* Had to get a 12 hour fasted blood lipids profile this morning, so I slept in and just hit a bare basics. I felt like week 1 of the program worked out best for that. I have Tang Soo Do tonight, and might get in some burpee chins or daily work or something, but otherwise, I got SOMETHING in. I also packed a TON of food for after the blood draw, and now that it’s done I am tearing through it.
PM WORKOUT (1600)
Got in 49 burpee chins in 5 minutes. 50 in 5:07. Good chunk of daily work, now waiting on Tang Soo Do. Still building the airplane as I fly with the program; thinking I will chew through bench mainwork THEN hit up prowler and see how much time I have remaining to figure out upper body assistance
Tuesday, August 30, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2525
AM WORKOUT (0327 natural wake up)
**5/3/1 FOR HARDGAINERS** Week 1, Workout 2
**MAINWORK**
Axle Clean and Strict Press away
5xAxle
5x136
5x151
5x171 (out of the rack…killed my spirit to do so, but I can FINALLY clean again, and I didn’t want to push it)
50 total band pull aparts accomplished between sets
**SUPPLEMENTAL/ASSISTANCE**
10 rounds of
* 5x136 Axle clean each rep and strict press * 10 dips * 5 chins
Accomplished in 19:30
PROWLER
* 1 round of low handles w/50lbs loaded * 1 round of high handles w/90lbs loaded * 1 round of backwards drag w/140lbs loaded
Time: 19:30
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
Poundstone Curls 220xAxle
Notes:
* Today was a good “proof of concept” day. The biggest limiting factor of me running Hardgainers was finding a spot to run the prowler that allowed for my “o’dark stupid” workouts. This MOSTLY worked. I timed it, and it’s a 3 minute drive to the spot I run to, so honestly about a “rest time interval” to get there, which is clutch. It’s MOSTLY quiet, BUUUUT there is a fishing dock there, and just my luck: some dude pulled up in a pick up truck with a boat to go fishing as I was doing the backwards drag. There’s MORE than enough space there that it SHOULDN’T be an issue, but dude turned his truck on me, blinded me for a pro-longed period with his high beams, then drove his truck INTO MY PROWLER PATH just to roll down his window and say “I was curious what you were up to. That noise scared me! So…working out?” I replied “YES!” with the appropriate amount of frustration, to which he got indignant and said “Oh, well I’ll get out of your way then” and drove off. You can’t make this stuff up. On the plus side, that means I can probably get in a little more prowler work without interruption next time.
* Big highlight was being able to do cleans with the axle again. My forearm/bicep is really coming along. I was still pretty tentative though, and after succeeding with 151 and knowing my plan was to clean each rep of the supplemental work, I didn’t want to push my luck and took 171 out of the rack. Violates my principles, but chaos is the plan.
* That supplemental/assistance circuit worked out well. Went with effectively 2 minute rounds, and would rest for the remainder of the round before starting again. My Dungeons and Dragons background comes out with Jim’s programming, because I’m a total rules lawyer. I got in 50 chins and 100 dips this way, and I picked only one movement, BUT I also got in 50 cleans by doing it like this, which “doesn’t count” for the assistance work…but let’s be real, it counts. Solid metabolic effect. And still meeting my 20 minute timer. Really digging that.
* Just because time got away from me, I settled on Poundstone curls as a finisher. Also, Mrs opted to sleep in this morning, so I didn’t want to be crashing weights for hardcore conditioning at the end, but it was a little weird for me to finish the workout not totally gassed. Granted, the prowler work did a solid job there. I would just do the run, load the plates, and move on to the next. I’m still on that super long parking lot, so I’m just pushing all the way down and coming back.
* On that note, I’m really glad I figured out a way to bring low handle pushes back into the rotation. They’re just a different animal, and they make up stupid strong. Next time, I need to start out wearing the harness so I can bring that in as well. I’d throw it in at the end, but I wasted time fussing with it before ultimately deciding to just go with reverse drags.
* The Poundstone curl performance today was a testament to the effectiveness of Surge, because WITHOUT it in my system, those curls were tough. However, I think that also speaks to it being a good idea for me to limit my usage of it. I imagine the injuries I accumulated were a result of being able to push FAR beyond my normal limits. It’s good to have a governor.
* Totally forgot that I planned on getting jumps in as well. I'll need to be better about that.
PM WORKOUT (1620)
TABEARTA
20 standing ab wheels 40 reverse hypers 25 pushdowns 30 GHRs Neck work
Notes: TABEARTA was actually pretty tough today. May be experiencing some fatigue accumulation. Darndest thing.
Monday, August 29, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2524
AM WORKOUT (0327 Natural Wake up) SEMI-FASTED: Half a serving of Surge before training, half during
**5/3/1 FOR HARDGAINERS** Week 1, Workout 1
**MAIN WORK**
Box Jumps
2x3
1x4
Buffalo Bar Squat
5xBar
5x195
5x245
5x315
5x365
8x405
**ASSISTANCE WORK**
Superset of:
T-bar row: 100lbs Kettlebell clean each rep and strict press: 24kg
'
14 rounds, 90 seconds per round
Sets of 7 for the first 8 rounds, sets of 5 for the remaining 6
**SUPPLEMENTAL**
Buffalo Bar Squat 20x315
Straight into
Belt squat stripset (no rest/lockout) 28x200 Sets of 175,150,125,100,75,50,25,Axle
30 GHRs
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
**CONDITIONING**
Constant movement of cleaning up plates while accomplishing
40x360 Reverse hypers 50 dips 20 standing ab wheels 40 burpee chins in 5 minutes
Notes:
* I’ll address the immediate elephant in the room: an 8x405 topset on squats after having done 5x10x405 is definitely something that gets in your head, but I’m aware of the insanity I’ve put myself through to be able to appreciate what it means. Coming into this particular workout about 13 hours after hitting my 10000th kettlebell swing in 7 days is going to mean some stuff. But I see the positives here: I am in a FANTASTIC “softened up” state to really make the most of hardgainers. It’s why I dropped the TMs so far: I’m going to GROW. And I take solace in knowing that 8x405 is always the number I hit when 500 for a single is within striking distance.
* Came into this workout swollen, which makes sense with all the trauma I’ve put my body through PLUS a victory ham dinner. And that’s going to keep up this week, because I made enough leftovers for ham to be my meal prep. Just another thing to factor in, as my belt was feeling real solid.
* In that regard, I felt strong on the warm-ups today AND this is the first time in months I’ve done a true “5s progression” workout. I took Jim liberally on the main work of BBB Beefcake, but there’s no escaping those 5s here, and they keep you VERY honest on the main work.
* I have a non-STEM degree yet I seem to really love math, because that’s how I came up with the assistance work circuit. I’m stealing from Beefcake because I love the idea of a time limit for assistance work (Jim does that in other programs too, and it’s great there as well). 20 minutes of assistance work. Sold. But I also came into Hardgainers wanting to steal from Dan John’s “Mass Made Simple” and basically throw a complex in the middle of the workout to fire up the metabolic processes and make the ending supplemental work suck. Solution? Brian Alsruhe-esque timed giant sets. Man, so many influences coming together. EMOM seemed unrealistic to get 3 movements in for any decent volume, so I extended it to 90 seconds and that shook out to 14 rounds. 7 reps per round is 98 reps, hitting the top end of Hardgainers “50-100 reps”, so there we have it. Running through it, I was completing each circuit in about 60 seconds, but by the 8th circuit I had to set the bells down after the 6th press, which was a sign to me to reduce reps from there out. Now I have a goal for the program: complete 7 reps per round for the full 14. I’m going to come up with circuits for each day, based primarily on equipment accessibility/logistics, but I REALLY want to keep some sort of floor to overhead, as that is a gamechanger.
* In that regard: I can clean kettlebells again! The arm is mending well. ABCs may make a return, but I’m going to rotate daily insanity to keep from getting too adapted. I’m counting that clean as a swing, in order to stick with the RXs for assistance work Jim laid out.
* Hitting that squat widowmaker after all that work is definitely a different animal. I DID have a bit more in me, but with this being week 1, I’m happy to ease into it again.
* Chasing the squat with the belt squat AND the GHR thoroughly nuked my legs. Conditioning was kept on the light side after all that, as the assistance work was honestly a solid gasser.
* On the nutrition front, I’m going to play around a bit here. Surge is potent, and I’m feeling like I don’t need it for EVERY workout on this program. I also noticed that, when I doubled the dosage, I didn’t notice a performance improvement, but I felt heavier in the gut than I liked. So I’m back to a single serving, which I’m going to use on my squat and deadlift days. Bench and press days will be back to a higher fat pre-training meal. Conditioning day will be fasted. Since prowlers factor into training now, I’m thinking my conditioning day will be a “hard, heavy and fast set + weighted vest walk” workout.
**PM WORKOUT**
TABEARTA and remaining daily work
Sunday, August 28, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2523
**EAT THE BIG ELEPHANT FIRST: 10k SWING CHALLENGE IN 7 DAYS**: Day 7 of 7, '
Slept until 0615
Had some extra time this morning, so I ended up doing 800 unbroken swings, fasted
I did 630 and TABEARTA in the PM
Also got in 44 burpee chins in 5 minutes and some chaos curls, focusing on really getting the painful spot to activate. 10k swings in 7 days is done.
Got the second workout done at 1600: 715 unbroken swings in around 18.5 minutes
In between that, I got in a TABEARTA workout after 90 minutes of lawn mowing and then 47 burpee chins in 5 minutes while taking the trash out through the garage.
That 715 swings was a LOT of lies told to myself. Funny enough, I realized at rep 50 I wasn't wearing my headband and thought to myself "I'll put it on when I set the bell down". Yeah...so much for that.
I am HUNGRY. Been that way all week. And keep getting leaner. Once again: what a metabolic reset.
I'm very pleased my grip held up for 715 swings. And I honestly felt like I could just keep going at that point: I was "locked in", but, once again, schedules are schedules, and chaos remains the plan.
Ended up with an impromptu before/after.
Friday, August 26, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2521
AM WORKOUT (0320 Natural Wake Up) FASTED
**EAT THE BIG ELEPHANT FIRST: 10k SWING CHALLENGE IN 7 DAYS**: Day 5 of 7
* 7150/10000 swings accomplished, and more than 10 minutes shaved off from the initial time. These workouts are moving VERY fast now. It shakes out to 35 seconds of work/15 seconds of rest. Some real interval effort. I’m focusing more on getting that torso a little more bent forward on the return and still popping up. I’m learning a lot through this process. Also, my abs are back to anatomy chart lean in the morning. I feel like I’ve found a great “detox protocol” between the swings, TABEARTA and the chins. A 1 week kickstart. I wonder if pairing it with the 1 week Atkins intro that Dan John talks about would bode well for someone looking to hit the ground running.
* Got the 8th round of TABEARTA done within the round time. I actually had around 3 seconds of rest within most rounds. I’m getting good at this…which is a sign it will be time to move on soon.
* Left bicep/forearm is getting better. Ability to contract has improved, and tone seems to be returning to that arm.
* I was DRENCHED in sweat when this was over. Like I had jumped into a pool.
* I have Tang Soo Do sparring tonight, and maybe some more bodyweight to go. Weekend is coming up, so chaos will be the plan. Thinking I may chunk the workouts into halves and try to blast out 715 swings as fast as possible.
* I am in SUCH a good place mentally right now. I finished this workout thinking to myself “I am terrifying”. I am Jason Vorhees. I am an unstoppable. But, with duality, some humor too. I thought to myself “I am the worst version of the Pinocchio story. The farm machinery was given sentience, and all it did with it was keep swinging that kettlebell”. Also the first thing I thought upon waking up this morning “Let’s go swing that goddamn bell”. I’m honestly digging knowing EXACTLY what I am doing. High speed/low drag.
Thursday, August 25, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2520
AM WORKOUT (0331 Natural Wake Up) FASTED
**EAT THE BIG ELEPHANT FIRST: 10k SWING CHALLENGE IN 7 DAYS**: Day 4 of 7
* There’s misery hiding inside of that 1 second. Every time I take 1 away, it makes the whole workout 1:05 shorter, and I’m almost at a full 10 minutes faster than when I started this adventure. The difference in rest time is very appreciable. I have just about enough time between rounds to turn away from the timer and pretend that it’s not there before I turn back around and start it over. Went with Green Day’s “Insomniac” album in celebration of these o’dark stupid workouts and me naturally waking up at 0331.
* Based off some feedback, I was trying to get my torso a little more horizontal on the eccentric, but, again, it’s too easy to space out over the course of so many rounds.
* I appreciated how much faster this workout moved. No room for boredom: suddenly I’m already halfway done. It’s a different kind of misery when you’re at round 4 and know you’ve got 61 more to go.
* TABEARTA was kinda funny today. Mrs slept in, which meant I couldn’t just drop the bar from overhead onto the crash mats like I normally do to save time/energy, so I ended up following it up, and it seemed like I moved FASTER because of that. Still got beat by the clock on the 8th round, but not nearly as bad as usual.
* Burpee chins weren’t as quick as yesterday, which I imagine was due to the short time between TABEARTA and the chins. Normally I can throw in a bit more fluff.
* Bicep continues to improve through those chaos curls. Really doing my best to find the pain spot and grind it out. Also focusing on bicep contraction vs just moving weight.
* No idea what I’ll do for the next few days to make this continue to be nutty. Chaos is the plan.
Wednesday, August 24, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2519
AM WORKOUT (0325 Natural Wake Up) FASTED
**EAT THE BIG ELEPHANT FIRST: 10k SWING CHALLENGE IN 7 DAYS**: Day 3 of 7
43 burpee chins in 5 minutes (5 reps better than yesterday)
Notes:
* 4290/10000 swings done. 9 minutes faster than my initial time of…2 days ago. 52 second rounds mean 18 seconds of rest between swings, and what’s crazy is that it was 18 seconds from round 1 to round 65. I’ve become alarmingly consistent. I’m living by that metronome sound.
* 52 seconds per round is DEFINITELY where the suck lives. Enough time to recover, but barely. The benefit is that the “boredom” isn’t there. You really gotta stay sharp through out, because those rest times vanish pretty rapidly.
* Developing a small blister on my right ring finger and right big toe. Getting that blister through those gloves is a testament to how much this can beat you up.
* Still focusing on driving hard on the swings and snapping back into place. Still getting feedback that my swings look weird. Gotta love the internet.
* Holy f—k again TABEARTA after all those swings is AWFUL. I got 3 per round for the first 7, the 8th I had to dip into the rest period again. I was floored when it was done. And then closing it with the burpee chins did it all over again. Much like how the Velocity diet is a 28 day shotgun blast of fat loss, I feel like I’ve stumbled upon a 1 week solution to fix your conditioning. The swings are the long slow burn, and then you chase it with 9 minutes of hell.
* Tang Soo Do sparring night tonight, so even MORE conditioning.
* I am appreciating how high speed/low drag this whole situation has been. Training fasted means less to think about in the morning, and then I just grab the bell and go. I know EXACTLY what I am doing and where I am going. No thinking needed.
Tuesday, August 23, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2518
AM WORKOUT (0322 Natural Wakeup) FASTED
**EAT THE BIG ELEPHANT FIRST: 10k SWING CHALLENGE IN 7 DAYS**: Day 2 of 7
65 rounds of 22kb swings w/24kg bell every 55 seconds
* Decided to go with shorter rounds vs more swings per minute and it was the right call. This will keep me at 10010 swings in 7 days and it upped the challenge enough to remove the boredom. By about round 48 I was not having a good time. I think just a gradual tick down in time will go a long way.
* I can see the value in shorter workouts here: it’s easy to get lax/lose focus when these go on forever. I’m definitely getting in some garbage reps, but, as the saying goes, “Quantity has a quality all on its own”
* I AM finding that my rep quality is getting better in general though, which imagine that. Also, last night, I experienced myoclonic jerks of my glutes contracting. How’s that for dialed in?
* The “armor” is holding up well and continues to be a fantastic decision.
* Holy F—K TABEARTA after all those swings. THAT is some real honest work. I got through 3 complexes per round all the way until the 8th. On the 8th round, I had to dip into the 10 second rest period to get it done. That’s a GOOD sign for a Tabata effort. And then ending it with the burpee chins was a fantastic cherry on top.
* Bicep is healing well with those chaos curls. Wondering pain is now impacting the left IT band, but TABEARTA tends to inflame that a bit.
* Long day today, so got in most of the training all in one shot
* I mixed in some cashew milk with my egg whites in my protein shake today just to add a little volume and I think I might keep that up. There’s practically nothing in the cashew milk, but it makes the drink a bit smoother on the guts.
* I’ve dropped a lot of the bloat I was carrying. I’m sure these 7 days are going to sweat out any Crisco I’ve accumulated.
Monday, August 22, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2517
AM WORKOUT (0325 natural wake up) FASTED
**EAT THE BIG ELEPHANT FIRST: 10k SWING CHALLENGE IN 7 DAYS**
22 KB swings w/24kgb bell, EMOM for 65 minutes
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
50 burpee chins in 5:57
20 standing ab wheels
40x90 Reverse hypers
50 pull aparts
25 pushdowns
100x5lb “chaos curls”
30 GHRs
Notes:
* It looks like this is for real. The pilot run yesterday was valuable, and I woke up this morning feeling fine enough. All my connective tissue aches from the hard training but the swings from yesterday honestly seem tonic, and they don’t bug anything that hurts, so this honestly may be a bit of kismet. I’ve always wanted to take on this challenge and just didn’t have the schedule flexibility for it, and now my hand is forced.
* The workout itself honestly wasn’t awful. It’s an endurance race, and toward round 50 I wasn’t feeling happy, but I was never winded, just felt the heart rate tick up. Planning on taking it to 24 reps per round next time so I can shave it down to 60 rounds. That’s 1440 vs 1430, which will mean finishing with 10070 when it’s over…or I can save 70 reps somewhere down the road. Although having those extra 70 there can honestly be decent “miscount insurance”. Very fair chance the reps per round will keep ticking up anyway: chaos is the plan.
* Some things that pilot run taught me: despite all my “armor building”, I needed armor for this. You can see the mechanic gloves I’m wearing, and I’m glad I bought a 3 pack, because they’re soaked from this. I’m also wearing some fight shorts on top of my traditional strongman shorts, because I’ve found that my wrists/forearms will run raw against the material otherwise. And I have my belt on for a similar reason. Basically, anywhere that’s a touch point needs to be covered with extra material, because 1000+ reps will find the weak points in your skin. I STILL got a small hot spot on my ring finger through it all, which means, absent the armor, I would have been shredded.
* Really tried to focus on being explosive and snapping the bell down, but the workout is so long that it’s easy to lose focus.
* Yes: I am playing Rival Son’s “Keep on Swinging” on a loop for 65 minutes, because that’s funny.
* Pleased with the intensity I brought to the burpee chins after the fact. I was gassed. And my plan for later is to hit up legit TABEARTA later for my 4 minute insanity. Burpee chins and TABEARTA definitely answer any of the questions that the 10k swing challenge asks.
* The "Chaos curls" were just me using a whole bunch of wild angles to try to get my left bicep to remember how to contract and work through some of it's pain. I am curious if I experienced some sort of nerve damage or perhaps some sort of tearing, as it's hard to contract the muscle fully at present, but it seems to be healing a bit more each day.
* Treating nutrition like a diet break this week. Not going to force feed, but will respond to hunger. I’m thinking a fasted hour of swinging a kettlebell will generate a touch of that.
* The program name: a tribute to Dan’s “Mass Made Simple” advice combined into one. I was legit thinking about making this program a combination of a bunch of bad Dan John ideas, and including Tabata thrusters as well, but I think TABEARTA is close enough.
PM WORKOUT (1610)
TABEARTA, 3 complexes per round
Notes: This is still fantastically awful, and rounds out the long slow burn of the swings.
I am feeling particularly fatigued right now, but part of that might be the herculean-esque load of dishes I took on after dinner. Definitely Augean Stables level. Which reminds me that I want to name a workout or series of workouts after the 12 labors.
I'm thinking shorter rounds vs more swings tomorrow. Staying at 10010 is a bit more pleasing. Oh man, now I think I might need to swing to this song
Sunday, August 21, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2516
Slept until 0630 and hit this workout fasted
TABEARTA 3 complexes per round
31 burpee chins in 5 minutes
TABEARTA 2 complexes per round
That was 13 minutes of honest work. I really dig bear complexes as far as mobility goes. Wanna get limber first thing in the morning? Get some bear complexes in.
I feel like I'm inevitably just going to replace ABCs with TABEARTA. The biggest limiting factor is loading the bar and having the crashmats out, and that's really minimal time suck. In fact, given the ABCs were 5 minutes and TABEARTA is 4, it might be a wash. Chaos is the plan.
In that regard, an idea struck me for deload week of trying to do the 10k swing challenge in 7 days. Did the math and that's about 1430 swings a day. Wondering if I could make it 715 for a workout, go for a walk, come back and do the other 715. Or perhaps 715-daily work-715. It's honestly time that I think is the big suck factor there. I've gotten 500 inside of 30 minutes before while doing daily work in between sets of swings, so I could probably shave it down some from there, but that's STILL just a lot of workout.
Ya know, maybe I'll just make tomorrow a swing day and see what I can do and evaluate from there. Not a terrible idea. Well, actually, yeah, this is a really bad idea, but most of my best ones are. This is what deload weeks are good for...or, I guess deloading.
But where's the fun in that?
PM UPDATE
I did a quick test doing 20 rounds of 22 swings with daily work filling the remainder of the minute. I finished with 30 seconds remaining on good rounds.
Initial impression is that hand skin integrity will be the limiter, followed by grip. Not afraid to use straps to address both. Also considering gardening gloves vs lifting gloves.
Will give day 1 a try tomorrow and evaluate from there. I've figured it out that 65 minutes of 22 swings EMOM will get me 10010 swings in 7 days.
I am coming prepared
Saturday, August 20, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2515
AM UPDATE
Slept until 0530. Mrs needed to get up early to work on a paper. Opened the day up with a fasted TABEARTA. Once again: 3 complexes in 20 seconds is honest work. I was gassed in 4 minutes. Scratches that ABC itch for sure.
PM UPDATE
Yet another day of absolutely crushing it. It's currently 2050, Mrs is getting in a run, I just finished my pre-bed meal and this is the first time I've sat down all day and had a moment, which is a testament to how awesome things are. A lot of the time was filled with chores (did all the grocery shopping and a LOT of meal prep, to include a ground turkey breast and beef liver chorizo that I'm quite curious about), but let me lay out the training
At 0850, I did 50 burpee chins in 5:25. THAT is the pace I need to do them at. I've been sleepwalking through them, and it's been showing. THIS was a real burner.
After groceries and lunch, it was time for
**MONUMENT TO NON-EXISTENCE: UNSTABLE MUTATION**
15x225 front squats
20x225 squat
25x225 SSB squats
30x225 Deadlifts
Straight into 90 minutes of lawn care
STRAIGHT into 20 Thrusters w/135lbs in 2:30
And at some point, I got in my daily work.
Notes:
* Lemme talk about MTNE first. That front squat felt WAY heavier than it had any right to, and I thought for sure I was gonna underperform today, but I found 15, which it's been a while for me. I may have even had a 16th in there. And then, after that...ennui. Yeah, I still wanted to quit during the SSB squat, but I basically speed-ran this workout. The transitions between movements were about as short as they could be and I was flying through reps. I found that 25th rep of the SSB squat much faster than I've ever done before. Looking like a tune up or overhaul is in my future.
* I no longer have a good arm to pat myself on the back with, so this is gonna come out rough, but allow me to celebrate my insanity. I squatted 5x10x405 on Monday. Since that time, I've done a few million front squats through a combination of tabata front squats and Bear Complexes, of which I did 70 something of them on Thurs and opened up this morning with another 24 of them. On Friday, I went on a 45 minute long vision quest to get in 10x10x301 axle deads and 10x10x205 SSB squats, capped off with 20 Burpee chins. And then I did this today. All while "injured". By any reasonable stretch, my legs should basically be rendered into the filler goo they put inside of Stretch Armstrongs, and instead I am lamenting the BOREDOM I am experiencing from my nutjob psycho workout.
I like to take a step back and take it all in sometimes, because if I don't appreciate the sheer insanity of it, I'm missing out.
Friday, August 19, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2513
AM WORKOUT (0320 natural wake up)
CHAOS IS THE PLAN: DAY ONE OF MANY
10 rounds of:
* 10 axle deadlifts w/301bs
* 10 SSB Squats w/205lbs
Close w/20 burpee chins
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
30 GHRs 40x360 reverse hypers 30 standing ab wheels 31 axle shrugs against strong short bands 50 pull aparts 25 pushdowns
Notes:
* Once again, worked up to 400lbs on the axle and it wouldn’t break the floor. The strength is there, but my body has enough small injuries that the internal governor shuts everything down when the time comes. I came in with an alternate COA and executed it. In full disclosure, the alternate plan was what I wanted to do, primarily because I gravitate toward this style of training these days, so part of me wonders if there was an element of self-sabotage there.
* As for this workout itself: OH MY GOD. It’s been a long time since I’ve lied to myself that much in a single workout. I have too many names to pick from. Part of me was thinking “Vision Quest” or the logical “Lunatic Fringe”, just because you really go on a journey through it. The other part of me is thinking along the line of “Prince of Lies”, and picking from several deities there. There’s also the line in Disturb’s “Pain Redefined”, that goes “in the realm of pain I am the deceiver”, which would make “Pain Redefined” an outstanding name. But all of this to say that this is a gut check.
* I have no sweated that much in a LONG time. We’re out of the heatwave, but this workout is crazy. It was like I had jumped in a pool when it was done.
* All my nagging injuries felt fine through out. On top of everything else, a little bit of tendonitis is in the left elbow. The whole left side is a horror show.
* This is the last workout for BBB Beefcake. Moving forward, I have a few ideas. If I stick with 5/3/1 for Hardgainers, I think I’m actually in a good place. I CAN pull lighter deads without an issue: heavy stuff is the problem. So what I could do is heavy good mornings to answer the mail there, then deadlift supplemental. It’s the holding the weight in the hands that is impacting things, so removing that will put me in a good way. I suppose that means zerchers might be good, but I can see that having an issue with my bicep. I DO have a zercher harness, so there’s a thought. Idea would be to treat the heavy work more like a max effort workout and then finish out with 5/3/1. If Hardgainers is a no go, there’s always Mass Made Simple or Super Squats; squat focused and deadlift on the backburner. If I do either one, I’d keep deads in for conditioning work to keep it grooved. And if all of that is no go, Chaos is the Plan.
* On the nutrition front, for the deload week I plan to train fasted, as it’s a week of conditioning workouts. Once that is over, if I get back on the Surge, I’m gonna do like I did here: 1 serving for the first 3 weeks, evaluate, and up the dose if need be. I didn’t really notice much difference going from 1 dose to 2 in a workout, and if that means I can move those calories somewhere else in the day, I’ll take it.
This is what the deadlift area looked like after the workout
Like an awful crime scene, haha.
PM WORKOUT (1720)
Tabata KB front squats w/24kg bells
Notes:
* Brought back a classic here. Because of my bicep, I was keeping the rack position for as long as possible. That made it pretty tough. Good to have this rotation going.
* Tang Soo Do was a little rough on my tendons. Worked a lot of grab defense.
Thursday, August 18, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2512
AM WORKOUT (0320 Natural wake up) SEMI-FASTED: 1 serving of Surge pre-workout, 1 during
50 burpee chins in 7:18 25 pushdowns 20 standing ab wheels 40x90 reverse hypers 30 GHRs
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
**CONDITIONING**
“CUB SANDWICH AU JUS”
* Open with 95lb TABEARTA w/3 complexes per round
* 20 minute EMOM of Bears and Dips. Ladder up to 3 bears, fill in the remainder of the minute with dips, worked up to 180+ total dips
* Close with 95lb TABEARTA w/2 complexes per round
Notes:
* Left bicep was a little unstable at the start of the benching, but I found my way toward the end. I was pretty pleased with how the supplemental work shook out. Keeping the 90 seconds rest each round was a good sign, and I was feeling pretty strong. The topset was garbage, but supplemental is the focus.
* REALLY like chasing the bench with the burpee chins. That might just become a thing in general.
* This workout is such a buzzkill that the conditioning workout tends to be what saves it, and today was no exception. I already had “Bear Calvary” in mind, but I wanted to get more of a conditioning effect, hence “Cub Sandwich Au Jus”. I love the name. The sandwich part is there with the TABEARTAs on either side. The cub is…well..bears. Au jus? Dip, of course. And again: 3 bears per round on Tabata keeps you honest! You are putting in work if you do that. Trying to get in dips after that was pretty amazing, which is what prompted that ladder approach of bears between rounds. Typically, I did a straight 2 per round, but today required some variance. This is for sure a keeper. Coming back to those tabata bears at the end really tested me.
* Got my third stripe in Tang Soo Do last night, so I’m eligible to test for my next belt in December. I haven’t been doing much updating on that front, as it’s been mostly the same, but my instructor remarked how I’ve been relaxing more and not muscling techniques. Funny enough, I imagine it’s because I keep picking up small injuries that are preventing me from doing that, but I’ll take the feedback any which way I can.
* On the bicep front, it’s healing, but I can’t fully contract the muscle, which is interesting. Just going to be diligent.
* For tomorrow, I’m having some real “Deadlift ennui”. I don’t think I will be able to move the loads required to finish out BBB Beefcake legitimately, which is making me think to just do some stupid nutty deadlift based workout instead. We’ll see what happens. Chaos is the plan.
Ended the night with 27 100lb log vipers in 3 minutes. Bicep ached a little but held out. Continuing with my typical injury protocol of frequently nagging at it to let it know it still needs to be ready to perform.
Wednesday, August 17, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2511
AM WORKOUT (0320 natural wake up) FASTED
“LAST CALL FOR LITVINOL”
Prowler distance: FAR
Keg: 100+lbs
3 rounds of
* 8 keg loads to truck tailgate, load onto prowler
* High handle prowler push
* Carry keg back to truck, load onto tailgate
* Bearhug carry back to prowler, load onto prowler
* Reverse drag prowler to start
Time: 33:30
1 round of
* High handle push, immediately turn around and backwards drag it to start
Time: 40:30 (7 minute round)
4 minutes of keg loading to tailgate: 57 reps total (3 rep PR from previous week)
* Was pleased I could run this, given the brokenness of the bicep. Felt a slight tug on the put down of the final bear hug carry, but otherwise held together well, and that keg loading at the end went solid.
* Friction was high today on the parking lot. Struggled with the prowler.
* Fran seemed like a good idea, but those chins were murdering my bicep. I have a plan to hit up either Tabearta or Tabata KBFS later today.
* Appetite is through the roof these days. Good to have that. But f**k me I’m tired of making so much food.
PM workout
Tabata front squats w/95lbs
Notes:
* A Dan John classic, and just what I needed for the circumstances. Went max reps per round, minimum of 8. Felt the hurt.
* Got my list of other WODs ready to go. Right now elbow heakth is guiding things, but soon it will open all the way up.
Tuesday, August 16, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2510
AM WORKOUT (0320 Natural wake up)
BBB BEEFCAKE Week 6, Workout 2
**MAIN WORK**
Log clean and strict press away
5xLog
5x155
3x175
0x200 (felt a few pops in the left arm on the clean, shut it down)
5x10 band pull aparts between sets
**SUPPLEMENTAL WORK**
Log viper press each rep
5x10x155 in 21:30 w/90 seconds rest between sets
Transition immediately to assistance work
**ASSISTANCE WORK**
Dip-push-raise-hyper-abs-GHR
Weighted dip stripset (no rest)
5x105
5x80
4x55
6x30
30xBW w/rest pause
25 pushdowns
Lateral raise dropset (no rest)
23x20lbs
23x10
23x5
23x2.5
23xEmpty hands
40x90 Reverse hyper
20 standing ab wheels
30 GHRs
Poundstone Curls
215xAxle
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
**CONDITIONING**
20 ABCs in 5 minutes w/24kg bells (more pops)
30 Burpee chins in 7 minutes
Notes:
* Left arm keeps healing well enough to perform in the week, then gets bogged down and the process restarts. Reading the warning signs, the bicep wants to go. I was feeling real strong for presses today and would have had no issues with 200, but getting it into place proved to be the issue.
* I actually tried to do some axle cleans during conditioning and that was a VERY bad idea, so thankfully I was smart and shut it down there.
* The Poundstone curls had a bit of a tonic effect, but the ABCs undid a lot of the good. Specifically trying to push into later rounds and letting form slop show up.
* I was moving a little slow on the supplemental work, babying the bicep, but the effort was absolutely there. I am STARVING as a result of the metabolic hit.
* CHAOS IS THE PLAN. I’ve realized I’ve spent too much time doing the same thing over and over with those ABCs. Whatever point I needed to prove, I’ve proven it. Currently plan going forward is to select a handful of “greatest hits”, assign them a number, and roll a die each day to determine what I’m doing. I need more chaos to stay sharp AND fresh. Off the top of my head, it’ll include ABCs, Tabata Front Squats, KB Fran, and 100 Burpees for time. Goal is something 3-6 minutes in length and INTENSE. I’m excited for this new way forward.
PM WORKOUT (1850)
Tabata burpee chins w/prisoner squats during the rest periods.
Getting those 4 burpee chins in per round really is a game changer. Left bicep is still pretty screwy, but it'll heal. Prowler is loaded up for tomorrow.
Monday, August 15, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2509
AM WORKOUT (0315 natural wake up…I went to bed ready for war and couldn’t sleep any more), SEMI-FASTED: 1 serving of Surge workout fuel before workout, 1 during
BBB BEEFCAKE: WEEK 6, Workout 1
**MAIN WORK**
Jump-squat-row
Box Jumps 3x3
Buffalo Bar Squat 5xBar 5x195 3x285 1x335 1x405 1x455
Belt squat stripset (no lockout/rest between sets) 54x200 (3 rep PR from previous) Reps of 175,150,125,100,75,50,25 and axle, absolute murder
50 dips
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
**CONDITIONING**
20 ABCs in 5 minutes w/24kg bells 25 burpee chins in 5 minutes immediately afterwards
Notes:
* F**k the world and its inhabitants because I hit that goddamn 5x10x405. I am the Juggernaut. I am all that is.
* I am over the moon hitting that 5x10x405. I’m going to do a much larger write up on it, but that’s been the goal since starting this round of 5/3/1 BBB Beefcake and I did everything in my power to make it happen, and seeing the executed plan work was an outstanding start to my day and my week. I listened to Foo Fighters’ “All My Life” on a loop for the entire 18+ minutes. For rest protocol, I started at 90 seconds, then 120, 150 and ended with 180. It was a solid strategy. My conditioning base was strong enough that, when the rest ended, I was ready to go: it was my muscles DURING the sets that were what needed the rest times more. That’s a GOOD place to be in. That’s how we make this work.
* Main work was just what I needed it to be for this. 455 felt heavier than it had any right to be, but it woke me up and got me dialed in and ready.
* That belt squat at the end was such the cherry on top. I was absolutely annihilated.
* For the ABCs, I came up with a cute idea. I set a timer for 2 minutes, do as many ABCs as I can, rest for 30 seconds, then use the remaining 2:30 to match or exceed that number. Worked for today: 10 and 10. I then promptly died for about the first 40 seconds of Burpee chins before I rediscovered my lungs.
PM WORKOUT (1830)
Tabata burpee chins w/prisoner squats during the rest periods
Made it a point to get in 4 BCs per round, which pushed the pace pretty hard.
Sunday, August 14, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2508
Slept until 0530. Wife set and alarm because she was getting up for a 14.1 mile run in memory of our pug who passed away (today would have been his birthday, and he lived 14 years and 1 month). While she ran, I got in
21 ABCs in 5 minutes w/24kg bells 2 mile 80lb weighted vest walk
For PM workout
"LOGST IN TRANSLATION"
AMRAP in 15 minutes of
* 3 log vipers w/135lbs * 7 burpee chins
Time ran out on the 4th burpee of the 10th round
My left knee is feeling awesome. No more swelling or pain. I'm feeling solid for tomorrow's squat effort.
Saturday, August 13, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2507
Slept until 0615 and got in an amazingly stupid workout fasted
Took a physique shot, as I haven't been doing much of that. I'm filling out. Waist is blockier, but that's just me.
Today was another awesome day full of getting after it. I got all my chores done before noon, to include mowing the lawn, getting the groceries from 3 different store and taking the kid to Tang Soo Do (they got a stripe on their belt) and I got this 15 minute workout done
Just 15 solid minutes of loading a 100+lb keg onto my tailgate. I'll be honest: it wasn't as intense as what I had hoped it to be, but given my squat day is Monday and I hit that killer morning workout, I'll take it.
As soon as I was done, some middle school aged boy wonders into my garage and just staring around in awe. He tells me he was watching me train while he was riding his bike, and started asking me all sorts of questions. "Do you do this everyday? Do you workout a lot?" Biggest thing was he pointed at my poster of Derek Poundstone loading the Louis Cyr stone
And asked "Is that you?"
Kid: you just made my day!
Given I was standing there shirtless, covered in sweat in my dungeon of a home gym, I was trying real hard not to give off the pedo vibes, but it was honestly just a fun experience. Something I've read about but never thought would happen. I wanted to give him 20 years of guidance right there on the spot, but just talked with him about sports. He plays football, safety and corner, first scrimage coming up. And it's funny: it happened because I trained with my garage door open.
Finished all that up, did a bunch of meal prepping and cooked my family a fantastic dinner. Kid and I actually played battleship while things cooked.
And because of all this work, I have a free Sunday.
Friday, August 12, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2506
AM WORKOUT (0325 natural wake up) SEMI-FASTED: 1 serving of Surge workout fuel pre-training, 1 serving during training
BBB BEEFCAKE Week 5, Workout 4
**MAINWORK**
Axle deadlifts
5x176
3x266
1x361
0x426 (felt heavy, didn’t push myself)
**SUPPLEMENTAL WORK**
50 reps of 361lb axle deadlifts by any means necessary in 13:20
Transition immediately to assistance work
**ASSISTANCE WORK**
40x360 reverse hyper
30 standing ab wheels
30 GHRs
50 band pull aparts
25 pushdowns
30 axle shrugs against strong short bands
50 dips
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
**CONDITIONING**
20 ABCs in 5 minutes w/24kg bells straight into
10 rounds of
* 2 KB clusters EMOM
* Burpee chins for remainder of minute (30 total completed)
Notes:
* I am so excited with how this shook out. Heavy pulling is still not there yet, but I’ve got reps back, and being able to get in a real BBB Beefcake workout is a blessing.
* Left elbow is still a little pissy, and my left knee is currently experiencing a little pain/swelling, but being able to get it through the workout as pretty big. And considering I chased it with ABCs and clusters, that’s all pretty positive.
* 46th rep of the deads was garbage. Axle was slipping, even with the straps. Just not a big fan of the figure 8s in general.
* I was dying on that conditioning. Burpees post ABCs continue to be just ridiculous.
* Tang Soo Do later tonight. Thinking about breaking protocol this weekend for Monument and maybe just doing like 15+ solid minutes of keg loads or something similar. We’ll see.
PM WORKOUT (1700)
Tabata burpee chins w/prisoner squats during the rest periods
Thursday, August 11, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2505
Took the day off work, and BOY do I know how to do a day off. Going to semi-narrate
AM WORKOUT (0645 wake up via alarm, slept in on day off) FASTED
**20 ABCs in 5 minutes w/24kg bells**
Notes:
* Knee was fine, but elbow a bit junky upon waking. Doing these very first thing in the morning always results in a decline in performance, but it also means they're out of the way for the day. After a few round the elbow opened up again.
Had a fantastic breakfast, dropped the kiddo off for the first day, then the Mrs and I went for a
**5 mile outdoor walk**
Picked kiddo up from halfday, went out to eat and got a keto pizza topped with chicken, pineapple, tomato, mushroom and onion. Took 70 minutes to get our food, which sucked, but we enjoyed each other's company, and I inhaled it when I got it.
Got a few errands knocked out, got home, and did
**BBB BEEFCAKE, Week 5, Workout 3**
...in 27 minutes
**MAIN WORK**
Axle bench press
1xAxle
5x196
5x226
5x256
**SUPPLEMENTAL WORK**
Axle pause bench press
50 reps of 196
Time: 10:15
**CONDITIONING/ASSISTANCE WORK**
50 burpee chins: Total time since start of supplemental work 16:52
20 standing ab wheels: 18:42
50 band pull aparts and 25 pushdowns: 20:12
I DID end up doing 40 reverse hyper and a weighted dip stripset after all that, and I could still manage my previous best on the weighted dips, which bodes well for the elbows, but I wanted to see how quickly I could do a "full workout", and that was pretty awesome. If I allow myself 15 seconds of prep time before my first actual bench, I got all the supplemental AND assistance work done in under 20 minutes.
After that 5 mile walk, my knee is actually feeling MUCH like it's old self. Movement really seems to be the key. Working was killing it because I was sitting too long. Focusing on keeping it elevated and mobile is helping. Elbow is on the mend as well. I keep finding ways to heal.
Wednesday, August 10, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2504
AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm, day off work so I slept in)
**LAST CALL FOR LITVINOL**
* Prowler distance: FAR * Keg: 100+lbs
3 rounds of
* 8 keg loads to truck flatbed * Load keg onto prowler, high handle push * Front carry keg back to truck, load onto flatbed * Bearhug carry keg back to prowler * Reverse drag prowler back to start
TIME: 32:30
* High handle push and reverse drag back
TIME: 7:30
4 minutes of keg loading to flatbed
* 52 reps total (42 in first 3 minutes, 3 rep PR from previous week)
* Day before first day of school, kid doesn't have childcare, so I took the day off work and wanted to get in all my training so it's off my plates.
* Went to bed with my knee swollen to the point of agony and immobility, woke up with it loose and feeling normal.
* Felt a small pop in my left forearm/bicep on the third round of bearhug carries, as I was sweaty and the keg was slipping. As you can see from the keg loading and burpee chins, it wasn't a big deal, but it's becoming a frequent annoyance.
* Friction was turned up on the pavement today. Much harder to move the prowler. Showed up on some of the time.
* Focused on moving quick on the burpee chins and got the first 20 in 2 minutes, but faded after that.
* On the ABCs, caught myself really cheating on the first clean, even moreso than usual. Going to make a point that my thumbs have to touch my shoulders for it to count.
* That keg loading at the end continues to be the real moneymaker. I should honestly just make a workout of that sometime. Might be my next "go for an hour" stupidity.
PM WORKOUT
Mowed the lawn w/80lb vest on and got in that Tabata prisoner squat/push up workout I've been doing recently.
Tuesday, August 9, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2503
AM WORKOUT (0322 natural wake up) SEMI-FASTED: 1 serving of Surge workout fuel before training, 1 serving during
BBB BEEFCAKE Week 5, Workout 2
**MAIN WORK**
Axle clean and strict press away (plate change rest)
5xAxle
5x136
5x156
4x176 (continental)
Superset w/
5x10 band pull aparts
**SUPPLEMENTAL WORK**
Axle clean each rep and strict press
50 reps of 136 in 12:55
Transition immediately to assistance work
**ASSISTANCE WORK**
Dips into pushdowns abs into hyper into lunges into GHR
Weighted dip stripset
5x105
4x80
5x55
5x30
31xBW (rest pause as needed)
25 pushdowns
20 standing ab wheels
40x90 reverse hyper
10 KB front rack lunges w/24kg bells
30 GHRs
Poundstone Curls
214xAxle
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
**CONDITIONING**
5 minutes of ABCs w/24kg bells (20 completed)
Transition immediately into “Lost In Translation”
5 rounds in 10:30 of
* 3 Axle clean each rep and push press 136lbs
* 7 burpee chins
Notes:
* Left elbow still giving me a little trouble on the cleans today. Slowed me down on the Malcolm X set and turned the topset mainwork into a contintental vs a clean. Poundstones were pretty miserable as well. And burpee chins, hah! But nothing stopped me.
* My knee was feeling fine this morning, but is swollen again as I write this. Weather has been crazy. In that regard, we got a slight break from the heat, which made training more tolerable.
* That conditioning was brutal. My schedule is intense today, so I got the ABCs in post training, which after a bunch of clean and pressing is just a delight. Went with 2 2.5 minute rounds with a goal for 20 total. Heading straight into Lost in Translation was the cherry on top, because I was floored. Somehow those weights got overhead instantly, but I went down for my first burpee and contemplated just never coming back up again.
* I’ll get in some sort of light bodyweight conditioning later in the day for a training effect. As much as it was good to keep on “reminding” my body with the ABCs at the end of the day, schedule logistics wise, it’s working out better to get the 5 minutes at the end of the workout and something light/restorative later.
PM WORKOUT
Tabata burpee chins w/prisoner squats during the rest periods
Notes: Got the rest of my chins this way, and got blood flowing through my legs. My left knee is a horror show right now, but I've figured it out: I sit a bunch at work, and it just all pools into the knee when I do that. Moving it fixes it instantly, so I'm making a consistent effort to keep moving that leg during downtime.
Monday, August 8, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2502
AM WORKOUT (0322 natural wake up, slightly rocky sleep due to thunderstorms) SEMI-FASTED: 1 serving of Surge workout fuel before training, 1 serving during
BBB BEEFCAKE Week 5, Workout 1
**MAIN WORK**
Jump-squat-row
Box Jumps
3x3
Buffalo Bar Squat
5xBar
5x195
5x285
3x355
1x405
1x455
T-bar row
10x100
10x125
10x150
**SUPPLEMENTAL WORK**
Buffalo Bar Squat
50 reps of 350lbs in 8:30
Transition immediately to assistance work
**ASSISTANCE WORK**
Abs-hyper-GHR-bands
30 standing ab wheel
40x360 reverse hyper
30 GHRs
50 pull aparts
25 pushdowns
Belt squat stripset (no lockout/rest between sets)
51x200 (giant PR)
Reps of 175,150,125,100,75,50,25,axle
50 dips and 44 chins while I put away plates
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
**CONDITIONING**
5 minutes of ABCs w/24kg bells (20 total) straight into 5 minutes of log viper presses w/100lbs (23 total)
Notes:
* I, no joke, woke up like the Terminator this morning. And I don’t say that mean “I woke up ready to destroy whatever was in my path”, but more that I woke up and immediately went into “Battle Damage Assessment”. “Ok, my left knee is still swollen like a grapefruit from the humidity, my left elbow is recovering from Saturday, for some reason my shoulder is locked into place”. I expected this to be a rough workout. For it to turn out as awesome as it did is a blessing.
* This whole training cycle has been fantastic for my mentality. I’m so focused on getting that goal of 5x10x405 on squats at the end that my top end strength being absolute garbage isn’t even phasing me. I DO feel I’m at a point in my 5/3/1 “career” that I need a TM for main work and a TM for supplemental work, because I am all things reps and I am no things max weight. But I’m taking Jim’s words VERY close to the heart here regarding balancing main and supplemental work.
* The opening salvo on the Malcolm X squats is a 10lb and 1 rep PR from last cycle. You want a sign of progress, there it is.
* Glad I could get the belt squats on video at a decent angle just to showcase the intensity of them. I love landmine movements because you can just send it and not worry too much about technique.
* That conditioning workout was killer! The only real x-factor to contend with there is that, by the time I get to the log, my legs are so slick with sweat that I can’t get it to stick for a decent clean. But ABCs AFTER all those squats is murder, and vipers after ABCs even moreso.
* Most likely get in some prisoner squats or burpees at some point today just to get in a training effect, but otherwise this was “enough” training.
* On the physique front, I’m seeing my abs fade and my body broaden out. That’s a worthwhile trade.
PM WORKOUT (1600)
Finished the day up with a simple Tabata prisoner squat with push ups during rest. My left knee was swollen to the point of near immobility, so this was helpful.
Really vascular and abs came out of hiding for some reason. Need to eat more. Roger that.
Sunday, August 7, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2501
Slept until 0620 and broke protocol with a different fasted workout
Medium-Light-Heavy swings (24kg-20kg-40kg)
20 each, in between each set of swings, some form of daily work (5-10 chins, 4 standing ab wheels, 10 dips or 8 reverse hypers w/90lbs)
Got through 21 rounds of swings in 21:22, then finished off with 80 swings with the 24kg bell in a total of 22:58 to get a total of 500 swings. Easier way to break into Sunday. I’m feeling beat up from taking the Alps. Depending on how things go, ABCs might actually get a break with me transitioning to 5 minutes of log vipers instead. I’m kinda feeling that itch. We’ll see.
Because Chaos is the Plan
PM WORKOUT (1400)
24 ABCs in 5 minutes w/24kg bells
Notes:
* Forearm feels like garbage from yesterday but still healthy enough for ABCs. Got the gym set up for Malcolm X squats tomorrow. Surf and Turf burger tonight of bison and shrimp. Lets get some.
Saturday, August 6, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2500 (that's a pretty big number, and today is a great log entry)
So let's talk about today.
Got up at 0600 due to wife's alarm. She's working on her second masters and wanted to get up early so she could work on a paper. She puts me to shame.
I start off the day with a fasted 5 minutes of ABCs. I get in 21, then throw on 80lb weighted vest and take my dog for a 40 minute walk. I listened to the Legends of Iron Podcast with Jerry Pritchett. I'm walking the dog now because the weather folks are telling us today is going to be THE hottest day of the year, so if the dog is getting a walk, it's happening now. It's already 75 degrees when we start, but the humidity hasn't set in yet...but it does midway through the walk, and I'm pouring sweat.
Get home, wife makes me a fantastic breakfast, I clean up, and while taking out the trash I get in 50 burpee chins in 6:36. Not a record, but given my tricep is still showing some bruising from the tear, I'm pleased with it. Yesterday, I sprain my wrist/forearm on my ABCs, then it started to bug me on this morning's ABCs, and it started showing a bit on those ABCs...foreshadowing.
Drop the wife off for a sports massage/study break, take the kiddo out for some errands, get dinner for the night and picked up a new DnD Starter Set from Target (SCORE), get dinner/harassed by the elderly, come home, put stuff away, and then knock out...
"CROSSING THE ALPS WITH BERSERKERS"
20x100 log viper presses 18x135 Stone of Steel to Shoulder 16x155 Keg one motion overheads 13x185 front squat 13x185 squat 11x225 SSB squat
Could this be "Monument to Non-Existence"? Yeah, it's yet another version of it, but I dig this name. "Crossing the Alps" because logistics are a BIG part of this workout. The order of the movements is based upon my gym layout while emphasizing speedy transitions. We're also crossing the Alps because attrition is happening through out this workout. But instead of elephants, Hannibal brought berserker mercenary shocktroops, and they are TEARING through the front lines of everything on the battlefield. We lose numbers and gain ground the whole way. And, of course, I wore the t-shirt in tribute.
This workout took a LOT out of me. On the very first rep of the stone, I thought I tore my left bicep. You can see me check it out for damage. It was just the tendonitis I was dealing with reaching its logical conclusion. Then, on rep 13 of the keg presses, that stumble about ended my career. I felt something in my left knee click and pop and I almost fell over the log. Would have been an amazing fail video.
AND I KEEP F**KING GOING
Because you can't stop me
The rest of the workout achieved my end goal: it was absolutely miserable. I wanted to quit yet again during SSB squats. I took too much time between squats and SSBs and I'll need to fix that next time, but I appreciated this workout for everything it included and still making it within the 15 minute mark. My fear was it dragging on too far.
When it was done, I was absolutely feeling the effect of "hottest day of the year". Once again, this ranks among the hardest workouts I've ever done.
Ate like a champ at dinner. I am looking jacked in that video. Everything is as awesome as it can be.
Friday, August 5, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2499
AM WORKOUT (0305 wake up via alarm) SEMI-FASTED: 1 serving of Surge Pre-workout, 1 within the workout
CHAOS IS THE PLAN, Day Get to Yes
**MAIN WORK**
Axle deads
5x136
5x226
1x316
0x406
**SUPPLEMENTAL WORK**
Strap suspended deadlift stance SSB Good mornings (90 seconds rest between sets)
5x10x175
Superset w/
5x10 band pull aparts
Time: 15:45
**CONDITIONING**
300lb axle deadlifts and burpee chins
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1, then 10 reps of deads
Time: 22:05
40x360 reverse hypers
30 GHRs
Notes:
* Being uncharacteristically smart about recovering from the muscle tear. Worked up to something heavy on the axle just to see how I responded. I could feel some aches at 316, but still felt strong. With 405, it felt welded to the floor, which is typically a sign of some sort of dysfunction in the body, so I played it smart and didn’t push harder. Had the plan to go with the 5x10 GMs to keep the Beefcake aspect of the training plan in place.
* The GMs are lighter than what I did in my previous go, but a whole different animal. I’m starting from the bottom position, so there’s no eccentric loading beforehand/stretch reflex to play off of, and the deadlift stance helps with the carryover. I did these strict, straight legged, focusing on the glutes and posterior chain to carry me through vs semi-squats.
* I like what I came up with for conditioning. Got some deadlift reps in, got some training in, and it was definitely taxing. The countdown is deceptive. You think it will get easier with the fewer reps, but it means less rest between deadlift sets.
* I really like how this training day shook out in general, and it’s most likely how things will move forward. I think I’d like to push for a heavy good morning before the rep work, and I’d want to get in more assistance work when I’m not working an early shift, but good mornings for reps and deadlifts for conditioning should help keep me sharp.
PM WORKOUT (1530)
25 ABCs in 5 minutes w/24kb bells (15 unbroken, new record)
Notes:
* 2 2.5 minute rounds, going for max reps unbroken in the first and then just max reps in the second. I like that quite a bit. Very easy on the psychology.
* Knee is still touch and go. Some parts of the day it's fine. Others, it aches. Clearly not slowing me down.
Thursday, August 4, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2498
AM WORKOUT (0255 natural wake up, working early shift) SEMI-FASTED: 1 serving of Surge Workout Fuel (half before workout, half during)
BBB BEEFCAKE Week 4, workout 3
**MAINWORK**
Axle bench press
5xAxle
5x156
3x211
3x246
4x271 (1 more than previous cycle)
Superset w/10 band pull aparts all sets
**SUPPLEMENTAL WORK**
Axle bench press (pause first 6 reps, press away rest)
5x10x211
Superset w/
Double KB rows
5x10x24 kg
90 seconds rest between sets, total time 15 minutes and some seconds
Transition immediately into assistance work
**ASSISTANCE WORK**
Dip into raise into abs into hyper into pushdown
Dip stripset (no rest between sets)
3x105
3x80
3x55
5x30
36xBodyweight (rest pause as needed)
Lateral raise dropset (no rest between sets)
22x20lbs
22x10
22x5
22x2.5
22xEmpty Hands
20 standing ab wheel
40x90 Reverse hyper
25 pushdowns
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
**CONDITIONING**
50 burpee chins as fast as possible, EMOM do 2 bear complexes w/95lbs
* Done in 11:53
Transition immediately to 5 minutes of ABCs w/24kg bells
* 18 accomplished
Notes:
* Really pleased with how I took what is typically the most lackluster day of the program and turned it into something solid. I’m seeing significant progress from the last cycle. The 1 extra rep on the main work is dandy, but the supplemental work was nuts. Previously, I managed 5 pause reps on the first set, and then dropped a pause rep each set. Hitting and keeping 6 through out is fantastic.
* Conditioning was fantastic. Main workout was just a spin on Cluster Bomb, but it’s just nice to have burpee chins on the menu again. Chasing it with my 5 minutes of ABCs was an amazingly terrible idea. I was absolutely dying. Love what I can put out under that kind of fatigue, and it’s nice to have that done.
* Torqued something in my left knee in Tang Soo Do last night, which is what drove me into the bears and ABCs in the first place. I’m going to try to get the body to keep moving and work out whatever the issue is.
* Would like to get in a burpee workout or something similar later in the day, just to keep the heart rate going. I’m working an early shift today, which is why I got up even earlier than usual, but it shouldn’t be too big a deal.
* Kept the Surge to a single serving for this workout, just because it’s not as intense as any of the others.
Bruise update.
It's hard to appreciate the discoloring around the area too, but it's pretty zombie-esque.
PM WORKOUT (1500)
3 minutes of Stone of Steel to Shoulder (19 reps accomplished)
Immediately throw on 80lb vest and go for 2 mile walk
Notes:
* Got to yes with that weight vest. Came home from shift and made my next day's breakfast in record time, threw on the gym clothes, found the nearest heavy object and got to work. Still love this protocol: jack up the heart rate and ride it out.
* Was 106 degrees when I started the walk. Can't pay for the kind of misery: gotta take advantage of it when it's there.
* Got the garage set up for tomorrow. Strap suspended SSB Good mornings for Beefcake work, then conditioning with axle deads. Thinking axle deads are going to be the way forward for the majority of this cycle. Takes some pressure off me.
Wednesday, August 3, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2497
AM WORKOUT (0334 natural wake up: 1 minute before the alarm, clutch!) FASTED
“LAST CALL FOR LITVINOL”
-Prowler distance: far
-Keg: 100+lbs
3 rounds in 32:00 of
* 8 keg loads to truck tailgate
* High handle prowler push w/keg loaded on prowler
* Front carry keg back to truck, load onto tailgate
* Bearhug carry keg back to prowler
* Reverse drag prowler back to start
1 high handle push/reverse drag w/keg loaded in 7:30
* This workout remains “the answer” to a lot of questions. I’m done by the first round, and continuing on just brings it’s own unique misery. Ending with that tailgate load is a fantastic cherry on top, and then getting home and getting my ABCs and daily work knocked out puts me in a good way for the rest of the day.
* Getting better with the bearhug carry. Finding where to place the keg so it’s not straight on my lungs.
* Really focused on triple extension for the loading.
* Those burpee chins were just like they used to be. Focused on being ballistic and the body held up well. The bruising keeps getting worse as the healing gets better. Crazy.
* I’ve contemplated re-adding a run into this or a similar workout. Part of me thinks about how I could get rid of the sled one day and just sprint the parking lot to the keg, load it to the tailgate a bunch of times, and then repeat. More Litvinov-esque. There’s also a hill nearby that I could run up for that purpose. Lots of elements to play with.
* Similarly, coming up with a gameplan for Friday, there’s still a fair chance that heavy deads are off the agenda, so I’m thinking heavy strap suspended good mornings and the finishing off with a LOT of reps of lighter weight deads, Kalsu style. Set a rep total, go for it, and then interrupt it as I go. Given how long straps take to set up, rather than EMOM, I might just do penalties, where everytime I stop I have to do something. Or I might just plain old Malmcolm X it. We’ll see.
Tuesday, August 2, 2022
Training Log: Entry 2496
AM WORKOUT (0335 wake up via alarm)
BBB BEEFCAKE Week 4, Workout 2
**MAIN WORK**
Axle clean and strict press away (plate change rests)
5xAxle
5x146
5x166
2x186
W/5x10 band pull apart supersets
**SUPPLEMENTAL WORK**
Axle clean and rep and strict press w/90 second rest between sets
5x10x146
Total time: 18:46
Transition immediately to assistance work
**ASSISTANCE WORK**
Dip to pushdown to hyper to abs to GHR
Weighted dip stripset
5x105
3x80
4x55
6x30
32xBodyweight (rest pause as needed)
25 pushdowns
40x90 reverse hyper
20 standing ab wheels
30 GHRs
Poundstone curls
213xAxle
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
**CONDITIONING**
“Lost In Translation”
As many rounds as possible in 12 minutes of
* 3 axle clean each rep and push press of 136lbs
* 7 burpee chins (they’re back baby!)
Got through 6 rounds, and 2 burpees into the 7th before time ran out
Notes:
* First thing into the workout my tricep/shoulder was feeling tight, but it warmed up quick. I played it safe on the topset and just went for a strong and solid rep vs grinding it out.
* Cleaning each rep was a pleasant surprise for the supplemental, but I had it in me today. Conditioning is really in a good way, and I had some solid pop on the cleans. I imagine all the time with “Lost in Translation” has paid off there.
* The Poundstone curls were like a full body workout today. I was dying.
* Being able to bring back burpee chins was a huge morale victory. I can’t quite fly through them, but I can get them done, and that’s huge for my healing. And in that regard, the bruise is getting gnarly. Really spreading and discoloring now. Took a long time to present.
* It’s the hottest day of the year so far. Garage was like a blast furnace.
PM WORKOUT
24 ABCs in 5 minutes w/24kg bells
Notes:
* Just did a straight 5 minute shot. Got a PR of 14 unbroken ABCs and held on from there. The heat just makes these gnarly. Prowler all loaded up and ready to go for "Last Call for Litvinol"
Training Log: Entry 2495
MONDAY
---
AM WORKOUT (0315 wake up via dog) SEMI-FASTED: Full serving of Surge Workout Fuel before training, full serving during training
BBB BEEFCAKE Week 4, Workout 1
**MAIN WORK**
Jump-squat-row
Box jumps
4x3
Buffalo Bar Squat
5xBar
5x195
3x285
1x375
1x430
1x485 (Partial squat)
T-bar rows
10x25
10x50
10x75
10x100
**SUPPLEMENTAL WORK**
Buffalo Bar Squat
5x10x375 w/90 seconds rests between sets
Total time: 12:45
Transition immediately into assistance work
**ASSISTANCE WORK**
Hyper into abs into GHR into pulls into push into squat
40x360 reverse hyper
30 standing ab wheels
30 GHRs
50 pull aparts
25 pushdowns
Belt squat stripset (no lockout/rest between sets)
42x200 (2 rep PR)
Reps of 175,150,125,100,75,50,25,Axle
5x10 dips and 10x5 chins while putting plates away (big deal on those chins for healing)
**POST WORKOUT SHAKE**
**CONDITIONING**
* 20 ABCs in 5 minutes w/24kb bells, straight into
CAMUS
* EMOM, 1 ABC, 1 Burpee, Max Stone to Shoulders
Made it through 7 rounds before I got killed by the clock
Notes:
* This was a phenomenal training session. Really left it all out there.
* My top end strength is tanking and I’m at peace with it, because my reps have gotten insane. My legs are like pistons and my lungs are like a locomotive. I absolutely slaughtered the BBB sets today. 90 seconds was TOO MUCH REST. I was ready to tear into the next sets each and every time. There was minimal drama within the sets: on the final set I had to rest at the top for the final 3 reps, and even then, it was for 2-4 breaths max. From there, I jumped straight into the assistance and just kept running through it. I had a LOT of time leftover when the session was over as a result.
* I am so pleased with those chins. There is pain doing them, but I can get through them, and it’s awesome to get back to my 50 a day. On that note: the bruising has finally shown up, which confirms my suspicion that I tore a muscle at some point. The bruising is in the tricep and pain is near the armpit/teres minor/tricep depending on movements.
* ABCs may become more of a feature during the morning workouts due to scheduling issues.
* CAMUS. The stone and Sisyphus reference is obvious. It’s also an absurd workout. But each round, Sisyphus is gifted with the armor of absurdity, prostrates himself in gratitude, and then CHOOSES to roll the stone. And we do this until we die. And after 5 minutes of ABCs, dying is easy. No joke: this was a monster of a conditioning workout. It was the perfect cherry on top.
Tabata burpees over bar, prisoner squats during the rest times
Notes:
* Quick and simple way to absolutely nuke my legs after an intense squat workout. Trying to jump after a bunch of prisoner squats is quite an experience
A shot of the bruise spreading from my muscle tear. Took a while. Now it's looking nasty
