March 26, 2026 – Week 6, Day 2

Dynamic Warm Up 

13” Wagon Wheel Axle Deadlifts (straps)
136x5
226x3
316x2
366x1
406x1
456x1
496x1
546x2
60 Seconds Rest
406x2
406x2
406x2
406x2
406x2
406x2

Sandbag to Shoulders (left side only)
175x1/225x1/265x1/305x0
175x1/225x1/265x1/305x0

Deadstop Safety Bar Good Mornings (lower to deadlift pull height)
75x6
125x6
175x6
175x6
175x6

Sandbag Zercher Stationary Lunges (0-1-0-1 tempo)
bwx5/5
112x10/10
112x10/10

Deadstop Supported Single Leg Dumbbell Romanian Deadlifts/Pull Ups
67x5/5 – bwx1
117x5/5 – bwx11
117x5/5 – bwx7

Stretching

Comments: No walking Wednesday after work since spending time with family and for some reason traffic was backed up a lot so took quite a bit of time to get home from work. I did have to take some allergy meds at night with the pollen and high winds as well blowing in crap. With training for this session, there were nerves with some things but I think the main one was this workout tends to eat up time and that trying to get through it and have time to eat and get ready for bed. The hip thing is off and on. Soft tissue foam rolling surprisingly not much was needed elsewhere but really needed it for my right quad. Neck rehab stuff followed and thankfully not as tense as I was expecting things. Lower body stretching and dead hang after that. Then on to the workout. Last week’s session had been a lot and it took a good bit out of me. The deadlift session with the axle this week wasn’t in the same realm of hellacious as last week. Notes indicated that I was to work up to contest weight for 1-2 reps (depending on how things feel) and then I’d drop it down to 405lbs for short rest doubles for “speed” work. I decided that I might go heavier on the top set just because with doing 40-50lbs jumps (quarter and plate). I’d see how I feel warming up. I could tell my lower back and hamstrings were still not fully recovered and then there was the hip thing, which thankfully wasn’t flaring up on deadlifts. I did my usual plate jumps and then after 315lbs I went to 40-50lbs jumps. My hope with doing more singles working up was that I’d hopefully get used to the belt sooner and not be feeling like I’m going to pass out on the first working set for reps and make things tougher than they need to be. Also give me an idea of what plan of approach (if able) to take warming up at the contest. This did seem to help with acclimating to the pressure. I had used my Velcro ply belt for the first two singles and the damn thing popped off the first attempt at 405lbs when I braced. Funny I bought this thing specifically for deadlifting and it pops off like 10% of the time. A lot less issues with other things using it though. I felt good enough to get hyped up to do a 50lbs jump so that I was doing 11lbs over contest for my last heavy touch on this event. These went up pretty well but I could tell my hamstrings were feeling it. I took a little rest to adjust for the speed sets. Plan being 60 seconds rest rather than EMOM. I didn’t rest 60 seconds but it was close to that (always under that). I was facing the other direction for these so that I could just walk back in from pacing in the house to come and pull it. These were easy and moving fast. Actually felt like speed work. Warming up this weight hadn’t feel like this so this was nice to see. Feeling like how this weight should be moving. So I nice feeling deadlift session. I guess I needed the very uncomfortable session last week to appreciate this one. Sandbag to shoulder following up. Less volume than last week but it was going to be tougher than last week with how it was setup. Confidence took a little hit here last week with how rough I was feeling doing these after the deadlifts and missing 305lbs on my second set. I was hoping that I’d not be as fatigued this week. This week the plan was to do my four sandbags I can shoulder with 5 seconds rest between them with aim to get them all done in under 60 seconds. Work fatigue factor and pacing with aim to give myself opportunity to get four attempts in 60 seconds if need be. I mean, I will likely only make 2 attempts really but not sure what weights are going to be available at show. But I’m apparently still feeling beat from last week. First run through was not great. I seemed to have an issue with getting the pick right and fumbled a bit on each bag. 225lbs I pretty much had go right over shoulder as I didn’t control it to set it back down. I knew 305lbs was going to be a rough go with how 265lbs felt. I also was feeling the hip flexor issue at extension. I didn’t feel as “loose” and mobile like I do when this feels strong. I felt stiff and inflexible. I had to adjust in the lap the 305lbs and I got it into position but just got stuck and struggling through and bumping it up had it go off to the side a bit and it came back down. I was feeling a bit drained there but didn’t let it discourage me. I’d rest and try again. I applied chalk for this second run. I wasn’t sure if it helped or hindered on this at this point in training. Like it helps with the pick and lap but not sure if it makes the shouldering harder from chest or not. 175lbs and 225lbs did seem better second round. 265lbs the pick was a tougher but the shouldering was easier. So I thought that 305lbs might happen. It did not. The pick was rough and I had to adjust in the lap again. I was closer this time to shouldering it though but same result. I was tempted to try the 305lbs bag by itself as a single but I figured it was best that I let this be and move on. I don’t have the time or luxury with the work schedule and it is obvious that I’m very fatigued in my lower back and hamstrings right now. It is frustrating in that I’ve done this weight and these weights in the past no problem in series (2021, 2022 and 2024) but perhaps not after doing so much deadlifting and not being this light in bodyweight. I also know in most cases that I had a longer build up for said shows to work out things and sometimes the shouldering was the heaviest thing for said session. It also wasn’t helpful feeling like the effort was making the hip flexor issue flare up on me. But we move on and adapt and learn from it. Accessory work from there. First up on that order being gms with the ssb to rack height. Weight increased 5-10lbs from last time but reps dropped in half to 3x6. I was perfectly fine with that. My lower back was feeling tight and I tried to get some tension out right before the first set but no avail. My hamstring were feeling really tense on these so I was glad to just have the lower reps this time around. I don’t know if I’d been able to handle higher reps as well with the weight increase. Body is craving rest for these worked areas. Sandbag zercher lunges with tempo pauses again. Dropped from 3 to 2 sets but back up 10 reps like that first terrible week with them and that was without tempo and I wasn’t dealing with the hip flexor issue. Before this session, these were seen as question marks with the one leg rdls if I could tolerate them. Options were banded leg extensions and leg curls for higher reps and slow tempo. I figured that with the “damage done” from the shouldering, that I might as well get these over with. I didn’t need as much warming up for my knees to get on with it. Also might be trying to get done. These just don’t seem to get easier. The additional two reps per set was quite tough here. I really hope I don’t have these the rest of the prep so I can recover and have peace of mind as it always seems to be single leg split stance stuff that irritates something in my hips or thighs when it is quad/knee dominant. The last thing was a superset. The supported dead stop single leg dumbbell rdls and pull ups. Weight increased on the rdls by 5lbs and reps dropped to 5 for this week. The two sets like last week was helpful here. No issues on the rdls with my hip flexor but I think maybe I was more worried about the hamstrings as they were twitching and screaming at this point. No issues but could tell that my midsection was also beat at this point. The decrease in reps on the rdls definitely saved my forearms and had me not breathing as hard afterwards when it came to pull ups. First set of pull ups felt like how they usually feel for me without all the extra fatigue. But second set the fatigue was fully present there. Stretched after eating. Really hoping I’m feeling recovered for Saturday since I got to get back on my usual days for the rest of prep.