February 4, 2023 – Week 15, Day 4

Hip Airplanes (0-10-0-10 tempo)
bwx5/5
bwx5/5

Paused Cossack Squats (5 seconds)
bwx5/5
bwx5/5

Paused Safety Squat Bar Squats w/ bands (1 seconds, +28lbs/+58lbs)
No Bands
65x3
Add Bands
65x3
115x3
155x3
205x3
245x3
245x3
245x3
245x3
245x3

Paused Sandbag Rows (3 seconds, short ways)
205x3
250x3
300x3

Atlas Stone Loads (tacky)
51”
310x1
375x1 (egg)
440xext (22”) (got full extension but lost balance)
440x1 (22”)
55”
375x2 (egg)
375x2 (egg)

Atlas Stone Roll Ups into Loads (55”, tacky)
350x6 (21”)

Backward Sled Drags (concrete)/Sandbag Bearhug Holds (off 20” box)
405x150’/300x60 seconds

Stretching
 
Comments: It decided to get cold again. The audacity. I had to put on layers going out to walk. So plan this time around was pretty much focused on just stones with stuff to build up and get ready and then finish up with hard stuff. However, there were plans to have family visiting and an early dinner. Also my sister was going to train today as well for the show and her training needed to be a bit more varied due to lack of touches and experience with implements. So get out there early and try to get through stuff. However, even getting out there early I realized that that wasn’t really going to work. Especially once I got into stones, I couldn’t really coach and help. So I mad the executive decision to train her through her session so she could beat feet back home to clean up and be with family and then I’d do my best to speed run my training. Able to do some good work. I was a little nervous with training her up for this contest because aiming for fun with competing and what if even with the best I can do as far as training around schedules and limitations if I can’t get all the stuff on point and hit the minimums. Things I can’t really control like lack of sign ups for the show. I know she is also nervous because this a local show and she has a lot of friends that want to come and see. Performance anxiety (been there every single time) but also worry that her friends will be bored. I advised her they won’t, she’s just too close to the thing to not see that this is still a crazy spectacle to watch. They will love it. They still talk about the last one she did that was local in 2016. It is tricky to work on building an athlete and letting them show that potential. Husafell work with the actual implement has been the least amount of touches and that now seems to be the source of stress due to struggling to pick up more than contest weight. Taking away from continuing to improve on other stuff with limited stuff. That was about 2.5 hours and then I had to start my workout. Starting things out was the usual mobility stuff of hip airplanes and Cossack squats. Both being 2x5 with bodyweight. Easy stuff, doing these with no rest between sets and sides and minimal rest really between the exercises to kind of stay warm and hopefully not be feeling too worn. Left side glutes had been feeling a little stiff from the step ups with tempo on Wednesday. Stuff felt fine doing movements. The hip airplanes felt good on my spine and hips. Cossack squats really almost feels like those sensations I had before are nonexistent. Squatting to the right side still got some tightness in the outstretched leg. But I feel I’m getting better at control and getting the mobility and stretch down. Mobility work done and then the stone primers as Drew would say. Squats with ssb up next. Looks like bands on them for the rest of the cycle. 5x3 with same bands I’ve used the past two weeks. Increase weight and decrease the pause time. Indication was next time no pauses as the progression. I was feeling a bit better about squats since the last two sessions had been done and I wasn’t feeling like every rep was a grind. The rack I wanted to use wasn’t available and I didn’t really have the time to dillydally and just used the one that was available. Only slightly off-putting but I guess even those little changes can matter seeing how things went with bench rack height adjustment. I had to force myself to walk around so that I didn’t take shorter than 90 seconds rests like I was prone to do. Moving at a brisk pace here and onto sandbag rows. Set weights for this time around. Essentially 50lbs jumps and sets of 3 reps with 2-3ct holds. Had to adjust slightly as no 200lbs bag. Tried to slow my pace down so I wasn’t rushing through these. Yes, these were to prime for stones but didn’t want to be sloppy. These felt ok. Then stones. So stones I was given a few options to work with here. One was a heavier single than last time and drop down to 2x2 or do same single as last time for 2-3 sets and then do a drop down set of 2-3 or do a heavy double and then do 3-4x1 singles at drop down weight. So a lot of things to work with. So numbers wise, option 2 would probably make sense, same with option 3. However, my goals are bigger. I know that the weights above 425lbs are not the same kind of stones. 22” stones are quite a different beast. If I realistically want to push for something like 490lbs, I’m going to need to be moving the 22” stones. So goal was to do my 440lbs 22” stone (it’s the best of the 22” stones I feel for sticking) for a single and then do 375lbs for 2x2 to 55” instead of 51”. I felt that the best bet here was having somewhat even jumps so I’d do 310lbs, 375lbs and then 440lbs. Plan was not to rush lifts as I knew I wouldn’t be able to do so with 440lbs. The bigger diameter requires more extension than one would think to clear a height. The tacky had been on it’s side and made opening the container a bit of pain. I got to be cognizant of that since I don’t leave the jars at the gym to keep them room temp until ready to use. I wasn’t feeling the strongest on the day with how heavy 310lbs felt picking up. I kind of rushed it to my lap with how it was feeling to try and make up for it and maybe “wake” myself up to another level. I can’t view video until I get cleaned up but it didn’t look like it was slow for that or the 375lbs to come up. Tape was already tearing despite a secondary layer. And this is new tape. Noticing that having a hard time applying the tacky to areas like my biceps, stomach and chest if I’m sweating. Not as easy to add S.T.A.B. to those areas as say Spider Tack. I may need to think about layers like even tacky towel to spots and then tacky. Just anything to help with this size stone. So I had to reapply some tape and tacky and get ready for the big stone. I made this stone in 2010 and every session where I’ve attempted it, I’ve had at least one successful lift. Last time I attempted it was 2018 where I missed lapping it and came back to load it (but it was ugly). I got set and after much breathing and focusing I went for it. That feeling of “weight” was undeniable. I could feel my everything from my forearms to shoulders kind of “stretch” and shudder slightly as I broke it off the floor and felt the weight of it. And I got it up perfectly and used my mobility and leverages to roll it into my lap like a bowling ball return. I thought I had it and the load was just a formality but as I went for the extension, I got off balance instead of the weight being on my midfoot and toes, I was back on my heels and away from the platform. I braced but I couldn’t gauge where I was and ended up dropping it with plans to reattempt. Just the balance issue of such a big and heavy stone. I knew I needed to do some work on the 22” stones. I was a bit in panic mode as I didn’t want to miss any lifts. That wasn’t the plan. However, I had to just tell myself that this wasn’t a true missed lift and was just a “variation”. Because I picked, lapped and did a full extension with the stone. That is like not waiting for the down call on a press or deadlift. Only matters in competition. But I wasn’t going to feel good about not loading the stone proper. Retacked and gave it another shot. You can tell I was feeling that first rep as the getting under the stop was definitely less secure. I just got to be lucky I am strong where I need to be and this tacky really is sticking well. Got squared up and no mistakes this time for an almost uneventful load. Extension still needs work with this size stone. The streak remains unbroken for another day. Down sets I went with the 375lbs stone to 55”. It was too easy to 51” for reduced reps and considering that I just did two singles really with a heavier stone compared to last time at a higher RPE, this made the most sense. These were tough. I mean, the first lift of each was pretty comfortable but the second reps were definitely getting close with the extension onto the platform. Then the last thing for the stones was roll ups into extension. Just one set and goal was to adjust how I did them depending on what I felt was the issue. Pauses or try and move fast. Considering my knuckles haven’t quite healed from the last time I did the extensions with a slight hold, I figured I’d just do what felt good and was controlled. I was tempted to swap in the 365lbs stone that is 22” vs the 350lbs 21” but I figured best to not do that this time and if there is another training session do it then. Despite stuff leading up to this feeling heavier than usual, this actually felt pretty good. Perhaps because someone was using this stone earlier with a ton of tacky on it so it was sticking to my chest good. Definitely was close with the fatigue as goal was to do 3-5 roll ups and then load the stone. I got off balance a little after the last roll up and then went for the load. I can seem to do a good bit of extension with this stone it seems. Cleaning up still is a pain to do after stones. Noticed after stones my adductors were quite sore, especially my left side. Probably from wider stance for bigger stone and getting into a really deep squat like that. It has been a bit. Probably a good thing I’ve been doing the mobility stuff. But it is a little concerning to have it be sore. Guess have to watch it. Last thing was the sled drag into sandbag bear hug. However, it was a bit different in that it was just one set of sled drag rather than 2 sets. This changed things a little in that it wasn’t an even number of runs so weights wouldn’t be back at the start if I started at the close side. So that meant setting things up far away for a 150’ drag with the same weight as last time. Then rest a little and do the sandbag bear hug. Didn’t help it was a bit cold outside. Notes also said maybe up the sandbag weight (had been 275lbs) so I made it 300lbs. The drag wasn’t too bad really but it was just long. Like 75 seconds of work. Nothing I’m not used to. No issues with the adductors. I wasn’t sure on the bag hold. It said 60 seconds and 60 seconds had been tough with 275lbs. 300lbs was a bigger sized bag too. Yep, felt just as awful as I remembered it from last time with less weight. Just murdering the hamstrings. But I toughed it out for the minute. Drank protein shake and put stuff away before driving home to clean up a lot from stones and then have dinner and watch a movie with family. Stretched when I got back home and iced my knees before bed.