So as I previously wrote about, the contest I was training for got canceled 5 days out, but Metahuman Fitness in San Diego totally stepped up and hosted almost the exact same show on the same date for all of those that had trained hard and still wanted to compete. Getting back into competition after my surgery was a big deal for me, so this was totally awesome of them. There were only small changes.
-Warm up:
Hahaha, you know that’s a silly thing. I cleaned the axle loaded with tires twice (might’ve weighed 100lbs) and that was it. Didn’t warm-up for any other event. Had a breakfast of Captain Crunch and a Rockstar.
-Event 1: Last Man Standing Axle Clean and Press
They got rid of wessel’s rules and just made it that, when you miss, you’re out. You could still skip attempts. I actually liked that balance between the two styles of LMS I’ve seen before. I had missed 255 in training every single time I tried, so that was what I was shooting for.
Well, my theory that training the press first thing in the morning at the end of my training session after being exhausted would make competition easier proved true (also, that’s an awful sentence). I had to “buy in” at 170, skipped 190, hit 210, 230, then completely blew away 250 and even had 270 go up smooth. From there, weight jumps became 30lbs, so I took 300 for a ride. I managed to continental it (double overhand by the way…just saying), but couldn’t press it. Got it off my chest, but zero actual pressing. I now have something to shoot for. This was at least good enough to tie for first.
I’ll say training with the Ironmind axle paid off, because the one at the show felt like a toy. It was hollow and had some crazy sharp knurling on it. We were also using the Ethikon tires, which were baller.
-Event 2: Deadlift medly (405lb barbell, 450lb trap bar, 465lb axle with tires, 260lb per hand farmer’s)
Only change here was a trap bar over a frame, but considering I did zero training for this event specifically, it didn’t matter. Not a whole lot to write. I hate deadlift medleys, but I won this by less than a second.
-Event 3: 525lb Yoke for 80’
This event was more psychological than anything else. I had to prove I could still do it. I still use Clint Darden’s trick of shaking my head as soon as I get under the yoke until I’m ready, and it works. Also pisses off the promoters something fierce, haha. Since I trained with the econo-pitbull yoke, a solid yoke always feel so much better. I couldn’t even feel the weight, and ended up winning the event by 3 seconds with 11 seconds and some change.
-Event 4: 30lb hammer front hold
So this event was supposed to be a Hercules hold, but the promoter of the original event never even got the rig built for it, so there was zero chance to really make it work. I trained my grip like hell for the Hercules hold and didn’t do anything else, so I wasn’t too upset about the change. The grip strength still paid off with the axle work, and honestly, I just can’t fathom many other folks having a higher pain tolerance than me, so I figured I’d still be ok.
Time to beat was 58 seconds, and I got to go last since I was in first, so it was awesome having a goal to shoot for. I documented it on my training log, but for the month leading up to the contest I was basically listening to Nine Inch Nail’s “Ruiner” on loop, just letting the verse “You didn’t hurt me. Nothing can hurt me. You didn’t hurt me. Nothing can stop me now” play over and over again, and I put it on loop in my head during the hold. Part of it was just to have a mantra to carry me through, but it also just gave me a way to focus on something else during the hold.
They ended up taking the hammer away from me at 62 seconds because they said it was dropping too much. I honestly couldn’t tell, and wasn’t trying to game the system any, but either way I won. Woulda liked to see how long I could take it, but a W is a W.
-Event 5: 175lb keg 60’, 200lb keg 50’, 225lb keg 25’, 365lb reverse prowler drag 50’
Only change here was the first keg was 60’ instead of 75’, and the prowler was 50’ instead of 75’. In training, I never went above 182 for the keg, but I made it suck as much as possible. I didn’t know if they meant 365 ON the prowler or 365 including the prowler, but it didn’t really matter. I trained the drag on asphalt, and we were pulling on a slick concrete floor. It meant that the prowler was smooth, but it was hard to get my feet to grip at first.
This was the only event I psyched myself up for, and it kinda showed. I ended up slamming the handles at the end and then immediately apologized for being a douche, haha. Still, everything moved really fast for me, and I had no knee issues. My conditioning held out just fine, which was pretty much my goal going in. I figured, if I could be tougher than everyone else, I’d make it. Ended up winning by 10 seconds.
-Moving forward
I’m definitely back to competing again. I might do a powerlifting meet in Feb, just because a co-worker invited me to, but strongman is still my love.
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