November 19, 2023 - November 25, 2023 - Week 4

 November 20, 2023 – Week 4, Day 1

Dynamic Warm Up

12” Log Clean and Push Presses (one clean)
90x5
120x3
150x2
180x1
210x1
240x1
265x1
265x1
265x1 (had to reclean twice)
265x1
265x1

Bent Over Rows
45x10
95x5
135x5
185x5
225x5
Added Straps
275x5
315x5

Close Grip Bench Presses (18” spacing)
45x10
95x8
135x5
185x3
225x3
275x6

Stretching
 
Comments: The scale is starting to go up again with the new additional meal. Definitely a riskier food item and potentially is changing up the gut biome as well. But finally above 265lbs again. This eating almost every hour during the day has become a chore. But need to see if this helps with things. This is a short cycle and I feel at this point that I’m about as ready for this competition as I can reasonably be but I know I got like 2 more weeks of tough workouts. This is definitely feeling like a contest Magnus Samuelsson would do decent at. Arms and abs covered in bruises from the conan’s wheel stuff. Probably didn’t help matters to need to saw apart a pallet to fit in the trash (I had left it out for scrapers to take, no bites). So that was a bit of effort I wasn’t expecting to be needing to do. And weather finally getting to be cold as well. So some worries I guess that I had fatigued things too much with the Saturday work and Sunday chores. But onward. Warming up stuff felt fine. Not really feeling that sore all things considered but needing to move around to get warm for lifting outside in the cold. Darkness for the log lifting. Again, the plan for this was 5x1. 85% with 3 minutes rest. So 265lbs. Going off the projected 310lbs since that seemed to be approved as ok. But there is a slight change in that competition opener is starting at 200lbs instead of 170lbs so with the 20lbs jumps, I won’t really have an option to hit a PR unless I get really good, real fast and hit 320lbs. Likely 300lbs being the aim as I’ve only hit that or above in competition twice in my career. From last time I did these, my left hip had been feeling achy and thankfully that didn’t seem to be the case this time around. Warming up with 30lbs jumps was feeling ok. I reneged on the smaller metal plates as looking at the videos of people training on the log, it would seem that it is actually 45lbs plates being used and not using my bumpers or supporting the log body on 25’s puts a risk at bending this log that they don’t make anymore. So back to bumpers until I end up using enough weight to use more than one plate on this. As I’ve mentioned, this contest isn’t allowing grip shirts. So I’ve been trying to test different shirts from local shows to see what I’m dealing with as far as competition day. For this session, my choice apparently was a poor one. The fabric and the log texture aren’t a good match. It initially slid on me going for the first lift but even with the bad clean I was able to press it. But it wasn’t a great rep. I’d want this to be going better. Second rep I corrected for the clean (pull into myself more) and that went up much better but then the press My one foot slid and the log wasn’t centered so I had to walk it forward to lockout. Third rep had problems. The momentum on the press had the log going over my head too quickly and I ended up having to bail as I lost tightness in my brace. I set the log back down rather than try and press after that. Which wasn’t great as I was too lackadaisical with pulling the log into myself and the log just slid down on my shirt. I was beginning to remember how much my hamstrings had been sore after the Conan’s wheel on Saturday and the leg effort of the all the sled stuff. I regrouped and got it back up but I was definitely feeling the previous efforts and my shoulders lowered and I really got bad lower body drive. Kind of surprised I got the lift honestly. Managed to get it done within a minute so that was something. Because of that hassle, I doubled my rest break to recover before going for another single. And I say double what I was doing as I was actually doing like 130 seconds rest when I checked the camera. So a 4 minute rest and got the fourth rep up no real problem. But not perfect. Normal rest for the fifth and again, good but not perfect. Flexed to show dominance as one does. But at least those last two made me feel like I could actual press stuff over this. But this is only 5lbs less than the last log workout before Nats and I had been really worried and was taking like 5 minutes rests to get those singles. This was more comfortable and hopefully means I’m getting a better handle on things here. Also didn’t feel like throwing up with nerves, even with eating more meals. So despite the ugliness of the 3 set, I was content. For now. Just need to remember to wear a shirt with a good decal for next time (log at competition will have “grippier” texture). I left the log outside so I could move on to the other stuff. Into the garage for the barbell work. I didn’t exactly have things setup as I did want to take my time with things as far as getting fluids in me. First up bent over rows. Warm up in 5’s to a moderate set. Same as last time and kind of turned out like last time. 25-50lbs more than last time was what was suggested. Since example last time was 225lbs and this time indicating 250-275lbs, I figured I’d do 300-315lbs depending on how things were feeling. I was a little leery with the biceps from that cramping I got last Monday on the pull ups. And it didn’t help with again sore forearms. Finding new bruises on them after conan’s wheel training each time. Really trying to figure out where some of them came from. Like back of my one hand has a bruise and I think that might be from putting away the dumbbells I used to anchor the conan’s wheel when it slid on my hand. And let’s not forget the sawing I did the day before haha. So things were feeling a bit heavy on my wrists and in my hands but moving well. Plan was to strap up after 225lbs. 275lbs felt ok but I wasn’t really sure about the next jump as didn’t feel amazing. Say dilemma as last time with 265lbs or 275lbs and I just went with 315lbs and figured if I was wrong then it would be obvious. The only issue really I had was that the weight and not really being used to it as far as breathing as I was able to move it comfortably. So that was something. Benching again to finish up the session. 18” grip spacing. Same warming up but indicating a moderate set of 6-8 reps. Suggested being 250-275lbs. Now I know that my benching won’t make the same kind of jumps as my rowing will. 250lbs would’ve been a safe bet really for the 8 reps and leaving something in the tank. Notes did state to make sure smooth and powerful. I’ve not really done benching above 225lbs for a good bit and I had felt deflated/defeated when I was last doing it as I was struggling with 315lbs. And with how short this cycle is, I think I wanted to do the less reps as the effort needed for the log work probably took a toll. This particular grip is not as easy for me to use the stretch reflex for the reps like an even closer grip allows. But for this particular time, this grip seems to be the right idea. Wrists were feeling it here too. Left shoulder slightly achy. I knew to expect that. When it was time for the top set, I elected to go with 275lbs with the aim being 6 reps. Had to reset my brace after the fourth rep. This wasn’t an absolute max, I feel I could have done 2 more reps and it would be close and probably ugly rep at that. I just needed to feel this but fine with dropping back if needed. I do hope that benching does stick around. I see a lot of stuff I’m doing as well as the events for this particular show as things to build on even after this show. Cooked dinner between putting stuff away. Stretched afterwards.

November 22, 2023 – Week 4, Day 2

Dynamic Warm Up

Front Squats
45x10
95x8
135x5
185x3
225x10

18” Jack Stand Pulls w/ bands (straps, +50/+100)
No Bands
135x5
Added Bands
155x5
245x3
335x2
EMOM
425x1
425x1
425x1
425x1
425x1

Ab Wheel
bwx10

Stretching
 
Comments: Again with another short week with work, feeling like just done with the week almost immediately. Left side of my jaw felt sore as if I was clenching it hard all night or something. Perhaps feeling the strain on my body finally from the training session. I wasn’t able to get in a walk due to the weather. Very cold and rainy with more rain as the day went on. I felt I had too much work to do as off two days and I didn’t want to risk injury slipping while icy conditions. Shoulders feeling pretty sore from Monday session it would seem. I did a lot of soft tissue work to make up for not being able to walk Tuesday. Work hectic this day before rush to make sure stuff processed before Thanksgiving. But on top of that was an issue regarding office politics that the outcome likely means even more work for me to be doing. The work environment has become more hostile as of late. Seriously considering bidding out for another job or just resigning and try to be self-employed rather than deal with this aggravation further. I got a four-day weekend I guess to contemplate that. I know not to act upon something until I’m dead certain. Ended up with a little silent protest by not doing any real work the last hour of the shift. Not that that mattered with getting work I wasn’t supposed to be assigned once my supervisor left for the day by another supervisor. Things like that. Anyways. Family plans obviously with the holiday weekend so it was good that this workout was on the shorter side of things. A repeat from last time this came up but more weight really. This had been a comfortable workout last time and had been the least taxing of things so far. Because of plans after work, I had contemplated doing this during lunch break but stuck to plan after the work crap and making sure I got enough stuff done. Warming up seemed to go well. I did a little more mobility work to get my ankles mobile enough that my tight lower legs weren’t hampering things. As this does seem to be helpful when doing lower body stuff like floor pulls and full squats. The squats to box don’t really get these parts with the upright shins. But it isn’t an every session thing. Front squats to start things off. Work up after warming up to set of 8-10 reps with a little more than last time. Suggested was 225lbs after the 185lbs last time. There had been some nerves with that mostly seeing how the knees felt as well as initial uncertainty about what effort the squats should be feeling with percentage and other nonsense I’ve self-imposed I guess. 40-50lbs jumps again and with another set added to the mix, it meant I could adjust things a bit as far as how I added support gear for the midsection for bracing. I think I went for the top set being both sets of bumper plates because it was interesting and maybe there would be a difference in the flex on the bar. I guess to kind of keep things fun for me. I do think I messed up a little bit with my breathing at first as I kind of just held my breath and went right into the first rep rather than perhaps taking a breath and rebracing before starting. I have to remember that the floor in the garage isn’t perfect either as some spots are worn more than others. 225lbs for 10 reps was not a problem but it definitely was tougher than 185lbs was last time. Which makes sense with a 40lbs jump in weight. Felt like knees and ankles were less stiff this time around at least. Some fidgeting with my position as far as getting efficient leg drive. Like a few of the exercises with a barbell that have been part of this training cycle (deadlift, bench), these are a work in progress that hopefully I can continue to improve so that my baseline isn’t as down going forward and perhaps makes things easier to swap from one track to another. Jack stand pulls against bands (75-100lbs tension) again for 5x1 EMOM style. 20lbs more weight from last time. I did another warm up set so as I wasn’t just jumping in right away with big plate jumps on this. Especially since the plate jumps on this was quite noticeable as far as back effort. My hope here was that the increase in weight wouldn’t be noticeable from the previous session. I think I was successful in that endeavor. Got a bit silly with things as the Mortal Kombat techno remix theme came on and I just went with the vibing and stimming for this. Might have worked myself up a bit with the constant moving around and just enjoying the moment. This was only for the first three pulls as different music was one for the last two so the pace was a bit slower. Last pull ended up feeling the best like with log Monday. Held it for a bit before putting it down. Last thing was just a single set of ab wheel. 5-10 reps with bodyweight and not to overdo it on the ROM. I did 10 reps last time and initially was going full ROM and then pulled back slightly when I noticed these were tougher than I remembered. And even with pulling back, the DOMS in my lower abs was there for many days. So having been inoculated, I figured that it wouldn’t be so bad this time. I seemed to immediately go into full ROM and I feel that was the case for most of the reps but I was noticing immediate soreness just three reps into it. Maybe the added bodyweight (less than 2lbs) was being noticed here. Just hope this is immediate soreness and not delayed that last for a few days. Put stuff away and headed over for dinner and movie with family before returning home to stretch out before cleaning up for bed. Hopefully no expectation of work tomorrow will let me relax and sleep and potentially process some stuff in my sleep.

November 25, 2023 – Week 4, Day 3

Dynamic Warm Up

Arm-Over-Arm Pulls (turf)
(standing, arms only) 230x50’
(seated, arms only) 355x50’
(seated, competition style) 715x50’ in 30.33 Seconds

Stone of Steel Loads (54”)
140x1
210x1
EMOM
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1
280x1

Stretching
 
Comments: Just felt a little off. Work had been stressful so part of that I guess leading to feelings after that. Stomach was a little upset but that could very well be from eating 6 burgers for dinner Wednesday. Took allergy meds to try and keep things ok. Took NyQuil Thursday night as I was feeling stressed and this has been a similar situation where things felt like I was going to get sick and I just needed to just get a good bit of sleep. Which ended up being the case for Friday. Woke up to my left wrist being sore for no reason. Got a bit late before I started doing things and ended up not walking and did the one time I’m raking leaves this year. I ended up staying later than I had planned but still decided to wake up early so as to get training done and be available for a family dinner. Left wrist was feeling much better upon waking up. Drive out was easy going. Again, good bit of people at the gym. I wasn’t too sure about what was going to be used or not and what was in use. Warming up felt fine with the mobility stuff. The people there had appeared to have solidify what they were doing so I was able to get things setup for the arm over arm. Same as last time in that I used the 1.5” manila rope and the Jenkins sled. Difference in that I used kegs for the weight rather than just sandbags and other random weights. Especially as lot of people were using sandbags and last time someone had wanted to use sandbags. Plan was to do more than last time. I had initially planned for that top set to be like 630lbs to be about 90% of what I figured the contest weight would be. However, Mr. Westerling had indicated that it could be heavier even then that for me as the goal was to get something that I could finish strong but have me breathing a bit heavy. And I hadn’t really expected even with how much time off from it that I’d already be doing sub 25 seconds with that kind of weight. But I didn’t really want to push the working up sets that much more than I already was. Because those were more arm dependent and I was still a little cautious about my biceps. So first set was the bent over style with just the arms. I went 5lbs heavier than last time and that seemed to go better compared to last time. I think because I knew what to expect and how I needed to anchor myself. Setup for the second set with it being seated but just rowing with the arms I had to put down heavier kegs to anchor the board I was going to be pushing off of. Took a little bit of time as the usual suspects for helping with this kind of thing weren’t there today and a lot people were doing stone stuff at this point. Don’t want tacky on the manila rope. Just needing to keep the rope out of the way. Again, just 5lbs more than last time. I did notice near the end that my right hand was slipping slightly. So would need to adjust that for the heavy top set. Chalk up and go heavy. I don’t think I’ve actually done over 700lbs on this movement with it on turf. I was still thinking about doing 630lbs or so but just said screw it and put 360lbs of kegs in the sled. Pinched my left index finger moving them around in the sled so that will be swollen for a little while. Hoping no biceps issues and that this would be sub 40 seconds. This setup isn’t really one where I seem to be able to scoot with the lower body and get more reach and momentum but I make good work of it. This was comfortable. Only felt my grip in the right side slip slight once. I was kind of surprised that I was just over 30 seconds on this. But happy about that as this is the most I’ve done and it was decently fast. Got help getting up by one of the new guys at the gym who is gigantic and lifted me up like I was gallon of milk. Be interesting to see what he starts doing as I think he’s new to lifting weights in general. Help putting away stuff made the transition from one thing to the next go by a bit quicker and with less effort on my part. This was just a two day things but both things required a time commitment. The arm over arm for setup purposes and rest breaks, the stones because it was 20 minutes of stone lifting. Plan here was again to do the stone of steel for 20 minutes EMOM. 2” higher and with only chalk. I had done just over contest weight last time and only had an issue really on the second rep when I didn’t reset the stone. I know I can do this but seeing as how my right biceps cramped up hard on me the Monday after last time, it is definitely stressful on the body. I was initially going to just repeat what I did last time just to condition things and compare how no tape vs tape felt. Suggestion had been to perhaps do the first 10 stones lifts EMOM style and then the next 10 stones 45 seconds to lift and rest since the contest will have the time limit go from 30 seconds to 15 seconds once an athlete reaches 10 reps. But feelings on this were to not really worry on that part of things and potentially work heavier. So I added 2.5lbs which was likely 2lbs more than last time. I didn’t bring a full roll of athletic tape so I ended up having to use several small rolls to wrap up my left arm. The tape setup was good at the start. I didn’t feel like I needed to reapply any chalk until I was 13 reps in. However, there does appear to be a downside. The wrapping of the arms does constrict blood flow some and I was finding it harder to get my hands to cooperate as things progressed. There was no issues with extension at all. I don’t think I’ve noticed this before because I don’t usually do this long of stone work without tacky (as usually I work up to a top single or light weight in the past) or any sticky stuff at all. And it’s not as noticeable when you can just use tacky. So this is potentially something. Sweat and skin wear factor vs the fatigue factor. Always learning something doing events I’ve done for years. But there is always different ways to play the games. I also noticed that while I don’t feel like I’m exerting myself, I found it was hard to try and sing half way into the set so that would seem to indicate this is taxing. I can only hope that I recover from the taxing nature of things better than I did last time these two events were paired together. Put stuff away and drank a shake before driving home to eat some more food and then stretch and clean up.

November 12, 2023 - November 18, 2023 - Week 3

 November 13, 2023 – Week 3, Day 1

Dynamic Warm Up

Seated Reverse Band Axle Presses (back support, chin height, 110lbs assistance)
116x5
146x3
176x2
206x2
236x2
266x2
286x2
306x2

Band Assisted Pull-ups
sbx10 at pin 13
sbx8 at pin 15
sbx8 at pin 17
sbx8 at pin 19
sbx8 at pin 21
sbx8 at pin 23

12” Log Incline Bench Presses
90x8
120x8
150x8
180x8
210x8

Stretching
 
Comments: I had been wanting to train since Sunday but knew I needed the rest. Also wanted to do it while it was light outside but again couldn’t do that either. I was proper annoyed by time I could train from getting a lot of work assigned in the last 25 minutes of my day that had no way of getting done so means I got stuff from yesterday to do first thing in the morning on top of other stuff. Joy. Made it through the first two weeks of prep, which is kind of the first true workouts and it will be a question of how the fatigue builds from each session going forward. Arms sore from stones because of course they are. Going to happen when you do 20 reps with no tacky. Also part of why just because you can do something doesn’t mean that body is fully conditioned for it and able to recover. Which is why I wanted to make sure I could do it and hopefully have it be repeatable. Also raw skin from no tape. The arm soreness had me glad that I wasn’t doing log clean and press every week this time around. Weight has been holding steady at 264.8lbs for three weeks now. Good in that I can maintain at this but I do want to see if I can get the scale to go up some more so as to fill out things a bit more. So adding in an additional small meal to see how that goes. Movement stuff to start things off. I forgot that last time I did this workout was before DLS stuff so there was still light outside for most of the workout. Now it is just darkness. Joints felt surprisingly ok with warming up. Then it was time for the lifting of weights. Starting things off with reverse band work with the axle again. Seated with back support at chin height with the same band assistance. Goal was warm up in triples with 20-30lbs jumps to a top double that wasn’t feeling like I was grinding out reps. I was surprised with how tough things go with the jumps as I got up in weight. Like the 30lbs at the start felt like nothing really. But I knew it was deceptive as the weight climbed with the ratio of the weight at the bottom becoming greater with more weight. Suggested was to do 315lbs but I knew that wasn’t going to happen with just how things had felt last time when I gave that an attempt and it felt like it wasn’t going to go. And that is despite 296lbs feeling pretty good for the triple. Done a lot more pressing since last did these so shoulders didn’t seem to have any discomfort. I made sure that I applied the support gear appropriately as I went about doing these. Trying to get things into the right position for how it would feel for log pressing (opening up chest). Did 30lbs jumps up to 266lbs and then did 20lbs. This was potentially a gamble as I wasn’t feeling like it was going to be so easy. Honestly, I’m wondering if misloaded the weight last time with how things were feeling (but know I couldn’t have misloaded it by 30lbs). I was aiming for just 10lbs more than last time. The weight is a good bit at the bottom percentage wise over last time compared to the full weight at lockout. 286lbs didn’t feel super amazing like 306lbs would go up really. But got set and built up tension within myself and gave it a shot. And the first rep went up and I felt for sure no issue the second rep. Well it felt like not issue until I hit the sticking point where the full weight is in my hands. Just wasn’t going up but I wasn’t going to miss a rep or let my form breakdown. No exaggeration it took me 4 seconds to get through that sticking point. Happy I didn’t miss or breakdown in form but not too thrilled that I ended up having a grinder of a rep. But I know that this work is needed for me to get my pressing to continue on the upward trend. I’m not sure what is in store for the next time this is likely to pop up but I imagine it will need to potentially be pulled back some or make even smaller jump in weight for top weight over the previous session. But enough of that, on to the rest of the workout. The substitution of band assisted pull-ups for the lat pulldowns was next. This time sets of 8 reps up to a top set. Again a moderate set but leaving less in the tank. Considering how exhausted my arms felt last time I did these (not used to it) and the beating they took with arm-over-arm and no tacky stones, I was only expecting to go a little bit more than last time. Plan was pin 21 for the support working down in 2 pin jumps from pin 13. My right biceps cramped up on me at the shoulder insertion on the second set of pull-ups so that wasn’t too fun. I’m just glad it is just that and not something that will derail training. And also that not doing any log cleans this session. So kept going, just trying to not have my biceps pulling too much of the movement that should be for the back. I was expecting pin 21 to be tougher than it ended up being. It was too easy to stop there so ended up going down 2 more pins for another set. That was the right one for this time. Log on incline to finish up the session. Gingerly moving this around to get it into the setup. Like the pull ups, this was to be sets of 8 reps warming up to a top set of 8 reps. I’d have had problems if I was doing dumbbell pressing with having to curl/clean/shoulder those weights with my sore arms. Suggested was to do 30-40lbs more than last time. 30lbs seemed about right to me, especially considering how much effort I needed to expend on the top double for the reverse band stuff. Feeling the pressing from the past week and this session. Wasn’t feeling so easy compared to last time but felt comfortable with the last set. Put stuff away and stretched before eating leftovers with new food cooked.

November 15, 2023 – Week 3, Day 2

Dynamic Warm Up

Deadlifts (straps)
135x5
225x3
315x2
405x1
495x1
545x3

Sandbag Squats (to 18” box)
112x5
175x5
225x5

Planks
bw+20x60 seconds

Side Planks
bwx60/60 seconds

Stretching
 
Comments: Initially for this workout, the only thing I was really thinking would be of concern was the deadlifting but with how my biceps were feeling (especially the right one after Monday), I was having a few more concerns about things. Worries that the cramping was something more like a strain or worse. I’ve managed to keep going through biceps pulls and tears in the past with modification and still compete to the best of my ability. It was not ideal with that and having to move around odd furniture for my parents Tuesday evening. Just have to keep up soft tissue work and rest. Upper abs sore too. Not ideal for heavy deadlifts. Warming up same as Monday, joints felt surprisingly ok with warming up. No issues doing any of the stuff as far as my biceps. I did do some additional hip/ankle/knee stuff to prep for the deadlifting. Speaking of which, time to make the deadlifts. Like last time, work up to a “conservative” triple. After last time and discussing the plans and what were the realistic options and plans, it was decided that I go for 545lbs for the top weight. I felt that was doable. It should be doable. I guess I’ve not really been doing much in the way of deadlifting with a bar and without it being with a suit or with a deadlift bar because apparently this was going to be 20lbs over my best post 2016 back injury triple. And even going further back in training, I’ve only ever done 550lbs for a triple without a suit and using a regular power bar. I know that now after the fact but didn’t know that going into this. Just felt like this was what I needed to be doing to be on track for the bare minimum I need to be at for competing in a month on this particular event setup. Unlike last week, I removed the knee sleeves that I was using as shin guards. I was wondering if the tactile sensation was preventing me from bending my ankles and knees more which caused me to look very much like a stiff-legged deadlift last time that just felt off. Trying to consciously get more bend and feel the lower body power as well as try (but not really succeed) in having my knees more forward than shoulders. 135lbs felt ok. Again, this isn’t where I feel best. Maybe this felt a little better this time around. Left knee a little achy. 225lbs felt fast as per usual. I decided this time around that I’d use metal plates until I got to 495lbs and then use the rubber again for there. Just because. Get it to look like more weight so not thinking about it so much. Maybe. 315lbs definitely felt better compared to last time so that was encouraging. It hadn’t felt that great last week. 405lbs just felt ok. Not feeling like something that I could do a ton of reps on with how it felt really. Rubber plate for the 495lbs. I’m no sure as far as how things would feel if I was to be doing reps here (as singles after 315lbs) but it definitely felt good on the pull and didn’t feel so awkward. So I was feeling pretty good for 545lbs a little bit nervous. I did attempt to get the most hyped but I was having some issues getting that last 5-10% over the top but what I had should be enough. Hopefully. It should be. 545lbs went up pretty good for the first rep. Similar issues with the bar roll out on the initial break off the ground. I was kind of surprised the second rep felt as tough as it did. The difficulty had a slight hesitation for the third rep (also feeling my glasses sliding off my face). This was definitely close to a max here. Like 50/50 if I went for a fourth rep here and it wouldn’t be a pretty rep. Only had shakes for this last one but no hitching. Quick reflexes unstrapping as the bar hit the ground to be able to catch my glasses as they fell off my face. Floor pulls just feel awkward for me and it does feel like a deficit for me with how much better a slightly elevated pull feels for me (3-4” more). The assemblage of limbs and levers doesn’t look like it fits watching deadlifts sometimes. But the contested thing this time around is a standard barbell from the floor for reps so that is what I’m doing. With this, I should be on track for 585lbs for something. After being done with deadlifts, it was time for the other thing I was a little worried about. Sandbag squats to a parallel box. This had been light but odd exercise last time. And my sandbag collection is limited so big jumps kind of the name of the game. Plan being a little bit more than last time for a set of 5 reps after working up. I did 175x2x5 so 225x5 would be the plan today. This had been quite rough on the knees last time I did these so adding 50lbs to that was some concern but knees have been having mostly good days since then. But picking up and hugging sandbags wasn’t exactly something I wanted to be doing with not only healing raw skin on my forearms but my biceps that were quite sore from past workouts. This wouldn’t be so bad if I didn’t have the caveat of keeping the sandbag off my legs when I sit down on the box. That makes these a lot harder. Like, I could do a ton of reps if I did them I’ve seen most people do a variation of this. A pain to keep it up off the legs so when I can’t seem to do that well enough I try to keep the sandbag upright in a way that it doesn’t get assistance from there. Things after the warming up actually went quite well. Tougher to hold yes but knees didn’t seem to be bothered to much and my arms didn’t get worse. Breathing was also better. Core work in the form of planks to finish up the session. Last time had been a relief that I could do these again without bothering my elbow bursitis. Same as last time but allowed to add some weight to the regular plank. Put 20lbs of leg weights in a backpack for that. Easy stuff. Side planks were also easy. I did take a bit more rest because I was putting stuff away between the sets and exercises in the garage from the sandbag stuff as well as belching a good bit as well. Built up the most sweat from these planks honestly. Done this this and stretched out before cooking dinner. Hopefully arms continue to heal up and progress continues for the pulls and pressing.

November 18, 2023 – Week 3, Day 3

Dynamic Warm Up

Conan’s Wheel
+400x1 rotation (clockwise) approx. 289.5lbs for 81’8”
+400x1 rotation (counterclockwise) approx. 289.5lbs for 81’8”
+600x.5 rotation (clockwise) approx. 390.5lbs for 40’10”
+600x.5 rotation (counterclockwise) approx. 390.5lbs for 40’10”
+800x1.5 rotations (clockwise) approx. 491lbs for 123’5”
+800x1.25 rotations (counterclockwise) approx. 491lbs for 104’9”

Sled Pushes/Sled Drags (turf)
135x50’/50’
165x50’/50’
195x50’/50’
225x50’/50’
255x50’/50’
285x50’/50’

Stretching
 
Comments: Work was getting exhausting by the end of the week. And keeping an eye on the right biceps was also weighing on me. But seems to be fine. Some calf tightness in the right side while out walking Friday. Got things ready to hopefully get up and go train. I had plans for the session that I knew would eat up a lot of time. And I ended up getting a later start because I got caught up in doing some calculations for the session. Drive out was really smooth but I did notice as I got close to the gym that there wasn’t traffic coming the other way and saw what appears to be road construction that doesn’t look like going to be done anytime soon. Turns out the detour to get back home adds like 15 minutes to my drive home. Allegedly it will be done by Monday. Good bit of people at the gym. Which would be good if I felt comfortable asking for assistance for what I had in mind. And bad if I stuck to the original plan. Did the mobility warming up stuff which felt fine. The time vampire for the session was going to be conan’s wheel. I know that I said it was a pain to setup and would require a ton of effort to do it. And it did. But I felt it was important that I get a session on it so that I don’t come into the competition not fully prepared. I do feel the yoke zercher carries are good stuff for building and training. But the moving of the weight and it being a lot more then what I’ll be moving compared to the yoke (weight in hand about the same). So this alternative workout was discussed with Mr. Westerling and I knew it would be much like eating crab legs in that it would a lot of effort for very little sweat meat. I had setup the empty conan’s wheel with an anchor setup (which thankfully didn’t need to be as heavy as I was thinking) and then did the warming up for the session before getting all the weights out. The plan was 50% a lap going both ways (clockwise and counterclockwise) and then 75% for half a lap both ways and then 100% for max distance both ways. Resting as needed. I was initially going to treat it as 50% of contest weight in hand (a guess) and go from there. But I decided that would take longer so I just went with 50% weight I added to the setup and so on. Contest is 680lbs added on the setup for the contest at the gym. But there are differences between the one here and the on there. The setup at the competition gym is heavier in hand empty (125lbs or so compared to 88lbs or so). Also the arm of the device is shorter (9’ to compared to 13’). Reviewing videos and pictures of the competition setup, it would be close to 500lbs weight in hand from what I can see. It will depend on where they adjust the weight tree but on the closer setup, it’s about 55% the distance. The setup at the gym is about 50% or so. Since lighter and closer to the middle, that means I’d need a lot more weight on this to get it close to contest setup. So something like 825lbs added to be just over 500lbs. 800lbs seemed like close enough and made for convenient 200lbs jumps with the many 100lbs plates at the gym (most being near the power stairs). I think my process here was just thinking of the setting up as part of the session as I’d be getting a lot less volume in with this session. First go didn’t feel that bad. That pick does suck as it is not as stable as when I do the yoke and I have to brace hard for the pick and then have to let my air out and stabilize or I will pass out. The parking lot isn’t even so that didn’t help here. I lowered the pick height 1 notch for the next set of runs as I was worried that I’d be scrapping the blacktop with more weight. Obviously the pick took a bit more out of me with that. But once I got over that it didn’t feel that bad. Didn’t feel like I had much in the way of compression so I raised the pick height back up for the top sets. Which ended up being a mistake in hindsight. The initial start off the pick is rough with this much live weight but it is necessary. I was glad that I got more than a lap here. I compressed too much and the weight got stuck on the blacktop. I wasn’t done. I know that once you drop you are done with the conan’s wheel but I feel like this was more just the uneven ground. I lowered the pick height a notch and got back under it (about 30 seconds total) and managed to get a little past a half a lap. Hamstrings (especially the left one) were on fire. Took a good long rest before going again. I’m seeing one downside with the 50’ drops and turns is that the arms can recover from readjusting that frequently when doing a full run like this the fatigue builds from the time under tension. I had a bad pick for the second run and I was shy of a lap before I could feel it dragging too much to keep going. About 45 seconds this time as I thought maybe I could get it lower but not without turning the attachment upside down so I just regripped and got a better position and got a little bit past a quarter into a second lap. Would’ve been nice to not have to repick it both times here. But rather here than in competition where it would be the end of the run. Tape did seem to help with the raw skin and some of the bruising for the upper arms. Will need to commit tot that at the start rather than at the end when I’ve already used chalk. Hopefully the contest setup is sturdier with less flex in it. But I will need to err on the lower pick side of things. Putting the setup away by myself was just as tiring as setting it up. Also had the added factor of fatigued hamstrings, hips and upper body to contend with. But this was fine as I needed to take a break before finishing things up with the sled work. Same as last time with it being 50’/50’ of pushing followed by backwards drag. My plan this go around was to start lighter but make bigger jumps. 10lbs lighter and do 30lbs jumps and see where that leaves me. Knees feeling better so didn’t seem so foreign working up like it did last time. Sure, there were some knee aches as I was getting good and ready. Again, 225lbs felt pretty tough comparatively and I was thinking maybe the next jump was it. But I guess putting more focus into it and motivating myself with short, sharp exhales got me feeling like I was leaving too much on the table. So I took a longer rest and added 30lbs more and got that still in under 30 seconds. Quads and hamstring were pumped. Almost painfully so in the quads. I felt I needed to push a little more since not as much conan’s wheel volume. Put stuff away before getting in the car for a longer than normal return commute. Ate food when I got home and then stretched.

November 5, 2023 - November 11, 2023 - Week 2

 November 6, 2023 – Week 2, Day 1

Dynamic Warm Up

12” Log Clean and Push Presses (one clean)
90x5
120x3
150x2
180x1
210x1
230x1
250x1
250x1
250x1
250x1
250x1

Bent Over Rows
45x10
95x5
135x5
185x5
225x5
Added Straps
275x5

Close Grip Bench Presses (18” spacing)
45x10
85x8
135x5
185x3
225x10

Stretching
 
Comments: Well I made it through the first week of training for this next show. Seeing younger guys be back in the gym and hitting PRs when I’m just feeling ready to lift again haha. My weight did not increase from last week which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If anything it is a good sign as the week before I had just been doing walks whereas this week had been with regularly scheduled workouts and being more workload overall then the past training cycle. So have to see if stagnant or change after this week and so on to see if I need to adjust anything. My stomach and body do seem to be tolerating all the new foods/meals well enough. With this workout, I wasn’t worried about being able to do the weights. More that would I be able to do the weights and have them feel as easy as they should feel. Was this going to be the right effort? Which now I’m thinking might be a habit picked up in the past few years with all the RIR and RPE stuff. Because I know that I will grind myself out and I have to figure out what the intent is. I also had to deal with the soreness from the past week. Nothing really from the first two days. But a lot from Saturday. Legs and glutes kind of used to it but the hips not so much. Upper back and forearms were really feeling the zercher work. Not to mention the bruises I have on my stomach and arms from the belt. This is going to be a painful prep with all the sucky events. Warming up stuff felt fine. Just feeling sore. Not a fan of the Daylight Savings change as that means it is pretty much pitch black shortly after 5PM. Been a bit since it was night time logging. This was the thing that had me anxious for this session. Plan was written for 5x1 with 2 minutes rest with 80%. Suggested was 250lbs. Which would be about 310lbs projected. A 5lbs PR for competition. I wasn’t sure if this was to be based off what I felt I could do or have it be like accidentally on the trap bar pulls for Nats with it being projected. I got clarification that this was more to be something that I could definitely do since I just did Nats and was doing this or above for like the past month. Making it easy was a concern considering how hard the body was worked on Saturday. Forearms sore and maybe my lower body drive wouldn’t be there. This contest isn’t allowing grip shirts which does change the mechanics of the clean a bit. Going to need to use a lot of chalk this prep. Also trying to mimic how I’ve seen log setup at the competition gym and trying to have my log feel heavier with metal plates. No bumper plates this prep I think but using 35lbs plates or smaller to get that lower height and have the weights feel like a heavier log. Those metal plates and how they shift certainly makes things interesting. Getting love bites from the log on the cleans on the forearms as so used to the grip shirt. Will get better by next time I’m sure. Knees and hips a little achy at the start but seemed to be fine. I wasn’t feeling so great but the working weight went about as smooth as it could really. There was no doubt of it being pressed each time. My rest was closer to 90 seconds when I did check film after the fact. I left the log outside so I could move on to the other stuff. Unlike the first week, I didn’t need to do everything outside really for efficiency’s sake. It was quicker to just have the other rack setup in the garage for what was going to be gym work. Just barbell work. First up bent over rows. Warm up in 5’s to a moderate set. Notes being to stop at something I feel I could do 50lbs more for a top set. There are a lot of varieties that pass for “form” with bent over rows so I did ask for clarification. Advised that belt and straps allowed as needed and that start from below the knee cap and pull to the belt/belly button region. So keeping a stable lower back and pull with upper back. I tend to like this variation. Suggested was 225lbs. Unless I felt really terrible, I was going to do more than that. Despite how sore my forearms were, grip didn’t feel bad. These were feeling pretty good. Only thing was just getting into position and my wrists aching a little from the angle. It has been a while. Straps on for the top set. I was debating between 265lbs and 275lbs and just went with 275lbs. Felt fine. I tend to be able to do a lot of reps with a weight and there being a bit drop off as weights increase. I took the brief respite from taking the weights off to setup for bench to get in a meal of instant oatmeal. Work had got a little hectic in the afternoon and my eating schedule was off and I didn’t want to eat something right before doing log work with being bent over. I shouldn’t have issues with benching with a little food. I haven’t really done regular benching. Technically this was listed as close grip but hands touching the smooth is wider than my usual grip for close grip. I seem to really want to make it close as opposed to a “closer” grip. The angle felt a little odd to my left shoulder. But it has been feeling odd with push ups too and been fine with the implement pressing. Just had me a little concerned there. Plan was working up to a set of 8-10 reps. Leave reps in the tank. Like the rows, plan was 225lbs. I wasn’t going to deviate from that as this was fine and if I felt terrible, I’d stop at 8 reps. I don’t know, maybe putting on the wrist wraps got me to tighten up or something as felt fine that set. I did notice that this grip did actually allow me to tuck and use my lats. Put stuff away before cooking up dinner. Stretched afterwards.

November 8, 2023 – Week 2, Day 2

Dynamic Warm Up

Front Squats
45x10
95x8
135x5
185x10

18” Jack Stand Pulls w/ bands (straps, +50/+100)
135x5
225x3
315x2
EMOM
405x1
405x1
405x1
405x1
405x1

Ab Wheel
bwx10

Stretching
 
Comments: I’m in an odd place. It has felt like Thursday this whole week. Probably just from how the hour shift messing with things. It’s not fun having it be pitch black outside right after getting off the clock or having Mr. Sun cutting through the blinds before I’m supposed to be up. But besides that, body stuff. Feeling aches in the left hip from the work put in from Saturday and the log work Monday. Bruises on my forearms from the log cutouts. But skin on the left forearm from zercher stuff is healing well. I may need to tape for future sessions. Knees aren’t feeling terrible that I feel I have to go downstairs backwards if a few steps. There is a “fullness” in my knee joints that has been missing for a good bit. Felt like this since Saturday session. Has kind of felt like no cartilage stuff. But who knows with the demands I’m asking of myself. A Pro/Am show finally announced the weights and I didn’t even really have time to process it before the show sold out. It wasn’t going to be a go for me with the log weight for the lightest implement being 20lbs over my best (and it would be at elevation, which never been). The other events seemed fine enough, if not heavy. But that’s me, just looking at stuff and keeping my finger on the pulse when I got a competition I’m gearing up for. Thinking long term as always. This workout was likely going to be the easiest session of the prep. It could also be the shortest without being a deload session. But not short enough to safely do during lunch in a way that was meaningful. I’m sure I could make it work but might as well keep things consistent. Warming up seemed to go well. I stopped thinking so much on the knees out with the box squatting and that seemed to feel decent on the knees. Left shoulder still aches but at this point, it seems like it will keep doing that. Aches don’t mean I won’t have a good day/session. I was very surprised with how sore my lat inserts for the armpits were from just a little bit of rowing on Monday. First thing as front squats. Nothing fancy. Work up to something that was easy for 8-10 reps (suggested 50%) that didn’t bother my knees. Get good ROM and blood flow. I did a little more mobility work to get my ankles mobile enough that my tight lower legs weren’t hampering things. Might need to do that for next week’s lower body session so that I’m not so stiff on deadlifts. This should be easy with the suggested 185lbs but I needed to clarify if it was to be 50% of max as being the important part or if the suggestion of that percentage was just to make sure it was something comfortable. My squatting max is definitely down so likely closer to 165lbs would be more likely since haven’t pushed heavier squats. But it seems that wasn’t the important part and just something that would be good. Knees were a little stiff and usually it is more just getting warmed up that has things feeling good for front squats. Rarely do my knees feel bad on full depth front squats. Usually in the past few sessions with front squats (especially when I’ve taken a break from them), the bar feels odd and my knees ache unracking. Not this time. I think that is from doing the zercher carries. I’ve heard someone refer to a zercher squat as a low bar front squat so maybe on to something there haha. There was relief with that top set going so well. I felt like I could do 20 reps or more with the weight. Got to take advantage of those times when squats feel enjoyable. Then on to deadlift work. This could’ve been expedited by doing the front squats outside and then having things already setup for pulls. But I felt it made more sense to give myself some break pacing wise and so I could get some fluids down. The pull for this time was to be rack pulls against bands (75-100lbs tension). Notes were to warm up and do 5x1 EMOM style with the bar height being 1” below my knee cap. I do have a power rack but the jack stands are much easier to setup with bands with how I have things setup in the garage. I also got these long knee joints in appearance due to Osgood-Schlatter from when I did wrestling and had a rapid growth spurt so bony nubs right below my knees. So I treat below the nub as where the “below knee” is. Which means that apparently 18” fits that bill. As to why this height, so that the shins were straight like finishing a pull. Setup takes a bit for the banded pulls due to moving stuff around. This tension didn’t require much to anchor. Working on bracing here as well. Trying to get myself moving well. First two weights felt like nothing. Then started to feel like something with the addition of more weight. It has been a while since I’ve done EMOM for pulls so I wasn’t sure where I used to hang the timer and not have it get in the way. I went with shirt collar. These went well. Last thing was just a single set of ab wheel. 5-10 reps with bodyweight and not to overdo it on the ROM. I could’ve jumped right into this but decided to put away the stuff I had at as rest and then did the set. I know how deceptive these can be when not done in a while as far as soreness in the lower abdominals. These were quite easy and hopefully I don’t feel the sting of DOMs later as these weekend sessions are going to be vicious affairs to get ready for the competition. Put stuff away and stretched before cooking up dinner.

November 11, 2023 – Week 2, Day 3

Dynamic Warm Up

Arm-Over-Arm Pulls (turf)
(standing, arms only) 225x50’
(seated, arms only) 350x50’
(seated, competition style) 560x50’ in 24.58 Seconds

Stone of Steel Loads (54”)
140x1
210x1
EMOM
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1
278x1

Stretching
 
Comments: I was feeling pretty good with things as far as the week and with how my body was feeling. Air quality was poor Thursday and had to take some nasal spray to help with that. Not sure what I did that day in the afternoon but my right knee was feeling achy. Being off work for holiday observance was I guess needed. It had felt like the end of the week all week and I crashed pretty hard I guess when I finally made myself go to sleep Thursday. I woke up initially due to allergies at like 6AM and then went back to sleep. I didn’t think I was going to sleep for another almost 7hrs more. So woke up just before 1PM and having to get a full day’s worth of food in about half the normal time. But I made it work and got everything I needed done. These weekend training sessions are quite a bit different from how the work week sessions are. There was a similarity with things during the switch in programming for Nats but it does feel like a divide this time around. Which seems to work. The weekend stuff requiring a lot time and setup and more relaxed pace. Driving out to train was fine. Was thinking maybe I should do more allergy meds as it is about that time but too late to reconsider once one the road. Good bit of people at the gym. Some usual suspects and some that haven’t been there in a while. Got some comments about looking bigger/jacked and I mentioned that I had added instant oatmeal to my diet (twice a day) and that seems to be helping me fill out again. I only had two events to train today but it would require effort and setup. Warming up felt fine with the mobility stuff. I wasn’t sure about my knees being achy but seemed fine. First things of actually training was arm over arm. I’ve not had to do this in a little over a year. Competition is a seated arm over arm on turf for 50’. Sled to be Christmas themed (as in pulling Santa’s sleigh). Notes had been in tire but it does appear to be on the ground. Brings it’s own hassles with setup. With no ego, I say I’m one of the best at this event in the country so I don’t really need much in the way of work on it. I only did it twice for Nationals last year when I won and I didn’t even go that heavy. I’ve done both actual weight on turf as well as using the exergenie and both are good. I think with how short this prep is going to be where I’m likely only getting two touches on this that doing this with a sled setup on turf makes more sense so that I can get a better visual of the distance and timing vs if I were to just be pulling until I hit a marker with my hand doing the exergenie. I’ve not actually gotten to do a contest with arm-over-arm with Mike. There was an attempt in 2019 but I withdrew (I was prepping for 3 shows at a time) due to relapse of back pain. Usually I just train like 2-3 sets at something challenging and call it there because it can be a pain to reset and it is quite exhausting. Mike seems to like doing arm over arm with one top set but working to it in variations to get different parts worked. In order to facilitate this being as close to contest, I used the Jenkins sled and brought in my 75’ length of 1.5” manilla rope. First set was standing and bent over like a truck pull and working the arms for hand speed. I initially had 350lbs on it as I misread what I did last time with this when I had to do 93’. It wasn’t exactly budging so dropped it down to 225lbs and that was still bit harder than I’d have liked. I was thinking I had done 295lbs last time and maybe the setup was tougher. Nope, I had only done 165lbs last time so this was good haha. Took a bit to setup for the next variation in that it was seated but not doing full body. Still just arms really. Would need someone to eat the rope for this since it would pile up on me. Added back the dropped weight here for this run. I was slightly concerned with how things would feel on the midsection as those darn ab wheels really have a lasting soreness in the lower abs. I had meant to film the first variation but apparently didn’t hit record so I didn’t bother with this one. This is more warming up really and the top set would be the one that mattered. Full body. Notes to not kill myself here. This took a bit longer to get ready not because I wasn’t ready to go but I noticed my stone of steel was still loaded with weight and this was because it had gotten stuck and someone had just left it. So that took some effort (I needed it for later but also wanted to use it for weight in the sled) and then I had to track down the missing spacers. But I found them finally so all well and good. No weight is listed for the sled at the comp but says heavy and that weight listed would probably not make sense or matter. I’d say 700lbs is probably about where things are going to be based off how things went in 2022. So I decided to do 80% of that this time around with plan of getting it at least under 40 seconds but preferably under 30 seconds. A little out of practice for this but it went well and even with a few missteps I managed to get under 25 seconds here. So that was good. I guess I’ll need to go heavier next time to get into the right effort range. Stone work after that. This was what I was most nervous about really for this week of training. The event is stone over bar with no assistance beyond chalk and done as stone off style like at WSM. So back and forth until you can’t with another athlete and then someone else steps in to take their place. I’ve not done this variation before and my thinking is I need to work on getting used to repeated effort. I shouldn’t be a concern as far as strength with peaking no tacky stones for Nationals (but still some sticky) considering that the weight is 277lbs. So the bright idea suggestion was to use the stone of steel and do 20 minute EMOMs to get myself conditioned. And Mike seemed to like that idea so here we are. But of course doing my own thing with making the load height 2” higher than competition because. I really wasn’t sure how this would go. Notes indicated to get as close to contest weight as I felt comfortable with at this time. Which was going to be contest weight. I wanted to see if bare skin worked here as well and if the applications of isopropyl spray and liquid chalk would combo sweat enough. That first rep I felt like I made a huge mistake as it didn’t feel super easy and I had 19 more to go. The second lift was not a confidence builder as I tried to grab as it lay and the plateloaded stone gets off balance. Once I decided to position it the same each time it wasn’t that bad. Just having to make sure that I was really crushing with arms and pecs, something I feel I wasn’t doing as well as I should when it was Nationals. The benching and back stuff should help there as well. Only took a few sets in before the mess up on the second lift was erased and I was recovering fine between the singles. Really it was the sweat as my body got warmer that became the issue as I went. I may need to tape up the forearms to minimize that. Considering I did contest weight here, I may need to adjust things as far as maybe rest period next time around as the rest period will shrink I guess after 10 lifts for an athlete. Hopefully I’m not too sore in the upper body by the time Monday rolls around. Home to get in some food and stretch.

October 29, 2023 - November 4, 2023 - Week 1

 Nationals done but the year is not. I was not really expecting to take the week off from training after Nationals just with how I’d been doing training for the past few years here and how I was feeling. And especially with a quickish turn around for this next competition. But it does seem that the week of rest was warranted. It gave me time to recover and to think. Nationals had been a bit ask on myself and on Mr. Westerling considering where I was feeling mentally and physically and I’m happy with the results in that while I wish to always be at my best, I see that there is improvement and that improvement can continue. But also realize that I wasn’t ready it this year if I competed as open HW as originally planned. I can’t be too bummed about missing out on Arnold invite. I was initially thinking I wasn’t going to even compete let alone be in contention. The rest was needed as I was still getting slight cramps from stressed muscles and having bruises heal. And feeling anxious to get back to training (in a good way). It can be tough seeing people that just competed doing “yolo” stuff and hitting PRs when you are just doing brisk walks. The week off gave me time to plan out workout stuff so that I hopefully don’t run into an issue during sessions figuring things out. Going to be needing to do most of these after work due to additions of things. The last 8 weeks or so had been the bare minimum of things and now adding stuff back in for a more full workout sessions. Too much to guarantee I can get done under 1hr I feel. So that will be an adjustment. Competition is going to be quite biceps intensive and not allow some of the usual assistance stuff. I will be getting like 2-3 touches on some events. Plan is to try and keep weight up and either gain/maintain depending on how things go with the diet changes (currently just below 265lbs right now) and stick to open HW class. Heavier weights and gives me options as far as the bigger shows for amateurs. Hope is to qualify for Nationals 2024 (already looking at the venue, time off and restaurants) so I can have some flexibility with the rest of the year. We know what to take out of diet to get down in weight if needed.

October 30, 2023 – Week 1, Day 1

Dynamic Warm Up

Seated Reverse Band Axle Presses (back support, chin height, 110lbs assistance)
116x5
146x3
176x3
206x3
236x3
266x3
296x3

Band Assisted Pull-ups
sbx10 at pin 13
sbx10 at pin 15
sbx10 at pin 17
sbx10 at pin 19

12” Log Incline Bench Presses
90x10
120x10
150x10
180x10

Stretching
 
Comments: So back to training. I was feeling like training Wednesday of last week but the break was needed for just things in general. Rainy off an on today but luckily not a lot so it wouldn’t really affect things for this workout. It was going to be interesting training after work after the past two months of lunch break workouts as well as having in a good bit of meals in me more than I had been with the attempt to keep weight up and gain. Warming up continues to be the same as it was for prep for Nats. Just been a week since I’ve done stuff besides walks. So some things were a little stiff. Some aches and such. Then training. So this was going to be a bit different in that unlike the back half of last prep everything was just the competition lifts. This will have some variation and more exercises. Starting things off with reverse band work with the axle. Seated with back support overhead pressing. Plan was have bands take 90-110lbs off at the bottom and not that much at the top. And setting the pins at chin height. So with how tall I am, I have to double the bands and even then the weight will come out of the bands a little at lockout. Which isn’t ideal to keep from “bouncing” around but it does mean I know I’m fully handling the weight at lockout. My thinking with this is a way to build for log (similar height) with a different grip. From what I can gather, log will be more singles at a decent percentage. Goal was warm up in triples with 20-30lbs jumps to a top triple that wasn’t feeling like I was grinding out reps. Suggested had been 300lbs. Reverse bands are interesting with how it “feels” like as more weight is added the bands assistance less. The 30lbs jumps were feeling pretty noticeable. I was told I could use belt and wrist wraps. While I don’t “need” a belt for a seated press, I felt it was probably good idea for breathing and bracing because I’d be doing it for the overhead. I went with 30lbs jumps and the plan was to switch to 20lbs jumps but I figured that if I did a 20lbs jump instead of a 30lbs jump at the end, that I might overshoot where I was. It does seem like 296lbs was the right call (6lbs heavier with my axle and plate setup) as I did attempt 316lbs and I could tell that wasn’t happening. As I mentioned, pressing is down but we hopefully will get this back on track. I will say there was some slight discomfort in the right shoulder but I think more just not used to doing pronated pressing. From there the next thing was lat pulldowns. Or was to be but I don’t got access to that. I did try to set one up during the beginning of lockdown stuff in 2020 but it was a hassle and was damaging stuff. And didn’t make sense to get a second gym membership to do some machine work. Or spend several hundred for a setup at home. So I got approval for an alternative that had been good for me with the band assisted pull ups. The plan was something to get the blood pumping in the lats and arms. So a moderate set of 10 reps, working up in sets of 10 reps. So I figured use the heaviest band assistance I had for a single band and just start high up and drop it like 2 notches each set to a decent set. I knew I could do stuff as low as pin 24 and I’d done things as high as pin 12. Since I was to leave like 50lbs in the tank, I figured I could get close to pin 20 or something. That actually ended up being more challenging than I was expecting. But on me there with being a bit out of pull-ups shape. Really haven’t been doing any lat pulldown type movements and my biceps can get quite fatigued when not being made to work for lots of reps. Slight discomfort in the left shoulder similar to the right with pressing. But again, I think more just not used to the movement. I got through 4 sets before moving on to the last thing. Last thing was to incline work. Option or dumbbells or log. I was debating between the two with the pros and cons and eventually went with log because it was going to be the press for the next show and it would be easier to setup and tear down compared to dumbbells at home. So some log work in the form of incline for the closer. This took a little bit of time as this had not been something I had tested out to minimize the setup. I had been thinking of using the light rack in the garage as that has been where I’ve done log incline in the past. But then I realized I could do log incline off the power rack so I had to figure the height for that before getting to work. Similar to the pull ups, this was to be working up in sets of 10 reps starting light and doing a top set that felt like I had 50lbs in the tank. I tried to do a slight pause rather than just use my chest like a trampoline that I know I’ve been guilty of doing on occasion when it wasn’t paused or tempo work. This was to be for chest work. 30lbs jumps seemed to work out pretty well and hit what I felt was going to be the right number. Really the log with 90lbs added. Put stuff away and stretched before eating a large pot roast.

November 1, 2023 – Week 1, Day 2

Dynamic Warm Up

Deadlifts (straps)
135x5
225x3
315x2
405x1
495x5

Sandbag Squats (to 18” box)
112x5
175x5
175x5

Planks
bwx60 seconds

Side Planks
bwx60/60 seconds

Stretching
 
Comments: So first workout went ok. I mean, I didn’t feel like I was crushing it and knew I had to hold back on stuff, despite how eager I was to do things. Because certain things tested were definitely detrained. Namely my chest and lat inserts. Not used to the work or the reps. Even with holding back a good bit. To be expected. And thankfully not a ton of DOMS so I was able move around. Back to doing soft tissue work again. Happy that my appetite seems to be good too. Any ways, I keep thinking the week is almost over for some reason. This would probably be the shortest of the workouts as far as setup and tear down really but not short enough to make sure it was done during lunch break. Wore my Brute Strength Gym shirt since I found out they are closing for good the end of this year. I had wanted to go back some time but just didn’t line up to be convenient. Warming up same as Monday but I could tell things were sore from Monday. The aforementioned lats and pecs but also my quads. I guess from the movement prep stuff after just going for walks on my week off. Didn’t exactly bode well for training with it being a lower body focused session. Some joint aches but not as much as I was expecting. Mostly just muscle soreness. Starting things off once warmed was deadlifts. Competition has a standard deadlift for reps on a regular bar and nothing besides straps allowed. Choice between heavy (675lbs) and light (585lbs) with heavy beating any number at lighter. I know my limits at this time and light option is the goal, hopefully for some reps. The heavy option is just a bit under the max weight I pulled on the slightly elevated trap bar so not likely. Keep expectations realistic. 585lbs isn’t anything for me to sneeze at. It is actually the most I’ve pulled raw in competition on a deadlift bar with straps. Plan was to work up to a conservative 5rm on deadlift. Hope being that my top end strength is there from Nationals and the deadlift focus. But I know that deadlift from the floor is a struggle for me and I’ve not really been doing it. It has mostly been slightly elevated stuff with axle (which I feel puts me in a better position) and then suited stuff for the past several contests. So it will be rusty. What was written out for suggested was to do plate jumps up to 495lbs for the top set. With reviewing what the next workout when this comes around had planned (50-90lbs jump but only triple), I had to access what was realistic and what would keep me from hopefully burning out too quickly. My best set of 5 reps without a suit on a regular bar is 515lbs from 2020. And I haven’t done a real deadlift this style in over 18 months (which coincidentally was also 495lbs). I had mentioned this to Mr. Westerling and he indicated that perhaps 425lbs – 455lbs range. Gave me options. I knew that even on my worst day the 425lbs would be too light so it was really 455lbs or 495lbs for me. It has been a while. Knees didn’t ache thankfully but my quads were feeling sore. 135lbs felt ok. Usually it doesn’t feel great for me, especially if doing some reps. It’s more to wake up and shake off the cobwebs. 225lbs is where I get a sense of things. And it felt so damn easy so I was feeling like 495lbs had to be it. I was doing an odd mixture of plates (metal and bumper). 315lbs and 405lbs felt just ok. Not amazing. I got set for 495lbs and got to work. Bar rolled away from me. Bad habit. I thought I got that resolved but I guess not. Again, been a good bit since I’ve done deadlifts and most of my pulls have been with my jack stands so no bar rolling. Other than that on the first rep, I felt good the first three reps. I think that I was rushing here to get through the set as I was feeling like I was going to have a hard time finishing up with how things were feeling. Fourth and fifth rep were quite slow. Started to feel the “shakes” on the last rep. So I’d confidentially say this wasn’t “conservative” but it wasn’t absolute max. watching the video after the fact it would seem that I was essentially stiff legging these pulls. I tend to get more leg drive but again, that could be from slightly elevated position on the axle stuff. Maybe I’ll be better next time around to continue the progression. The deadlifting was done and put that away. A squat variation was next. Sandbag squats to a parallel box. So 18”. I could use a sandbag or stone but idea was a front loaded box squat and not have the weight resting on my legs. I tend to do that with say a zercher squat lift or when I’ve done sandbag type squats before. So the cue was to hold higher to keep that from happening. No stones at home so sandbags it was. Thankfully I have some of those. Warm up and do 2x5 with a moderate weight. Suggested was 150lbs. I don’t got that so my choices were 112lbs to warm up and then 175lbs. The movement is tough on my lower body. The sandbag weight isn’t that bad really. I’ve lifted twice this to my shoulders on a sandbag. I was breathing a bit from the effort (crushing into my body). Left knee was feeling a little funky from the angle and the stresses. That was it for the weights. Core work in the form of planks. Regular and then side for 30-60 seconds. I’ve done these plenty before but haven’t due to my left elbow bursitis for almost a year now. But it has reducing a good bit since the summer but just not really trusted doing stuff putting pressure on the elbows like that as I’d hate to have to get it drained again. A couch pillow and doing them on the carpet meant no real issues with how much the swelling has gone down since it first popped up last year after Nationals. These were comfortable for a minute. Just a little sweaty. Stretched before getting dinner ready.

November 4, 2023 – Week 1, Day 3

Dynamic Warm Up

Zercher Yoke Carries
200x50’
250x50’
300x50’
350x50’
400x50’
450x50’
500x50’
400x275’ (2 minutes, drops at 50’)

Sled Pushes/Sled Drags (turf)
145x50’/50’
165x50’/50’
185x50’/50’
205x50’/50’
225x50’/50’
245x50’/50’

Stretching
 
Comments: Trying to not let the days get away from me. Feeling like I’m having a harder time making myself go to bed before it gets too late. Not sure if that has to do with having to workout after work again but even on days when that isn’t the case I seem to be doing that. And these workouts are also shorter than what they had been in the past. But feel like in a good spot work/life balance. My dad had a medical procedure (a planned one) and actually seems to have gone really well. I slept in like 30 minutes from the time I had set to wake up. I felt I needed it. I could tell I was feeling some stress from something innocuous as I was trying to think of ways to not have to drive so much for training on the weekends with stuff at home. But the stuff at the gym is going to be the best thing. I was also feeling like the drive out was taking longer when it was only a few minutes longer than the fastest time. The weather has not been helpful with it being below freezing over night and early morning and then ending up like 60 degrees by late afternoon. I got to the gym and I wasn’t expecting many people because a fair number of them were doing a Ragnar run in some desert. But there were people there. The sounds (weights and talking) was irritating me which also would be a sign that I’m stressed as I’m generally better at blocking that out. Mobility warming up felt fine. I was most focused on my knees feeling good. Had felt a little stressed from Wednesday training (squats). Unlike the other two sessions, only two exercises. But I knew these sessions were going to be brutal. Up first was zercher yoke carries. Training for conan’s wheel at the competition. The gym has a conan’s wheel but the arm is too long to do inside so would need to be moved outside and I’d need about 1300lbs in weights to load it up and anchor it and that’s going down a loading docket and then having to return. So not ideal and likely too much hassle. Especially by myself. Maybe if there were more people as it has been over a decade since I last did a conan’s wheel (I did figure out the weight in hand on it incase). But for all intents and purposes, carrying a yoke in a zercher position is likely harder than a conan’s wheel. Last time I did this movement was 2015 when it was an event at 2015 Nationals. Training had been going good for that but then at the show I kept passing out after a few steps and didn’t finish the course (I worked the whole time). Passing out after a few steps is not ideal with conan’s wheel since it’s a drop and you’re done. I know I can gut out good distances on front carry events. But this one has been mystifying. I tend to do well in training. I think it has to do with not getting good warming up at competitions and in the case of 2015, training on a much thinner crossbar. So the start was work up to a moderate 50’ run. Suggested was 50lbs jumps starting empty yoke and aim being 450-500lbs based off my all time best being 645lbs. This was going to be a bit of learning experience. Try and applying things I learned from since I last did this and try some things out. I knew not to try and go fast. Didn’t feel great at the start but kept adding layers of support as I went. I feel I’m getting better at fighting the sleep button and gritting through it. One tip has been to cough to “spike” blood pressure. 450lbs felt a little sloppy but I wanted to do 500lbs. I guess I took that one a little more seriously as that felt easier than 450lbs. Then I needed a good bit to mentally prepare myself for what was next. Because conan’s wheel is for distance. Not just a 50’ run. The plan being take 100lbs off the top run weight and do max distance. Either 2 minutes of work to get furthest with going back and forth 50’ with drops or to do one shot max distance no drops and then rest and bring it back (with drops if needed). Easiest thing setup wise would be the 2 minutes back and forth. Neither of these options was going to be fun. I figured this one would allow me to get more work in and in less time overall. This was not fun. I had a feeling I’d get over 250’ on this. I was dying with like 20 seconds left but I needed to keep working the whole time. Got the jelly leg feeling and my upper body was just about spent. Skin at the top of the forearms was raw from the tape on the yoke crossbar. Wrist wrap on the top wrist seemed to be a good way to help with keeping from dropping. I should mention I didn’t drop it once out of fatigue, it was always at the end points and the last when time ran out. I had to take a bit to cool off/down before I finished up with the last thing. Mostly because of how fried my legs felt and this last thing was literally all legs. The sled push into drags returned. An economical way to get work in. Lots of work but no eccentric. Unlike at my house, I need to use a lot less weight here because it is turf. Plan was to do 5-7 sets of progressively heavier sets of 50’ up and back. These hadn’t felt that great on my knees on the deload session. I set the sled up a little funky so it was balanced (50lbs keg in the middle). I was kind of surprised how much better these felt on my knees with the turf. I did 20lbs jumps and took longer rests after each run. I was debating between stopping at 5 sets but figured that I could get in another jump and still have it be within parameters. That was a good call. Leg sore. Put stuff away before driving home (well got stuck in traffic for a little bit). Wanted to get home so I could get some food and then stretch out.