Becoming an Athlete

I've been rehabbing my torn bicep for a solid 3 week now.   I still can't do any pullups or heavy rows, but my strength in the left bicep is slowly returning as the tear continues to heal. I trained for a solid 2 hours on Sunday and noticed a small divot at the base of my bicep right where it meets the tendon. The good news is the swelling is finally down enough, and my ability to engage my bicep (flex) is finally high enough that I can see the tear. It looks a little weird, but oh well.  I'll eventually be stronger than I was before the tear.  I just have to keep adding reps, then slowly adding weight.   Nothing magical about the process. But that brings me to my point for today.  I've done some stupid shit in my life and have a litany of injuries that my friends can't wrap their heads around.  I'm not a pro athlete, and I'd argue I'm not much of a real athlete in general.  I'm closing in on 41 and I can tell you, I don't have a stash of tro...

I hurt my bicep well more than I had first hoped for, but about as much as I expected.  I was at the gym full force last week (9/26-30), but my full force in my left bicep is pathetic.  The elbow injury is impeding my pressing strength some, but it has damn near eliminated any pulling strength. Example - I'm doing curls with 15 pound dumbbells. I can't do a single chinup. I can only do Oly lifts with ridiculously light weight (95 and under) without hurting my arm. No worries.  I'm training smart, checking my ego at the door, and making progress towards full recovery.

I had three silly injuries in a row and ended up taking a week off.  I get back to it on Monday 9/19.  I'll be starting with lighter weights than I can handle and going for max reps on the final set. Same schedule / framework as before, but just lightening up a little to ensure I recover fully before taxing myself to new levels of effort/strength.

I miss looking like a lifter. I'm leaner, faster, more agile, and have great stamina, but my maximal strength is down and my size is down considerably. The thing is, training for size requires a ton of volume and intensity.  I have no issue with intensity, but I need to leave plenty of energy in reserve for boxing, so my training volume is not where it should be for maximal size gains. Right now I'm training for a boxing match, so my training is geared to accomplish these goals: Drop bodyfat Improve stamina Maintain strength Here's how I've structured my training week. Monday AM: whole body strength - Week1: 10,10,10+;  Week2: 8,8,8+;  Week3: 6,6,6+ - accessory work is using Paul Carter's 350 method for upper body, 3 x 20 for lower - Treadmill intervals:  3 rounds of 3min run / 1min walk    - increase speed each round Monday PM: - Boxing gym Tuesday AM: Boxing specific MetCon - ab work - Olympic lifts: Week1: 5x8; Wee...

Well folks, I've finally reached a point where typical sets of anything from 5 to 20 reps just isn't giving me the sort of physique response I'm after.  I am getting stronger every week - no doubts there, but my training buddy and I are finally at a stage of development that requires higher intensity and more time under tension. I love my meat and potatoes workouts. I love stripping it down to big basics and grinding out more reps at a given weight, then adding a little more weight the next session. The problem is, I've reached a point where that method is more taxing on my connective tissue than my muscle tissue.  Here's what we did today for Shoulders and Arms: Shoulder super set: a. Seated overhead press: 5 sets, pyramiding up in weight. 6th set was push presses with a 5 second negative b. Isolation work (either lateral raise, prone raise, or front raise after every set of presses) Biceps superset: a. Incline dumbbell curl: 3 x 8 b. Alternating hammer curl...

I've been back at the boxing gym for two weeks, and I'm loving it as much as when I was competing.  Having cut down to a rock solid 197 makes a world of difference.  My stamina is about as good as it was when I competed at 187. Here is how Tuesday's workout went: Jump rope x 6 rounds (3min /30sec) MetCon: 3 rounds of a. tire flip x 6 b. tire jump (like box jump) x 10 c. sledgehammer smash x 20 (10 per side) Ab circuit 5 rounds of a. weight overhead situp x 10 b. trashcans x 10 c. leg raises x 10 Mitts:  I was holding for others, not working mitts.  Maybe 6 - 8 rounds Heavy bag:  Now for the good stuff!!!!  3 rounds My ideal boxing schedule will look like this: - Stamina Day: run: 2 miles jump rope: 3 rounds Bodyweight circuit: 4 rounds (details could vary) a. pushup x 25 b. Russian twist x 20 c. Alternating jump lunges x 20 d. Handstand pushups x 5 - 10 Shadowboxing or partner drills:  3 rounds Mitts:  4 rounds Heavy bag: 3...

I'm down to 199.4 after yo-yo'ing a bit with camping and hanging out with my kids.  I ate plenty of chips, granola bars, cookies, fruits, and all manner of carbs you could imagine.  After 2 weeks of that I was up to 207.  As of this morning, I'm 199.4 and feel amazing. I've been steadily increasing my cardio output in an effort to feel more like an athlete and less like a mannequin. Saturday: 1/4 mile laps 2 x laps walking 6 x sprinting the straights and walking the curves Sunday: mixing it up 1/4 mile run 80# KB swing x 10 1/4 mile run 20 pushups repeated for 4 circuits (8 laps total) Monday AM: Old school lifting, worked up to some heavy ass weight Monday PM: Simple track circuit 1/4 mile run 25 pushups 80# KB swings x 10 repeat for 4 circuits (4 total laps) Tuesday AM: MetCon!!!!! Complete for time: clean & jerk: 155 x 15 pullups: bodyweight x 20 dips: bodyweight x 25 treadmill: 1 mile not sure my total time, but I ...