on the triceps. Got to not shortchange these and do them controlled like the goblet squats and RDLs. The plank was easy and I tried to see if changing positions and placement of my arms changed how it felt on the shoulders. While maybe it did feel less, I feel it when I finally relax so not sure if this is something that will improve on the weighted version. I did consciously flex my pecs and lats this time. Biceps stretch I used a different setup as the benches were in use but it was just as good if not better. May try to use it next time too. No issues with hip swings. Keg press was back again. Plan was just to work up to 85% for five singles with whatever rest I needed. I had thought I knew what to do but I’m still tinkering around with form on these. Not the press part as I feel that part is pretty solid. It’s getting the keg into position for the press. I’m basing things on the assumption that my shouldering to the left side is stronger for today’s session. I wondered if I could do the same ejector seat style to the same shoulder, and not have to do the cross body journey. I had figured the same side attempt wouldn’t be good due to how long my levers are for my arms, hence why the cross body seems to work. So I tried it out. The same side seemed to be quicker. But obviously that may change with weight. Perhaps it had to be quicker to get it to the shoulder, not that it was quicker. 80lbs felt about the same and I didn’t want to do more volume than necessary since things are winding down so I went with same side style. I also stuck with just using regular kegs so less time changing weights and having to wait on other people to use the Power Keg. I noticed that it was becoming harder for the shouldering of the keg and that I may not even be able to get the planned weight up to the shoulder this way so I knew to switch back to the old standby. However, I wasn’t ready. I had expected it to be faster coming up and mistimed it with the 200lbs keg and hit myself in the face. Not a good start haha. I reset and got it after that. Some sets my knees ached and other’s it didn’t. It was more if I made some movement to balance or I had to put more “knee” into the shouldering. 225lbs is definitely more than 85% based off the numbers I was using from last time. But honestly, it is probably about right. The shouldering got harder each single so that was closer to 90% but the pressing was super easy and probably closer to 80%. I may use the other side as my attempt at the contest. Next up and last thing for the day was farmer’s. This was to be the same workout as two weeks ago with the weights, distances and jumps. The 18” pick height farmer’s walk implements were in use and since I didn’t want to wait to start, I went with the 16” pick ones from the old gym. By putting 2.5lbs on the handles, I could get exactly the planned weights. I did a 50’ length run with no weights to make sure my knee was good to go without any extra support. Light weight to start. Lower pick height caught me off guard a little on the repick more than the initial pick. That apparently cost me .10 of a second from last time. This was more evident with 225lbs. I felt slow on both picks. Just under .20 of a second slower on this. The lower pick height and possibly fatigue in my core from the planks, beltless deadlifts and slow keg shoulders could be effecting things. I figured I’d do better with the straight shot as my foot speed was feeling good. 275lbs felt great. Just over 8 seconds. Had to stop the handles from ramming into some’s gym bag that was at the other end. Then my nerves got to me for the last one. It is ridiculous since I’ve done this twice already this training cycle. But I took my time getting things in place. I kept burping from my stomach turning but finally that went away. The pick was slow but I felt in control and setting a good place. The repick was a nightmare. I almost thought it wasn’t going to go. I had the collars on this time to keep weights from popping off the handles. This 2” pick difference is no joke for me. But I got it up and started moving again. Just shy of two seconds faster. So close to being under 25 seconds. I think with the 18” handles, that would’ve happened today. But this is also good as I should be ready if the handles are not very good at the show. Ice packs stayed coldish this time with a frozen water bottle. Home to stretch and relax. One more hard week to go.

June 21, 2018 – Week 7, Day 2

5 Minutes Expresso Interactive Upright Exercise Bike

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Wide Grip Deadlifts (straps)
135x5
205x3
275x1
325x2
325x2
325x2
325x2
325x2

Smith Machine Weighted Planks
BW+155x30 seconds
BW+155x30 seconds

Side Plank
BWx60/60 seconds

Stretching

Comments: Still achy left shoulder. But I don’t think frequent chiro sessions will help that after the initial adjustment. Still a little off as far as feeling like strongman is worth my time but it is a lot better than how I was feeling Saturday last week. Lower back is achy, feeling like it was gnawed on. Been very busy at work, no breaks this whole week. No walking this week to let my knee recover some more. Gym was pretty packed downstairs. It ended up being even more packed by the time I came back downstairs after warming up. Wore the copper sleeves again. Tried a different track on the bike. Heart rate only got up to 140BPM. Wrists were a little achy on the calf work while bracing against the walk. Knees weren’t really bothering me on the goblet box squats that bad. Again, trying to think hips. RDLs again feel slightly worse than the squats. I was a little cautious with the band rows to make sure I wasn’t using too much arms. Felt too easy, might need to get a new band to use as it might be wearing out. I was expecting some shoulder tightness on the push-ups but they actually went pretty good. But I might be only half repping these by not fully locking out every rep. That might be keeping stress off the shoulder. Plank was easy but the position seems to make the shoulder ache when I finally “relax”. Then the biceps stretches. Needed those. Into the hallway for the hip swings. I was advised to stick to the modified workout this session. That meant dropping the front box squats. That was the only change so wide grip deadlifts was next. Joints achy so I tried to do a few more reps to warm-up. Funny how last time I was worried my hamstrings would be barking at me and now it is my knee. No rehband belt again. First working set felt slow. But that is usually the case with speed work sets. Second set felt much better. I don’t feel like any of the doubles were truly perfect. There were parts of them that I lived. I feel my second set was the best overall, with the fourth set being the one where I accelerated to lockout the best and the fifth and final set having the best second rep. Next part of the workout was abdominal bracing stuff again. Weighted planks on the smith machine and then bodyweight for side planks. The weight is not getting any easier on these. It is a bit jarring since the weight isn’t there until I lift it essentially. Feel it in my joints at the start. Right side of my abdominals were feeling like they were cramping on these but I got my double 30 seconds. Shoulder ached after the tension was released. Side plank set to finish. Feels like a long minute, trying to brace for that long. It feels really good when I’m done and can stop. Finished up early so home to stretch and get ready for another day of work.

June 19, 2018 – Week 7, Day 1

5 Minutes Expresso Interactive Upright Exercise Bike

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Axle Clean and Jerks
72x5 (one clean)
116x1
149x1
182x1
215x1
248x1

Axle Jerks (EMOM Style)
264x1
264x1
264x1
264x1
264x1
264x1
264x1
264x1
264x1

Chest Supported Rows
130x8
220x8
310x8
400x8 PR+2 reps

Barbell Bench Presses
45x10
115x3
175x3
213x3
252x3
290x3
330x3
1 Second Pauses
280x8 PR+15lbs

Wide Grip Hang
bw+11x57.78 seconds PR+3.78 seconds

Stretching

Comments: I’m not quite over my pity party from the weekend. I’m continually frustrated with my progress. I should be stronger. I’ve been grinding a long time. I’m not used to my joints aching all the time. I’m becoming a hypochondriac with injuries. Worried I’ll hit a bit one like with my back and be sidelined for months and not be able to do anything. No walking on Sunday or Monday to let my knee heal some more. I got an adjustment done at the chiropractor for my knee and shoulder. If it had been one or the other, I wouldn’t have bothered but it seemed to help the knee last cycle and the shoulder last time. Might have been something with the anterior part of my lower leg causing the issues. I got a “rice krispknee” (patent pending) for my right knee as it is. Left shoulder is still achy. Allergies were acting up being time and it didn’t help that it was above 90 the past two days. Copper sleeves on both knees. I had been sent a backup plan for this week to give the knees some more rest. I was playing it by ear but I was leaning towards doing the pre-modified workout. Whatever. On the fancy bikes again. I actually was 1 second over finishing the course I did last time in the five minutes so that is something haha. Highest my heartrate hit was 145bpm. On to the warm-ups. Calf raises felt good. Tight but springy. Knees were not nearly as bad as I was expecting on the goblet squats. Again, really focusing on the breaking at the hips first and then bending knees. A bit more aches on the RDLs. Band rows were easy. Not really any aches in the shoulder for the push-ups. Plank was easy but I definitely felt stress in the left shoulder in the pose. Biceps stretches felt good. One shoulder is definitely tighter than the other. No issues on the hip swings. On to the workout. It could go one of two ways. If my knee made it not worth it, the new option would be working up to a 90-95% single strict press with the axle. The true plan would be working up to 80% on axle clean and jerk and then move it to the rack for EMOM stuff. Split style appeared to be less stress on the knee. I had the knee brace if necessary. I didn’t really have a set percentage that I was using as I haven’t really maxed on the axle clean and jerks like I’ve been doing with log. I just went up by 15kgs a set to about 80% for the top single. Stuff felt a little heavier in the rack position than I would’ve liked but the weight was flying up overhead. If I ever need to do reps on the platform on axle, I will need to have more control on the descent. But don’t want to overstress biceps unnecessarily. Rack work after that. Same as log from last week. I was a bit leery on this as this new rack can’t fit the axle on the barbell hooks so I had to use the catches like I did with log. I added 7.5kgs to the axle from what I did on the last single to match things like I did with log. Same idea, nine singles done EMOM style. With how it felt on my shoulders, I felt I made a big mistake. But it just went to lockout easily. I think I had more trouble unracking and settling the axle on my shoulders and then putting it back on the rack then actually jerking the weight. Ended up with a power jerk on the second to last lift. A little more knee stress there. My rice krispknee didn’t explode so good for now. It will have see if it appreciates this later. Chest supported rows were next. Same guidelines as last time but aiming for 6-8 reps. I figured why not do the same thing with plate jumps and go for 400lbs for reps. This would be the most weight I’ve attempted on these. Six reps to time my best and anything above that being a rep PR. Biceps a little tight from keg work on Saturday. First three weights were easy. Could probably do like 20 reps with 310lbs. Last time my right biceps started to cramp before the last set. I was a little worried but I made sure I didn’t have the biceps initiating the pull at the start. 400lbs was heavy but I got the reps. Benching again. Had a rocky start a few weeks back but I seem to be on track with the benching again. Planned jumps up to a top triple for the night and then paused rep set. Did a few warm-ups. Weight started a little slow and then got easier before getting tough again. 290lbs was slower but I was in control. 330lbs was the planned triple. It felt like I was pushing it but it looked like I had a double in the tank maybe. Paused rep set again. I went big jump again with 280lbs. Probably should’ve stopped at seven reps as the eight one I let go too far towards my head and hit the one pin so it was more of a struggle than it should’ve been. Grip hang to end the day. I knew what I needed to do for setup here. Again, this felt like I was going to lose my grip immediately. My chest was tight and sore but I held on. I had hoped I had breached a minute with the chains this week but still short. But still an improvement. Home to stretch and eat meatloaf.

June 16, 2018 – Week 6, Day 3

5 Minutes Misc Stationary Bike

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Yoke (with drops)
300x100’ (drop at 50’) in 14.21 seconds
400x50’ (drop at 25’) in 8.97 seconds
500x50’ (drop at 25’) in 9.42 seconds
600x50’ (drop at 25’) in 11.49 seconds
700x50’ in 9.42 seconds
800x100’ (drop at 50’) in 42.36 seconds

Keg Load Over Bar
154x1 to 68”
203x1 to 68”
252x1 to 68”
276x1 to 68”
300x1 to 68”
327x1 to 68”
351.5x0 to 68”
351.5x0 to 66”
351.5x0 to 66”

Stretching

Comments: I didn’t want to do this workout. Well it was more I didn’t want to do this workout and not be able to do it. Right knee is not feeling it right now. Icing my knees and taking whatever anti-inflammatories I have. I can deal with it just existing but it’s hindering me doing what I want/need to do. No walking yesterday to see if that helped at all. It was quite warm out today. Wore copper sleeves on both knees driving out to the gym and kept them on all day. I figured walking wouldn’t be too good on turf since my knees seem to be more achy and not as warm doing that. So I got on the bike for this one. Calf raise stuff was easy. Nice and springy so good sign. Goblet box squats after that. Knees ached but not as much as I was expecting or could be with my knees. Really thinking about sitting back on these first to get the hip hinge. Knees were a little achy on the RDLs too. Band rows were great as were push-ups. Easy plank hold followed by the biceps stretches. Hip swings weren’t bad either but I noticed that my right knee was a little off when that was my swinging leg. Now for weights. First up for the day was yoke. 50’ down, drop and turn and 50’ back with contest weight of 800lbs as the goal. Starting at 300lbs and taking 100lbs jumps. Similar plan to the farmer’s walks but more sets. I had cooled off a little waiting for a lane to open up so I did some “yoke walking” with nothing on my back to see how it felt on my knees. It would really suck to have driven about an hour to drive home. Then I did some picks with the empty yoke and some walking. I was going to need more than the copper sleeve to do this safely today. I had brought the knee brace I had used for keg press last week and put that over the sleeve. Could still move but felt I had enough support. Had a small child in the lane on both ways with 300lbs. I couldn’t seem to move into another gear. I figured that maybe it was due to the first set or that I didn’t want to hit the kid. But it seemed to be the case for all the sets. The next three sets were half the distance with the pick and turn. Knee didn’t seem to be getting worse. Right side of my lower back was stuff and sore. It was chore bending over to pick up stuff or put weight on the yoke. 600lbs felt like a house. I felt like I was slowing down on the second half of that run. I felt my transitions were slower too. With how 600lbs felt, I figured I wasn’t going to be able to fast pick and go with the next weight. This was just a straight run of 50’. Slow on the pick but I seemed to be doing well and pick up speed. But like 15’ out my left hip and leg just stiffened up and messed up my rhythm. Almost dropped it with how abrupt it came on. This seems to be the case more with heavier runs. I was not happy with this but it was at least under 10 seconds. Realization was setting in that the last run may not happen. Before signing up for this contest, I had figured that the farmer’s walk and yoke wouldn’t be so taxing to train for since I had been hitting these weights consistently since October. Literally no stop in contest prep since a year ago. But yeah, at my level, this is still tough. Be humble. I took my time before doing this last run. Switched out the 25lbs bumper plates for 100lbs plates. I was feeling sick to my stomach. I didn’t want to do this. I was worried I was going to just drop it 10’ in and be done. Had to talk myself into it. I was not going fast. I wanted to finish. Going fast might have what happened near the end of the last run. It didn’t feel so bad going down. About the same point my left side did that thing it does. This second half was going to suck. I took a bit more time to repick the yoke as I knew I was going to hobbling this thing back now. Really going slow now. About half way down this length and I’m slowing down even more. tarps are feeling raw from the yoke. Slow when tired, let it settle. I almost came to a dead stop but I was so close and once I got my hips under me again, I started moving and finished. Took me over 42 seconds. I feel like this needs to be at least 15 seconds faster. But it was done. Took my time putting stuff away to get ready for the keg lifting. Plan today for keg was singles over bar at 68”, starting light and lowering the height when I feel like I might miss and so on. I was not sure how this was going to go with my back and knee. Starting this light would give me a chance to work on technique that I can’t really do with the contest weight of 350lbs. I was literally throwing the power keg over the bar up until 300lbs. I was still able to launch it but it was much less ridiculous looking. Had a crash mat and three tires and that really didn’t stop the keg much, it came down to the exercise machines stopping it. I really need to get another arm sleeve as the power keg really is biting into my biceps on the right arm, especially on the load portion when I release the keg. I ended up wrapping my left thumb in tape to make that more secure and to keep it from bleeding. Pressing the thumb into the lip of the keg seems to be the most secure and stable way to match the other hand grip on the handles. Despite feeling like crap, I was feeling like I could get +350lbs over this height today. 327lbs went over this height and I was still able to get a bit over upper body shove into it. But I came up short at this height with the next jump. Looking at the video, it appears to be about the same height as I got around this weight to last time when I missed. Maybe slightly lower. I was feeling lightheaded with having it on my chest and exerting for so long. So I lowered it 2” to 66” for what I figured was a sure thing. It was not a sure thing. I was so close but it just got stuck and came back down. I figured I’d give it another shot. Same result. It was so close. I had nothing left. I didn’t want to lift it again. I figured it was close enough. Someone else training today tried it for fun and got it over easy with the same weight and height. I felt like crap. I just wanted to go home. The ice packs for me knees didn’t stay cold in the cooler I brought so that didn’t work out. So tired and beat up. I had to convince myself to stretch when I got home. Need to recover and refocus. Get over my bimonthly “I’m going to retire” funk and keep moving forward. Two more hard weeks in the cycle left.

June 13, 2018 – Week 6, Day 2

5 Minutes Expresso Interactive Upright Exercise Bike

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Deadlifts
135x5
205x5
Added Suit/Straps
275x3
336x3
397x3
458x3
519x3

Smith Machine Weighted Planks
BW+155x30 seconds
BW+155x30 seconds

Side Plank
BWx60/60 seconds

Stretching

Comments: Moved this day up to accommodate for social engagements. Right knee is still buggy. Wore a copper knee sleeve for the workout. Warmed up on the fancy bike again. 140bpm highest reading this time. I picked a different course that seemed ok. Easy calf work after that. Knees weren’t really bothering me on the goblet box squats. So that was a plus. RDLs also not so bad on the knee. I figured that deadlifting wouldn’t be so bad today then. Rows with the band were good. Left shoulder is still tight but not the achy painful it was before. I was expecting some shoulder tightness on the push-ups but they actually went pretty good. Plank was easy. Then the biceps stretches. Into the hallway for the hip swings. Felt pretty good. On to deadlifts. Someone was using the lifting platform so I just did them right in front of it where really the only space available. Warmed up before moving on to the work sets. All gear on and doing triples with 10% jumps in weight. Reps in the suit is weird. I used a combination of metal plates and bumper plates to try and get it to feel similar to the hummer tire weight distribution. I felt like I was pressing orange juice out of my face with how tight the suit felt and how much pressure I was under at the bar. Never not awkward getting strapped to the bar in the suit from the floor. Weight felt easy that first set and was much the same the second set. This was encouraging. Suit doesn’t put me in a good position on the floor despite the rebound I get. Weight was starting to feel heavy and I was getting sweaty. Producing my on baby oil with how easily the bar was sliding up my thighs to lockout. Nicked my shin on the right side on one of the sets so was bleeding through that sock by the end. Second to last set, I felt that I could do 12-15 reps with it. Top set was a little bit tougher. I gripped it differently on the bar and I didn’t bother applying chalk. Made this a bit harder to hold on to with control, even with the straps. Put the weights away and got out of the suit before going upstairs to do weighted planks. Set it up with the weight I did my last set with last week. That was rough going for that much weight right off the bat. Must be crazy to do another set with it. Side plank to finish up the session. Weighted planks had beat my core up something fierce. I was sweating and cramping by the end of the side plank set and was just glad to be done with it and head home to rest some.

June 12, 2018 – Week 6, Day 1

5 Minutes Expresso Interactive Upright Exercise Bike

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

12” Log Clean and Push Presses
90x1
120x1
150x1
180x1
210x1
240x1

12” Log Push Presses (EMOM Style)
256x1
256x1
256x1
256x1
256x1
256x1
256x1
256x1
256x1

Pulldowns
50x15
100x8
130x8
160x8
190x8
220x8

Incline Bench Presses
45x10
112x5
160x5
208x5
256x5
1 Second Pauses
205x8

Stretching

Comments: Monday had went pretty well. I had been stressing about getting caught up at work and managed to get there. Also got shoulder adjusted at chiropractor. It had been slightly dislocated and was stressing the infraspinatus. Of course it is now tight but not as achy/painful. Ice packs for knees arrived on Sunday and been trying those out for recovery. Whatever goodwill I built up to be rested from Monday was squandered by the end of today. Gym was packed, could feel the warmth and stench from the hallway before even entering. Picked a different course on the virtual bike. Was about the same as the other one but shorter and apparently it displays a screen when you “finish” the course lap. May need to just stick to the longer one so I don’t have that come up. Only got up to 129bpm. On to the warm-ups. Calf raise stuff is still pretty easy. Not too tight today. Again trying to get a better ROM on these. Knees were a little achy on the goblet squats. RDLs I felt a little stiff but still good. Then more normal stuff like band rows and push-ups. These felt alright. A little apprehensive with the shoulder. I feel the tightness from before but not the ache so that is good. Will take a little time for it to calm down I think. Then a short plank hold and biceps stretches. Hip swings felt good too. On to weights and such. Start of it was log clean and push presses. Singles taking 10% jumps up to 80% of my best in training from the floor. So 30lbs jumps which made that easy. I realized that on the raised up platform that I won’t be able to use full sized plates. I had not accounted for the log sitting 6” higher on my chest. So I will have to stick to 25lbs plates. Working on tilting the handles forward while still grabbing in the middle of the handle. Trying to get it to feel right on the press. 240lbs wasn’t too bad but it did roll forward on me. Then it was time to do rack work. Plan being log press EMOM with 80% of my best rack push press with the log. I did these in the new rack and I noticed it was harder than the other one. I think it is because I can just get it to my shoulders in one efficient motion and then press without having to move. On this one, I have to unrack it and walk out to press it, similar to how I do the axle stuff. This extended time with the log on my shoulders is exhausting. I was worried it make me get no reps at the start. I’m not sure if I was bending my knees too much or what but my right knee got sore and achy. I finished with no missed lifts but I don’t know if this was as “speedy” as that plan wanted them to be. A little discouraging having essentially 64lbs under my best feel tough. No time to dwell on that. Pulldowns next. Not going for a max on these today. Warm-up and then 5 sets of 8 with 30lbs jumps. Aim for 8 with 10rm. Now since the pulldown cable station has changed, it was hard to gauge as I think the most I’ve done was 200lbs for ten here but that was not pushing it. I figured that I could do 220lbs for the same no problem so set that as the goal. I was keeping an eye on my left shoulder and my biceps. Biceps have been chirping a little since last week. But no issues on these today. Back felt good, no stress on my arms. Incline bench was next up. It has been a while. I was to do these earlier but I had the hissy fit a few weeks back and didn’t do them. The gym had moved the incline bench station further away from the wall so not really able to use it to brace against like before when I was coming back from the injury. Not needed now I think. I forgot how sucky these are. It feels like I’m struggling every rep on the warm-ups but it looks like speed work on camera. Same parameters as the bench press from last week with percentages and sets of five. Second to last set I was worried I’d get stapled with the next weight with how it felt. Wrist wraps seem to make these much better for me with stability to lock out the weight. The last set was definitely not the best as far as form but I managed to muscle out the reps. Down set with pauses. These seem to be much better for me on incline for some reason. Got eight with the weight and felt I had more there. Home to stretch, recover and meatloaf before bed.

June 9, 2018 – Week 5, Day 3

5 Minutes 35lbs Sled Walk (on turf)

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Keg Clean and Push Presses
27x5 Left Side
27x5 Right Side
80x1 Left Side
80x1 Right Side
100x1 Left Side
100x1 Right Side
125x1 Left Side
125x1 Right Side
Power Keg
144x1 Left Side
144x1 Right Side
163x1 Left Side
163x1 Right Side
182.5x1 Left Side
182.5x1 Right Side
208x1 Right Side
208x1 Right Side
208x1 Right Side
208x1 Left Side
208x1 Left Side
208x1 Left Side

18” I-Beam Farmer’s Walk (with drops)
127x100’ (drop at 50’) in 13.43 seconds
227x50’ (drop at 25’) in 10.75 seconds
277x50’ in 8.38 seconds
327x100’ (drop at 50’) in 27.12 seconds PR+2.05 seconds

Stretching

Comments: I had fully planned on getting up at a reasonable hour. My knees were a little achy Friday and I felt it was best to rest (no walk) eat a big meal and get sleep. Work had been stressful this week. Left shoulder is still being a bastard. If it is still like this Monday, I’ll probably see if I can get an adjustment done that day after work. I got up when my alarm went off by my body refused to move. I apparently needed another 90 minutes or so before I could peel myself away from bed. It was ok since today was relatively low volume and just two exercises. Also with Evan at Giants Live there were going to be less people training today anyways. Latest I’ve gone out to train in a long time on Saturday. I believe after noon was when I arrived. Tried to foam roll my shoulder a bit before starting. I was able to do laps around the gym with the sled so some of it was on turf and other spots on rubber floor. Both equally tough. I did get a little cranky when people leaving the gym would slowly lumber into my path. Calf stuff was good and easy. They were somewhat tight but felt springy. I was really trying to get a good stretch and decent ROM on these today. Goblet box squats were ok. Some knee aches but not as bad as it was last week. RDLs weren’t as easy as last time but I think that had more to do with not having the awesome music playing haha. Band rows, pushup and plank hold all felt good too. Left shoulder was a little achy on pushups but not as bad as it has been some days. I had been a little worried the band rows would bother my biceps but no issues. Plank was easy compared to the weighted one I did earlier this week. Biceps stretch I used a different setup as the benches were in use but it was just as good if not better. May try to use it next time too. No issues with hip swings. Plenty of space to do them inside today. Some pressure on the one side for supporting myself with the shoulder. Keg press was back again. Plan was just to work up to 80% for five singles with whatever rest I needed. Now hard to say was 80% is as most I’ve done is 243lbs this cycle but that is definitely not my max. 269lbs was too far at of reach when I tried it and it was an unexpected attempt for that day. I settled on 260lbs to base my numbers off of for these next few weeks. I ended up making some changes to the plan. I had only attempted to do ejector seat style to my left side with the assumption that was my better side. But I haven’t tried it to the right. I didn’t want to assume I was better on one versus the other and miss the opportunity to find one that was more efficient and miss working on balancing things out. While I’m training specifically for this upcoming contest, it’s good to be prepping for future contests and performances. Big picture stuff. I also brought in an adjustable knee brace as well. The Power Keg’s lip digs into the top of my knee and makes it bruise up. I can deal with the pain but bruising cuts into recovery and makes walking a little difficult for a few days due to swelling. Take it off and switch sides easily. Straps mean I can make it loose or super tight if needed. Just needing the padding for now. I can say that I didn’t feel like I was on point at the start today with the keg. Alternating sides makes it a little tricky to remember which way I got to tilt my head. I remembered to late on my first set with the Power Keg and grazed my ear on my right side haha. Plan was to drop the “weaker” side as it got hard and do the “strong” side for the work singles. Problem was that they felt about the same. Clean was stronger to the left side but my stability was better on the right side. Fractions of a second difference really. I figured the best option was to do three singles each side with the working weight. Be able to see if one side is a better option for next time and it was just one single more than planned. Only one where I felt any issues was the first one with the left side as I don’t think I was prepared for how fast it would get up to my shoulder. The pressing was easy so that is good. One of the downsides of coming to this gym late is that the music may stop as people unplug their iPods or phones from the stereo system. So no real sound for the keg pressing once I got to the top weights. Next up was farmer’s. Be the last thing for the day. Not a lot but it was going to be tough. I walked fast down the lane and back to do some movement prep before actually going. Like last time, the plan was to do sets with the last one being contest run. It’s a heavy enough weight to make me anxious. First run was down and back full course length with about 200lbs per hand under contest weight. I tried to utilize what I learned from last time as far as how to control the implements. I thought I was moving slower but apparently this ended up being .5 a second faster with 10lbs more weight so pretty good. Next run was half the distance with a drop and turn. This was about 100lbs under contest weight per hand. At this point, someone people came in to train and put on this horrible, slow tempo music. And each song sounded exactly the same. For this run, I put on 45lbs plates to make the implements stick out more. I figured this was better to mimic contest conditions rather than keep things more streamlined with smaller diameter plates. I felt like my picks were slow but this appears to have also been a good time. 26lbs more per hand than last time and I was less than .10 second slower. A little change from last time I did farmer’s walk was for this penultimate run was just a 50’ run with about 50lbs under contest weight. The terrible music was still playing. Pick felt slow but I feel I was moving fast. I felt my time was maybe a little slow compared to my bests for around this weight but it turns out this may be the fastest I’ve done this kind of weight. So things are looking up haha. Even though I had done the contest run with no issues last time, it was still making me nervous. Can’t always be at my best. And it was tough last time. It was going to be tough this time. The crappy music was still playing. I couldn’t tell if it was the same song or not. I began to wonder if I was in purgatory and if this song would just keep playing until I just went and did this last run and stop being big baby about it and do it. Pick felt heavy and slow. Video says otherwise. I felt like I was moving too slow down the first half of the course. Video says otherwise. I turn to go for the pick and notice that the one 25lbs plate is not where it should be. It had popped off the loading pin on the drop and had landed on the implement. So I had to put it back on and then go for the pick. Pick was harder this time. I was going to finish. Maybe the fight or flight response is compressing time for me on this. I thought I had screwed up but I was just over 2 seconds faster than last time on this. If the weight hadn’t popped off on the one end, I think I have this in under 25 seconds one day. Weights away and home to rest.

June 7, 2018 – Week 5, Day 2

5 Minutes Expresso Interactive Upright Exercise Bike

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

16” Front Box Squats
45x9
95x3
145x3
195x3
195x3
195x3
195x3
195x3

Wide Grip Deadlifts (straps)
160x2
210x2
255x2
300x2
300x2
300x2
300x2
300x2

Smith Machine Weighted Planks
BW+105x30 seconds
BW+155x30 seconds

Side Plank
BWx60/60 seconds

Stretching

Comments: Still achy left shoulder. Inner thighs were tight when I went walking the other day. Cautious with the right biceps since it had felt a little crampy from the circus dumbbell and heavy rows. Gym was pretty packed downstairs. Three guys were doing 10x10 chain squats in a rotation so that was going to be a while. Warmed up on the fancy bike again. 145bpm highest reading this time. Easy calf work after that. Knees weren’t really bothering me on the goblet box squats. Really does seem to be a day to day thing. RDLs also had achy knees but felt better as I did them. I was a little cautious with the band rows to make sure I wasn’t using too much arms. I was expecting some shoulder tightness on the push-ups but they actually went pretty good. Plank was easy. Then the biceps stretches. Into the hallway for the hip swings. Felt pretty good. Not as much of an ache on the shoulder one the one side. One side definitely felt a little off today though. I had to wait for the squat rack to be open after that so I cooled off a bit. Front box squats for light weight and reps. It was a little weird getting things setup. The hardwood floor feels sturdy but I have to step on the rubber to unrack the weights. I was expecting these to be more of a pain on my knees since even light weight last time was a nuisance. Not so much today. Plan was to do 50% for the work sets. I felt it was easier to just do 50lbs jumps to the working weight. I didn’t realize I was doing more volume compared to last time. Last time was 3x2, this was 5x3. No real set rest, I walked down the hallway and back before doing the next set. Felt a little heavy on my clavicle the first set or so but it was feeling comfortable by the end. Nice and controlled descent to the box and fast lifting. Little breather as I took that stuff down and setup for the wide grip deadlifts. Didn’t need as much of a warm-up here. I was worried that my hamstrings would be acting up here but didn’t seem to be the case tonight. No bands and slow negatives with control. No rehband belt as I felt this was light weight for everything and it would be good for me. Shins were a little raw by the end but I felt in control of the weight and no issues. Left inner hip was a little tight but not painful, just felt like it had done work today. Next part of the workout was abdominal bracing stuff. Been several training cycles since I did these. First thing was regular weighted plank. My favorite method had been with the smith machine as it allowed me to not have to worry about someone helping me or balancing the weight in a certain spot. But they got rid of the smith machine downstairs. They had another one that wasn’t as “counter balanced” and didn’t have an arc motion. It’s straight up and down. Had no idea if this one would work or be adjustable. It managed to be workable. I put a plate on each side and found that it was surprisingly manageable. It was tough but not crazy tough like this kind of weight has been at times. So I added 50lbs for the next set. Yeah, that’s the spice. This was fair bit harder. I was definitely looking forward to that 30 seconds to be up. Last thing was unweighted side planks. Not much here, just my body was straining and dripping sweat and heat coming off my body. It will be interesting to see how my abdominals feel later after that. Home to stretch and eat beef tenderloin.

June 5, 2018 – Week 5, Day 1

5 Minutes Precor Stationary Bike

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Circus Dumbbell Clean and Presses
Plate Loaded Dumbbell with Fat Gripz Extreme
(2 stage 2 second pauses)
40x1 R
40x1 L
70x1 R
70x1 L
90x1 R
90x1 L
110x1 R
110x1 L
Circus Dumbbell
130x1 R
130x1 L
(competition style/EMOM)
148x1 R
148x1 R
148x1 R
148x1 R
148x1 R
148x1 R
148x1 R
148x1 R
148x1 R
148x1 R
148x1 L
148x1 L
148x1 L
148x1 L
148x1 L
148x1 L
148x1 L
148x1 L
148x1 L
148x1 L

Chest Supported Rows
100x10
190x10
280x10
370x10 PR+2 reps

Barbell Bench Presses
45x10
135x5
193x5
252x5
310x5
1 Second Pauses
265x8 PR+20lbs

Wide Grip Hang
bw+11x54.00 seconds

Stretching

Comments: Deep tissue massage was needed. Feel like I’d need one every day for a week. Left shoulder is still achy. I think it is from the axle jerks and rushing the unrack on some reps. Hopefully it goes away in time. Lot of tension removed from my neck and shoulders. I was definitely tight in my middle back. Back to the grind. Located my wood platform so it was not removed like I had feared. The fancy bikes were in use so I just picked one of the standard ones. It was broken so I couldn’t adjust the resistance. And I think the heart rate was also busted. Whatever. Highest was 132bpm. On to the warm-ups. Calf raises felt good. Tight but springy. Knees were a bit achy on the goblet squats and RDLs. Guess my theory on the bike warming knees up better is not as sound as I thought. Band rows were easy. Little bit of ache in the left shoulder for the push-ups. Plank was easy and no issues with the biceps stretches. Right shoulder ached supporting myself for the front to back hip swings on the one side. No issues with the other side or doing the side to side style. Then it was time for the lifting. Starting off was the circus dumbbell. This was going to be a lot of work. Warm-up to 80% and then the fun begins. Bigger jumps doing the pause and hold style push pressing. For the working weight I chose between my best single since coming back from the back injury (187lbs) and the most I’ve put up this training (182lbs) for the working weight. Plan was a 20 minute EMOM of competition style circus dumbbell doing 10 singles with the one side and then 10 singles with the other side. Not the longest EMOM but definitely the most reps I’ve done for overhead work. The sweating was going to be a problem. The big dumb lifting platform takes up a lot of space and the dumbbell will ruin the wooden middle so I had to do them to the side. Chalk on my everywhere. Shoulders, hands, forearms, back of my hands, wrists, the entire surface area of the dumbbell. Fatigue was definitely a factor on the weaker side (right). Makes it harder to keep it tight and in position. Fourth single I messed up and had to redo it. That was a tough rep, even the one I got. The more reps I did, the more and more I went back to add chalk. Finally I could switch sides to my strong side. Even though my post injury PR is the same for both, this side is so much more efficient. The issue was really just getting the dumbbell to my shoulder as the movement to overhead looked crisp. Some reps it was like it teleport to lockout and I felt nothing. By rep 19, the chalk and sweat had become a slick and terrible lubricant. I had out sweated the chalks abilities. So I wiped it all off with my towel and got the last one done. Three more exercises to do. Chest supported rows were next. Only guidelines had been to work up in sets of 8-10 to a decent set of 8-10. I started light and had plans to do plate, quarter, plate jumps. But then I thought I should just do plate jumps so I could try for something heavy for the last set. First three sets were pretty darn easy. Only 280lbs really felt like anything. 370lbs was up next. Eight was what I’ve done at this weight. My right biceps started to cramp a little right before this set so I was a little hesitant about it. Probably from all the dumbbell cleaning. It was with great care I pulled that first rep and when it felt all good I pumped out the reps. Managed ten reps with a rep or two left for good PR here. Bench was next. Didn’t go so smooth last week. Set percentages to hit this week. Basing off of a projected max from how my top double felt. Working up in weight didn’t feel confident that the top set of five would be smooth. Last two sessions the work up reps have been light to save stuff for the top set. Even had a little bit of a cramp in the left hamstring setting up for the top set. But it went better than expected. 310lbs felt like how 300lbs should’ve felt last week. Since I felt good about that, I went with a little more than I planned to do for the down set with pauses. Goal had been 6-8 reps while finishing strong. First rep or two, I thought maybe this was too ambitious but as I kept going and wasn’t losing any power, I ended up doing eight reps. Last thing for the night was the grip hang. This had some complications. The first was the power rack change. No longer could do this from the top of this power rack. I set the safeties to the highest point. Grabbing the bar, I was pretty much near a full squat touching the ground. So I would have to tuck my legs up a hanging knee lift to have my full body weight for this. Then since I had gotten over a minute last time, I was to add weight. With how low it was, I couldn’t add weight to a belt as it would be on the floor. Luckily I have 5kgs chains so I draped one around my neck. I didn’t think I would last past 30 seconds with how it felt. But I did and I almost got to a minute. It was better than my first time with just bodyweight. This really gets the fingers near the end. Home to stretch and eat meatloaf.

June 2, 2018 – Week 4, Day 3

5 Minutes 35lbs Sled Walk (on turf)

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Yoke (with drops at 50’)
210x100’ in 12.81 seconds
300x100’ in 13.71 seconds
400x100’ in 14.30 seconds
500x100’ in 15.64 seconds

Sandbag Rows
150x5
200x5

Mouser Block Carry (off floor, turns at 50’)
254x463’3”
303x412’1”

Stretching

Comments: Had a somewhat relaxing end to the week. Right shoulder is still achy and that is annoying. Have deep tissue massage scheduled for Monday after work so hopefully that alleviates that. Been carrying a lot of tension in my neck, shoulders and upper back as of late. I had a later start to my day than I wanted to as I had some rumblings in my stomach. So I was running maybe two hours behind what I wanted to be. Today wasn’t going to be too bad as far as the training so this was ok to be running late. This gym is open all day unlike the last gym (which I have learned has since folded). They were having an open gym today with seminars, classes and food. I wasn’t thinking too much about that as I’ve been to other places that have offered that and didn’t notice much change. This was different. The place was packed and hopping. So much so that they rented a port-a-potty. I figured I’d wait until I actually really needed to use the restroom. With how many bodies there were, I figured I wasn’t getting done anything quickly today. Did walking on turf with the sled though it wasn’t ideal with all the foot traffic. I walked in a smaller area this time. Calf raise stuff was easy. Nice and springy so good sign. Goblet box squats after that. Knees ached. I was a little puzzled by this as this is the second time in a row but I think it’s because I usually do bike on this day and moving the knee in a larger ROM is better for this. But the bike at the gym isn’t very comfortable. RDLs with a barbell after that. My favorite Kendrick Lamar song started playing when I got this setup so I was moving fast and crisp here haha. Band rows were great as were push-ups. I was expected protestations from my shoulders but nothing. Easy plank hold followed by the biceps stretches. Found a bench that worked well for the stretches. Outside to do the hip swings. Right shoulder ached a little supporting myself against the wall. Didn’t feel as hot as last week. Now for weights. This workout was to be the workout I did last week albeit heavier on two of the exercises. Pushed this one out a week to help with recovery since it had a lot of moving going on. First up for the day was yoke. Yoke and farmer’s will be alternated weekly the rest of the cycle. 50’ down, drop and turn and 50’ back. They have three yokes here. Two Rogue and one that is unknown but has a thin crossbar and is very wobbly. The one Rogue yoke is more standard but the other one has a thicker dual crossbar and it a bit beefier. That was the one I wanted to use. I had assumed the competition yoke was going to be the one they have at the gym the promoter works at but it appears it will be Bartos equipment. The yokes are narrower compared to that but the thicker crossbar is a good match. 300lbs was to be the first working weight but I figured I wanted to do a run with the empty yoke first since I’ve never used this one before. I feel like my drop and turn is very good on yoke as there is very little hesitation to get back under and go with it. I do think I get a little to one side maybe. Knees were a little achy on the pick with 400lbs and 500lbs but no issues while moving. 400lbs I think was the first set where I actually “woke” up as it was only about half a second slower than my set with 300lbs. I was dripping with sweat before my run with 500lbs. It was good but I feel I could be faster. But I want to make sure I have control on the drop as well as not run into the wall at the end. I noticed afterwards that the yoke is coming up off the ground before I have even got my feet planted flat on the ground. Not sure if that is because this yoke has no “flex” in it when it is tightened or if this is something new as I looked through my other videos of yoke and I’m not seeing this happen. Just found it interesting. The next exercise was more of a warm-up for the last event of the day. Been a while since I’ve done the sandbag rows. This was supposed to be three sets to a decent weight but still shy of a max effort. Kind of glad this was lighter with the sweat dripping off me and how this can be biceps stressful. The new place has them all in a corridor which had a lot of stuff in it today so a fair number of people. Just got it over with so that I could get on to the last thing. No biceps issues thankfully. Last thing had been my chose as far as max distance carry. Either due keg, sandbag or block. Two runs with turns at 50’ with the plan being one grip style (harder version) the first run with the lighter weight and another style (easier version) for the heavier run. At this point, the only show I have coming up with a carry is a block so that made the most sense. Sandbag at this time only goes up to 275lbs as the leadshot bag burst. I’ve never done a block carry before and the most weight I’ve put in the Mouser block is just over 200lbs. My block was in a storage room so it was a struggle to get it out of there. I was worried that the Allen wrench got lost in the move as it wasn’t on the block. Plan was to do 250lbs or so for the first run, holding it like I was about to load it and then 300lbs or so for the next run and holding it like I would for staggered grip husafell carry. I had no idea how this was going to go. I wondered if I would even be able to get it in my lap. I put on a fresh shirt and got to work. 254lbs went up pretty easy and I was at 100’ in no time. I started playing with my hand position at that point. The block has “feet” on the corners and I started with my hands on the sides and tried the top feet. That didn’t feel any more secure than what I was doing so I put one hand on the bottom feet and one on the top feet. That felt a lot better. I went 150’ with the staggered grip and decided to see if holding both bottom feet would be an even better grip. It was risky as every time I stopped to adjust my hands was a chance it would slip out of my hands. It paid off as it felt like I was locked it. I got a little over 200’ more before my legs were gassed. I was not expecting getting over 450’ on this thing. Took a longer rest to let my forearms stop throbbing and cool off a little. Weight up to 303lbs. Still a ways to go to contest weight but that show isn’t for another 13 weeks. I got someone to follow with a drop tire this time as the block is pretty much indestructible but the floor isn’t. The plan had been to do this thing upright like an husafel stone but with my grip not appearing to be the thing holding me back, this style would probably be detrimental to how I do as this would slow me down and shorten my gait. I also think it is too narrow with my long arms to do that. So I figured I’d see if I could repeat what I did with this weight. Started off with staggered grip but switched to the grip I had last run after 50’. At 200’, I figured I could gut out another 200’. It was coming down to how much I wanted to push it at this weight, this far out. Probably another 20’ was there if I went for broke. Legs were tired and so were my forearms. Over 400’. I hope I don’t have to push it this hard at the show so I have the energy for the other events haha. Stretched at the gym before driving home to relax.

May 31, 2018 – Week 4, Day 2

5 Minutes Expresso Interactive Upright Exercise Bike

Leaning Calf Raises
BWx30

16” Goblet Box Squats
20x25

Shoestring Romanian Deadlifts
45x20

Band Rows
MMBx20

Push-ups
BWx15

Bodyweight Plank
20 Seconds

Biceps Stretches
20 Seconds
20 Seconds

Front to Back Hip Swings
BWx10/10

Side to Side Hip Swings
BWx10/10

16” Rack Pulls (suit/straps)
Straps Down
135x5
225x3
315x2
Straps Up
405x1
495x1
585x1
655x1
705x1 PR+5lbs

Stretching

Comments: Feeling a bit better. Mentally and physically I guess. Left shoulder has been achy since Wednesday. Triceps still a little sore. I was not happy when I got to the gym to see yet another new power rack replacing the one that was just replaced. Also a big lifting platform taking up space and elevated about 5-6” off the floor. I checked to make sure I could still stand up to press without hitting the ceiling. I wasn’t able to, I was going to be pissed. So I was little distracted going on to warm-ups. The fancy bike was available after a little bit. Picked the same course I did two sessions back. I’m not certain my top BPM was as I was distracted with how mad I was about the power rack change. I think it was around 137. I stayed upstairs to do the warm-up stuff again. Calves were tight but felt ok. Goblet box squats after that. I had to find a different bench this time. A little more achy than last time and I noticed the weight more today. RDLs with a barbell after that. Trying to get a good hip hinge and hamstring stretch going. So then on to downstairs for the rest of it. Band rows were good and so were push-ups. I was expecting shoulder aches in the left on those but nothing. Plank was easy and stretching of the biceps was ok. Hip swings final thing before training. Well I guess I had to do some figuring out first. Plan for the workout was do the same thing as last week but with 16” rack pull instead of deadlift. Suit work with two options depending on how I felt. The new rack had the lowest setting at 24” off the ground. Also didn’t seem the most secure thing with a weight limit of 600lbs. I looked around and noticed my 3” platform I had made was missing. Might be upstairs but it was possibly thrown out. So all I had was the 5” green platform that I usually use as my camera stand. Ended up using bumper plates and then standing on the platform. The block had held up to me standing on it with 650lbs before so should be ok right? Suit, straps and belt on every set. Same work up sets and plans as the deadlift at the start. Started with 135lbs with the suit straps down. Then 225lbs and 315lbs. Hips felt fine but the lower back feels these more from the elevated position. Straps up for 405lbs and onward. I was kind of surprised with how easy it was to get to the bar after doing the floor pulls last week. 495lbs seemed ok. Next weight was the crossroads. If 585lbs felt easy, I could go up in weight. If not, 2-4 more singles. 585lbs didn’t feel like I could tug on Superman’s cape but it looked like speed work on camera. It looked a lot faster (once it started moving) than 495lbs from the floor did last week. I then figured this might be the last heavy single I get this training cycle with the planned peak and event work coming up. So I decided to try 5lbs more than last time for a single. Exceeding the weight limit (though I think the previous rack had one of 500lbs). Definitely some weight on the bar here. Still seemed pretty solid on video. I could go up one more. But no misses. This was stressed. I figured that I had 50lbs more in me today but it would be tough. I’d look really stupid If I failed it. I made sure to film this and the previous one with both my camera and my phone in case the rack broke. Got set and gave it a tug. It took a bit but once I broke the pins, I knew I had it, the question was whether it would be a clean lift or not. Managed to grind the lift through without resorting to a hitch. Upper back and neck were tight from that effort. I was surprised my hamstrings were getting angry at me on these today. Home to stretch and eat.