Training Log: Entry 3631

AM WORKOUT (0510 wake up via Valkyrie’s alarm)

BRIDGE WEEK

20 minutes, EMOM 25 KB swings w/24kg bell

Notes:

• This was another proof of concept test, to see if I could still sleep in on Tuesdays and get in a 500 swing workout. It’s viable.

• That said, this absolutely torched my forearms. I am making sure to NOT death grip the bell, but I imagine a big part of it is just the very short rest periods between rounds. I averaged 20 seconds of recovery between each round here, which was barely enough, and it’s why the swings are far less powerful toward the end, because I’m struggling to hold onto the bell.

• It begs the question of intent, but at the end of this my grip is torched, my heart rate is elevated and I’m breathing hard, so there’s A training effect occurring. I do need to ensure that I’m getting quality contractions on the actual posterior chain.

• I’m glad this is a bridge week and that I’m not wearing a weight belt, because last night I spilled a bunch of hot tea all over my stomach. Had a mug in my hand, my phone rang, I was sitting on my recliner, I went to set the mug down to get my phone out of my pocket, and in the juggle just spilled the contents straight onto my stomach. Got a small burn on my right side. Reminded me of Paul Kelso’s story in Powerlifting Basics Texas Style with the hot coffee down his shorts. Good week for recovery.

• Against my better judgement, I’m continuing the keg carry experiment, and carried 253.5lbs yesterday. It’s heavy, and with my grip getting taxed from the swings, I’m curious how far I can go.

• Tang Soo Do tonight. We have a tournament coming up in October, so we’ll most likely be preparing for that.

 Training Log: Entry 3630

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

BRIDGE WEEK

EMOM KB swings

• 24kg bell

• 20 swings per round

• 25 rounds total

• Chins between rounds

2 mile treadmill walk

• Speed: 3.5

• Incline: 4

• Time: 34:15

Notes:

• This was me piloting my idea of including merging the 10k swing challenge with Tactical Barbell Operator. Based off day 1, it’s doable, but iffy. This was far more fatiguing than I anticipated it being, specifically on my grip, but part of that could also be the chins between sets. I started out too ambitious with 3 per round, and realistically should stick with Dan’s recommendation of 1-2-3-repeat, or possibly just straight 2s across. I’m also contemplating altering my approach and stealing from TB II by doing 4 rounds of swings and 1 full round of rest, but this will extend the time even further. 25 minutes is the sweet spot as far as a time commitment goes, because placing that on top of a TB 1 workout should get me to about 50-55 minutes total. Ultimately, I’m not married to the 10k swing, and if I need to abandon this idea I will, but I’ll give it another day or 2 and see if it has wings.

• Weighed in at 85.0 kg this morning, which is my starting weight to base off for the next 4 weeks. Solid gains from Mass Protocol, and I still have a set of abs after 9 weeks of eating my face off. Already started the nutritional shift by going from 20oz of meat to 16 (technically 17.5 for this morning, but the rest of the week will be 16) and switching from ghee on top of my eggs to a thin smear of our homemade tzatziki sauce. Small changes. Plan is to keep reducing the meat week to week by small amounts.

• Went without the weight vest for the treadmill walk just to really reinforce the bridge week aspect of this. I’m appreciating the lack of load. My right knee feels a lot better as well. As much as I don’t want to admit it, I think the lever belt squat beats the hell out of it. Operator will be a good test of that.

• Keg carry was 252.5 yesterday. It’s still feeling heavy.

• Not as much sleep last night as usual. Stayed up late to watch the Cowboys tie. Went to sleep when it went into overtime: glad I didn’t stay up to watch the whole thing.

 Training Log: Entry 3629

PM WORKOUT (1400)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO (Final Workout)

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 3, Workout 6 (final workout)

Stone of Steel over bar
5 rounds of 1 min on/2 mins off
-160lb stone
-50” bar

Notes:

• Added a round each week for Specificity Bravo, and that seemed to work out well. I got 8-9-8-7-6 with this, battling some equipment issues. I’m planning on keeping this Saturday workout in some capacity through all phases of Tactical Barbell.

• Knees are a little sporty, but nothing I couldn’t handle. This final week was a lot on them. Operator with the front squat will give me a decent break.

• Carried a 250lb keg yesterday, and 251 today. I’m so close to failing that I think I’ll just go until it happens, rather than stop artificially. Effectively, the day I can’t make the trip down and back without stopping is the day the experiment will end. The keg DID feel lighter today after the stone work: like an overwarm.

• I’ll be taking a rest day tomorrow, then start my bridge week/10k swing experiment. That will determine if I go through with the full thing

 Training Log: Entry 3628

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 3, Workout 5 (final lifting workout)

MAIN WORK

Chins (various grips, rest pause as needed)
5x14

DB rows
5x8x150

Axle curls
5x8x88

GHRs
5x8x70

ASSISTANCE

GHR sit ups
3x10

Reverse hyper/band pull aparts superset circuit
3x15x340/3x50

Lateral raise
50x10lb

Notes:

• 1 min rest between chins, rows and GHRs/sit ups, 90 second rest for curls

• I feel like this workout ultimately made lifting 4x a week palatable, since it doesn’t have a big movement in it. Just a chance to get in some bodybuilding and recover from the hard efforts of the week. Meanwhile, it’s the heavier bodybuilding day of the 2, so not having a big movement works, and it means I’m not totally killing myself on the deadlift day.

• DB rows are just stupidly heavy at this weight. Not as good of a mind muscle connection, but sometimes that brute force work is good for me as well.

• Really good pump from the chins.

• Final night of sparring in Tang Soo Do last night. Got in 3 matches, 2 with junior students and one with the Valkyrie. Highlight was my second match, dude had a predictable pattern where, if he was ever down a point, he would charge in first thing the next round to try to score a quick point by surprise. Everyone else always falls for it, and since I knew it was coming, I just shoved out a push kick at the start of the match and he speared himself on it. It ended with my heel crashing right into his knee and completely immobilized him. My instructor also commented on my stance, saying “I know I’m not going to take the boxer out of you, and I don’t think I want to. It works for you, and it has real world application, which I can appreciate”. Was good to hear us on the same wavelength.

• Keg carry last night was 248.5. Today will make 250, which will be 75lbs from the start of the experiment. It’s getting heavy, but I can still make it happen.

 Training Log: Entry 3627

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 3, Workout 4

MAIN WORK

SSB Squat
4x8x325

Lever Belt Squat
4x8x272.5

Axle strict press from rack
3x8x153
1x6+1(failed 8th)x153

(3) DB incline bench
4x8x80s

Dips
2x8x80
1x7x80
1x6+2x80

ASSISTANCE

Ab wheel
1x10+10 second plank

Notes:

• Rest times all over. 1:30, 1:45 and 2:00 for the squats, 90 seconds for the lever belt, 2:00 for the press, 1:30, 1:45 and 2:00 for the incline, and 90 seconds for the dips.

• Much like yesterday, I have no idea how I succeeded here, but I’m glad I did. This is a huge gain in the course of a year, having me add 50lbs to my work set weight with a harder bar AND shorter rest periods. It took a lot out of me, and that bridge week and program shift are going to be well timed.

• Ran into some failures on the pressing, primarily due to a lack of rest time. I was a little behind the 8-ball timewise this morning. Same reason the ab work was reduced.

• Sparring last night had me going up against a senior student and one of our senior black belts, along with some free sparring. Trying out some new strategies and trying to work more combos. Was a good workout. One more of those tonight.

• Yesterday’s Keg carry was 247.5lbs. It felt heavy, but manageable.

• Weighed in at 84.7kg this morning, which will serve as my final weigh in for Mass Protocol and the baseline I’ll measure against during Operator. I don’t have goals for a specific bodyweight, I’m just eating for performance, but I DO need to be under 185lbs for the weigh in on 7 Dec.

 Training Log: Entry 3626

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 3, Workout 3

MAIN WORK

(4) Texas Deadlift Bar Mat Pulls
11+5+4x455

DB rows
5x8x140

Axle curls
5x8x83

GHRs
5x8x60

ASSISTANCE

GHR sit ups
3x10

Reverse hyper/band pull apart superset circuits
3x15x340/3x50

Notes:

• 1 min of rest on rows, GHRs and GHR sit ups, 90 seconds on curls.

• I legitimately do NOT know how I managed those mat pulls. I wasn’t feeling particular weak or beat up today, but those pulls were just plain heavy, and I approached it with a goal of just getting 10 on the first pull and figuring it out from there. Breaking it off the mats the very time felt ridiculous, but somehow I found myself with plenty of strength to get through the reps. Very light taps on the mats. I’m rediscovering that “other gear” in me that, as long as I can get the bar a millimeter off the mats, I can move it to lockout. It’s great to feel strong again.

• Wore the strongman belt for most of the workout after that, because having my back warm and compressed felt good.

• No chins between sets. This morning, I found that my right elbow was showing some of those warning signs of getting beat up, and chins tend to be something that accelerate that. I’ve got Friday to really get these in. Part of me imagines it’s the keg carry that is doing this.

• On that note, 246lbs moved VERY well yesterday compared to the past 3 carries.

• Tang Soo Do sparring was a bit of a mixed bag. I got to go up against one of our adult black belts who has been out due to wrist surgery for a few months. It’s rare I get to spar someone larger than me. He has no cardio at all, and I pushed the pace to make him uncomfortable, but ended up fouling out. I got in a very nice hook kick to the head that made too much contact, and then caused him to panic twice, which resulted in him spinning out while I had launched a strike, getting me called on 2 strikes to the back, giving me 3 fouls. Not a way I want to lose a match, but I was pleased with how I was able to control the pace of the match.

• On that note, I signed up for another grappling competition on 7 Dec. Since I’ll have turned 40 by then, I’m no longer a Masters athlete, but instead in the “Directors” division. Here’s hoping a few more old dudes sign up.

 Training Log: Entry 3625

AM WORKOUT (0510 wake up via Valkyrie’s alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 3, Workout 2

“ROWER RESET 20s”

5 rounds on the rower of

• 20 seconds max effort

• 2 minutes rest

8 minute recovery row

Notes:

• Final one of these for the cycle. Output was solid and recovery was on point in the 2 minutes. Used up the remainder of the time for a recovery row to meet the objective of “no more than 20 minutes of training”.

• This still felt restorative on my body, despite being a hard effort. My right knee, in particular, is feeling much better than yesterday. I’m having a “good knee day”. Ultimately, I believe I have some form of quadricep tendinosis based off some self-diagnosis. My annual physical is coming up soon and I’m hoping to get some imaging done.

• Keg carry was 245lbs yesterday. It’s definitely getting heavy. I’m glad I’m wearing the SHD knee sleeves, as I can feel this is beating up my knees a bit.

• Tang Soo Do tonight, and it’s sparring. Always a treat.

• This is the final week of gaining, and then I’ll go into 4 weeks of leaning out before back on the cycle. This has probably been my most successful concentrated gaining block ever, as far as body composition goes. I’ve gained 7lbs in 9 weeks, and though my abs have filled out, I haven’t gained the love handles I typically get nor the lower belly paunch. My weight belt still fits well, and pretty much all my typical indicators of getting “overfat” haven’t triggered like they typically would around this point. I feel like I’ve stumbled across something solid turning the maximum definition diet into a gaining diet. As far as training goes, with Wed Squat day I’ll be squatting 325 with a SSB for sets of 8, whereas when I started Tactical Barbell a year ago I was squatting 275 with a buffalo bar for the same reps, so that’s a 50lb gain with a harder bar. Helps put things in perspective. Sure, I haven’t actually hit the squat yet, but it’s there waiting for me. And even without that, I got 305 with 1 minute rests vs 275 with 2 minute rests, so STILL some solid growth.

 Training Log: Entry 3624

AM WORKOUT (0358 natural wake up)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 3, Workout 1

MAIN WORK

SSB squat
4x8x305

Lever belt squat
4x8x255

Axle strict press from rack
4x8x143

(3) DB incline bench
4x8x75s

Dips
2x8x67.5
2x7+1x67.5

ASSISTANCE

Standing Ab Wheel
3x10

Lateral raise dropset
35x10, 10x5, 10x2.5, 10xEmpty Hands

Band pull aparts
30

Chins throughout workout

Notes:

• 1 min rest on all lower body. Went 90-105-120 seconds on the axle, 60-90-105 seconds on the incline bench, and 60-60-90 on the dips.

• Kept the weight the same on the dips as last workout, but got it done in a shorter timeframe, so it’s a density PR.

• Fought HARD to keep those squats at a minute rest. 3 weeks is definitely my limit on the SSB: it’s taking a lot out of me.

• My shoulders were smoked, so I kept the lateral raise reps pretty low today.

• I’m in a weird place where I’m excited at the prospect of training by don’t want to actually DO the training. Growing is awesome, and I love how strong I’m getting through this process since I’m actually eating to gain, but these training days are brutal. I’m looking forward to Operator, slimming down, longer rest and fewer reps.

• Weighed in at 84.8kg this morning: gaining is going real well. This marks a 3.2kg gain from the start of Mass Protocol. Coincides with my family meal yesterday of spaghetti with piedmontese beef meat sauce, some local Italian bread fried in ghee, and 5 of the Valkyrie’s cookies with some raw local honey and some fairlife skim milk.

• Keg carry was 243.5lb yesterday. It moved VERY slow. Part of that was just being late in the evening: was busy and forgot I needed to get this done. I am thinking that it might be time to wrap up the experiment at the very end of the Mass Protocol. That will be 9 weeks in and about 75lbs added from the start. I can reset the weight while I’m doing Operator so that, by the time I cycle back up to Mass Protocol, I can start pushing the weight again.

 Training Log: Entry 3623

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 2, Workout 5

MAIN WORK

Chins (various grips)
5x13 (rest pause as needed)

DB rows
5x10x130

Axle curls
5x10x76

GHRs
5x10x50

ASSISTANCE

GHR sit ups
3x10

Reverse hyper/band pull apart superset circuit (no rest)
3x15x340/3x50

Lateral raise stripset
35x10, 35x5, 35x2.5, 35xEmpty Hands

Notes:

• 1 minute rest for all except curls, which were 90 seconds.

• For chins, I got through the first 2 sets without rest pause, then got to rep 7 of all other sets before needing to rest pause. 5 total reps over previous week.

• This workout really works well for the overall programming structure. By this point of the week, I’m pretty beat up, and a day without any heavy spinal or knee loading is refreshing, while still being challenging enough and getting me a solid pump through the posterior chain. Especially felt my lats lit up after the chins before moving to the rows.

• Tang Soo Do was another solid workout last night, and 3 nights of that in a row added up.

• Keg carry yesterday was 240lbs. It was raining, so I had to move slower than I would like to.

 Training Log: Entry 3622

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 2, Workout 4

MAIN WORK

SSB Squat
4x10x283

Lever belt squat
4x10x237.5

Axle strict press from rack
3x10x133
1x8+2x133

(3) DB incline bench
4x10x70s

Dips
10x67.5
2x8x67.5
1x8+2+2+2x67.5

ASSISTANCE

Standing ab wheel
1x10 w/10 second plank on final rep

Chins through workout

Notes:

• 1 min rest on first 3 sets of squats, then 90 seconds. 1 min for all lever belt. 2 minutes on axle. 1:30, 1:45, 1:55 on DB bench. 2 minutes on dips.

• There is certainly a reality where I could have gotten all 4 sets of squats with just 1 minute of rest between sets, but I imagine it would have taken more out of me and compromised the remainder of the workout. It’s what I dig about this protocol: I make the first day as strict as possible so I have room to stretch out on the second day.

• Because of all the slightly longer rest periods, I had to cut the ab work short at the end, so I held a plank on the final rep to make it suck more.

• For the dips, I rest paused to get all the remaining reps. I’m going to keep that weight for next week, since it’s sets of 8, and see if I can do it with shorter rest periods.

• Weighed in at 83.4kg this morning, which is my more traditional weigh in day. That’s a delta of .7kg from Monday.

• Keg carry yesterday was 238.5lbs. It’s definitely feeling heavy on the return trip, although carrying it on deadlift day will typically feel heavy.

• Tang Soo Do was a decent workout last night. Final night of it tonight.

 Training Log: Entry 3621

AM WORKOUT (0333 natural wake up, snoozed until 0400)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 2, Workout 3

MAIN WORK

(5) Texas Deadlift Bar Mat Pulls
11+5+5x455

DB rows
5x10x120

Axle curls
5x10x70

GHRs
5x10x40

ASSISTANCE

GHR sit up
3x10

Reverse hyper/band pull apart superset circuit (no rest, back and forth)
3x15x340/3x50

Notes:

• 1 minute rest between sets of everything, except 90 seconds for final set of curls

• The mat pulls were in an interesting place, where the weight felt heavy on all the warm-ups, and I acknowledged that it was heavy during the work sets, but it moved easier than it did last week. No pain either. It was as though I had it in my head that it was going to feel so heavy that it managed to just be reasonable when the time came to perform. Goal was 10 reps on the first pull and I got 11. Blew out a bunch of blood vessels in my shoulders as well. Like old times. I feel my strength coming back well.

• Weight belt is still fitting well this deep into gaining, and I’m not looking sloppy. Feel like I’ve really landed on something solid here.

• Weighed in at 83.7kg this morning: .4 drop from Monday. I typically weigh in on Thurs, but we’re getting a break in heat today, so I figured today would be my closest to a post-sweat weigh in that I typically got on Thursdays.

• Tang Soo Do was a solid workout last night. Tonight should be similar. Sprained my thumb on my left hand either in class or in my sleep: it’s swollen, but not enough to impact training.

• Keg carry yesterday was 237.5lbs. It felt pretty light, but the return trips are getting slower and slower.

 Training Log: Entry 3620

AM WORKOUT (0510 wake up via Valkyrie’s alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 2, Workout 2

“ROWER RESET 20S”

5 rounds on the rower

• 20 seconds max effort

• 2 minutes rest

8 minute cooldown row

Notes:

• Much better power output today compared to last week: I got back into the groove. Was actually pulling the rower off the floor with my strokes. Also was able to shave a minute off the final rest time compared to last week and still get in the power output.

• My body feels a lot better after these days. Good restorative effect between the power work and the cooldown. I abide by the “no more than 20 minutes” rule and use that to determine my cooldown time.

• Keg carry yesterday was 236lbs.

• Tang So Do tonight. It’s “Wildcard cardio” week, so should be a decent workout. I haven’t achieved my 10k step goal over the past 3 days, so it’ll be good to get in some extra activity.

 Training Log: Entry 3619

AM WORKOUT (0402 natural wake up: didn’t set my first alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 2, Workout 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcvpPnGlK48

MAIN WORK

SSB squat
4x10x260

Lever belt squat
4x10x205

Axle strict press from rack
3x10x123
1x8+2x123

(3) DB incline bench
4x10x65s

Dips
10x55
9x55
10x55
8+3x55

ASSISTANCE

Standing ab wheel
3x10

Lateral raises
50x10

Chins throughout workout

Notes:

• Rest 1 minute between sets for the lower body work. Went 60-90-120 on the axle, 60-75-75 on the DB, and 60-120-120 on the dips.

• The squats remain a total ball buster but still within my capabilities. The pressing is challenging. Rest paused as needed.

• Keg carry was 235lbs yesterday.

• Weighed in at 84.1kg this morning. I’m keeping quite lean through this gaining process this time. Think the 2 meal a day approach has paired well.

• Last night was the family meal. We reheated the baked spaghetti from last week, alongside some bread fried in ghee, 3 sunny side up eggs, and 5 of the Valkyrie’s peanut butter oatmeal cookies with some local raw honey and some fairlife skim milk.

• This is log worthy: our grocery store had a special of $.99 per pound of pork shoulder. I picked up 3, ranging from 8.5-9lbs. We already have one on the pressure cooker for tonight, and the Valkyrie says we may just have to do weekly kalua pigs to make use of this deal. That’s a good situation to be in. Suffice it to say, pork is going to continue being a regular in the rotation.

 Training Log: Entry 3618

PM WORKOUT (1930)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 1, Workout 6

Stone of Steel over bar

Notes:

• 160lb stone, 50” bar, 3 rounds of 1 min on/2 minutes off

• Got 8 reps in the first round, 9 in the final 2

• Technique felt sharp. I was exhausted today, as I drove 5 hours total so we could go see a new puppy we’re planning on getting. 2.5 hours down, see the pup for an hour, 2.5 hours back, then dinner and got this done.

• Keg carry yesterday was 232.5lbs. Did the keg carry right after this workout with 233.5. The keg felt light, after the stone work.

 Training Log: Entry 3617

AM WORKOUT (0357 natural wake up)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 1, Workout 5

MAIN WORK

Chins (various grips)
5x12 (rest pause as needed)

DB rows
5x12x110

Axle curls
5x12x66

GHRs
5x12x30

ASSISTANCE

GHR sit up
3x10

Reverse hyper/band pull apart superset
3x15x340/3x50

Lateral raise dropset
35x10, 35x5, 35x2.5, 35xEmpty hands

Notes:

• Took 1 min rest on everything except for the curls, which were 90 seconds.

• For the chins, I got through the first 2 sets without rest pause, and then rest paused as needed for the remainder, but was able to at least get through 7 reps before needing to break. I’m deciding between add weight and adding reps for the follow on.

• This was a good training day in general. It’s weird not having a “big” lift, but it felt good as far as sparing my body weight. No spinal loading, and no knee flexion work, so my body gets a little break but I still got a pretty solid pump.

• I woke up fantastically sore. Novel stimulus is still working.

• Very decent pump from the chins. Curls were tough. Felt some good hamstring cramping on the GHRs.

• Another low intensity night at Tang Soo Do, but high IQ sorta stuff. It’s fun learning new material with the new belt.

• Keg carry was 231lbs yesterday, and felt much lighter than yesterday’s 230lbs I carry this thing down my driveway and then back up, which means it’s a slight downhill incline down and uphill incline up. I’m feeling that incline a lot more these days…

• Forecasting the future, I have a bridge week and then 3 weeks of Operator coming up, and I think I may actually use those 4 weeks to do the 10k swing challenge as my conditioning work for Operator. It should slot well: just do the swings and bodyweight work for the bridge week, and then do swings and bodyweight work after the lifting of Operator. I can then also do swings and a ruck for conditioning and then some sort of swing based HIC. I’m liking this idea because it reduces decision fatigue, and gives me a chance to actually run the challenge legit for once. We’ll see, but so far it’s where I’m leaning.

• Another decent back shot for the thumbnail. I’ve been eating my face off for 7 weeks and haven’t put on any appreciable bodyfat: that’s pretty awesome.

 Training Log: Entry 3616

AM WORKOUT (0355 natural wake up)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 1, Workout 3

MAIN WORK

SSB squat
4x12x240

Lever belt squat
4x12x200

Axle strict press from rack
3x12x113
1x10+2x113

(3) DB incline bench
4x12x60s

Dips
3x12x30
1x10+2x30

ASSISTANCE

Standing ab wheel
3x10

Chins throughout workout

Notes:

• Phone ran out of memory: full workout not captured. But I got the squats, and those were the most brutal part.

• 1 minute rest for all the lower body work. For the press, went 90 seconds, 1:45 and 2:00 respectively. For the incline, went 60-90-1:45. For the dips, went 90-120-120.

• Strict 1 minute rests between those squats is absolutely brutal. I’m a big fan of what that brings to the table as far as new stimulus goes. For a 3 week wave, this is definitely valuable.

• Kept those rests short on the first workout for this exact situation: was able to push the rests a little longer while still staying within program parameters. The pressing was challenging, but should be beneficial.

• That pinched nerve in my back has resolved thankfully.

• Last night’s Tang Soo Do was light on activity again but high on learning. Another night tonight should round us out.

• Keg carry was 230lbs yesterday. It felt heavy, but that tends to be the case when I do it on the day I do deadlifts.

• Weighed in at 83.6kg this morning. Thursday was typically my lighter weigh in, because it was after 90 minutes of walking, but that’s changed with this program. I’m still including it, because it’s 4 days post carb load and a decent enough data point.

 Training Log: Entry 3615

AM WORKOUT (0352 wake up via alarm, snooze until 0400)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 1, Workout 3

MAIN WORK

(6) Texas Deadlift bar Mat Pulls
11+5+5x455

DB rows
5x12x100

Axle curls
5x12x60

GHRs
5x12x20.4

ASSISTANCE

GHR sit ups
3x10

Reverse hyper/band pull apart superset circuit (no rest, just back and forth)
3x12x340/3x50

Chins throughout workout

Notes:

• 1 minute rest between all movements.

• Went with 5 sets here, since I’m doing 1 fewer movement than my push day. Timed out about the same, so that works well.

• Those mat pulls had a tough start, but not a painful one, which is a big difference. The follow-up pulls on the sets of 5 felt stronger. The weight feels heavy in general, but a part of that is that I’m not taking a deload between cycles. Instead, my bridge week will hit at the end of this cycle of Specificity, so right in the middle of the cycle.

• Pinched a nerve in my upper back on my left side at some point. Felt it during the rows. Minorly annoying. I’m dealing with sprained fingers on that same side, so I’ve got some nerve dysfunction going on in general.

• Didn’t get footage of the reverse hypers, just because I was dealing with some technical issues.

• Tang Soo Do had us learning new material last night, which was fun. We’ll reinforce tonight.

• Keg carry yesterday was 228.5lbs.

 Training Log: Entry 3614

AM WORKOUT (0510 wake up via Valkyrie’s alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 1, Workout 2

“REST 20s” rower

5 rounds of 20 seconds max intensity

5 minute low intensity cooldown.

Notes:

2 minutes rest between first 4 rounds, 3 minutes for final round. Emphasis was on being fully recovered and able to give maximum effort for the 20 seconds, making it a for real sprint. I need a few more sessions to really dial in my ability to do that: it’s been a while since I’ve really gone to town on the rower.

I was divided between this and Fobbits, but decided the latter was a bit too similar to what I’ve been doing for the past training block and wanted to introduce something new. The change in stimulus should be good. Meanwhile, the cooldown still gives me a recovery effect.

Keg carry last night was 227.5lbs. I went with my Elitefts SHD knee sleeves this time.

Just one day on specificity and already my connective tissue feels better. I’m sore muscularly, but not beat down like I’ve been. It’s a good change.

Tang Soo Do tonight. It’s one-steps week, which tends to be pretty light in activity.

 Training Log: Entry 3613

AM WORKOUT (0350 natural wake up, snoozed until 0400)

TACTICAL BARBELL SPECIFICITY BRAVO

Operation MILO Cycle 3, Week 1, Workout 1

MAIN WORK

SSB Squat
4x12x215

Lever belt squat
4x12x182.5

Axle strict press from rack
3x12x103
1x10+2x103 (rest pause)

(3) DB incline bench
4x12x55s

Dips
4x12x15

ASSISTANCE

Standing ab wheel
3x10

Lateral raise dropset
35x10, 35x5, 35x2.5, 35xEmpty Hands

Band pull aparts
50

Chins throughout workout

Notes:

• 1 minute rest between sets, except for final set of strict press and incline bench (90 seconds rest)

• I have missed strict 1 minute rest between hard sets of main lifts. It’s a different kind of challenge, and keeps me sharp and honest. The light weights are a good break for my body as well. And it’s why I’m such a big fan of this system in general, because after this cycle I’ll swing into Operator, where it will be heavy with longer rests.

• Went with 4 sets with everything just to see how my time shook out at the end. As you can see with all the assistance work at the end, I had ample time, which means I can do more sets next time and/or take longer rests as things get heavy. My strategy is to take as little rest as possible as early as I can so that I have room to rest longer as things get harder. I’m also figuring on hitting more sets on the lighter workouts so I can do fewer sets on the heavier. Lots of room to maneuver.

• Since I’m already doing 3 kinds of pressing exercises, I cut out flat bench. It makes the most sense from a logistics standpoint, as you can see the set-up I’m working with. I’ve contemplated adding another lower body lift, but Jim Wendler said something recently that has resonated with my own training history, and that is that the lower body just doesn’t seem to need as much assistance as the upper body to grow, and when we slam it with too much, it has the reverse effect.

• Weighed in at 83.5kg this morning. Really enjoyed the family meal yesterday: bacon cheeseburger alfredo casserole, using pancetta, piedmontese 93% lean grassfed beef, drum wheat pasta, grassfed cheddar, and some good quality cream, alongside 2 biscuits with grassfed butter and raw local honey and then 5 of the Valkyrie’s homemade cookies with some more honey and some fairlife skim milk. In terms of “all things health”, I’ve noticed how much I look forward to my Sundays now, where I take a day off of training and enjoy a meal that we all cook together as a family, whereas before I had to really talk myself into these days. It’s a nice place to be in.

• Keg carry was 226lbs yesterday. Felt light.

• My back looks pretty awesome in that thumbnail.

 Training Log: Entry 3612

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL GREY MAN (FINAL LIFTING WORKOUT)

Operation MILO Cycle 2, Week 3, Workout 5

MAIN CLUSTER

Buffalo bar squat (low bar)
5x3x340

Axle strict press from rack
5x3x163

SUPPLEMENTAL CLUSTER

(3) DB incline bench
4x8x70s

DB row
4x8x125

GHRs
4x8x50s

ASSISTANCE

GHR sit ups
3x10

Lateral raise
50x10lb

Chins throughout workout

Notes:

• Was dragging this morning. Felt some allergies before bed, popped Benadryl and was still feeling it in the morning. Valkyrie also reminded me that we did lunges in Tang Soo Do on Wed, and they really had my knees wrecked (I appreciate Dan John’s sentiment that those who can do lunges don’t need to do lunges, and those who can’t shouldn’t), so I was just beat. Knowing that this was the final workout gave me some consolation, and once I started things felt better.

• Went up to the full 5 sets for the squat and the press. The squats were slow, but form was solid, and press was strong.

• Didn’t have the bandwidth for my full on lateral raise work, but getting in some work felt good.

• Keg carry last night was 222.5lbs. Tang Soo Do was a moderate workout.

• Valkyrie and I are going out tonight for that whole hog live fire dinner. May not post any photos for Operation MILO, but I’ll be eating well between pulled pork, open fire grilled chicken, and possibly some off menu items as well.

 Training Log: Entry 3611

AM WORKOUT (0356 natural wake up)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL GREY MAN

Operation MILO Cycle 2, Week 3, Workout 4

“GO RUCK YOURSELF”

Treadmill walk w/20.4lb tac carrier

Speed: 3.5 mphIncline: 4.0Distance: 5 milesTime: 1hr 25min 45sec

Notes:

Woke up feeling really stiff. Combination of heavy deadlifts and a solid Tang Soo Do class last night. When I first joined, the demands of the martial art were pretty light, but as we’re getting more advanced more is being demanded of us. 3 nights in a row has me pretty stiff by the end of the week. The walk, in turn, tends to be pretty tonic.

Digestion seems to finally be in a better place. Was rough the past few days.

Weighed in at 81.1 post workout, which is pretty low. This week has been a bit unique in terms of food, so I’m not going to be too concerned about it, but something to keep an eye on. Plan is 3 more weeks of gaining with specificity, then 4 weeks of leaning out with a combination of bridge week and Operator, then back to gaining.

Keg carry was 221lbs yesterday.

 Training Log: Entry 3610

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL GREY MAN

Operation MILO Cycle 2, Week 3, Workout 3

MAIN CLUSTER

Axle bench press
5x3x246

Texas Deadlift Bar Deadlifts
10x440/200kg

SUPPLEMENTAL CLUSTER

Lever belt squat
4x8x230

Dip/axle curl superset
4x8x70/76

ASSISTANCE

Reverse hyper/standing ab wheel superset
3x15x320/3x10

Chins throughout workout

Notes:

• I was excited for this training session, which is a great sign. This is my first early morning session since Thursday of last week: I’ve had a lot of opportunities to sleep in. Despite 0400 coming earlier than I remember, I was feeling strong and able, and it shone through on the deadlifts, which were the highlight of the workout.

• I set a goal of 10 and achieved it, and shut it down at that point. I am pretty confident I could have fought for another rep, and 12 would have matched what I’ve been pulling all cycle, but this one particular workout wasn’t going to make me stronger: it was all the work leading up to it that mattered. This was more the realization of that effort, and it’s a 15lb PR from last cycle, so that’s just outstanding. To move more weight easier is exactly the goal.

• I moved my body closer to the lever belt, and it helped take some pressure off my knee.

• Keg carry yesterday was 220lbs.

• Tang Soo Do wasn’t too stressful last night, but we got all the way through our new hyung, which impressed our instructor. He talked about how our whole family is timing out to test for black belt at the same time, and he’s never had that before. I’m happy for him that we can do that.

• Digestion has been off these past few days. Wondering if Texas Roadhouse is to blame.

• Weighed 83.3kg this morning. Wednesday is an atypical weigh in day for me, but schedule is different this week, and tonight we’re doing a ham for dinner, so sodium load is going to be higher than usual for tomorrow’s weigh in. Getting data points where I can.

 Training Log: Entry 3609

AM WORKOUT (0510 wake up via Valkyrie’s alarm)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL GREY MAN

Operation MILO Cycle 2, Week, 3, Workout 2

“ROW ROW ROW YOUR BLOAT”

21 minute recovery row

Notes:

• Had a rough time sleeping last night. Was overheating and felt like I had some heart burn. Curious if all the pork is reacting poorly. I suppose this week will be an experiment in that.

• My joints feel awesome though. Inflammation is reduced, and this recovery row really hit the spot.

• We’ve been doing a little extra Tang Soo Do practice at home these past few nights, learning our new hyungs. We have a tournament in mid-October we want to be prepared for. We’ll have a legit class tonight.

• Keg carry yesterday was 218.5lbs.

 Training Log: Entry 3608

AM WORKOUT (1000)

TACTICAL BARBELL MASS PROTOCOL GREY MAN

Operation MILO Cycle 2, Week 3, Workout 1

MAIN CLUSTER

Buffalo Bar Squat (higher bar)
4x3x340

Axle strict press from rack
4x3x163

SUPPLEMENTAL CLUSTER

(3) Incline DB bench
4x8x70s

DB rows
4x8x125

GHRs
4x8x50lb vest

ASSISTANCE

GHR sit up
3x10

Chins throughout workout

Notes:

• Have the day off for Labor day, so slept in with the Valkyrie, fasted through breakfast while we went for a donut run, and got this done when I got home. It was nice to have a few more hours to let my hips and knees warm up.

• Triples week is always nice. Goes by fast and I feel strong. I had the bar really high up on the squats and still felt solid. Elbows appreciated it.

• Didn’t do the chins between warm ups sets, to make the workout go faster, so I could get back with the family.

• Yesterday’s keg carry was 217.5. It’s been raining a ton, so I’ll see what carry conditions are like later today.