Becoming an Athlete

A buddy joined me for intervals today at Lake Pflugerville. 12 rounds of 2min walk + 30sec sprint Since I had a friend there, we were running much harder on the 30 second intervals. Solid work.

Nothing fancy. I have given up on fancy and going for good hard work. Chin-ups: 1,2,3,1,2,3,1,2,3,1,2,3,1,2,3 (30 total) Bench press: 175 x 10, 10, 7 Squat: 225 x 10, 10, 10 EZ-bar preacher curl: 65 x 12, 12 That's all. Since this is a break-in week, I have only done Low Intensity Intervals for my conditioning work. As of 2 JAN, I'll finish my Mon and Thu lifting sessions with barbell complexes and I'll add high intensity MetCons on Tue and Fri (instead of low intensity intervals).

Remember the old Marty Stouffer show Wild America? It was one of my favorites as a kid. I got to witness my own bit of Wild America while running intervals today. At about 1 mile in, I noticed a Harris' Hawk hovering low in the distance. It was maybe 4-5 feet in the air, going from bush to bush. I slowed down as I got with in 30 yards of it and the bird never noticed me. As I scanned the ground beneath the hawk's perch, I saw the unmistakable flash of white from a distressed cotton-tail rabbit. The hawk would dart back and forth, up and over, and around the little bush trying to snatch the cotton tail, but the rabbit stayed low to the ground protected by the branches and brush. I watched this go on for about 15 minutes, hoping the smallish hawk would get his meal, but all the commotion attracted the attention of a full grown female red-tailed hawk. She had to be twice the size of the male Harris' hawk. She slowly glided overhead, about 30-40 feet in the air, and tha...

I did 10 rounds of 2min walk + 30 sec run. I covered exactly 2 miles when the 10th interval completed. I'll do it again tomorrow and see if I can cover a little more distance in the same time limit. I'll run it WITHOUT my dog tomorrow. :)

I heard that term yesterday and it stuck. I intend to fully desissify myself. Not that I'm much of a sissy to start with, but a man can always be more manly. I had fallen into the bodybuilding trap. It didn't matter that I saw my weights moving forward. I started training at a bodybuilding gym, and over time I became more worried about physique development than strength and performance development. Today's workout was a nice break-in. More or less whole body, with plenty of conditioning scheduled for Tuesday. jump rope: 4 rounds of 2min (1min rest) chin-up ladders: 1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4 (30 total) overhead press: 115 x 5; 125 x 5; 135 x 7 snatch grip deadlift: 205 x 10, 10, 10 incline dumbbell curls: 20s x 12, 12, 8 Nothing special. Just good honest work.

It's my birthday! I'm 36 and I don't feel a day over 35 years, 364 days. I'm going to take the day off of training. I'll hit back and a MetCon tomorrow.

I was supposed to do a MetCon, but I wasted the day and hit the gym at 7:00. I just lifted. My shoulders were weak from swimming the day before. Jump rope: 4 rounds - 2min work, 30 sec rest, lots of double unders Snatch grip high pull: 135 x 6; 145 x 6, 6; 155 x 6 Prone incline laterals: 20s x 30 reps (EASY! ready for more weight and traditional set / rep scheme) Bench press: warm-up 135 x 10; 165 x 10; 185 x 10, 5; work sets: 205 x 5, 5, 7 Overhead press: 95 x 7, 7, 7, 3, 6

I was bored out of my skull, so I went to 24Hr Fitness and swam for about 2 hours. I'm not sure how many laps I did, but I did 6 1-way trips completely under water. That is a 25 meter swim in a single breath. This is my favorite way to swim. I picked this up in the old Air Force Academy days - Water Survival course. We'll see how long it is before I am swimming a full lap, 50 meters, on a single breath.

Man oh man! The hike on Sunday took its toll on my legs. I skipped a bit of work today just because my lower back and "core" was still fatigued from the weekend. Decline situps: 27 consecutive reps skipped corkscrews alternating hammer curl: 35s x 30 reps (pretty easy. ready for 40s) close grip bench press: 115 x 30 reps (too easy. ready for 135) incline dumbbell curls: 30s x 25 reps (pretty dang hard!) dips: body-weight x 25 reps (ready to add 10lbs) skipped squats since I did them on Saturday leg press: 360 x 10, 10, 10; 405 x 10, 10; 450 x 5, 6, 7 skipped squat jump This is the heaviest I can recall lifting on leg press. Next time I'll try to hit 450 for sets of 10.

I had been having so excruciating pain over the last couple of weeks. So much so that I went to the doctor on 12/14 and the ER on 12/17. After lots of tests and a CT scan, the diagnosis is "beats the shit out of me!" I'm not one to sit around and let pain beat me, so I've been progressing along, blocking out the pain when it occurs as best I can. Sunday was no different. My wife and I went for a 10 mile hike around Lake Georgetown. We averaged 2.5 miles per hour. Not bad considering the terrain, the mud, and this lower abdominal pain that hit me maybe 5 times during the hike.

My wife just got a job at 24HR Fitness, so we were there checking out the facilities. WOW! I have never had a membership to a mainstream gym, but this place is freaking awesome. We did things here that can't be done in the garage, as you'll see. Neutral grip pullup ladders: 1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4 Kipping pullup: 17 consecutive Strength / Conditioning circuit: a. snatch grip deadlift: 185 x 10, 10, 10 b. pushup: 15, 15, 15 c. speed skater lunge: 10, 10, 10 d. inverted row: BW x 8, 10, 10 Back squats: 185 x 5; 205 x 5; 225 x 5; 275 x 5; 285 x 5; 295 x 5 Swimming: about 15 laps Hung out in hot tub for about 10 minutes Swimming: about 8 more laps About 10 minutes in steam room About 10 minutes in dry Sauna I consumed over a gallon of water in this 2 hr marathon session. What an absolute blast!!!!

Good workout, despite some unrelated pain. Jump rope: 4 rounds of 2min/1min Power clean: 135 x 1, 1; 185 x 1, 1, 1; 195 x miss, miss, miss Prone incline laterals: 20s x 30 reps Overhead press: 115 x 5, 5; 125 x 5, 5, 5 Neutral grip pullup: BW x 5, 5, 5, 5, 4 Wide-grip pulldown: 120 x 10, 10

First missed workout. Phase 1 Day 9 was to have been a MetCon. I stayed late at work, then had to run to my daughter's Christmas Choir Concert. Granted, the concert was worth it, but if it had been a regular day of work I could have trained before 5:00 PM. The workout was to have been 5 rounds for time, 0f: 400 meter run / sprint elbow to knee pushup x 20 situps x 20 Next time. Next time.

8 days and no missed workouts. Not too shabby. I did forget my ab wheel at home, so I skipped abs today. Que cera cera. Jump rope: gobs and gobs Alternating hammer curl: 35s x 30 reps (pretty easy) Decline triceps dumbbell extension: 25s x 30 reps (pretty hard, and awkward) Incline dumbbell curl: 30s x 25 reps (freaking hard after moving up on #1.) Dips: BW x 25 reps (felt good) FBGM: 115 x 10, 10, 10, 10 (was real tight today, so went light and focused on ROM) Leg press: 295 x 15, 15, 15 T-bell swings: 73lbs x 50 reps (God-awful! Why did I do this?!?! THAT is how I know it is good for me)

I made a cool implement to practice Highland Games Weight For Distance and Weight Over bar. The implement is similar to my Ghetto-bell, but is much short, and is capped at the top with a coupling joint. The coupling serves to retain the weights. I drilled a hole through it which serves to prevent it from unscrewing and to connect a short length of chain. I attached a handle to the chain. Right now it is only 33 lbs, which is heavier than the 28 Light WFD, but no where close to the 56lb used for Heavy WFD and WOB . Since I am more concerned with technique, 33lbs is perfect. I spend about 90 minutes working on both events. I was FINALLY clearing the 9'6" backstop with 33lbs. It was a first for me. The key difference is leg drive. I had been focused on hip drive, but after watching a few videos, I tried jumping as hard as possible into the WOB movement. This simple tweak helped me gain 2 feet vertically.

Today was a bit of arm work followed by a MetCon. Metabolic Conditioning is simply a way to tax your body's ability to produce energy. This sort of conditioning makes you leaner, more effecient, and builds stamina. CrossFit is sort of a 1-trick-pony in that they perform MetCons almost exclusively. Without legitamite strength training, you'll only progress so far. You will get FIT, but not much stronger ot more powerful. For me, MetCons twice a week with Strength Training 3 times. 1. EZ-bar reverse grip preacher curls: 75 x 25 reps total 2. EZ-bar seated overhead extension: 75 x 30 reps total 3. MetCon: Max rounds in 20 minutes of: a. 110lb Clean x 10 reps b. Burpee x 10 reps I completed 3 rounds in 14 minutes then felt damn near like passing out. I can't wait to do this again and get 4-5 rounds and all 20 minutes.

1. Jump rope: 4 rounds (2 min work, 30sec rest) 2. Snatch grip high pull: 135 x 6, 6, 6, 6 3. Prone incline laterals (mid-trap work): 20s x 30 reps total 4. Bench press: 185 x 5; 195 x 5; 205 x 5; 215 x 6; 225 x 5 5. Smith machine incline press*: 135 x 10, 10, 8, 10 6. 1-arm dumbbell row: 60 x 10, 10, 10, 10, 10 7. T-bar row: 45 x 10; 70 x 10, 10, 10 *Smith machine incline press: Yeah I know; Smith machines are only good for hanging clothes. But I tell you this; the Smith machine is great for working through an extreme state of fatigue. I'm only using 135 on inclines, but by keeping the rest period to 30 seconds, the fatigue builds up mid way through the 2nd set, and is damn near unbearable by the start of the 4th. Working through extreme local muscular fatigue is a sure-fire way to induce hypertrophy. I couldn't work this hard with a barbell or dumbbells, as I'd expend so much energy trying to control the weight. It would present too much risk of injury

More low intensity intervals. This is about the greatest thing since the ECA stack! :) Tons of extra volume, good hard speed work, lots of extra calories burned, and little to no cumulative fatigue. In this age when the words EXTREME and HARDCORE are required to gain interest, it is rare to hear much talk of low-intensity anything. But I'm here to tell you, this is a great way to build up your running capacity, lose some fat, and not sacrifice ANY muscle or recovery capacity. I did another 10 rounds of 2 min walking and 30 second running. My 30 second efforts are getting much faster, so I'm slowly increasing my distance in the same timeframe. THAT is progress, folks. Next week, I'll start doing 12 rounds.

Today was conditioning. I didn't wake up early enough so I crammed everything into 1 session. 3 rounds of: a. 170lb Farmers walk (40 yd down / 40 yd back) b. 45lb tire sled drag (40 yd down / 40 yd back) c. 45lb dumbbell swings x 20 d. Shuttle sprint (40 yd down / 40 yd back) 8 rounds of low intensity intervals: a. 2 min walk b. 30 sec run

Aside from the Saturday workout, I haven't lifted since Wednesday before Thanksgiving. I went a little light just to keep things moving and build some momentum. Decline situps: 42 total reps in 2 minutes Corkscrew: 25lbs x 10/10, 10/10 (L/R) Alternating dumbbell curl: 30s x 30 reps in about 2 mins (heavier next time) Close grip bench press: 85lbs x 30 reps in less than a minute (heavier next time) Incline dumbbell curls: 30s x 25 reps in about 7 minutes Dips: Bodyweight x 25 reps in about 5 minutes Back squat: 155 x 10; 175 x 10; 185 x 10; 195 x 10; 205 x 10 Leg press (5sec negative, explosive lift): 270 x 15, 15, 15 Squat jumps: 50 total reps in about 8 minutes I'll remember my watch next time and get real times.

3 hours in the mud with my training partner. It was the most fun I've had training in several months. I had a poor showing, but it was a great day anyway. My buddy Jeff and I compete with each other in a healthy way. It pushes us both to try harder. The fact that it is never certain who will outperform whom makes it even more fun. We are good friends and always encourage each other, so the competitive nature just makes it more fun. It seems our favorite phrase is becoming "Great freaking throw! DAMMIT!!" On to the workout. 50 yard medley: a. 170lb farmers walk (85 per hand) / sprint back to start b. 45lb sled drag (light due to mud) / sprint back to start c. tire flip Jeff owned me on this one: 3:06 to my 4:08 1/4 mile farmer's walk - 170lb farmers walk (85 per hand) We each took turns walking as far as we could till our grips gave out. We did this twice. Open stone practice I was throwing a bit further than Jeff on this day. Weight Over Bar: My biggest stumbling bloc...

This is not hard-core stuff. In fact, it was down right boring. But it was a good way to get some road work in and slowly build up my running capacity. 10 Intervals of -2 minute walk -30 second sprint In the first 2-3 intervals, my sprints were just runs, but as my hams warmed up each 30 second effort became more of a true sprint. Intervals 6 through 10 were full-blown top-speed sprints. I have nbo idea how far I went. I was on a gravel park trail and lost count of laps. 25 minutes total. Will do this again Friday. Saturday is a group Highland Games workout. I won't lift after that, but will get back to the low intensity intervals on Sunday.

I haven't been lifting much since the day before Thanksgiving. I hit the gym 3 times that Wednesday to make up for the days I knew I'd take off. That was dumb. Since then, my elbows, back, and knees have been aching. I didn't lift at all over the holiday weekend, but I have done a couple of 3 mile jogs, and some intervals. The intervals feel great, but it will be a while before my knees and feet are reconditioned to distance running. I'm going to keep running this week and start up again on 5 DEC. So am I being lazy, or calculated? Can't say for sure, but I am at least getting in my road work for once.

8:00 AM: 2.5 mile walk/jog with my dog 11:00 AM: Single leg standing calves: 3 x 20 per leg Leg press calves: 2 x 40 Squat: 225 x 10, 10; 245 x 10, 10; 265 x 10 Leg press: 340 x 15, 15, 15 (5 sec negative, explosive press) Squat jumps: 50 total reps

My birthday is 21 DEC, and I want to see how lean I can get in the month that remains till my 36th. When I was boxing in college, I'd hit 4% bodyfat during competition (hydrostatic method). When I was fighting through 2008, I'd cut weight to 187 and hit 11% relatively easily. But I haven't been worried about BF% in the last 3 years. I've just wanted to hit strength goals. So now, I have cleaned up my diet to where it would be if I were fight training, and I'm running again. So this last camping weekend was the last care-free bacchanalian fest for the foreseeable future. Monday AM: Intervals 2 minute jog, 30 second sprint: 8 rounds (20 minutes total) Monday PM: Abs and arms

My wife's brithday was this past Sunday, so I decided to make it a full weekend for her. We left Friday at noon, stopped off at a winery in Bryan, TX for some camping provisions, got to Huntsville State Park around 6:00 on Friday night and settled in for the night. After a nice breakfast, we hit the trail with packs loaded and knocked off 9 miles in 2.5 hours. After a leisurely lunch we hit some new trails and knocked off another 4 miles before coming back to camp. We were going to try for another 8-12 miles Sunday morning, but after polishing off all 3 bottles of wine around the campfire, we decided to just take our time about breaking down camp and then head home. After hiking 13 miles, I firmly believe Marathon runners are nuts!

I got them defined. Gonna keep it simple, and focused. Strength goals: 1x bodyweight overhead press: 210lbs 1.5x bodyweight bench press: 315lbs (almost there now) 2x bodyweight squat: 420lbs (no idea where I'm at) 2.5x bodyweight deadlift: 525 (hovering around 450, with one brief stop at 495) Endurance goal: 8 minute mile (keeping it realistic so I can reach strength goals) Whadaya think? Too aggresive? Too modest? Too narrow?

I had some of my worst throws of the year, but it was still good enough for 4th. Doing games on back to back weekends proved to be a bit more difficult than I anticipated. I'll continue on with my 3 on - 1 off schedule, but with far fewere rest days since there are no more events for the year.

Well, I've put in more time under the bar, and more time at the field throwing. I hope I do well in Salado this Saturday, 11/12. I'm a little worried that I won't be fully recovered in time. Here is what I did this week: Sunday, 5 NOV (1 day after Austin Highland Games) Russian twists: 3 x 10 each direction Corscrew: 3 x 10 each direction with 35lb plate Lots of biceps and triceps Monday, 6 NOV Lots of calves Squats: 5 x 10 at 245lbs Leg press: 4 x 15, using 5 second negatives. The weight was light; 270lbs Tuesday, 7 NOV Snatch grip high pull: 4 x 5 at 155 Bench press: 5 x 5 at 205 Smith machine incline bench: 3 x 15 at 135 1-arm dumbbell row: 5 x 10 at 65 wide grip seated cable row: 5 x 10 at 90 prone incline laterals: 5 x 7 at 20 wide grip pulldown: 3 x 12 at 130 lateral raise: 3 x 12 at 20 My upper body feels fine, but my hams, glutes, and quads are still aching from Monday's training.

Man, I am elated with my performance on Saturday. I did exactly as I thought I would. Although I didn't win, I am just happy that I didn't choke and was able to demostrate what my current capablity really is. There is nothing worse than flubbing it; doing well below what you've done in practice. I improved by many many feet on basically every event. One thing that shocked me: Mike Baab moved me up from the 42lb weight to the 56lb weight. Now that I'm "Amateur", I use the same weight as the truly strong; same weight as the Pros. I flipped the first three cabers, and got crushed by the 4th caber. The 4th caber is a 120lb short and stubby beast we named Snake Eyes, because of the two knots at bottom that look like eyes on a snake's head. I am terrible at 56lb weight over bar. I didn't even clear 9 feet. I'll be doing far more snatches, high pulls, cleans, and Ghetto-bell swings for the next 10 months! :)

I have found my own personal optimal training frequency. I've done similar layouts before, but I finally have it dialed in. I've been reading and following the plans of others for decades, and writing my own plans here and there for a decade or more as well. But with enough time under the bar, you get to where you are reading with an eye toward concepts, not blueprints. I don't need someone to write a detailed, rep-for-rep plan for me. I've come to understand what works best for me, but also have seen the wisdom of the folks who have accomplished far more and have far more experience than me. I've come to apply the concepts of some very influential people in the iron game to my training. Dan John Mark Ripptoe Jim Wendler Robert Dos Remedios My current plan 3 days on, 1 day off two distinct 4-day cycles Cycle 1 Day 1 - priority day (arms, for me) Day 2 - knee dominant / squatting pattern Day 3 - Horizontal push / pull; minor vertical push / pull work Day 4 - Off Cycl...

Highland Games - Austin Celtic Festival is 11/05 My buddy and I held another training session on Saturday, 10/22. I'm getting much better at the hammer throw and the caber toss. The atlas stone clean and press, and weight over bar are still areas to improve. After we do all of our skill work, which is exhausting in and of itself, we finish with competitions that have a high degree of carry-over to the actual events. Our competitive events are Tire flips: most reps in 2 minutes Atlas clean and press: most reps in 2 minutes 90lb Tire sled drag: 40 yard for fastest time 103lb T-bell swing: most consecutive reps. These are fun, and with the group of guys we have, everyone puts absolutely everything they have into each event. We care more about our own PRs than "beating" the next guy. New Training Phase I've been training pretty consistently since my last post. I've finished up the ABA/BAB rotation and am back to a more strength-size focused plan. My basic observations...

This is a rock solid plan, that is heavily influenced by Robert Dos Remedios' Power Training templates. I'm currently only training 3 days per week, following an A-B-A / B-A-B rotation. I begin every session with some form of explosive lifting; usually 5 singles of Clean, or Snatch, or High Pull varieties. This is just enough volume and sufficient variety to work up to a new PR every time I hit a given movement. And as always, my arms lag well behind my torso and legs, so I have found a way to incorporate significant volume in a short amount of time. So far the results are promising. I may outgrown the T-rex look in the very near future. :) When to use this plan: This is ideal for me right now because I'm coming off a phase that was incredibly taxing. I was lifting high loads frequently. I needed a less intensive phase that would allow for a bit more recovery between sessions. This plan is also good for people who are new to training or coming off a long lay-off. The volume...

Monday: Did whole-body Workout A Tuesday: 2 mile jog with the dog Wednesday: Did whole-body Workout B Thursday: Did 2nd occurence of Workout A a day early, as I'll have a massive Highland Games / Strongman workout on Saturday morning. I'll get my cardio in on Friday. My strength endurance is coming back fast, and without detriment to my limit strength.

The week of 26 - 30 Sep was rough. I was in training that ran long 3 days that week, then had a Boy Scout meeting with my son on Wednesday night. I took the kids shopping after work on Friday. I only got in one day of training, on Monday 26 SEP. I did, however, make use of the weekend. Saturday, 1 OCT: Went to the park and did tons of shot put, standing and "open" I was able to add a solid 6 feet to my distance just by experimentling with technique. I'm going to do great in both Braemar Stone and Open Stone in November!!! I took a 55lb dumbbell and practiced Weight for Distance and Weight Over Bar. This about ripped me in two. If I can get solid balance using the 55lb dumbbell, the 42lb implement is going to be a breeze. Atlas Stone clean and press. I didn't keep count. I just did it till I couldn't do it any more Sunday, 2 OCT: Improvised hammer swing: Just so everyone is aware, a real 22lb Scottish Hammer or Macebell is a complete and total rip off. Why on earth...

I'm 2 days post highland Games and starting up with a 2-4 week reloading phase. I call it Reloaded because it starts with a 1 week Deload but builds weight / load quickly. Today's deload workout: Clean: 135 x 1; 155 x 1; 165 x 1; 185 x miss, 1 Back squat: 185 x 10; 195 x 10; 205 x 10 1-leg dumbbell deadlift: 50 (2x25lb) x 12/12, 12/12 Horizontal superset: a. Bench press: 185 x 8; 195 x 8 b. 1-arm dumbbell row: 60 x 12/12, 12/12 Vertical superset: a. Overhead press: 115 x 8, 8 b. 1-arm pulldown: 45 x 12/12; 70 x 12/12 Dumbbell curl countdown: 25 x 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 (rest only long enough to complete reps with opposite hand) Dumbbell cross-body tricep extension: 25 x 10,9,8,5 (rest as with previous exercise. My tris gave out) I was going to do some bridging and rotational work, but my arms couldn't support my body. Core work will happen later tonight.

http://sherwoodforestfaire.com/celtic-festival/highland-games/ No results posted yet, but I can tell you all that I'm damn proud of my performance. I was the smallest guy out there (aside from the light weight division), and the promoter bumped me up to Amateur - C instead of Novice. Games started at 10:00 AM and ended around 6:00 PM Events: 22lb Standing Put: I was right in the mix with the top 5 guys. Well above all the novices 16lb Open Stone: I was middle of the pack here. Some of the guys were former shot putters, so they had technique I've yet to develop. 42lb "Heavy" Weight for Distance: I rocked it here. I was in the top 5 or so again 28lb "Light" Weight for Distance: I was one of the furtherest throwers in this event. This is my best event. 22lb "Heavy" Hammer throw: This one was difficult!!! Spin a 22lb hammer that is 5 feet long around your head and throw it backwards as far as you can. I got off balance on my 1st and 2nd attempt and act...

I've been working exclusively for strength and power as I prepped for the 9/24 Highland Games in McDade, TX. Here are some of the PRs I have set this month at various training sessions: Deadlift: 495 x 1 Bench press: 275 x 2 Front squat: 275 x 5 7 reps Clean and Press with 140lb stone Dips: 5 sets of 5 with 45lb plate Neutral grip pullup: 5 reps with 35lb plate Now I'm going to chillax until Saturday morning; maybe get in a bit of cardio. Once the event is over, I'll start with a much more balanced training plan.

Saturday morning started with a nice 5K race. The course was easy, but since I haven't done ANY running in 5 months or so, I was just happy to finish with out walking. 38:17 is a crappy time, but not a suprise since I've been training exclusively for Highland Games the last few two months. Saturday afternoon was more legs, albeit abreviated. too weak for cleans Bench press: 185 x 5; 205 x 5; 225 x 5; 245 x 3 plyo pushup: 6, 6, 6 Incline dumbbell press: 55s x 12, 12, 12 Tire sled punch*: +45 x 5/5; +25 x 5/5, 5/5, 5/5, 5/5, 5/5 Front squat: 245 x 5; 255 x 3; 275 x 3 Tire sled punch is just like what it sounds. Using a single handle, I stood in left-lead boxing stance and did 5 punches, as explosively as possible with my right hand. I was very meticulous in my form, ensuring the drive initiated from my rear foot, and travelled up through my hips, incorporated a powerful rotation, and an explosive straight punch. After 5 reps, I switched to a right-lead stance and did 5 punches wi...

Arms superset: a. incline dumbbell curls: 35s x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 b. weighted dips: +35 x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 Alternating hammer cursl: 30s x 12, 12, 8 Seated hammer curls (very strict form): 25s x 12, 10, 10

Overhead press: 135 x 5; 145 x 5; 155 x 5 Push press: 155 x 5, 5; 165 x 5 Lateral raises: 12s x 12, 12, 12, 12 Deadlift : 315 x 5; 345 x 5; 365 x 2 :( Doing DLs last made a big difference, for the worse

Snatch grip high pull: 155 x6; 175 x 6, 6 Neutral grip pullup: +15 x 5; +20 x 5; +25 x 5; BW x 6 1-arm db row: 65 x 12/12, 12/12, 12/12 Supine grip pulldown: 120 x 12, 10, 9 Rope grip row: 60 x 12, 12, 12, 12

My front squats are progressing nicely, but bench press and overhead press are hitting a sticking point. I've been under some pretty serious stress that has hurt my sleeping and caused me to miss quite a few meals, but I'm getting that under control. Front squat: 135 x 5; 185 x 5; 245 x 5; 255 x 5; 265 x 4 Back squat: 225 x 5, 7, 5, 7, 15 Bench press: 135 x 5, 10; 185 x 5; 195 x 5; 205 x 6 plyo pushups: 6, 6, 6 Chest Tri-set a. Incline db press: 55s x 12, 10, 10 b. pushup: 8, 4, 4 c. Incline dumbbell flye: 20s x 8, 8, 8

My shoulder work sucked on Friday, so I did it again on Saturday. And I added in my arm work. OHP: 135 x 5,4,3,2,1,5,4,3 (MINIMAL rest) Arms superset: a. Incline db curl: 35s x 5, 5, 5, 3; 30s x 5, 5, 3 b. Weighted dips: +25 x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 EZ-bar curl: 65 x 12, 10, 10, 7

The deadlifts on Thursday left me too drained to do anything else, so I did shoulders on Friday. OHP: 45 x 10, 10, 20; 145 x 4; 155 x 1; 160 x 0 (Still weak after DLs) 1-arm push press: 75 x 4/4, 5/5, 5/5 Shoulder tri-set: a. Prone lateral: 20 x 6, 5; 15 x 10, 8, 8 b. Lateral raise: 20 x 5, 5; 15 x 10, 6, 8 c. Alternating front raise: 20 x 6, 5; 15 x 8, 6, 4

My daughter just started middle school, and has joined choir. I had to skip lifting Wednesday night because of the Choir Parents meeting. So I skipped all the back work, and was able to get in a lunch-time workout today. I only had time for about half of what I planned to do, so I'll be doing the other half tonight. 9/1: Deadlifting burpees: 20 deadlift: 135 x 5; 225 x 5; 275 x 5; 315 x 5; 365 x 3; 405 x 1, 1 single leg dumbbell deadlift: 70 x 12/12, 12/12, 12/12 Too damn tired for anything else.

Clean: 175 x 3; 185 x 3; 195 x 2 Front Squat: 225 x 5; 245x 3; 275 x 1 supersetted with depth jumps: 5, 5, 10 Leg press: 360 x 12, 10, 10 Bench press: 185 x 5; 225 x 3; 235 x 1 supersetted with plyo pushup: 6, 6, 0 Incline db press: 45 x 12; 50 x 12, 12, 12 Conditioning countdown: a. Pushup: 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 b. Squat jump: 10, 9 , 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1

MuscleUp ran a combined free group workout and Highland Games prep. We had about 12 people on the free workout, and just me and 1 other guy for the HG prep. After the group warm-up, we did: 12lb shot put: open style 16lb shot put: standing and open Braemar stone: 30lb concrete stone, standing put 2-handed standing put using 30lb stone 140lb stone clean and press This was the beast of the day. My back was sore on Sunday and Monday as from this. NOT an easy feat.

Warm-up: 20 burpees Deadlift: (warmup 225 x 5; 275 x 5) 315 x 3; 325 x 3; 335 x 3 1-leg db deadlift: 60 x 12/12, 12/12, 12/12 Overhead press: 145 x 3; 150 x 3; 155 x 3 1-arm push press: 65 x 6/6, 6/6, 6/4, 6/5 (left arm weaker / uncoordinated) lateral raise: 10s x 12, 12, 12, 10 (super strict form, short rest interval) 63lb T-bell swing: 53 consecutive reps

I'm training a guy to fight, and we are finally at the stage where he needs to to start sparring. So on Tuesday evening, we met up and sparred for 8 rounds. It was great work for me in that I had to coach and spar at the same time. Talking through a round made the work a little more difficult, but it forced me to stay in even btighter control of myself. I can see where this sort of practice makes you not only a better coach, but a better fighter. That was 6:00 PM. When we finished up, I ran home and got my gym bag and was headed to the gym to lift. I was already tired, dehydrated, and in need to some food. So I'm not too dismayed with my gym performance. Snatch grip high pull: 155 x 6; 175 x 6; 195 x 4 Neutral grip pullup: +15 x 3; +20 x 3; +25 x 3, 3, 2 1-arm db row: 55 x 12, 12; 60 x 12, 12 supine grip pulldown: 120 x 12, 12, 10, 9 rope grip seated row: 90 x 12, 9; 75 x 10; 60 x 10, 8

clean: 155 x 3; 175 x 3; 185 x 3 Leg complex: a. front squat: 205 x 3; 225 x 3; 245 x 4 b. depth jump x 4; 4; 4 Bulgarian squat: +20 x 12/12, 12/12, 12/12 Chest complex: a. bench press: 185 x 3; 195 x 3; 205 x 5 b. plyo pushup: 5, 5, 5 incline bumbbell press 45 x 12, 12, 12, 12

My wife was out of town this weekend, and I was busy getting the kids ready for back-to-school, so training fell to the wayside on Thursday and Friday. I woke up early on Saturday for a brief, but good training session. deadlift - worked up to 315 for 5 reps FBGM - worked up to 115 for 12 incline dumbbell curls: 35 x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 EZ-bar rvs curls: 65 x 12, 12, 12 Nothing special, just good work

I freaking LOVE my home-made tire sled. Absolutely incredible piece of cheap equipment!!!! Back day entailed: snatch grip high pull: 135 x 6; 155 x 6; 185 x 6 neutral grip chinup: BW x 5; +10 x 5; +15 x 5 1-arm dumbbell row: 45 x 12, 12; 50 x 12, 12 left and right supine grip pulldown*: 100 x 12; 110 x 12; 120 x 12, 12 rope grip seated row: 75 x 12, 12, 12, 12 Tire sled explosive row**: max reps in 5 mins with 45lbs results: 108 reps for a just over one lap around the gym I'm going to add another plate next time *Supine grip pulldown: Man, these are rough on my wrists and elbows, I had to vary my grip each set to keep the mechanical strain down. The load on my arms and lats was just fine. **I made a tire sled and it is proving to be versatile, durable, interesting, and highly effective!!!! I had wednesday off and today, 2 days later, my traps are more sore than they have ever been.

A lot of focus on strength and explosiveness until game day. Noon workout: Clean: 135 x 3, 3; 155 x 3 Leg Complex: a. Front squat: 135 x 5; 185 x 5; 205 x 5 b. Depth jump: 6 ; 6 ; 5 Bulgarian squat: BW x 12, 12, 12 each leg Chest complex: a. Bench press: 185 x 5; 185 x 5; 185 x 5 b. Plyo pushup: BW x 5; 5 ; 5 Incline db press*: 50 x 12, 7; 40 x 12, 12 *I was gassed for my first day back, and was still not ready for the Texas heat. So I quite before doing 5 mins of squat jumps for max reps. I came back later for a PM workout. 7:00 Pm Workout: Hatfield bar squat: 135 x 10; 185 x 10, 8, 5; 205 x 10, 8, 5; 225 x 5, 5; 235 x 5, 1; 205 x 6, 6, 6; 135 x 14 Bodyweight superset (no rest between) a. Burpees x 5, 5, 5 b. squat jumps x 10, 5, 7

I had a great family vacation in Seattle. My 11 yr old daughter was a few feet from landing her first salmon!!! That's something I have yet to do; I have never even hooked one. I took the kids for a little hike around Mt. St. Helens, and took my son to a couple of skate parks. Seattle and the surrounding areas are fantastic for skaters. There are more parks than Central TX, and they are bigger and more elaborate. I have signed up for another Highland Games this September so, I'm working hard as of Monday, 8/15. I can't wait to see how I do compared to last year.

I go on vacation this Thursday, so I just wanted to do some whole-body strength training that would hurt deep enough to carry me through the shortened training week. squats: 5 x 5 neutral grip pullup: 5 x 5 wide grip seated row: 5 x 8 wide grip pulldown: 3 x 15 bench press: 5 x 5 leg press: 1 x 10; 1 x 30 I am exhausted today (2AUG) but have an MMA class to teach later this evening. That'll be my cardio if we do enough rolling.

One of my best buddies brought his son over to work on his grappling. His son is 16 or 17, and is a wrestler, but has never done jiu jitsu or any other form of ground fighting. We drilled a handful of basics for quite a while: guard pass 4 different arm-bar variations 2 chokes 1 ankle lock sweep from side control sweep / escape from mount After that we worked on what I call Position Recognition. In essence, I am the defender and he is the aggressor. I try to roll with light resistance and feed him different opportunities for the submissions we previously drilled. The goal is for him to start spotting the opportunities as they present themselves. This is the way to win ground fights. Recognize what opportunity is present and exploit it fully. After a lot of Position Recognition drills, we did some more competitive rolling. I didn't go all out of course. 3 hours in the garage on the mats was more than enough for us.

I did another round of AM deadlifts with high rep squats, and PM upper body. This twice a day madness is taking a toll on me, but my overall stamina is improving rapidly as a result. I got in some pretty heavy sets of deadlifts, working up to 315 for sets of 5. On front squats, I worked up to 205 for 15. On the evening session, it was the usual fare, but in slightly different order: HammerStrength incline press: 3 x 12 cable cross overs: 3 x 12 1-arm DB row: 3 x 12 wide-grip seated row: 3 x 15 overhead press: 3 x 12 lateral raise: 3 x 15 supine-grip pulldown: 3 x 12 wide-grip pulldown: 3 x 15 I am responding well to the higher rep range and higher frequency. I am adding muscle and dropping fat. But vacation is 3 days away, and when I come back, I'll shift gears to power training, as I have signed up for Highland Games on 24 SEP. http://sherwoodforestfaire.com/celtic-festival/highland-games/

I trained a client after work today before heading to the gym. I am teaching him how to fight. It's great to get in all the warm-ups and stretching with him before I head to the gym. I am closing in on front splits, but my side splits are still a ways off. After training him, I went to the gym for an arm workout. I fully admit I train arms. I had avoided any direct arm work for many years because I thought training as a single coordinated unit using compound lifts was all I needed to stay balanced. In the last 2-3 years, there have been periods when I could do 15+ strict pullups or chinups and and easy 25+ dips, but my arms never matched my torso. So today, I did an Ian King arm workout. Th. e volume is MUCH lower than I'm used to, but the drop-sets amd tri-sets made up for it. Bicep tri-set (all 3 movements for one arm before switching arms) a. Cross-body hammer curl: 20 x 10 b. Concentration curl: 20 x 10 c. Dumbbell preacher curl: 20 x 10 Tricep tri-set (all 3 movements for ...

Monday AM: Front squats: 135 x 5, 10; 185 x 6, 10, 10, 10 Conventional Deadlift: 205 x 10, 12, 15 Back squat: 145 x 25 Monday PM: 1-arm db row: 60 x 12, 12, 12 per arm wide-grip seated row: 75 x 15, 15, 13 Supine grip pulldown: 140 x 12, 12, 12 Wide grip pulldown: 100 x 15, 11, 9 (forearms gave out before my back) Overhead press: 95 x 12, 12, 8 dumbbell lateral raise: 15s x 15, 6; 10s x 15, 15, 12, 9 Hammer Strength incline press: 55(per arm) x 12, 12; 70(per arm) x 12, 8 I skipped any additional chest work.

I was bored, and I missed Friday's workout, so I did some squats on Saturday morning. Nothing fancy. front squat: 185 x 10, 10, 10 Sumo deadlift: 185 x 15, 15, 15 Back squat: 145 x 20 After that I just goofed off with the kids.

Much needed day off. Not sure how else to describe this, but even my knees feel heavy.

Tuesday night was an arm workout. As usual, my left elbow caused me to hold back quite a bit. I compensated with slower tempo, lighter weight, and higher volume. I stopped when my elbow started hurting. Skull crushers are definitely OFF my menu for a while. Even the bar made my elbow hurt. All told, I did a decent job, because biceps and triceps of both arms are sore.

My elbow held up much better today (Monday evening). 1-arm db rows: 55 x 12, 12, 12 wide grip cable row: 75 x 12, 12, 12 Overhead press: 95 x 12, 12, 7 Hammer Strength lateral raises: 17.5 x 15, 15, 12 Supine grip pulldown: 140 x 12, 12, 12 (elbow started hurting) Wide grip pulldown 100 x 10; 90 x 15, 13 (elbow REALLY sore now) Hammer Strength incline press: 60s x 12, 12, 12 I skipped cable cross-overs.

Straight forward, but not easy. Front squat: (warm-up with 135 x 10) 165 x 10, 10; 175 x 10 Sumo DL: 175 x 15, 15, 15 Back squat: 135 x 25 Althought this was hard, I can tell I'll need a bit more volume.

I was bored on Sunday afternoon, so I got in a good but light fight training session. As I told my wife, I'm trying to get some of my "polish" back. I have been stretching consistently for a few weeks now and was working on head kicks. My right is fast, accurate, and VERY high. My left is slower, less accurate, and about shoulder hieght at best. I enmded the workout with lots of hip, groin, hip fklexor, and hamstring stretching. jump rope: 3 rounds (3min / 1min rest) Heavy bag: - 2 rounds light warm-up, boxing only - 3 hard rounds, boxing only - 2 rounds light warm-up, kicks and knees only - 3 hard rounds, full kickboxing about 20 minutes working on technique and form. No rounds, just sharpening the skills. Lots of stretching

I am really enjoying two legs in the AM and upper body in the PM. It means plenty of volume and intensity for both efforts. No more tiring half way into a gruelling workout. I did plenty of rowing and pulldowns, and overhead pressing and incline dumbbell presses. Nothing fancy, but still sore as of Sunday

Simple, straight forward, quick, and intense FBGM (warm-up): 85 x 12 Deadlift: 225 x 10; 275 x 10; 295 x 7 Front squat: 135 x 15, 15, 15 Back squat: 115 x 25 Now I'm really gassed, but should be ready for upper body later this evening.

My left elbow is still hurting from that case of bursitis. Doc said to continue taking the anti-inflamitories for a month. :( After a few sets of bil-lateral work, I had to switch and just work my right arm as my left elbow was too painful.

It was hot, and the ride was fast. I got my wife a pair of road tires for her mountain bike. She has a 45 mile road race coming up, so it made sense to make her mountain bike a little more road-worthy. And what a difference it made. She normally lags behind me by about 50 to 200 yards, just depending on how hard I'm pushing myself. And I usually have to stop and let her catch up. With these new tires, she was actual right at my side. We decided on a 1 mile race that had 3 different "sections" 1st section - 1/4 mile of twisties (All Adrian) 2nd section - 1/2 mile uphill slope (Jaime took the lead but I punched it and reached the top first) 3rd section - ~1/4 or less of flat to slightly downhill (Jaime burned me bad here. I had better top speed, but my tires are so big and gnarly that I couldn't sustain my top speed as long as she could. Jaime won by ~70 yards) End result: Jaime takes the checkered flag, and we both burst our lungs and fried our legs. After all that, we...

My schedule was crazy yesterday. I had a 7:30 Am call, and then a meeting that went from 1:00 to 6:00 PM. The current plan has me doing squats and deadlifts on Monday and Friday morning, and upper body work on Monday and Friday evening. Since work started early and ended late, I tried to cram it all into one 7:00 PM workout. I did 3 sets of front squats, 3 sets of sumo deadlifts, and one set of 20-rep back squat. After that was horizontal pulling for 5 sets, vertical pushing for 4 sets, and vertical pulling for 4 sets. I skipped the horizontal pushing, as the squats and DLs left me below empty!!!!

Great workout. We warmed up with an Indian Run, then did a nice strength endurance workout. After that, we ended with 100 yard sprints. All in all, a great workout.

I went light because of the grotesque deformity; I mean bursitis. Stretch position arm superset : a. Incline dumbbell curls: 20s x 10, 10, 10, 10 b. Incline bench french press: 45 x 10, 10, 10, 10 Mid-range arm superset : a. EZ -bar curl: 65 x 12, 12, 12, 12, 12 b. Dips: BW x 6, 8, 10, 12, 10 The dips REALLY hurt my elbow. Next Wednesday will be better.

WTF ??? Man, I have finally decided I am not going to be derailed by any more injuries or "set-backs". I'm just going to suck it up and do what I can to 1) work around the injury or 2) work through it if I have to. That is a picture of everything the doctor drained from my elbow on Wednesday afternoon. And he only got about 1/2 of the total fluid. I busted up my leg and elbow last month when I fell on an oyster reef in the Gulf of Mexico. Well, looks like my elbow took more of a beating than I thought. It has been hurting all month, and then finally, on 3 JUL, it just started swelling. I hadn't had any other injuries. It just swole to the size of a lemon or lime with fluid right under my elbow skin. Acute bursitis. Most likely some oyster fragments doing damage for the last month. Well, I went to the doctor's office on Wednesday, 6 JUL and had almost all of the fluid drained via syringe, and then the kind doctor refilled it with Cortisone, and then prescribed me ...

I hate jogging. It is slow, it is boring, and it only becomes challenging after about 30 minutes. That's why I prefer to run. In particular, I love 1/2 miles, 1/4 miles, hill sprints, and some 40 t0 100 yard sprints. Let me make some critical distinctions. Jogging is slow, and doesn't pose any demand on your ability generate force or speed. A run is a hard, fast pace that you can't sustain for more than about 5 minutes. A sprint is kicking in the afterburners and makes you feel God-awful after about 20-30 seconds. I avoid jogging because it teaches me to be slow. I lean towards running and sprinting because the metabolic demand is unbelievably high, the positive effects are generated after a brief but intense workout, and they raised metabolic state lasts for hours post-workout. Running and sprinting teach my body to be faster, more explosive. Today was a brief re-introduction to running and sprinting. All I did was: 540 yards (around the block): x 4 fastest time - 2:27 Hil...

I wanted to do deadlifts and squats, but my legs were still too weak from the ride. So instead, I did a basic upper body workout. horizontal pulling: 6 sets vertical pulling: 6 sets vertical pushing: 5 sets horizontal pushing: 4 sets Nothing special, just 2 basic exercises per movement pattern, lower loads than I normally lift.

My wife is trying to kill me. She flat out wants me dead. She is Italian after all. She is getting ready for a 40 mile bike race in August, in Fredricksberg, TX. The weather should be hot, dry, cloudless, and about 105 by then. To prep for the race, we took our mountain bikes to Lake Somerville state park and rode their 13 mile trail. This no crushed-gravel, hike-and-bike, text-while-you-ride wussy trail. It isn't exactly a vertical drop either, but the whole trail is river stone and sandy loam., B oth of those materials excel at sucking up your momentum and bringing you to a sudden halt. We were peddling the entire distance. Now granted, 13 + 13 = 26, but when we finished the 13 mile trail, we road another 2 miles out to get to the lake / picnic area. Byt the time we hit mile 15 and a picnic table, I sprawled out on top and went to sleep. So 2 miles of road to get b ack to the 13 mile trail equals 30 total miles. I am STILL SORE 3 days later.

On 30 JUL, my wife and I did a killer leg workout. We were experimenting with lower loads, and MUCH MUCH higher volumes. Talk about taxing! Set after set of front squats, wide stance Hatfield bar squats, high rep (30-50) leg presses, step ups, and barrier jumps. Afterwards, we went to play tennis. Our match looked like Frankenstein Vs. The Mummy!!! On Friday, 1 JUL, I did an upper body workout. Nothing special. Just coverd all the movement patters with lower loads and higher volume. Horizontal pulling for 6 sets.; vertical pulling for 6 sets; vertical pushing for 5 sets; horizontal pushing for 4 sets. It feels good to feel sore!!!!!!!!

Work and injuries have gotten the best of me this year, but I'm done being a weak-dick excuse maker. I'm done being average. Does work suck any less today than it did yesterday? NO! Do I reach my goals any faster by waiting till the "time is right"? NO! I'm going to get in some solid conditioning work over the holiday weekend, then start lifting with a plan on Monday. The conditioning work will get my heart, lungs, and head back into ultra-high intensity mode. I can't wait to start pushing myself to the verge of passing out again!!!!

I had business travel, so I just did a makeshift workout. 5 circuits of: a. Situps x 20 b. Dumbbell overhead press: 50s x 7 c. Dumbbell lateral raise: 10s x 10

nothing special. I just did about 7 sets of squats, working up to 315 x 5

My wife and I ran sprints for an hour yesterday. We hit the park / track at 3:00 PM. I'm not sure exactly how hot it was, but it was no LESS than 100 degrees Farenheit. We did lots of sprint build-ups to avoid hamstring injuries. I've had two serious pulls in the last 4 years, and I intend to avoid any more at all costs. Since we knew we'd do this for an hour, we really extended the volume of the build ups, and were able to very gradually build up the intensity of effort. Build-ups: High knees: 2 x 40yds High knee + run: 4 x 20yd + 20yd Plo-skips: 2 x 40yds Plyo-skip + run: 4 x 20yd + 20 yd Acceleration sprints: 4 x 20yds Acceleration sprints: 4 x 40yds Sprints: Our sprints were gruelling. We did 100 yard races. After two sprints, I decided that we'd both run much harder if my wife had a 10 yard head start. That forced me to accelerate fast, and sustain my absolute to speed to beat her. I was able to "win" a couple times, but the effort had me on the verge of ...

Work obligations keep cutting well into my evenings. I'm getting angry about it because I find myself spending less time with my wife and kids, and consequently, having less time to train. As frustrated as I was, I thought "Fuck working out. I want greasy pizza and cheap beer!" Thankfully, I convinced myself to train instead, and I'm glad of it. I didn't have a plan, so I just hammered away on squats and dips. Squats fix everything! Heavy squats in particular. Squat: 135 x 10, 15; 185 x 10, 15; 205 x 10; 225 x 10, 5; 245 x 5; 265 x 5; 275 x 5; 285 x 5 I thought about working up to the 300 range, but I didn't want to risk yet another injury in 2011 Dips: BW x 5, 5; +5lb x 5, 5; +10lbs x 5, 5; +15lbs x 5, 5; +20lbs x 5, 5; +25lbs x 5, 5, 5 That's all. Nothing fancy. Just heavy, head-clearing, spirit-raising work.

After two long weeks, I'm back in the saddle. I love playing as hard and wreckless as I do, but I'm going to have to figure out a way to not get hurt, or to develop Wolverine-like regenerative powers. Saturday was my first outing, and I did a TON. 8:00 AM: MuscleUp group workout. After all the running, plyos, and sprint build-ups, we worked in teams of two to finish a total workload. My team came in 2nd. Workload was: 70 pushups, 70 burpees, 70 rind rows. We had originally planned for 100 per movement, but base on the folsk in attendance, we moved it down to 70. 5:00 PM: Swimming I must have done 25 laps. I lost count.

Living an adventurous life is great, but not without risks and, yes, set-backs. My wife and I went to the Gulf of Mexico this weekend and the plan was: fish Matagorda on Friday Check into hotel in East Matagorda Bay on Saturday: - 4-wheeling to get to the goot spots on the island Kayak East Matagorda on Sunday Guided fshing trip on Monday Come home Tuesday Well, the first couple of bullets went as planned, but then came the kayaking. It ws 100 degrees that Sunday, from 10:00 AM till well into the evening. We set out from the dock on Caney Creek at 6:30 AM, and kayaked a slow 10 miles, stopping everywhere we thought the might be fish. We also stopped at 2 islands to walk, have snacks, and fish the banks. It was a gorgeous day, and a real endurance event. We made it back to the dock at 2:00 PM, without any incidents or problems at all. I got out of the kayak and my legs went completely numb. It reminded me of getting dead-legged when I was kick boxing. That's when you get kicked hard...

I trained hard on Thursday, 5/26. I ended my workout with deadlift and worked up to 405 for 5 reps. I was REALLY happy with that. I was all set to start my next round of 5-3-1, but life dictates changes and fluidity. We had the kids for Memorial Day weekend, so we did all kinds of stuff together. Movies, swimming at a lake, bowling and arcade, home-made bannana split night, skate park, and just chillaxin. The home-made bannana splits were the best part BY FAR!!!! So my wife and I are headed to the coast on Friday and won't get back till Tuesday. As a result, I'm doing an abridged 5x5 whole body workout just to keep some degree of forward progress. Tuesday, 5/31: Squat: 135 x 10; 185 x 10, 10; 205 x 10; 225 x 10; 245 x 10 Neutral grip pullup: +25lbs x 4, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2, 3, 2, 2, 2 (25 total) Dips: +25lbs x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 Rope grip row: 110 x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 Overhead press: 135 x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 (HARD after all the dips) Leg press: 450 x 10, 10, 3 I'll do something like tis on Frid...

I did my normal 5-3-1 style workout, which covered horizontal pulling and pushing, with lots of arm work at the end. The dips have been a huge help on my bench press. I killed it today. Bench press: 205 x 5; 215 x 3; 225 x 6!!!! I don't think I've ever done 6 reps with 225 before. After bench I hit alll my back work and arm work, but the most noteworthy portion of my workout was 225 x 6. ROCK ON! I can't wait to start a 2nd 3-wk cycle of 5-3-1 training.

My wife ran us ragged on Saturday morning. Lots of sprint drills, but we broke into 2 teams and did them as a relay. It suprises people when they see just how competitive they are. I hadn't seen any of these people run so fast in the several months to a year that I've known them. After that was strength work using our suspension straps, dumbbells and plyos. 20 minutes of this and everyone was toast.

Another great day at the gym! Deadlift: (warm-up 225x5; 275x3) 295 x 3; 305 x 3; 315 x 3 Hatfield bar squat: 165 x 10, 10, 109; 175 x 10, 10 FBGM: 65 x 10; 75 x 10, 10 Lying leg curl: 87.5 x 12, 10, 10; 100 x 6 Standing calves raise: 95 x 20, 20, 20, 18 Wood chopper: 90 x 12/12, 12/12 Plank 1.5 min

Bench press: 195 x 3; 200 x 3; 205 x 5 Incline dumbbell bench press: 55 x 10, 10, 10 Wide grip pullup ladders: 1-2-3-1-2-3-1-2-3-1-2-1-1-1 V-grip seated row: 105 x 12, 12, 12, 12, 10 Arms superset: a. cross-body hammer curl: 25 x 12/12; 30 x 12/12, 12/12 b. Rope grip tricep extension: 90 x 12; 100 x 12; 110 x 12 Arms superset: a. Spider curl: 20 x 12/12, 12/12, 12/12, 12/12 b. Dips: BW x 7, 9, 8, 10 Arms superset: a. barbell curl: 75 x 8, 8; 65 x 9 b. skull crusher: 75 x 8, 8; 65 x 9

My buddy brock and I came back to ym house after the workout. After a quick rehydration, we headed to the garage and did: (All rounds 3min work / 1min rest) shadow boxing: 2 rnds heavy bag: 2 rnds shadow boxing: 2 rnds heavy bag: 2 rnds shadow boxing: 2 rnds heavy bag: 2 rnds Burn-out drills: 1 min Brock did 2 burn-outs, but I only did one as I have a killer push/pull workout today (17 MAY)

My wife runs boot camp classes, so my buddy and I dropped in for the 6:00 PM class. It was unbelievably hard in it's own right, but doing this after a killer squat workout made it even harder. I. Warm-up: 2 circuits of a. squat x 10 b. sprawl x 10 c. pushup x 10 d. plank x 30 seconds II. Mobility work: a. Lateral drop stance + side slide: 5 each direction b. Windshield wiper + leg raise: 10 each direction + 10 c. down dog + cobra: 5 + 5 II. Strength work: Here is where it got nasty! Density Training: Max reps in 8 mins of a. Tricep overhead extension: Single 35lb x 90 total reps b. Alternating jump lunge: 105 total reps Density Training: Max reps in 12 mins of a. Pushup: 60 total reps b. Hammer cursl: Two 35lbs x 65 total reps c. Squat jumps: 75 total reps III. Sprint build-ups. My legs were DEAD! lateral shuffle + run: 2 x 25yd + 25yd scissors + run: 2 x 25yd + 25yd Plyo skips + HARD run: 3 x 25yd + 25yd Accelerations: 3 x 50 yards Shuttle run relay: 2 x 100 yards! (50 down and 50...

Man, what was I thinking. My buddy Chris Brock and I went to the 6:00 PM boot camp my wife runs. After that, we came to my place and did some fight training. I'm too freaking tired to even get into details. Maybe I'll post tomorrow. I'm gassed, and going to bed. All told, 2 hours of hardcore effort. Not too shabby for the same day as squats. ;-)

Leg press calves: 320 x 20, 20, 20; 270 x 20 Leg press: 360 x 12; 380 x 12; 410 x 12 Squat: 155 x 8; 185 x 8; 205 x 8, 8 Leg extension: 140 x 12, 12, 12; 130 x 12, 12 Ab wheel: 1 x 15 Plank: 1 minutes Lots of stretching. My quads are swollen and numb.

Overhead press: 135 x 5; 140 x 5; 145 x 5 Lateral raise: 15s x 12, 12, 7; 12s x 10 Chin-up ladders: 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4 Seated rope grip row: 60 x 12, 12, 12, 12, 9 Arms superset: a. Hammer curls: 25s x 10/10, 10/10, 10/10 b. Bent grip cable pressdowns: 90 x 10; 110 x 10; 130 x 10 Arms superset: a. EZ bar preacher curl: 55 x 12, 10, 8, 8 b. Dips: BW x 8, 8, 8, 8 Ran out of time and didn't do seated curl or cross-body tricep extensions.

Man, it feels good to lift heavy again, at least with respect to effort. This is going to be a great ride. It took a few sets to get my weights figured out. Deadlift: (warm-up 225 x 5,5): 275 x 5; 285 x 5; 295 x 8 Hatfield bar squat*: 185 x 10; 165 x 10, 10, 10, 10 FBGM: 45 x 10; 65 x 10, 10 Lying leg curl*: 100 x 12, 10, 4 Standing machine calves*: 135 x 20, 20; 115 x 15; 95 x 20 Wood chopper: 80 x 12/12, 12/12 (right/left) Elbow plank: 2 minutes felt EASY!!!! *Hatfield bar, Leg curl, and calves: I started way too heavy considering the volume I was shooting for. I have no problems handling high load, but I seldom train for higher reps and higher volume, so my loads will be much lighter than anticipated.

I suprised myself on bench press. All in all, a good 1st day of quasi 5-3-1. bench press: 185 x 5; 190 x 5; 195 x 7 Incline DB press*: 50s x 10; 65s x 10, 5 wide-grip pullup ladders**: 1-2-3-1-2-3-1-2-3-1-2-3-1-1 V-grip cable row***: 105 x 12, 12, 11, 10, 9 Arm superset: a. cross body hammer curl: 20 x 12/12, 12/12, 12/12 (r/l) b. rope grip tricep pushdown: 70 x 12; 80 x 12; 90 x 12 Arm superset: a. Spider curls****: 15s x 12/12, 12/12, 11/11, 12/12 b. Dips: BW x 6, 6, 7, 8 Nautilus curls*****: 70 x 8; 80 x 8; 90 x 6, 6 *Incline dumbbell bench press: I couldn't find 60s anywhere, so I thought I'd go up to y65s since the 50s were unbelievable light-feeling. Next week I'll stick with 55s. **Wide grip pullup ladders: The gym still has no real place to do pullups or chinups, so I use a square bar on one of the racks. It really tore up my fingers, and my grip kept giving out. Probably a good thing, as regular pullups will be easier the gym gets a real pullup bar that doesn't...

What an unusual night at the gym. A group of 6 or 8 guys were doing leg day, so the squat racks and barbells were in short supply. No big deal for me, as it was horizontal push-pull + arms day. But what was really unusual was that there were about ten or so ladies training under the head Barbie. Now granted, about three or four of these ladies have very competitive physiques, but the rest were simply skinny. Not lean necessarily, just skinny arms and legs. It's cool that they are training as a group, and it is totally cool that they are looking to a vet for (questionable) guidance. What really got under my skin was that the assembled a collection of dumbbells and barbells that seemed to just sit on the sidelines while they skipped, flapped, and posed. They used a couple barbells just as a barier for jumping over. I actually had to do machine curls since I couldn't get a barbell. At one point, one of them walked through the gym in her posing outfit; a tiny velvet thong and bra w...

Day1 of the new 9 week phase. Off to a good start. Leg press calves: 180 x 20; 200 x 20; 230 x 20 Leg press (3 second lowering): 270 x 12; 320 x 12, 12; 360 x 12 Leg extension: 140 x 12, 12, 12, 12, 12 Squat: 135 x 12; 155 x 12; 185 x 12, 8 Ab wheel: 1 set of 18 Plank from elbows: 45 seconds

Over the next 9 weeks, I'm going to focus on size and strength (with work done to prevent fat accumulation). I'll be doing Jim Wendler's 5-3-1 plan for the key lifts (deadlift, squat, bench press, overhead press), but focusing on my weak areas (lower back, biceps, calves). I started off today with a 6:00 AM low-intensity cardio session. Warm up: 2 circuits of a. Squat x 10 b. Sprawl x 10 c. Pushup x 10 d. Plank x 30sec Mobility work: 1. Lateral drop stance + side slide: 5 + 5 2. Inch worm + front splits: 3 + 3 (each side) 3. Hindu pushup: 5 total Walked 2.25 miles The walk was a nice fast pace for a walk, but it was definitely sub-aerobic. It felt great to get in some caloric expenditure so early. I'll be plenty ready for my leg workout later today. Here is the rough framwork of my plan for the next 9 weeks: Monday: Legs (squat emphasis) Tuesday: Horizontal push + pull (lots of arm work) Thursday: Legs (Deadlift emphasis) Friday: Vertical push + pull (lots of arm work) ...

Nothing big. Jaime wanted to go for a run at Lake Pflugerville. I knew I wasn't up for a run, so I took the bike and rode the 3.2 mile loop twice. After that, we did about 20 minutes of stretching in the beach gravel. I feel great and ready for tomorrow's 6:00 AM run.

We started just west of M oPac bridge on Town Lake, in ATX , and kayaked 4.5 miles down stream to Longhorn Dam. We relaxed for about a half hour before starting the 4.5 mile upstream trek. My traps were on fire the whole way after Friday's back work.

I finished up my 2week re-entry phase, and start a serious plan on Monday. Since I had just done complexes on Thursday, I was too tired/sore to do them again on Friday. bike ride to Metroflex: 1.5 miles Strength complex: a. Bent row: 145 x 3 b. Clean: 145 x 3 c. Thruster: 145 x 3 d. Overhead squat: 145 x 2 e. FBGM: 145 x 1 f. Squat 145 x 6 Bat wings: 30s x 6, 6; 35s x 6, 6 Rope grip row: 90 x 10; 60 x 10, 10, 10 (better form at 60#) Prone dumbbell fly: 15s x 8, 8, 8 V-grip seated row: 135 x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 Wide grip pulldown: 110 x 10; 120 x 10, 10; 130 x 10, 7 Spider curls: 20 x 10, 10, 8, 8, 5 (each arm) Superset with dip: 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 Hammer curls: 25 x 10, 10, 9 (each arm) Superset with dip: 5, 6, 7 Cross-body hammer curls: 25 x 8; 20 x 8, 7 (each arm) Superset with Dip: 8, 8, 8 Incline dumbbell curls: 20s x 5, 6, 6, 7 Superset with dip: 2, 5, 7, 8

Well, I'm all but done with my 2 week ramp-up plan, and will be tackling a high volume strength/mass phase next, based on Jim Wendler's 5-3-1 plan. I was supposed to do some fight training on Thursday, but my buddy's plans changed, so I lifted instead. Mobility work: 1. windhield wipers + back bridge: 10 each + 20 seconds 2. Down dog + cobra: 2 x 30sec + 30 sec 3. Inch worm + front splits: 2 + 2 (not sure of time held. maybe 15 sec each) Strength complex: a. Bent row: 135 x 5, 4, 4, 4, 4 b. Clean: 135 x 5, 4, 4, 4, 4 c. Front squat: 135 x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 d. Overhead press: 135 x 0, 4, 4, 4, 4 e. FBGM: 135 x 5, 4, 4, 4, 4 f. Squat: 135 x 5, 8, 8, 8, 8 Weakness circuit: a. Pushup x 16, 16, 18 b. Situp x 16, 16, 18 c. Hammer curl: 30s x 14, 14, 11 Leg extension: 110x10; 120x10; 130x10; 140x10; 150x10; 160x10; 170x10; 140x12; 110x16 Hatfield bar squat: 135 x 10; 185 x 10, 10, 2 DONE! My legs were jello leaving the gym on Thursday and they still are getting to the office Friday mo...

I got my new shot put, ehhh, balls? shot?. Regardless of proper terminology, the 12lb and 16lb steel balls I ordered came in on Wednesday. I took them out to the park and did some playing. I did gobs and gobs of standing throws with just twisting motion. Then I did gobs and gobs of throws with glide technique. After that I did a few with the Olympic style throw, and I sucked at it. Then I started experimenting. I used both balls to do a variety of ballistic / plyometric throws underhand throws behind me chest pass slams diagonal throwing and swinging After that, I played on the chin-up bars, doing a variety of kipping pullups, chin-ups, and swinging drills.

I am sore from Saturday and it showed in my performance today. I also have to admit that I'm getting really bored with turkish get-ups. Turkish get-ups: 40 x 5 each side Mobility work: a. Plank step-out / Hindu pushup: 5 / 5 b. Inch worm / drop splits: 2 / 2 c. Windhsield wiper / back bridge: 10 x 20seconds Strength Complex: a. Bent row: 135 x 3, 3, 3, 3 b. Clean: 135 x 3, 3, 3, 3 c. Front squat: 135 x 3, 3, 3, 3 d. Overhead press: 135 x 3, 3, 3, 3 e. FBGM: 135 x 3, 3, 3, 3 f. Squat: 135 x 6, 6, 6, 6 Weakness circuit*: a. Pushup: BW x 16, 16, 12 b. Situp: BW x 16, 16, 12 c. Hammer curls: 30s x 12, 12, 8 Bat Wing**: 35s x 5, 5, 5, 5 (5sec isometric hold each rep) Wide grip pulldown: 100 x 12; 110 x 12, 12, 10 *Weakness Circuit: I have been wondering what to call this little circuit that I do each time I train. Well, these cover my weaknesses, so weakness circuit makes sense. I want to get better at these 3 movements, and build the muscles that perform these movements, so hitting 3 t...

It feels good to be back in the saddle, and injury free. No cold. No fever. Diet is MUCH better. Now if I can just get my sleep schedule on track, I'll be doing everything 80% right. 80% right. That's kind of sad, but when you are truly honest with yourself, you will see how much you handle as well as you should, and how much you handle half-ass at best. Right now I'm giving about a "B" level effort, when looking at the sum total of my fitness lifestyle. Sleep and diet are the real gaps for me. But on to Saturday's workout: Turkish get-up: 45 x 5, 5 each side Mobility work: a. Sprawl - 3-position leg stretch 10, 10 b. Inchworm - drop splits: 3 each side c. Dumbbell corskcrew - dumbbell swing: 30 x 10+10 each side Strength complex: a. Bent row: 125 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 b. Hang snatch: 125 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 c. Push press: 125 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 d. Squat: 125 x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 e. Deadlift: 125 x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5 Same old thing: a. Pushups x 14, 14, 14 b. Decline twisting situps...

Holy crap! My upper body and core are SORE from the Kali / Escrima drills with a bat. My rear delts have never gotten a beating like this before. I didn't hit the garage gym till 10:00 tonight, which made me feel extra week. Turkish get-ups: 35 x 5, 5 each side Mobility combinations: a. Lateral drop stance - side slide: 2 x 5 each side b. Inch worm - drop splits: 2 x 3 each leg c. Windshield wiper - Bow stretch: 2 x 5 Strength Complex: a. Bent row: 125 x 3; 115 x 3, 3, 3, 3 b. Clean: 125 x 3; 115 x 3, 3, 3, 3 c. Thruster: 125 x 3; 115 x 3, 3, 3, 3 d. FBGM: 125 x 3; 115 x 3, 3, 3, 3 e. SGHP: 125 x 3; 115 x 3, 3, 3, 3 Simple circuit (beach muscles) a. Pushup x 13, 13, 13 b. Decline twisting situp: 13, 13, 13 each side c. Hammer curl: 25s x 13, 13, 13 Leg Superset: a. Squat: 135 x 10, 10, 10, 10 b. Squat jump: 10, 10, 10, 8

It's been a long time since I did a fight training workout. I have to say, that skill deteriorates faster than any other I've ever had. It may also be because I have been at a very high level in the past. I kept all rounds at 2 minutes on, 1 minute rest. Jump rope: 3 rounds Straight punches: 1 round Lead kicks (left-lead stance): 1 round Lead kicks (right lead stance): 1 round Straight punches: 1 round Rear leg / round kicks (left-lead stance): 1 round Rear leg / round kicks (right-lead stance): 1 round Hooks: 2 rounds Full-on heavy bag work: 5 rounds Kali / Escrima drills with wooden baseball bat*: 4 rounds Kali / Escrima drills with a bat: This was a tremendous workout in and of itself, and was more fun than I've had in ages on the heavy bag. If you don't know, the Philippines are the birthplace opf stick fighting. They use light ratan sticks that are lightning fast and rock hard. I don't own any rattan sticks, but my son has a wooden baseball bat, t-ball size, th...

I am so out of shape right now. Strength isn't nearly as important as conditioning at the moment. I just goofed around a bit with complexes, but spent the better part of Monday night creating a structured plan for the next 3 weeks. 1. Turkish get-ups: 2 x 5 each @ 30lbs 2. Walking lunges: 2 x 12 @ 60 lbs 3. 1-arm snatch: 2 x 5 each @ 30lbs 4. Strength / Conditioning Complex: a. Bent row: 115 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 b. Clean: 115 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 c. Front squat: 115 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 d. Overhead press: 115 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 e. Back squat: 115 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 f. Flat back goodmorning: 115 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3 5. 3 movement circuit: a. Pushups: 12, 12, 12 b. Decline twisting situps: 12, 12, 12 c. Hammer curl: 25s x 12, 12, 12 I'm not the leaqst bit sore, as these are chump-change weights, but I was incredibly fatigued during the training session. It felt good to get my heart rate up and pump some blood.

The plan was to ride the 10 mile loop at Town Lake, then kayak first to Tom Miller Dam, then to Longhorn Dam and back. We did the 10 mile loop, but my wife was gassed from the workload we've both been under for the last 3 weeks, so we called it a day after the ride.

Well, it's been a rough month for me, and an abnormally challenging year so far. Between injuries, sickness, and workload, I have trained less in the last 4 months than I normally would in 6 weeks. I finished my last antibiotic today, and workload is finally manageable. I got a promotion at work, which starts 2 MAY, and have been working both the current role and the new role for the last 3 weeks. Also, my wife and I have been burning the midnight oil to launch the boot camp / personal training business. I am ashamed to say that as the boot camps launch (also on 2 MAY), I am approaching the worst shape I have been in in 3 years. It's not rock bottom or anything, just nowhere near the level I was at even 6 months ago. So I am just going to jump in and start right where I left off. Normally after a layoff, I start with a ramp-up period. But FUCK IT! I may have to use lower weights, or cut the distances of my runs down, but I am going to stick the same plan I had been tracking to ...

I came down with a fever on Tuesday. By Wednesday I felt absolutely miserable so I called in a prescription. My sinuses felt like a car tire inflated just before the exploding point. The antibiotics are helping, but there is one very interesting side effect: Users should not engage in strenuous activity as this antibiotic causes susceptibility to tendon ruptures. TENDON RUPTURES?!?!?!?!? As Robin Williams would say, that's not a side-effect. That's an EFFECT! So now I have 2 good reasons to take time off of training: I feel like dog crap I don't want to rupture my connective tissues

I'm still keeping it simple. Nice linear progression so far. Walking lunges: BW x 12ea; 95lb x 8, 6 ea Bulgarian squats: BW x 12ea; 20s x 8ea Squat: 195 x 10, 10, 10, 10, 10 Supine grip pulldown *: 190 x 1-2-3-2; 170 x 1-2-3-4-5-1-2-3-4-5-1-2-3-4-5 Bench press: 200 x 5, 5, 5 Overhead press**: 140 x 5, 5, 5 Dumbbell shrug: 75s x 10, 10, 10, 10, 10 Deadlift : 275 x 16 *Supine grip pulldown : I had been using a bar with a slight camber in it, and it was solid steel/chrome. I switched to a hollow straight bar, which made it much more difficult. Looks like I'll stick 170 for a while longer. At least until the gym gets a real pullup bar **Overhead press: The sewing circle took up residence in the squat rack area today. These ladies are funny, in a less than amusing way. The show up in their underwear to huddle around the squat racks and chat and pose for passersby. That said, I took a barbell to a nice empty spot on the floor and cleaned the bar to starting position. I think I...

And I'm not talking about weights. Workload has been hellacious. I'm not saying I have worse than anyone else out there; just its been an atypical load, so my routine / schedule has been off. I have been staying up too late to wake up at 5:00 AM, and too busy during the day and early evening to train much at all. I did manage to squeeze in a strength session just now. Walking lunges: BW x 10 each; 65lb barbell x 6 each Bulgarian squats: BW x 12 ea; 20s x 10ea Squat: 185 x 10, 10, 10, 10, 10 Supine grip pulldown*: 1-2-3-4-5-1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4 (45 total) Bench press: 195 x 5, 5, 5 Overhead press: 135 x 5, 5, 5 Dumbbell shrug: 70 x 10, 10, 10, 10, 10 Deadlift: 275 x 12 (stick with this weight all next week) Nothing fancy, and not even that heavy, but up from Monday. Given the lack of sleep and crappy diet, I'm not too worried about it. Next week will be better.

My back is pretty solid, so I'm resuming squats. Conditioning I started with an easy barbell complex just to get warmed up and primed. A. Clean: 95 x 5, 5, 5 B. Thruster: 95 x 5, 5, 5 C. FBGM: 95 x 5, 5, 5 D. Bent row: 95 x 5, 5, 5 Strength work: Squat*: 185 x 10, 10, 10, 10, 10 (easy on legs, taxing on back) Bench press: 185 x 5, 5, 5 (easy) Make-shift chin-up ladders**: 1-2-3-1-2-3-4-1-2-3-1-2-3 Overhead press: 135 x 5, 5, 4 Dumbbell shrug: 65s x 10, 10, 10, 10, 10 Deadlift: 225 x 15 (EASY) *Squat: I am going to start adding in some high volume pre-exhaust before squats to add more leg volume, and to ensure the loading on squats is light enough for my lower back. **Make-shift chin-ups: There is still no chin-up bar at my gym. I used a rope grip thrown over the square-frame bar on the cable stacks. After a while, I just grabbed the square bar. Both options taxed my grip more than my lats.