June 30, 2024 - July 6, 2024 - Week 4

 July 1, 2024 – Week 4, Day 1

Dynamic Warm Up

Axle Strict Presses w/ Chains (+28lbs)
46x5
76x5
106x5
136x5
166x5
166x5

Band Assisted Pull-ups
sbx5 at pin 17
abx5 at pin 17
lbx5 at pin 17
lbx5 at pin 17

12” Log Incline Bench Presses w/ Bands (+5lbs/+25lbs)
87x10
117x5
147x3
177x2
207x5
207x5

Chin Up Holds
bwx32.44 seconds+12 seconds eccentric

Active Shoulder Hangs
bw+10x68 seconds+10 seconds relaxed

Stretching
 
Comments: I was feeling a bit under the weather Sunday and I was worried I had caught something. But I think it was a combination of allergens in the air exacerbating allergies as well as just feeling very stressed with the new requirements at work. As well as just other things. Even things looking forward to that can create stress because deviation from the schedule and require a lot of effort to shuffle things around. But often the case is just taking some meds and getting good bit of food and resting. And trying to do that as far as resting. And resting sometimes leads to getting a breather from the hustle and bustle to figure out what I want to actually be doing. Monday was about as dumb as I was expecting things to go with the work changes. Even with things that were going to be there tomorrow to handle, I had to put that out of my mind so that I could do what I wanted to do and train. By this time, my wrists were feeling mostly good. It really does seem to be a delay with joint aches and then just seemingly going away. Warming up to start things off. Most of the workout was going to be outside anyways so no fans. I could tell I was a little stuffy with breathing. But thankfully it wasn’t as humid as it was on the weekend. I was keeping my eye on everything and it all seemed to be good. Starting things off was axle pressing. Strict out of rack. With log, I had gone with bands as the resistance. I wanted to do chains here instead. I used to do a lot of chain axle pressing that seemed to be beneficial. But same thing it was for log with plan being use the same weights as the first workout but with the added accommodating resistance. I did increase the pick height by one to see if that was less stressful on the knees with the unracking of weights. I think this did help with that some. I did have to move some things around as this is the first time I’ve done chain pressing overhead since I’ve gone to home gym setup. Feels like I remember it. Did 30lbs jumps. I was noticing some triceps fatigue here with the added weight but I was decently happy that I wasn’t feeling like the weight was too heavy on my shoulders and that feeling of overtraining. I was also feeling crispy and powerful with the hip power and mobility. The triceps were definitely noticing the chains here. So that went fairly well I think. Band assisted pull-ups after that. So progression on these is a little weird as the plan is still 2x5 with a band assistance that lets me pull fast and with full ROM explosively but to make that harder. I don’t really want to use a thinner band because anything less than the light band tends to dig/cut into my shins. So that would mean next option would be to lower the pin catch height so that the assistance is still same bands but less at the top of the movement. I was a little worried like usual on these as the first two working up sets don’t have me feeling like the working set assistance is going to be the right difficulty. It feels like I’ll be struggling to make it how it should but then I do it and it is like why were you worried. So I’ve come to kind of expect both things here. Unlike say last time, I didn’t notice that much fatigue between the sets. Then incline log pressing. Also 2x5. I elected to do bands here as I’ve done bands before on this and it felt good and I kind of wanted to have the pressing be a different resistance between the standing and prone. I needed to check and see what worked with bands as it has been a bit and I didn’t want to use as much band tension as I’ve used before. So it was a bit of trial and error to get things worked out. But I seemed to get it figured out. Same weight as last time but with the bands. Definitely noticed the bands at lockout. Certainly feels more comfortable compared to regular benching. Not to say this isn’t challenging. Have to move fast. And there was definitely a slow down compared to last time. But that is to be expected with adding resistance. I’m glad that this felt mostly good and not feeling like my shoulders are weak (sign when overdoing it recover wise). That was that for the usual things. As mentioned, this end of workout is a bit different compared to the alternating week. I knew what to expect with the chin up hold. I knew that I wasn’t going to have any issues. Just hop up there and hold. And try like hell to get over 30 seconds this time. This is one of those few things were I apparently count too fast but I made sure I did like 5 seconds more than last time. I was able to control the eccentric even better this time around as well without getting nearly as tense and ab cramp holding this. I do like how this is working things while being relatively safe for the biceps. Last thing the active shoulder hang. I was advised I could add 10lbs to this since I got over a minute. I had to mess around with dip belt setup a little to make sure I had clearance for weight. I ended up miscounting a little. I really wanted to get a minute again here and also make sure I lowered slowly into the relaxed state. This was tough but it turns out I must have missed about 5-10 seconds somewhere in my head. Put stuff away and made dinner before stretching out. Got to see what Tuesday brings as far as answers for some things.

July 3, 2024 – Week 4, Day 2

Dynamic Warm Up

Front Squats w/ Chains (+28lbs)
No Chains
45x5
Add Chains
45x5
95x3
135x3
185x2
225x2
250x5
250x5

Hyper Extensions
bwx20

Hyper Extension Holds (Neck Harness & Plate)
20+45x45 seconds

Planks
bw+53x60 seconds

Side Planks
bwx60/60 seconds

Stretching
 
Comments: So lets start with how dumb a day Tuesday was. Stressful with the work. Gastro appointment was at 9:45AM and I didn’t see the doctor until 11:00AM. Given no reason but I was already vibrating with range at this point. Also told that I needed new blood work (apparently the April ones are recent enough) and a new ultrasound (that I got a little over a year ago). The appointment could’ve just been an e-mail or phone call. Why not have me scheduled for that stuff prior to this appointment? I had taken 2hrs of leave from work expecting things to be done in an hour so had to take more leave and be behind by over 20 minutes on my already busy schedule. I didn’t want to deal with any more medical crap until after vacation so August is when I’m getting the ultrasound and the follow up. The podcast with the new owner of SC was a nothing burger and it honestly sounds like more stuff for weight classed athletes and likely making things harder for the Regional shows and Pro/Ams. So not really a fan of that. But have to wait and see I guess. I had blood drawn at the appointment and it seemed like a good amount of it but thankfully I didn’t feel like I was low energy or anything from that. Hardly any bruising either. My jaw on the left side has felt stiff and that is possibly just from stress stuff. But maybe the active shoulder hangs. But know I need rest. At this point, I’m like 99% certain on what I’m doing as far as competing with upcoming shows. With one big a pretty abrupt change. Because I want to do stuff that gets me to the next thing but also do stuff that is fun. Wednesday was thankfully a little less hectic but still very busy. I rarely have looked forward to getting off work for holidays (especially in the middle of the week) but my mental wellbeing was banking on being off for the 4th so I could recover and catch up. Warming up was feeling fine. I’d say slightly more knee aches compared to past few sessions. But kind of expected considering that the unrack of axle tends to be just as stressful (sometimes more so) than unracking weight for front squats. So while some knee aches, my shoulders felt pretty darn dandy on stuff which is sometimes not the case. I did notice the music felt “louder” than usual, which is usually a sign of stress for me. So speaking of front squats, front squats to start things off. This is one of the few exercises where I’m using supportive gear. It is literally these, step ups (and tempted to not next time) and bench press (wrist wraps). Because the knees. Which are feeling happier compared to points in the last cycle (especially last week leading up to Regionals and Regionals itself). So like the analogous exercise of deadlifts, I was to do these with more weight than last time and with accommodating resistance. I had done bands (since that is what was dictated) for the deadlift so I figured I’d do chains here. I’ve done bands on front squats a good bit and I think knowing that perhaps not firing on all cylinders at the moment that chains would be a nice break and feel more like “live weight” for overhead. It apparently has been almost 5yrs since I last did front squats of any kind with chain weight. I knew this was going to be the toughest thing of the session for me. Front squats are a lot harder for me without belt(s) and it was noticeable with last session on 225lbs. Especially with the efforts from the previous stuff. I guess one plus was my upper back wasn’t as sore from training as it was last time coming into this workout. Right hip was feeling a little achy but nothing concerning as it didn’t get worse as things progressed. The chain weight added was certainly noticeable. I had to remind myself that just because it feels heavy on the shoulders doesn’t mean I can’t move it (similar to feelings with rack work for push press/jerks). I knew that I had to let things settle walking out the weight with the chains. First set I felt like it was heavy but trusted myself and was moving it decently. The chains letting up can throw things off a little and I got a little pitched forward and had to stop for a brief moment to make sure I was stable before resuming. I didn’t have that issue with the second set. Took some time putting things away to rehydrate as well as get ready for the rest of the session. From there on to the mid-section work with bracing exercises. The back extension hold had suggested increasing the reps of the bodyweight extensions further from last time. So 15-20 reps. So 5 rep increase if I wanted to (and doubling what I had been doing). I figured it was a good idea to do more reps as written to get myself moving. No belts has definitely been required my midsection and back to be working harder. My hamstrings were getting a decent pump (I forget they can when doing these higher rep) and I was wondering if that would take away from the hold. The bracing for front squats no belt and axle press no belt definitely leading to some fatigue. The hold was the same weight as last time (20lbs on the neck harness and 45lbs held in the row position) with the max time but stop 5 seconds short of failure. I could tell this might not be a PR day for me on this with how things felt locking out. This was a struggle and I ended up being a second short of last time with less in the tank. This isn’t unexpected really as last time I was pretty fresh whereas this time I’ve increased the weights on everything lower body by 10% or more (not including bands/chains). As long as I’m doing 40 seconds or more on this, I’m good. With that done, it was time to finish up with the abdominal bracing. The standbys of weighted plank and bodyweight side planks. No changes but I guess why mess with what is perfect? Put away some more stuff to kind of recover a little before just doing these. I felt that both variations took less out of me compared to the last session. I noticed I was able to do better braced breathing on the weighted plank. After that was finished, I loaded up the power keg into my car so I can drop it off at the gym on Saturday (lending it for show in September). Cooked up dinner before stretching.

July 6, 2024 – Week 4, Day 3

Dynamic Warm Up

Farmer’s Walk (Casual Pace)
50x50’
100x50’
150x50’
200x50’
250x50’
250x50’

Atlas Stone Loads (55“, tacky)
235x1
285x5

Sled Drags
135x50’
235x50’
60 seconds rest
245x100’
245x100’
245x100’
245x100’
245x100’

Stretching
 
Comments: The work week was fairly dumb but I think I was expecting it to be more stressful than it ended up being. Albeit end of the day Friday I got some of the expected crap I was expecting but that will have to wait until Monday. Having off Thursday was helpful and needed I think for me to kind of get stress levels down. The jaw tension on the left side went away overnight. Will need to keep an eye on things with this heat like dry skin as starting to notice that in the heels again after it not being an issue for a good bit. I was anticipating what the next block of training would be leading up to today after making some decisions on the next competition. Drive out was how I prefer it to be with not much in the way of congestion getting through Harrisburg. I was kind of surprised by that with the holiday weekend but I’m assuming people left earlier in the week and took off. I guess Sunday would be the busier day. I think that I got used to the expectation of heat that I didn’t bother to see how hot it was going to be today as the sun was brutally hot once I got out of the car and the humidity was such that you could tell when one of the fans wasn’t working properly in the gym. Some new people at the gym as well as some regulars. Not everyone considering three had competed the week before. I had received some messages that I reviewed from Mr. Westerling before I started warming up about the upcoming training plan. I had mentioned I was like 99% sure on the next competitions and had started to accrue things for it but not committed (like entry fee, leave, etc.) until I got the go ahead essentially. One of those shows was a Pro/Am in the deep south in 9 weeks that had odd events that I should excel at but had a lot of baggage attached to it. I had initially ruled it out in late March but came back to it last week after making some tweaks and seeing somethings a little more favorable. But that could also be attributed to finally feeling some mental recovery from Regionals. It would’ve required a lot of firsts for me and not being able to have access or assistance from family due to other things going on at that time. My parents and my coach both weighing in and thinking it wasn’t worth it pretty much told me that I should reconsider so I did. So offseason will continue with plan for January. Warming up felt fine and good mostly. My right knee was feeling a little achy but I feel that was more an accumulation of stress from the axle and front squats. Noticeable but not to the point of concern. I was essentially drenched in sweat by this point. First thing for the day was farmer’s walk. To be done at the casual pace and no support gear. Farmer’s walk was having a bit more aggressive increase compared to yoke from last time. Yoke had gone up 50lbs whereas this was to go up 50lbs per hand. I had asked about this leading up to last week’s Day 3 session so I understood the reasoning. I was only concerned with the effort of the pick at 250lbs with no belt. Initially I had things set for the one lane so that I could avoid having to move equipment and not tempt fate with the hamstring thing again. But not meant to be. One of my training friends has a competition coming up and they have to train 8 events for it with it being a championship and overseas. I have always been of the mind that when training with a group or in the place with several people that priority goes to the person with the more important or closer competition. At least for me. Seeing as I was doing just offseason training and they were prepping for a world championship in 7 weeks and we had both started warming up, I decided to move into the other lane and move equipment for that. I had no issues this week with doing that. I felt fine with the farmer’s walk. I did use liquid chalk for the sets at 250lbs because of the sweat factor being so bad. First set the pick felt awful and the second set it felt expected. Weight didn’t feel challenging in my hands and I felt that I had much better control of the implements and didn’t experience the side to side wobble like last time. So that is a good sign and just a reminder that I can still return to form on farmer’s walks fairly quick.  I took my time putting stuff back where I got it before moving on to the next thing; stones. I wanted to make sure that I was keeping hydrated and giving myself enough time that I wasn’t having a lot of liquid in my stomach before I started pushing things hard. So like sandbag loads last week, I was to only do 1x5 with the weight that was to be 250lbs. But as mentioned last week, I went 35lbs heavier than what was suggested. I was feeling a little more motivated for the stones with thinking about a pro/am show in March with them but now that plans are more solidified with the January show, it would appear no more stones after this week (as show doesn’t have stones). So feeling a little deflated on that front. But it does mean on the plus side that I won’t have to deal with tacky clean up and using up my athletic tape or having to train them in the summer with how much I sweat. Since I wasn’t really going to be going beyond this for the foreseeable future, I elected to just stick to smaller diameter stones and do a 50lbs jump as intended from last time. So that meant a single with 235lbs and then do 285lbs (it might now be 290lbs) for the working set. I did manage to wrap my arms better this time around so that it wasn’t too tight and cutting off circulation to my hands. I’ve not really used the new stone setup that much as last time had been stone of steel on the other side. But the stones this time were initially picking up the rubber matting so there was some added resistance. There isn’t much to say here other than it was pretty routine and I don’t really like the smaller diameter stones. It does seem based off this that in the future, I may need to expect two sessions on stones to start feeling like I’ve shaken the rust off things. Clean up thankfully wasn’t too arduous, same as last time. I didn’t use a ton of tacky. Taking my time after that to get things setup for the sled drag to finish things off. I had been taking my time between things because of the heat as well as to make sure things settled in my stomach before doing the next thing. I was also helping with setting up things for two training friends for their upcoming competitions. I’m always going to do that if people need it. It was just as hot outside as it was last time I did the sled drag. I at least knew what I’d be doing after the rude awakening of those first two weeks getting these short rest runs of sled work. I at least know that I’m getting slightly better with my recovery and pacing myself. 10lbs added as I knew how much this was going to suck and I want to keep progress going. I knew this was doable from last time. As is usually the case, the second set I got faster and then there was drop off after that a little bit with a big one for that last set. But no stopping and still going. Took a bit for me to cool off and put stuff away before consuming the meal I brought and then driving home. I needed the A/C on the whole time in the car driving back. Stretched when I got home.