Training Log: Entry 1949


Standing DB shoulder press
20x10lbs
20x15
20x20
20x25
20x30
15x35
15x40
10x45
10x50
10x45
10x40
10x35
10x30
10x25
10x20
10x15
50x10


In between all sets

D ring lat pulldown
10x90lbs

Final set
30x90lbs


Notes: Injury made it difficult to support heavy weight overhead, so just went with a major pump workout. This was like last week, but actually challenging. If my hip/glute was a little healthier, I may have pushed to get 20 for all sets leading up, but it was putting a slight strain on things. Very decent pump in the shoulders and back by the end. Next time, need to go higher reps on the pulldowns.



Axle curl
1x120

Notes: Like last week: no setting the axle down. Great test of fortitude, and gets the arms pretty jazzed up.



Average band pushdown/miniband pull apart circuit
1x20/20
1x15/20
1x10/20



General notes: Woke up at 191.2. Happy to see the scale finally moving back up. Simply eating more, not worse. Also, woke up and was able to walk out of bed with minimal prep. Removed the memory foam mattress topper last night and it made a huge difference. First night in a long time where I woke up in less pain than I went to bed. I am healing this injury with a combination of willpower and hate, but some smart decisions never hurt either. On that topic, ordered a pair of Rehband warm-up pants so I can be an official strongman. I also busted out my old Inzer champion suit last night, and in a pinch I can wear it as hip support should the need arise, but it's a bit too much work. Still going to take things easy on the lower body leading up to the show. I'm not going to get stronger in a week, but I can definitely get more hurt. Happy that this is such a light show, minus the yoke walk.

Am reducing my Naprosyn intake at this point. Sticking with the heating pad as much as possible, and will continue to keep moving as often as I can to get my ROM back.

Training Log: Entry 1948


Swiss bar floor press 275
12 reps

Notes: 2 rep PR from last time. The messed up glute was actually an asset here, as it meant absolutely zero chance of using leg drive. Seems like the program is working.


Shoulder circuit
3 rounds


Close grip swiss bar bench 245
14 reps

Notes: 2 rep PR. Going to increase the weight next time.


D ring lat pulldown 180
16 reps

Notes: Going full on DC mode with this workout, and did the rest pausing and everything. Glute just makes me not want to do chins. Also had to cut out rows because of it.


Band pull aparts
100


Assisted GHRs
1x10



General notes: Woke up at 190.2. Once again, seems I don't have a good ability to estimate the effects of nutritional variance. Actually saw a 1 and an 8 as the first two numbers for a second. Theory is that the lack of hard workouts is diminishing my appetite, and that I've got something of a nutritional guilt complex over eating bigger if I'm not training hard. Need to knock that out for now.


Still trying to figure out what's going on injurywise. Back in pain this morning, wondering if the memory foam mattress is detrimental to recovery. As far as WHAT the injury is, still pretty clueless. I can contract the glute without issue, the pain is constant but can be increased with movement, and I noticed that the worse of it was when I held a weight in the hand of the opposite side and walked. Seems to be something involved with lateral movement and counter balance. May be taking the next 2 weeks off before the contest in terms of heavy lower body work and just stick with rehab. Might be a nice deload and a good way to transition into some different programming.

Non-training day: injury update

Woke up this morning and couldn't walk.  Right glute was in too much pain. I actually had gotten out of bed in the first place because my dog jumped off the bed, and the punk used my immobility as an opportunity to pee on my bathroom door.  After a few minutes of hobbling things started to loosen up slightly and I was able to crotch down to the floor with a lot of theatrics.  Took a long shower, put a lot of heat on it, used some icy hot, rolled it out with a rolling pin, and I had all my basic mobility back.  Still a good deal of pain.


Then, after breakfast, I did something I've never done before: I took naprosyn.  I've always been a ibuprofen guy, and consequently never noticed it working, but after about a half hour I was completely pain free.  I had "awareness" that I was injured, but no pain.  I don't know if this is entirely the naprosyn or if the aggressive rehab is paying off, but as a result I actually took today off from the rehab schedule because I didn't want to run the risk of pushing my injured part without being able to feel any warning pain.  I'll see how I feel tomorrow.


Morning weight was 191.8.  Great showing after a cheat meal dinner.  I expect my weight to be up slightly more tomorrow.  Playing a little looser with the diet in terms of food quantity, but quality has remained the same.  Eating a lot of greek yogurt.  Additionally, looks like the season is over for wild blueberries, so I'm now eating a blackberry/blueberry mixture for my breakfasts.

Training Log: Entry 1947

AM WORKOUT


Reverse hyper 50lbs
3:00


Gigantic DB overhead press/lat pulldown circuit

DB press
10x10
10x20
10x25
10x30
10x35
10x40
10x45
10x50
10x45
10x40
10x35
10x30
10x25
10x20
10x15
10x10
40x10


In between all sets

D-ring lat pulldown 90lbs
1x10


Notes: No rest for the whole thing, just one big circuit.  Took about 20 minutes total.  Got a pretty decent shoulder pump, 200 reps total, but not quite as challenging as I thought it would be.  If I ever do it again, I'll throw on some fat gripz, and maybe hit reps in the 15-20 range.


Axle Poundstone Curls
1x100

Notes: Always wanted to try these.  Good challenge, got a decent pump in the arms.  May throw some weight on it and work these into my OHP day.


Band pull aparts
1x50



PM Workout

Reverse hyper 50
3:00


Notes: Feeling more limber, rehab is working, but still too broken to squat.  Worked up to 320 for a single in warm-ups, but could only walk out 410.  Slowly but surely.



General notes: Woke up at 191.2 this morning.  Cheat meal was moved to dinner instead of lunch due to wife running half marathon in the morning.  Went to Carl's Jr and had a double western bacon cheeseburger, a lettuce wrapped 1/3lb thickburger, and an order of criss cut fries.

Training Log: Entry 1946

Farmer's walks 185 per hand
4x80'

Notes: On the 3rd trip, tried to get steps out of the pick up and ended up re-tweaking my glute/back.  4th trip was slow.  Plan was to hit this in the early AM, take an hour break and then hit up my deadlift training, but wasn't able to get through my warm-ups.


Reverse hyper 25 per side
3:00


Notes: This makes the pain go away, so I'm going to do it everyday.  Need to get more aggressive with the rehab, and considering I have a reverse hyper in my garage, it's stupid that I'm not using it more.  I really dig the "Do something everyday" training idea.



General notes: Woke up at 190.8.  Ate more carbs this morning, so hopefully that'll help.

Training Log: Entry 1945

AM WORKOUT

Axle Push Press from rack
4x238

Axle strict press from rack
7x148


Notes: The 238 was moving real smooth, but on rep 3 I felt a light burning in my right tricep and on the 4th rep it went into full on "on fire" mode. Did the back off strict set just to test it out, and it seems ok. I think it was ultimately just the elbow cuff sitting funny on the tricep and pulling it in a weird direction, but this close to the contest I don't mind playing it safe. I'm thinking I may need to bring some strict pressing back into my rotation anyway.


Dips
BWx10
25x10
50x10
75x10

Dropset
100x7
75x2
50x2
25x3
BWx3

Notes: I had at least an 8th on the 100 set, but the left dip bar buckled on the eccentric when I went for it, and fighting for it seemed like a bad idea. Right clavicle was a little pissed off from this, but I think I can sort that out. Ultimately I'm pretty pleased with this approach, and I think my execution is sound. I might rest a little on the drop set in the future, as this was done with only enough rest to switch out weights which, with a loading pin, goes by real fast. Also like the heavier warm-up set/pre-exhaust approach as a way to build up some volume.


D-ring lat pulldown/kelso shrug combo
4x10/5 of 140
1x20/5 of 90


Notes: Hit the sets of 140 supersetted with the warm-ups on dips, hit the set of 20 after the big drop set. Also did a bunch of band pull aparts today, but hard to log them.



DB curl dropset
10x40lb (Hammercurl)
10x35 (Curl)
10x30 (HC)
10x25 (C)
10x20 (HC)
10x15 (C)
10x10 (HC)


Notes: Was feeling the right tricep again slightly on these, but it seemed to go away with time. Still a big fan of this approach.



General notes: Woke up at 191.6. Seemed to have shed the water I picked up over the weekend. Back is just about 100%. Crazy how beat up I'm getting. Plan to hit some band triceps at lunch and some axle cleans after work today to round out this workout.


PM WORKOUT

Axle clean and press (clean each rep) 188
1x8

Notes: Was originally going to just do cleans, but then I remembered I was stupid and wanted to train wrong. Clavicle was a little tender, but tricep held up fine. Great speed and leg drive, conditioning might be the only x-factor on this, and with trading off with a partner, I think we'll be good.


Average band pushdowns
2x20
2x10

Training Log: Entry 1944

Reverse hyper 5 plates
3x12

Standing ab wheel
2x8
1x7


Notes: Worked up to my last warm-ups on SSB squats and car deadlift simulator, but wasn't able to break the weights when it got to working territory.  The strength was there, but my back tweak is preventing me from getting all systems firing.  Probably a convenient way to deload.  Woke up at 192.6.

Training Log: Entry 1943


Low incline axle 235
13 reps

Notes: My grip is obnoxiously wide on this movement, but it seems to reduce elbow pain. I think there might be some benefit in pressing with a wide grip, considering I never do it otherwise, so we'll keep at it.


Shoulder circuit
3 rounds


Dips (tricep emphasis) 75lbs
17 reps

Notes: Minor progress for last session, but a few mechanical issues got in the way. Still, it's more reps and I pushed myself, so that's what matters.


D-ring lat pulldown 190lbs
17 reps

Notes: Back was still a little tender from deadlifts, didn't want to hang weights while I did chins, so went full DC style today and hit up the pulldown instead. Never really like going too heavy on pulldowns, as I feel like I use a lot more muscles than my lats to accomplish the movement.


Dumbbell rows 105

Sets between sets of everything x 3
1x25



General notes: Woke up at 193.6. 2lb gain from yesterday, notice that I tend to gain this exact amount of weight whenever I have Subway for lunch. I think the sodium is to blame. I don't eat the bread, but I do get the steak. Body is full of minor aches. Planning on restructuring my training week post contest. Going to start deadlifting on Friday mornings when possible (ideally every week, but with work obligations, may be at most 2x a week) and then making my Saturday's a legit events day. This will mean I can cut down on my 2 a days as well, or use that time for other things. Pretty excited about the idea, especially the flexibility it grants me on weekends. It could also mean an opportunity to increase my dietary flexibility, as I'd now have 2 super intense training days a week versus 1.

Training Log: Entry 1942

AM TRAINING

Farmer's walk, 185 per hand
4x80'

Notes: I was flying on these. Practically sprints. Seemed to have a good grasp of "falling forward" while keeping my balance. Trick is going to be if I get to start on this event or have to take the hand off. Next week, I'll try a few runs starting with my hands off the implements to simulate. Feeling real confident for this contest: I think the weight loss is helping my speed.

Woke up at 191.6. Neck is about 98%, shoulder about 90%. Healing up, and I'd say it looks like I've put on half a pound this week in terms of consistent weigh ins, which is right on schedule.


PM Training

Minor back tweak on the second rep of deads today. Shut it down.   Contemplating chasing my next cycle of deads with the axle for a slight break in the same movement/implement.



This is what happens when I get pissed off at my back (caution: 9 minutes of squatting)

https://youtu.be/A6c2564rDIw

Boiled down to

Squats
3x460
4x410
5x370
6x320
7x280
8x230
9x190
10x140


Notes: Back was a little tender, but as long as I braced my core hard, it was fine.  Depth was pretty solid on these.  Great workout in general, made up for lackluster deadlift.



Reverse hyper 25 per side
3 minutes


Notes: I'm thinking about making this a regular Saturday thing and then always going heavy on my squat workout.  I liked when I used to do reverse hypers twice a week.



Cheat meal today was Whiskey river BBQ burger with extra patty and side of sweet potato fries at Red Robin.  Chased it with a quest bar.  It took 25 minutes from the time I finished my drink to get a refill (I set my stopwatch), let alone to speak of how long it took to actually get food.  Managed to still eat through the frustration, because what can I say, I'm a champion.

Training Log: Entry 1941


Stone trainer run (200lbs)
4x80'

Notes: Getting much better at the transition from the floor to the first steps of the run. This time it was seamless. The picks off the floor themselves were also much better, even with a trainer versus an actual stone. Think this is the first time in my life I actually moved a stone correctly, because my lats are on fire. Dorked up my right ankle slightly on the first run, but it felt fine after walking it off.

Woke up at 191.6 this morning. Neck is almost 100%. Secondary effect is that my right shoulder is a little pissed off from moving incorrectly due to compensating for the pain in my neck, so that's the next thing that needs healing.

Training Log: Entry 1940

Yoke 750lbs
1x32'

https://youtu.be/z18csDT8qLo


Notes: Pinched nerve in my neck made it so that the pick up was hell, but once I got that I could move.  This is my last heavy yoke workout before the contest, but huge confidence booster.  The temptation to take it to 800lbs for the contest is great, but I think this is the safe move.  It's definitely not pretty or quick, but zero drops is awesome.

Training Log: Entry 1939


Axle clean and press (clean once) 218
1x8

Axle clean and press (clean each rep) 188
1x6


Notes: Dorked up the first attempt at 218 and dropped the axle right on my quad. Came back to hit the set of 8 later, which I'm going to consider a "bad day PR" due to the circumstances. The weight has been reduced, and now I need to make an effort to get 218 to some high reps. The 188 wasn't to death, just fatigue. Feeling good for the contest, even with an Ironmind axle, I don't think I'm going to have difficulties cleaning 185.


Incline DB Press 105
(5) 1x8
(4) 1x7
(3) 1x8
(2) 1x8
(1) 1x7


Superset w/

D ring lat pulldown/kelso shrug 140
5x10/5


Notes: Think it's time to start swapping the DB presses. Making snail like progress, my overhead isn't really going up, and I've noticed that all the time in the incline range seems to be reducing my flat bench strength. Going to alternate this movement with weighted dips. Should also help reduce my training time, because this day keeps running too long.


DB Hammer curl/curl stripset
10x35lbs (Hammer)
10x30 (Curl)
10x25 (H)
10x20 (C)
10x15 (H)
10x10 (C)


Notes: Ran out of time, will hit some pushdowns on my lunch break. On that note, managed 3 minutes of reverse hyper yesterday at 25lbs per side. Made it 1.5 minutes before needing a slight rest.


General notes: Woke up at 191.6. Pinched a nerve/pulled a muscle in my neck. Serves me right for skipping the neck harness. Friday morning is going to get compromised again, so thinking about hitting the yoke tomorrow after work, and then stone carry on Friday with speed farmers on Saturday morning. Training 6 days a week at this point.

Training Log: Entry 1938


(11) Chain Suspended Safety Squat Bar Squats
3x425+chains
6x365+chains

Notes: Just sort've going through the motions. Hamstrings were really torqued yesterday, so I'm pretty happy that I was even able to get through this. Feeder workouts pay off. Thinking my plan to start swapping movements next cycle is going to work well.


GHR sit up w/25lbs
1x8
2x7

Notes: Focusing on keeping abs contracted the entire time. Noticed that I was more bracing my hips on the eccentric before.


Car deadlift simulator 8 plates
1x15


Notes: Another PR on this movement. Think next week I'm going to throw on 9 plates, as these high reps are breaking me down.



General notes: Woke up at 192.2. Think I'll allow myself to get as high as 193.5 while training for this contest, but we'll see. Biggest change is introducing greek yogurt w/protein powder as an early morning meal, which should be a positive. Later tonight, plan to finish up my workout with 3 minutes of reverse hyper and some neck harness work. I'm in pain, but not beat up, if that makes sense.

Training Log: Entry 1937


DB bench 105
21 reps

Notes: Using the Ironmind bench. It's unforgiving, but completely flat. Got 15, 3 and 3, and felt a pretty decent pump in the chest when it was all said and done.


Shoulder circuit
3 rounds


(3) Chain suspended bench lockouts 225+minishort bands
15 reps

Notes: Suspended the bar to the point that elbows were right at 90 degrees. Pressed every rep dead stop off the pins. This gets brutal. The first few reps aren't terrible, but as soon as your speed slows down it's a vicious grind. The bands sneak up on your, and breaking the weight off the chains is really about overcoming them. Was torn between close grip and competition grip, but comp grip seemed more comfortable.



Weighted chins 55lbs
24 reps


DB rows 105
Lots of sets of 3
1x25


General notes: Woke up at 192.2. Went a little crazier than normal nutritionally this weekend due to helping a friend move yesterday. I chose not to use a dolly and carried most objects by myself. PR was 2 marble top solid wood nightstands that I moved one after the other. They were moving literally across the street, so I was getting them out of one bedroom, snaking them through the hallway, walking across the street, then getting them into another bedroom. Feeling pretty fried now, big shock.

Going to be reducing my volume on daily training leading up to the comp. Thinking just 1-3 sets of 20 for chins and maybe capping dips at the 50 rep point. Probably still try to hammer pull aparts as much as I can.

Training Log: Entry 1936

AM training


Farmer's walks, 185 per hand
4x80'

Notes: These were definitely speed farmers, which is great considering it's competition weight. Biggest focus is on moving off the pick up. Making sure that I'm moving up and forward, rather than just straight up. From there, foot speed: really have to be basically "falling forward" the entire time. Will have to work out with my partner if I'm going first or last in the leg.

Woke up at 190.8. I think this is a decent weight/bodyfat% to maintain for now. I'm willing to let the weight climb a few pounds while training for this comp, but nothing drastic.



PM Training

(3) Mat Pulls 600+chains
13 reps

Notes: 7 on the first, then 3, then 3. Gave it my all, nothing left for dead stops. Good workout. We've had a heatwave here, and it was so hot in my garage that the sweat on my shins was actually making the bar move up and down more smoothly. I suddenly understand the appeal of baby powder. If I can keep 7 all the way to the floor, I'll be happy.


Rolling thunder 135
1x22 seconds
1x12 seconds


Squats strip set
2x460
3x410
4x370
5x320
6x280
7x230
8x190
9x140
10x100


Notes: Only rested as long as it took to switch out plates. Started with 4 plates and a quarter, and would just keep taking the quarter off or a plate off as appropriate. Great set, really tried to hammer depth, felt my quads blowing up pretty decent. Definitely need to hit a feeder workout later.


General Notes: Cheat meal today was 1 carne asada quesadilla, half of a chicken quesadilla, and a quest bar. They were huge quesadillas, and though I could've finished the second one, I knew I was going beyond cheating in doing so. I have trained everyday this week and am helping a friend move tomorrow. Been one helluva week.

Training Log: Entry 1935


EARLY AM TRAINING

Bumper stack run (200lbs)
4x80'

Notes: Included a picture of the set-up.  Stacked some bumpers and metal plates with a loading pin to simulate a stone.  First few steps are slow to start, and then I pick up speed.  Gotta work on that transition.  Breathing with the weight on the chest is definitely an acquired skill.


LATER AM TRAINING

2.6 mile run

20:56


Notes: Expected to be faster with the weight loss, but still better than my last time.  Maybe I'll just blame it on the earlier training.  About a 1 hour break between activities.

Training Log: Entry 1934

Yoke
120lbs x 30'
300lbs x 30'
500lbs x 30'
590lbs x 30'
700lbs x 30'
750lbs x 8'


NG chins
1 set


Notes: Woke up at 190.8.  Work scheduled our 2.6 mile run for tomorrow, so I had to squeeze in my yoke workout tonight.  Wanted to see how heavy I could go for 30', since it's 60' with a partner.  Goal was 700lbs, which I managed with zero set downs.  It was wobbly, and combined with a wobbly yoke made it really crazy, but just means it'll be even smoother on a steady yoke.

The 8' for the 750 includes the 1' I fell backwards with it.  If my life depended on it, I could've taken it the distance, but my upper back was folding all over the place and being so close to the contest, I didn't want to risk the injury.

BODYFAT UPDATE

BOOM!

I'm going to be annoying and spam this a bunch I'm sure, but I'm pretty psyched about this. 8.4% bodyfat at 5'9 and 190lbs. As a former fat kid (and always a fat kid at heart), that's pretty crazy, and one great final push before I turn 30.

This puts me at a Fat Free Mass Index of 25.9 apparently. That's honestly something a little more disheartening but something I've been suspecting as well. I'm not really sure how much bigger I can reasonably expect to get, but at least I can know that all the years of training have meant something (I mean, I knew that from performance too, but give me this).


Now...I need to make sure I don't completely relapse and balloon up to 220lbs, haha.

Training Log: Entry 1933

Axle clean and press (clean each rep) 188lbs
1x8
1x6

Axle clean and press (clean once) 188lbs
1x6

Notes: Got a contest in a month with this event/weight, so wanted to see where I stood.  I really should learn how to continental, but this was all just straight up power cleans.  Contest is going to be with an Ironmind axle, so that's something I'll need to factor.  Thinking about breaking out my old galvanized steel pipe just to get used to an unfinished smooth axle.


None of these sets were to death.  I did as many reps as I could in one shot, then rested as long as I needed to hit one more rep.  The contest is a partner contest, where we alternate each rep, so I'll actually get to rest a fair amount in between reps comparatively.  The final set was more a backoff, nothing major, just grooving my leg drive.



Incline DB bench 105
(5)1x8
(4)1x4
(3)1x8
(2)1x8
(1)1x7


superset w/

D ring lat pulldown/kelso shrug combo 140
5x10/5


Notes: Right elbow gave out on the second set of DB benches, and was a little pissed off through out the rest of the exercises.  Still a little tender, probably up the motrin and glucosamine.  May have to start culling the dips with the contest coming up.  Lat pulldowns are heavier, making kelso's a little more difficult.  May play around with this.



Curl dropset
10x30lbs (Hammercurl)
10x25lbs (curl)
10x20lbs (HC)
10x15lbs (c)
10x10lbs (HC)


Notes: Time crunch again, but this was a blast.  Awesome pump, big fan of the powerblocks.


Miniband pushdowns
1x100

Notes: Since the elbow is pissed off, thought this would be a better choice.  Might actually consider alternating each day between dips and pushdowns.



General notes: Woke up at 191.2.  With a contest on the horizon, thinking about starting to up my protein intake slightly.  Was planning after my bodyweight measurement to do a month of a surplus-ish and then back to the fat loss, so this might actually time out very well.



----


As for the contest I keep speaking of, here are the events for my weight class.  It's a light show, which should suit me well with my current bodyweight.



1. Alternating Axle Clean and Press. Partners will attempt to clean and press an axle for as many reps as possible. Each rep will start from the ground. The bar can be cleaned directly to the shoulder or brought to the sternum in a continental style. Bar may not rest on the belt, although incidental contact may be allowed if it’s clear that the contact isn’t being used to gain an advantage. 60 second time limit. Partners must alternate reps. Knee sleeves, one belt, elbow sleeves, chalk and wrist wraps are the only protective equipment allowed unless otherwise approved by the promoter. The men’s classes will use an Ironmind axle and the women’s classes will use a Rogue axle.

Men’s LW 185



2. Farmers Walk. Partner 1 will carry two farmers implements for 25 meters as quickly as possible. Once the weight is completely across the line, Partner 2 will pick them up and head back towards the finish line. The winner of the event is the team who crosses the finish line fastest. Unlimited drops are allowed. 60 second time limit. If the athletes don’t complete the course in the time limit, their score will be their distance. Chalk is the only grip aid allowed.

Men’s LW 185/hand



3. Yoke Walk For Max Weight. Partners will choose one weight and get one attempt to carry this weight for 30ft, drop the weight, turn around, pick it up, and carry it back. Partners may choose to “tag out” at any given time between themselves as many times as they like during the 90 second time limit. Unlimited drops. So pick the most weight you and your partner can carry for a combined 60ft and let’s do this. Yoke weights will be kept top secret and will be loaded in a rising bar format from lightest to heaviest. You won’t know what your other competitors are doing until they’re doing it.

The way the event will be scored is by ranking teams who finish the course with the heaviest weight. If two teams choose to carry 600lbs, the faster team will win. In the event that a team does not complete the 60ft in the time limit, they will be scored below all the teams who completed the course, regardless of weight. So, if a team chooses 800lbs and they can’t finish, they’ll be scored below teams that finished with 400lbs. Choose weights wisely! Only the front of the yoke must cross the line. Both partners must carry the yoke; one can’t have all the fun. For the Couples Division, one team member must carry the yoke the entire way and then the other team member carries it back - no tag outs.



4. Front Carry. Partner 1 will carry an odd object for 25m, then Partner 2 will carry it back across the finish line in the fastest time possible. Drops are allowed. Object can be passed between partners; it doesn’t have to be set down. 90 second time limit.


Men’s LW 200lb stone



5. Deadlift for Reps. Partners will attempt to deadlift a barbell, one at a time, as many times as possible in 90 second. Partners may tag out at any time between themselves. Belt, chalk and straps are the only lifting aids allowed. Conventional stance only. Weight must be locked out and held until the judge’s down command before being lowered to the ground. Bar cannot be dropped.


Men’s LW – 315lb

Training Log: Entry 1932


(12) Chain Suspended SSB Squats
4x425+chains
6x355+chains

Notes: Paul Carter's article on fat loss really resonated with me, and today's heavy set showed some evidence of what was being written. I felt plenty strong on the movement, and then after rep 4 it was like someone shut off the power. I think if I were carbed up I'd be seeing a few more reps, but my base strength is doing well.

Been thinking about this for a bit now, and I think my plan moving forward after this cycle is to keep the ROM progression going by alternate each week between SSB and Buffalo bar. I'm pretty much just maintaining right now, and I think it's because I'm at a weird place weight wise with the SSB. Any lighter and I don't get the desired training effect, any heavier and I don't get the volume I want, and at my current weight I'm just spinning my wheels. I should be able to go much heavier with the buffalo bar, which will be good for my core and legs, while the SSB will keep hammering my upper back. In theory, the two should compliment each other. This will mean training in a 16 week cycle versus 8, with deloads on the 8th week.


Reverse hyper 5 plates
3x11

superset w/

Standing ab wheel
3x8


Car deadlift simulator 8 plates per side
1x14

Notes: So pleased with this, especially considering I'm just feeling beat down these days. Took a lot out of me, but got it done. Don't know if I'm going to increase the weight next time or try for 16, eventually topping out at 20.



Neck harness 45lbs
1x50


General notes: Woke up at 191.6. Weight is maintaining well. I feel absolutely fried. My bodyweight work is falling apart, but I think it's probably time to deprioritize it a bit. Just going to go for effort instead of reps for a week or 2 and see what happens. Bodyfat gets measured tomorrow. May be able to compete in October due to a schedule change, I'll see if I can work it. It'd be a light show, which is probably for the best.

Training Log: Entry 1931

Weighted chins 55lbs
23 reps

Notes: Felt light and easy today. Just sticking with the plan of gradual progression, but I had some more in me.


Swiss bar floor press 275
10 reps

Notes: Hate unracking the swiss bar, wish they built it with rotating sleeves. Elbows pretty pissed off. Still, this was a heavier effort than last week, coming back into full form with this routine. Paused every rep at the bottom.


Shoulder circuit
3 rounds


Close grip swiss bar bench 245
12 reps

Notes: This felt a little easier on the elbows. It's "tricep" work, but it hammered the chest pretty decent, which was my intention.


DB rows
Sets in between everything x 3
1x28


General notes: Woke up at 191.4. Didn't have a huge rebound from my cheat meal, which is nice. Feeling a little beat up from all the non-lifting work I've been doing (cleaning garage, modifying lat pulldown, went to the beach yesterday and ran around a bunch). Not logging all the warm-ups I'm performing for my main work, but it's how I'm trying to get in a little more volume.

Non training log entry:

Did a really cool DIY project on my lat pulldown to make it more viable and wanted to share.

Previous issues with lat pulldown:

-Too low.  Even at only 5'9, with my long arms, I wasn't getting a decent stretch of my lats at the top of the rep.  I'd have to start each lat pulldown with a bent arm.

-No leg catch.  This was one of those "all in one" type of machines, so it was meant for pulldowns and rows, along with curls and other stuff.  This meant that I couldn't really use any heavy weight for pulldowns.

Solutions to problems:

Put the lat pulldown up on cement blocks.  Doing this easily solved the "too low" problem, as now I could get a good stretch.  This had an added bonus of allowing me to use the "foot plates" that were intended as a place to put my feet for rows as a leg catch.

However, as you can tell in the above photo, there was now a hitch running into a sensitive part of my anatomy.  That was originally designed to hook a bench into the machine, but I uninstalled the bench previously and was instead sitting on my Ironmind 5 star bench.  This wasn't an issue before when the pulldown was low, but now that it was elevated, it needed fixing.  Enter: the hacksaw.

Yes, I used a hacksaw.  I am cheap and crazy.  

And dedicated.

Now that this was sawned off, I wanted to really go the full 9 with this thing.  I could use the feet plates as is, but I wanted to make this a bad ass lat pulldown, so I decided to pad the feet using a pool noodle.  Pretty much my go to for cheap padding.

And then, of course, gorilla tape.

Just like with my log, wanted to seal the foam from the elements/sweat/wear and tear.  

Above you can see the finished product.  Up on blocks, sawn off, and feet plates padded/taped.  You'll also note that there are some 25lb plates weighing the apparatus down, keeping it on the blocks and preventing it from moving around in use.

And in use.  You can see my legs trapped under the padded feet plates.  

Here's to more fun in the future.

Training Log: Entry 1930

(4) Mat Pulls 600+chains
13 reps total

(4) 495+chains
1x3 deadstop


Notes: Wasn't really firing on all cylinders today. Left 2 reps on the 600lb set. Could've had them if I fought for it, but a voice in my head told me it was a bad idea. Managed this with 3 pick ups. 7,3,3. Still, progress from last week in terms of reps. If I can hold 7 strong, I'll be happy.


Rolling thunder 90lbs
80 seconds

Notes: Figured I might as well break this thing out since I got it. It's a nice change of pace for grip training. Probably keep it in the rotation. Will go heavier next time, just wanted to see what it was like.


Squats 410
1x8
1x4
1x2
1x1

stripset 320
1x8


Notes: 15 breaths between all sets, to include strip set. Intended to chase this further, but I was done at this.


General notes: Woke up at 190.8. I'm reaching my limit for sure, every session is a fight, I'm in zombie mode, and all I can think about is food. After I get my bodyfat measured, I'm going to have to soul search a bit to see how I want to handle my future nutrition. I do know that, if I choose to put on weight, I'm not going to go batshit crazy and will instead take it gradual, applying the lessons I learned from this experience.

Cheat meal today was 2 BBQ beef ribs and the biggest baked potato I have ever seen in my life with full on butter, sour cream and chives. Also finished off my wife's cobb salad on top of that. Wanted a "cleaner" cheat, getting burnt out eating junk.

Training Log: Entry 1929

Finished the day with

Pull ups
1x30

Dips
1x68

Band pull aparts
1x136


Notes: Haven't been logging it, but everyday I've been hitting 100 chin ups in some variety, a max set of dips, and double the amount of reps for band pull aparts.  This is what this week finished out at.

And now a photo that, unlike those last ones, is sure to appeal to my female viewers: a clean garage.  Had the day off work and decided to do some re-organizing.  Had a lot of wasted space in the old set-up and my wife's car door kept hitting the reverse hyper since it was in the middle of the floor.  If I could get some small enough hitch pins I could actually break down the yoke and store it in a corner to take up even less space, but I'm still really pleased with the footprint left behind now.  Room for more toys.

As a result of spending the afternoon moving all this equipment around, my back is pretty fried, so I called the pull ups at one set.

Training Log: Entry 1928

And now a very special update.

Early AM training

Death medley
400' total

Notes: Just going to explain this.

-Start with a 100lb keg and 205lb sandbag at starting line.
-Run keg 50'
-Run back to sandbag, clean from floor 3 times
-Run back to keg
-Run keg back to start, clean and press keg twice
-Run keg 50'
-Run back to sandbag, clean from floor once
-Run back to keg
-Run keg back to start
-Dry heave


Only took one of those to fry me out. Did an abbreviated one afterwards, where I ran the keg, ran back to sandbag, cleaned it once, ran back to keg, ran keg back to start. After that, I was done.


LATER AM TRAINING

Yoke 500lbs
2x100' (50' with turn)
2x50'


Notes: Hit this about 3.5 hours later. Don't think it was enough time to rest. Only thing moving fast was my heart. Might still keep this 2 a day events thing going, but think I gotta start eating more.



General notes: Woke up at 191.0, so clearly my prediction on weight was wrong. Feeling good, although my right lat is a little pissed off. Had some time to shoot some photos. I don't have any magical lights in my house, so shadows are non-existant and my camera is blurry, so these are outstanding baseline shots with no trick photography. That said, soon as I can find some magic lights, I'm going to myspace angle the crap out of myself.


Getting bodyfat% measured on Wed, so I can attach a number to the image, and then after that I'm thinking of changing things up nutritionally now that I'll have some numbers to play with.

Training Log: Entry 1927


Axle Clean and Press (clean once)
7x223
4x223
6x148 (strict)

Notes: Regressed slightly. Blame it on being sick. Couldn't keep my breath at the top. Leg drive was better than last week, much less locking out required. Might drop the weight 5lbs next time around, as I'm not really hitting the reps I'd like for a "rep day".


DB incline press 105
(5)1x7
(4)1x8
(3)1x7
(2)1x7
(1)1x7


superset w/

D-ring lat pulldown/kelso shrug combo 90lbs
5x10/10


Notes: Some progress on the DB press from last week at least. Still liking this approach. Was able to keep a greater degree of incline on the first set by jacking the seat up one more notch.


DB curl dropset
1x25x25lbs hammer curl
1x15x20lbs curl
1x10x15lbs hammer curl
1x10x10lbs curl


Notes: Short on time, so did this with the power blocks. Amazing pump, might keep this rotating with the axle.


General Notes: Woke up at 193.6. Think weight is screwy from being sick, not going to get too spun up about it. Starting to think diet is affecting my training too significantly, not really seeing the progress I'd like. Getting my bodyfat measured next week, and after that I may start slowly introducing more protein back into my diet to see if I can put on some quality weight and get my strength moving up again. On the mend with my cold, still dealing with some symptoms, but not needing as much medication.

Training Log: Entry 1926



(13) Chain Suspended SSB Squats
4x425+chains
6x365+chains


Notes: Had some more in me for that first set, but misgroved the concentric on the 5th rep and dumped the bar forward.  Cold is sapping my cardio a touch, think I'll see some more reps when I'm healthy.  Took the belt in a notch and it worked better.  It's not sitting where I like on my hips, but it's much tighter on my core, giving me a stronger brace.



GHR sit ups w/25lbs
3x8



Car deadlift simulator 8 plates
1x12


Notes: Very pleased.  2 rep PR, and considering last week I could only hit 2 reps, this is a great comeback.  Might be a sign it's time to swap movements, or maybe it's because I finally got the belt tight enough.  If my life had depended on it, I could've gotten a few more reps, but this took a lot out of me, so now back off set.



Reverse hyper 50lbs
3 minutes

Notes: Decided to sack up and try again.  Still can't get the full 3 minutes without rest pausing, but this was better than last time.  Think I'll go with the alternating approach, as going heavy definitely seems to improve my static strength, but I think this timed work will carry over into some endurance and pain tolerance.  X-factor honestly seems to be being able to hold myself up on the bench for this long.  Upper body fatiguing quite a bit.





General notes: Work up at 192.4.  Been drinking tons of fluids due to a scratchy throat, but nothing caloric.