Training Log: Entry 3405

AM WORKOUT (0419 natural wake up, slept in)

**OPERATION CONAN** Spec Ops Insertion Phase

*Tactical Barbell Mass Protocol* Specialization Bravo, Cycle 1, Week 1, Workout 3

WARM UP

Roll out on LAX ball

50x90 reverse hyper

2 minutes of light jogging

HIC

7 hill sprints w/2 minutes rest

Cooldown walk

2:45 hang from bar

BREAKFAST

Moderate walk w/dogs

Notes:

* Landed on hill sprints for my break-in HIC on Specialization Bravo.  My 4 options were “Anabolic Sprints”, which is sprinting for 30m, “Reset 20s”, which is a 20 second all out effort on some sort of exercise, Hill Sprints, and Fobbits (2 minutes light jog interrupted with 10kb swings for a total of 20 minutes).  I can see all of those making it into the rotation, but hill sprints were easily accessible and seemed like they carried less risk of hamstring borking compared to jumping straight into full on sprinting.  Having the hill to catch each step along the way helps.

* Was still figuring out distance/timing on this, as K. Black lays out a 10-20 second effort for this.  My first run was 40 seconds, so I found a different landmark to use and got in sprints that were right at the 20 second mark.  From there, it was about re-learning the difference between a sprint and a hard run.  The very last round was probably my best one.  With the 15 minute cap for the workout, I managed to get in 7 runs, resting right at 2 minutes in between.  My heart rate never got above 90, but with a RHR of 36-40, that seems significant enough.  

* In general, felt good to do this.  Felt athletic.  It’s very hard to not totally bury myself with each and every workout, but I am really wanting to give this program it’s due diligence and lay it out exactly as written.  Trust the process.  I may allow myself a deviation and break out the prowler for some sprint sessions at some point, but I feel like that still meets intent.

* I do appreciate that I’m getting in some higher intensity conditioning now, after all the time spent walking.  In general, it’s awesome to have periodization built in, and with my grappling competition coming up on 8 Dec, these will be valuable reps. 

* My whole body is quite sore.  Really digging the novel response here.  Lower back is a little fatigued as well, which has me thinking to break out the belt for tomorrow’s squat session.  And, in turn, I think that’s a great battle rhythm there: start the week beltless, with the lightest workout, and finish it with a belt.

* I found a strongman competition on 12 Apr right here in my town that I am very excited for.  It’s car deadlift for reps, press medley of keg, axle and log (final implement for reps), 3 sandbags over bar, a carry medley and stone over bar.  There’s only one event there that I don’t care for (sandbag), but it’s my favorite variety OF that event, and car deadlift and carry medleys are totally my jam.  I like the press implements (no circus dumbbell), and I’m always done for stones, as long as I don’t get glued to it.  The weights are lighter as well, and I should have no issue making weight with it in my town: I can actually weigh in the day before.  For some reason, the site won’t let me sign up right now, but as soon as I can, I will: one of the few instances where we don’t have anything on our schedule that day.

* Double sparring night last night was a mixed bag.  We crashed the junior class for the first round, so I got in 2 rounds of teaching junior trainees, restricting myself to hands only and working footwork, but I got to square off against the Valkyrie in the final round, and since I’m lighter on my feet these days, I played around with a lot of kicks.  She was able to get in 1 point and hold on until the match ended, crowning her champion for the night.  In the advanced class, I went up against the kiddo on the very first round, and they need the reps far more than I do, so I gave them a good fight, still restricting myself to hands, and let them get in the final point at the end so they could advance to the second round and square off against our resident Dojang champion.  From there, I watched them score a point on a body punch, which is just awesome.  And after the in school tournament was finished, we did a “King of the Ring” kumite style approach for the rest of the evening, which gave me a chance to get in a few more reps.  Same thing happened with the junior class.  In general, it was a good enough workout.

* For such a short workout, this is a long post, but other information was I was the one that ended up making the carb up meal last night.  Valkyrie’s work consumed her and I told her I would handle it.  I whipped up some 4 cheese tortellini with bison meatsauce and garlic bread, and added some sides of 4 sunny side up pastured eggs alongside some sardines for myself to get in a little more protein and fats.  Also rescued 4 pieces of leftover “birthday cake” I had in the freezer from my birthday: pumpkin oatmeal cookie bars, which I topped with some raw honey alongside a mug of fairlife skim milk for dessert.  The big thing is I’m really appreciating where I’m at with eating these days.  Left to my own devices, I’d never cook pasta for myself, as I do simply prefer meat, but I was delighted to cook it for my family and to share in the meal with them.   I know in the past there’d be some resentment and fear about “having to” eat this, but this was just another meal.  It was special because it WASN’T special.  Also, I was pretty proud of myself for making all of that food in 20 minutes, while wearing my “Spam and Eggs” apron I got from the spam museum.    

AM WORKOUT (0419 natural wake up, slept in)

**OPERATION CONAN** Spec Ops Insertion Phase

*Tactical Barbell Mass Protocol* Specialization Bravo, Cycle 1, Week 1, Workout 3

WARM UP

Roll out on LAX ball

50x90 reverse hyper

2 minutes of light jogging

HIC

7 hill sprints w/2 minutes rest

Cooldown walk

2:45 hang from bar

BREAKFAST

Moderate walk w/dogs

Notes:

* Landed on hill sprints for my break-in HIC on Specialization Bravo.  My 4 options were “Anabolic Sprints”, which is sprinting for 30m, “Reset 20s”, which is a 20 second all out effort on some sort of exercise, Hill Sprints, and Fobbits (2 minutes light jog interrupted with 10kb swings for a total of 20 minutes).  I can see all of those making it into the rotation, but hill sprints were easily accessible and seemed like they carried less risk of hamstring borking compared to jumping straight into full on sprinting.  Having the hill to catch each step along the way helps.

* Was still figuring out distance/timing on this, as K. Black lays out a 10-20 second effort for this.  My first run was 40 seconds, so I found a different landmark to use and got in sprints that were right at the 20 second mark.  From there, it was about re-learning the difference between a sprint and a hard run.  The very last round was probably my best one.  With the 15 minute cap for the workout, I managed to get in 7 runs, resting right at 2 minutes in between.  My heart rate never got above 90, but with a RHR of 36-40, that seems significant enough.  

* In general, felt good to do this.  Felt athletic.  It’s very hard to not totally bury myself with each and every workout, but I am really wanting to give this program it’s due diligence and lay it out exactly as written.  Trust the process.  I may allow myself a deviation and break out the prowler for some sprint sessions at some point, but I feel like that still meets intent.

* I do appreciate that I’m getting in some higher intensity conditioning now, after all the time spent walking.  In general, it’s awesome to have periodization built in, and with my grappling competition coming up on 8 Dec, these will be valuable reps. 

* My whole body is quite sore.  Really digging the novel response here.  Lower back is a little fatigued as well, which has me thinking to break out the belt for tomorrow’s squat session.  And, in turn, I think that’s a great battle rhythm there: start the week beltless, with the lightest workout, and finish it with a belt.

* I found a strongman competition on 12 Apr right here in my town that I am very excited for.  It’s car deadlift for reps, press medley of keg, axle and log (final implement for reps), 3 sandbags over bar, a carry medley and stone over bar.  There’s only one event there that I don’t care for (sandbag), but it’s my favorite variety OF that event, and car deadlift and carry medleys are totally my jam.  I like the press implements (no circus dumbbell), and I’m always done for stones, as long as I don’t get glued to it.  The weights are lighter as well, and I should have no issue making weight with it in my town: I can actually weigh in the day before.  For some reason, the site won’t let me sign up right now, but as soon as I can, I will: one of the few instances where we don’t have anything on our schedule that day.

* Double sparring night last night was a mixed bag.  We crashed the junior class for the first round, so I got in 2 rounds of teaching junior trainees, restricting myself to hands only and working footwork, but I got to square off against the Valkyrie in the final round, and since I’m lighter on my feet these days, I played around with a lot of kicks.  She was able to get in 1 point and hold on until the match ended, crowning her champion for the night.  In the advanced class, I went up against the kiddo on the very first round, and they need the reps far more than I do, so I gave them a good fight, still restricting myself to hands, and let them get in the final point at the end so they could advance to the second round and square off against our resident Dojang champion.  From there, I watched them score a point on a body punch, which is just awesome.  And after the in school tournament was finished, we did a “King of the Ring” kumite style approach for the rest of the evening, which gave me a chance to get in a few more reps.  Same thing happened with the junior class.  In general, it was a good enough workout.

 Training Log: Entry 3404

AM WORKOUT (0359 natural wake up)

**OPERATION CONAN** Spec Ops Insertion Phase

*Tactical Barbell Mass Protocol* Specialization Bravo, Cycle 1, Week 1, Workout 2

WARM UP

Roll out on LAX ball

50x90lb reverse hyper

Sets of 135 and 225 low handle trap bar pull

MAINWORK

Low handle trap bar pulls

4x12x290

NG chins

4x12 (as much rest as needed to complete the reps)

Axle curls

4x12x53

Reverse hyper

4x12x360

GHR

4x12x22.5lb (held behind head)

ASSISTANCE

Standing ab wheel/Band pull apart superset

3x10/20

TOTAL TRAINING TIME: 49 minutes

BREAKFAST

Moderate walk w/dogs

Notes:

* Kept it at strict 1 minute rests again, and really tore through the training with only 5 movements vs 6.  Also, sets of 12 on the trap bar with strict one minute rests SUUUUUCKS.  I remember Dan John mentioning that with his 3x10 protocol.  The first set is fine, second set gets interesting, third set you go looking for your lungs.  Trying to hit the chins after that resulted in a pretty lackluster performance, but that might end up being a feature more than a bug, as chins are the one exercise I’m at peace with taking as long as necessary to get the set done.  I’m still tinkering with movement order for this day: part of me thinks do the pulls at the very end so I can really just blow myself out, part of me thinks start with the pulls and then go GHR and reverse hyper to traction out the back and finish with the chins and curls, and if left to my own devices I’d just do the chins throughout the workout rather than straight sets, but I’m trying my best to comply with the instructions.

* None of that is a critique or concern either.  I’m totally digging the way this is all set up.  I’ve basically created an anterior chain/posterior chain split, and right now my anterior chain muscles are quite sore, which intellectually I understand doesn’t mean anything, but on a bro level it’s always a rewarding feeling.  I dig the way Mass Protocol is set up to constantly provide that novel stimulus effect.  Triceps, shoulders and pecs in particular are showing it, but the quads have come out to play as well.

* GHRs do seem to tax my lower back some.  I’m sure the mega high rep sets I was doing before were part of the reason I had so much fatigue in there.  Consequently, I’m feeling quite awesome these days: fatigue dissipated and I’m a lot lighter on my feet, which is a positive, because we have a double class for Tang Soo Do tonight and it’s sparring night.  It’s been ROUGH trying to kick high with the state I’ve been in, and these past few classes I’ve been able to really unlock with the fatigue gone.

* Tonight should be a carb up night as well.  Should be good for my recovery.  I’m noticing I’m looking flat.

* Really hope ya’ll like Tom Waits “Hell Broke Luce”, because that’s going to be the soundtrack for the rest of this run.  At least youtube doesn’t block that song.

 Training Log: Entry 3403

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

**OPERATION CONAN** Spec Ops Insertion Phase

*Tactical Barbell Mass Protocol* Specialization Bravo-Cycle 1, Week 1, Workout 1

 

WARM UP:

Roll out on LAX ball

50x90 reverse hyper

Jump squats

Sets of bar, 85 and 135 for squats

MAIN WORK:

Buffalo Bar Squat

4x12x205

Belt squat

4x12x180

Axle strict press

4x12x93

Axle bench press

12x146

3x12x136 (racked on rep 11 of set 2, then got the 12th rep)

(3) Incline DB bench

10x50s

3x12x45s

Dips

9x5lb+3BW

3x12xBW (rest as long as needed)

ASSISTANCE

Hanging leg raise/band pull apart superset

3x10/20

TOTAL TRAINING TIME: 50 minutes

BREAKFAST

Short walk w/dogs (got rained out)

Notes:

* Strict 1 minute rests between all sets.  

* Day 1 of the program: feeling out the maxes I’ve selected.  Biggest issue is that they’re “fresh maxes”, and I’m hitting the later movements in later and later stages of fatigue.  It’s a bit like the Deep Water bench day in that regard: something that shouldn’t be a challenge when you’re fresh is pretty damn exhausting when you get to it.  This is why some weights dropped during the program, and I’ll recalculate from there. My structure is also interesting, but by design: I’m leading off with that strict press and THEN benching, so my shoulders are already pretty significantly fatigued, although it was really my triceps that were the most upset with me.

* I’m still on the fence about keeping flat bench in.  I’m hitting 4 different pressing movements here, and when I got to incline my right shoulder (the one with the torn labrum) was barking at me a bit.  I’d rather incline and dip, and the strict press is non-negotiable.  Another option might be to transition to the swiss bar bench instead, which would also speed up my transition time between movements.

* In that regard, I’m pleased with how the execution of this went.  Very little downtime between movements: able to keep that 1 minute rest for the most part.  But this also was a pretty long workout WITH those strict 1 minute rests: I have VERY little time to screw around or rest longer, and getting into 5 sets per movement instead of 4 will compound that, which is another compelling argument to cut out the flat bench.

* I liked the way I was able to hold onto the axle during the belt squats.  I think I’m going to keep that going no matter the situation.  The buffalo bar squats also felt pretty awesome.  With the lighter weight, I’m able to keep better form, more upright posture, which allows me to hit the intended muscles AND not overtax my lower back.  In general, I think this training block is going to be good for me to recover from the hard and heavy work, as I’m feeling pretty damn good after this workout.

* Had a post workout weigh in of 82.8 kg, which is up 1.5 from last week.  I’ve definitely made sure to lean into eating this week.  I do think a fair amount of that is inflammation.  It sucks for me to say, but whenever I eat that full rack of ribs from my favorite BBQ place, I don’t feel as good afterwards compared to when I eat ruminant meat from home.  In the case of the latter, after I’m done, I feel pretty light and will have an appetite by the time morning rolls around.  With the former, I’m pretty heavy/sluggish and don’t want to eat for a while.  It’s less about being satiated and more feeling queasy.  I think it’s a combination of the dry rub and the heavy amount of pork fat I’m consuming in that meal.  We also grabbed Hawaiian BBQ for lunch yesterday, which doesn’t trigger as bad a response, but it definitely killed my appetite afterwards.  It’s been pretty cool to be able to keep tabs on my body’s response to stimulus like this.  Tonight, I have a big chuck roast on the menu, which should help me get right.  Should also be able to get in a few more steps while my kid is at show choir.

 Training Log: Entry 3402

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

**OPERATION CONAN** Occupation Phase

*Tactical Barbell Mass Protocol Grey Man* Cycle 3, Week 3, Workout 3

WARM UP 

Roll out on LAX ball

50x90 reverse hyper

Bodyweight squats, jumps, focus on fast, bouncy knees

Squats w/Bar, 85, 135, 225 and overwarm walkout w/365

MAINWORK

Buffalo Bar Squats

4x3x320

SUPERSET

Axle Strict Press

4x3x143

SUPPLEMENTAL CLUSTER giant set

(3) Incline DB bench

4x8x70s

Weighted NG chins

4x8x20lb

Hanging leg raise

3x10

SUPPLEMENTAL EXERCISE

GHRs

4x10x22.5 (kettlebell held behind head)

TOTAL TRAINING TIME: 40…ish?  Minutes.

BREAKFAST

Short walk w/dogs

Notes:

* Kept rests close to 1 minute on everything.  Didn’t blitz through this quite as fast as Monday, but given the different circumstances (AM vs PM training), I’m pleased with the outcome.

* Gonna bloviate a bit: I woke up feeling absolutely incredible.  No hip pain, lower back fatigue was entirely dissipated, ready to rock.  I DID get to bed late, and didn’t want to get up to train because sleep sounded better, but I went through with it because I wanted to have a Friday evening with my family vs lifting.  That said, once I got into the garage and warmed up, I made probably the most mature decision of my life and STILL wore the belt for the squats despite NOT feeling like I needed it, and it’s because I realized that I had two choices: I could squat without the belt today, re-tax my lower back, and force myself to need that bridge week next week, or I could wear the belt, SPARE my lower back, and then allow myself the option to start Specialization Bravo next week if that was what I wanted.  So I wore the belt: I sacrificed today’s smug satisfaction of “not needing a belt” and beating myself to death for a bigger victory later.  Going with my Operation Conan metaphor, I lost today’s battle so I could win the war, as going beltless would be a true pyrrhic victory.

* On that, this experience with Tactical Barbell has been such an awesome study on the impact of fatigue management as it relates to continued training success.  My decision to alternate my ab work springs to mind, along with the value of the walks between workouts, reduction of conditioning to support continued growth, etc.  And with that, I had a BIG revelation about how the powerbelt fits into my training now.  Belts don’t protect the lower back, but they SPARE the lower back.  I’ve squatted without a belt for nearly 2 years now, and it’s made it so that my core is NOT the weak point in my squat, to the point that I really didn’t feel much stronger wearing the belt today vs not wearing it.  BUT, once the sets were done, my lower back felt a lot less fatigued than usual, and I’m feeling much better post training as well.  Before, my core WAS a limiter, and the belt acted as a band aid, but now I can see it being more a tool to promote training longevity, similar to wearing my knee sleeves to keep the knees warm and compressed.  I was initially training beltless as a means to get out of my head regarding strength “loss” as it correlated with bodyweight dropping, which is the same reason I changed my squatting style, but after 2 years I think I’ve proven whatever point I needed to prove and can bring the belt back into the training plan.  I think I’ll try to save it for the heavier weeks of a program, and still get in some beltless work on the lighter sets, but this can definitely serve as a fatigue management tool that can allow me greater training longevity on the plan, especially if I’m going to keep up my mutant squat style.

  

* One other final observation: I think those 4 sets of 33 GHRs on Monday were also a bit of a culprit for the fatigue I experienced, which is why I added weight this time.  22.5lbs is an unweighted KB handle from Ironmaster, and was just about perfect for sets of 10, so this will bode well for Bravo.  

* After all that other illuminating stuff, the rest of the workout was pretty standard fair.  Happy that I got all the chins without resting.  Tang Soo Do last night was a REALLY solid workout, which has also been a fatigue contributor.

 Training Log: Entry 3401

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

Just realized I never rolled out on the LAX ball….which might actually be a sign I’m feeling pretty good

50x90 reverse hyper

3.5 mile/60 minute treadmill walk at 4.5 incline

2:38 hang from bar (no pull ups)

BREAKFAST

2 mile walk w/dogs

Notes:

* Trying my best to not be Captain Reverse Hyper/Conditioning.  With the lower back fatigue accumulation I’ve developed, I can tell that I’m turning my recovery days into workouts, which is a common trend of mine.  The first step is admitting you have a problem.   I always like to refer to this phenomenon as the “first step stairmaster”, because you’re supposed to move ON from step 1 in the 12 step program, but I’m just REALLY good at nailing that first step.  Let’s see if I can learn and course correct.  In that regard, the bridge week sounds more and more like the right idea next week…but I also realize I have Thanksgiving the week after that.  Transitioning to a 4x a week lifting program is sounding less and less appealing with upcoming scheduling logistics, but I genuinely want to give the Mass Protocol it’s proper due, so we’ll see how it all shakes out.

* Treadmill was a repeat of Tuesday.  Seems to make me feel good.  Got in some more walking with the dogs as well.

* While hanging from the bar, I took a page from Dan John and moved my feet/knees around a whole bunch to take pressure off my back.  I think once a week of hitting the pull ups is a better approach.  

* Tang Soo Do last night was another decent workout, and tonight should be the same.  I’m also thinking this has been contributing to the lower back fatigue.  That said, my hips are finally in an awesome state: I did a bunch of jumping and fluid kicks yesterday.  There is most likely something to be said that I shifted weight from my hips to my back to compensate everything that’s going on, but I’ll take wandering pain these days.

* With heavy squats coming up tomorrow, and it being the last day of the cycle, I’m thinking I’ll actually wear my belt.  I’ll see how warm ups go, but this seems like the kind of situation where it’s acceptable.

Training Log: Entry 3400

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

**OPERATION CONAN** Occupation Phase

*Tactical Barbell Mass Protocol Grey Man* Cycle 3, Week 3, Workout 2

Axle bench press

4x3x226

SUPPLEMENTAL CLUSTER GIANT SET

Lever belt squat

4x8x225

Weighted dip

4x8x60

Axle curls

4x8x71

ASSISTANCE

Standing ab wheels

3x10

Low handle trap bar pull

1x405

BREAKFAST

No walk w/dogs (rained out)

Notes:

* The poison is the dosage.  My lower back is absolutely fried, even though I FEEL fantastic.  Last night was the best night of Tang Soo Do I’ve had in months.  I could BOW without my back feeling like it was going to snap in half, to say nothing of the fact that my lower back and hips actually unlocked enough that I could get my kicks above waist height and actually jump in the air for my jump kicks.  However, all the reverse hypers, along with the 4x33 of GHRs on Monday along with the squats all came to play today on the pulls, as even the first warm up felt heavy.  I set up for my first workset of 460, break one side off the floor a few centimeters and then just waved it off.  I then tried a set of 405 and decided it was a bad idea before I even tried to break it off.  I just could tell that the deadlift gods were going to be fickle today.  I also theorize I ran into the issue that I was so strong training in the evening on Monday that I pushed myself beyond my limits.  I ran into that issue back when I was using Surge: I could tap further into my potential and, in turn, deeper into my recovery well.  So I just went with the rest of my training, and at the end I was feeling a little froggy and decided to give 405 a ride.  I pulled one grindy rep on it and decided it was time to just shut it all down.

* From this, I feel like I’ve discovered what I really “love” about training: the puzzle.  I dig how I’m able to source what the issue is here, and I’m excited that I’ve come up with 2 possible COAs.  Most obvious one is to do the bridge week to recover from the accumulated fatigue in my lower back, then transition to specialization.  The only thing distasteful about that COA is that I have my cruise coming up at the end of Dec, which is going to be a forced bridge week.  With this approach, it will mean only 5 weeks of training between bridge weeks, so not enough to get in 2 full cycles of anything.  Second COA is to start specialization NOW, get in 2 full cycles, and then really lean into that bridge week on the cruise.  I LIKE the idea of the second COA more, as I feel like transitioning to lighter weights in general via specialization can support a fatigue recovery in and of itself.  No matter what, I feel like another part of the solution is to ease off the reverse hypers now, and truly make them tonic.  Maybe no heavier the 90lbs on non-RH days, and go back to doing heavy RH only once a week vs twice.

* Rest of the workout was solid enough.  I’m glad I got the lever belt squat in there to get in some manner of lower body work.  Ab wheel felt great: reducing frequency there has been helpful, and that’s most likely the lesson to learn from all of this.  I’m not a kid anymore: I don’t NEED frequency.

* More Tang Soo Do tonight.  Last night was a solid workout, and tonight should be the same.  Will be planning out my specialization phase regardless at this point.  Looks like this was a short occupation campaign for Operation Conan, as soon we move on to Spec Ops insertion.

 Training Log: Entry 3399

PM WORKOUT (1745)

OPERATION CONAN Occupation Phase

Tactical Barbell Mass Protocol Grey Man, Cycle 3, Week 3, Workout 1

WARM UP
Roll out on LAX ball
50x180 reverse hypers
Squat sets w/bar, 85, 135, 225, overwarm walkout of 365

MAINWORK

Buffalo bar squat
4x3x320

SUPERSET

Axle strict press
4x3x143

SUPPLEMENTAL CLUSTER giant set

(3) Incline bench press
4x8x70s

NG weighted chin
4x8x20 (rest as long as needed)

Hanging leg raise
3x10

SUPPLEMENTAL WORK

GHRs
4x33

Total Training Time: 38 minutes

Notes:

* Chaos is the plan.  WAS going to wake up early and train, but at 0030 my kiddo woke me up to announce that the dog had pooped everywhere inside their kennel, and the adrenaline of going into triage mode for that made it tough to get back to sleep, and since I had the day off work today, I decided to sleep in and train later.  And once again, training in the evening feels like cheating, because I TORE through this workout.  Proof of concept of the idea that, if you get strong when you are weak, you'll be strong when you are strong.

* Kept rests to a minute or less.  Only difficult part about that was this was following my family/carby meal.  Since I woke up at 81.4 kg, and since I realized my weight class for my grappling comp is 185 and NOT 181, I definitely feasted tonight.  Valkyrie made 4 cheese tortellini, along with itallian sausage, garlic bread, and I had 4 pastured hard boiled eggs along with that, and then topped it off with 5 of her cookies (4 peanut butter oatmeal "monster cookies" with some leftover halloween candy chopped up in it, and 1 snickerdoodle, all with some raw honey from Costa Maya and a mug of fairlife skim).  I still feel awesome after eating this stuff, since the ingredients are quality, but I had a decent bolus in my guts.  The reverse hypers, in particular, were tough, since I was ON my gut for them.

* Hips are still trending in the right direction.  They ache when I stand for too long and I can shift my weight weird onto them and jack them up, but I have more good time than bad with them.  And being able to move quickly through this workout helped there too.  I kinda dig how I got to "test out" this workout today, and then Friday is going to be challenge mode with a PM workout.

* Worth noting that the Valkyrie and I also went out for lunch today.  First Watch.  I got an all meat omelet with jack and cheddar cheese topped with sour cream and butter, 2 sunny side up eggs with butter, and a pork sausage.  Good day for feasting.  Good day in general.

 Training Log: Entry 3398

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

OPERATION CONAN Occupation Phase

Tactical Barbell Grey Man Cycle 3, Week 2, Workout 3

WARM UP

Roll out on LAX ball
50x180 reverse hyper
Sets of 135, 225 and 315 low handle trap bar pull

MAIN WORK

Low handle trap bar pull
4x6x430

SUPERSET

Axle bench press
4x6x211

SUPPLEMENTAL CLUSTER giant set

Lever belt squat
4x10x205

Weighted dip
4x10x42.5

Axle curl
4x10x63

ASSISTANCE

Standing ab wheel
3x10

Lateral raise
35x10s

TOTAL TRAINING TIME: 54 minutes

BREAKFAST

No walk w/dogs

Notes:

* Got the day off work, schedule is a little different, but wanted to get this in.  It's the hardest thing I have to do today, so getting it knocked out first thing is awesome.

* Kept rests close to 1 minute.  I beat last week's training time for the main work.

* That very first set of pulls was VERY low back intensive.  It's a good sign that I've healed up enough that I can lift stupidly again, but maybe I should NOT do that so I can stay healed.  In turn, I focused on leg drive for the last 3 sets.

* But on that note, I'm feeling good again post training.  Really think I've turned a corner, and going to try my best to keep it that way.

* Playing around with pointing my feet out more on the belt squat, and it seems to be the right call.  Knee feels better, and ROM is improved.  

* I'm still burping up ribs from last night, and I was concerned it was going to be an issue on the pulls.  Amazingly, kept chow down, but I'm thinking one of the racks may have been undercooked.  One was particularly dry.  That said, I've already got some beef ribs on the smoker, because this is Operation Conan.

* Tang Soo Do was actually quite physically challenging yesterday.  It's a shame that watches aren't allowed to be worn during training, because we ran at least 40 laps around the Dojang, alongside various bodyweight exercises.  

 Training Log: Entry 3397

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

Roll out on LAX ball

50x360 reverse hypers

3.5 mile/60 minute treadmill walk at 4.0 incline

2:30 hang from bar (pull up every 30 seconds)

BREAKFAST

2 mile walk w/dogs

Notes:

* Continuing with my trend of chasing the squat workout with a lighter walk workout.  I meant to log this earlier, but this seems to marry up to the rest and recovery model Dan John put out in “Mass Made Simple”, where you had a “rest” day and a “recharge” day.  I have 2 walking days, but one is more intense than the other, and the one that isn’t intense is there to get me back into the training game for the next day.  Always fun figuring out where the pieces fit in the program.

* Tang Soo Do last night was pretty light, minus the physical testing requirements.  I push those hard, to make the most of it.  But otherwise, we stepped through the one-steps, since my Mrs is still nursing a neck injury.  We have another class tonight, which will be similarly paced.  And then I get the next 4 days off work, so schedule will be a little nutty, but all good things.

* On Sunday, I’ll have to slightly re-arrange the gym, since we’re getting new garage doors.  That’s always a good workout.  I’m also going to make myself some beef chuck bone-in short ribs for lunch tomorrow, since I’ll have the time to do so…so I got that going for me…which is nice.

* Actually, on that note, been eating a lot of pork this week due to the leftovers and not much beef/ruminant meat, and I'll have to say I'm noticing the difference in terms of physique.  I'm a bit puffier than usual.  I figure it's a little it of inflammation.  I think my Operation Conan principles of staying closer to red meat when possible is a good idea, but I'm not going to act like I haven't been enjoying the food this week.  And the porkening will continue, because tonight is "Chef's Night Out" at Texas Roadhouse, and I'll be getting my ribs-on there, which will mean another 2 day streak of ribs...which is awesome as always.  It's actually going to be a "feast forward" weekend, as we're going out for dinner tomorrow, and then my Valkyrie is going out with her friends on Saturday, so I'm taking the kiddo out to Texas Roadhouse AGAIN so I can try out my free steak dinner for November.  After that, I'm thinking of trying my hand at my first brisket for Sunday.  We'll see how that goes.

 Training Log: Entry 3396

AM WORKOUT (0410 wake up via alarm, set it incorrectly)

**OPERATION CONAN** Occupation Phase

*Tactical Barbell Mass Protocol* Grey Man-Cycle 3, Week 2, Workout 2

WARM UP

Roll out on LAX ball

50x180 reverse hypers

Sets of squats with bar, 85, 175, 225 and overwarm walkout w/335

MAIN WORK

Buffalo bar Squat

4x6x300

SUPERSET

Axle strict press

4x6x133

SUPPLEMENTAL CLUSTER giant set

(3) Incline DB bench

4x10x65

Weighted NG chin

4x10x12.5 (straight 10s on first 2 sets, 7+3 on final sets)

Hanging leg raise

3x10

SUPPLEMENTAL 

GHRs

4x30

TOTAL TRAINING TIME: 49.5 minutes

BREAKFAST

Short walk w/dogs

Notes:

* Best squat day I’ve had in a LONG time.  Came in pain free and stayed that way through the end.  Because my knees felt good, I could move quick, which kept my hips feeling good.  It’s funny how absence of pain perpetuates pain free training and presence perpetuates pain.  Definitely thinking reducing ab rollout frequency is the right call.

* Kept rests close to a minute, and was able to really crush training time here as a result.  

* Relearning technique on the leg raises.  They’re really feeling solid.

 Training Log: Entry 3395

AM WORKOUT (0357 wake up via dog)

Roll out on LAX ball

95x320 reverse hyper

60 min/3.63mi treadmill walk. Incline 4.0, 3.5 mph for first mile, then 3.6, 3.7 and finish at 3.8

2:28 hang from bar, pull up every 30 seconds

No walk w/dogs due to rain

Notes:

* Still feeling healthy, so decided to push the pace on the treadmill 

* Reverse hypers are really getting stupid. Soon enough I up the weight and cut the reps.

* I have Tang Soo Do tonight, so some more activity on the horizon

 Training Log: Entry 3394

AM WORKOUT (0359 wake up via dog)

**OPERATION CONAN** Occupation Phase

*Tactical Barbell Mass Protocol* Grey Man-Cycle 3, Week 2, Workout 1

WARM UP 

Roll out on LAX ball

50x180 reverse hypers

Sets of 135, 225 and 315 on low handle trap bar

MAIN WORK

Low handle trap bar lift

4x6x430

SUPERSET

Axle bench press

4x6x211

SUPPLEMENTAL CLUSTER giant set

Lever belt squat

4x10x205

Weighted dips

4x10x42.5

Axle curls

3x10x58

1x16x58

ASSISTANCE

Standing ab wheel

3x10

Lateral raise dropset (35x10llb, 35x5, 35x2.5, 35xEmpty hands)

Band pull aparts

1x50

TOTAL TRAINING TIME: 58 minutes

BREAKFAST

1 mile walk w/dogs

Notes:

* This is, legit, the best I have felt in a LONG time.  I have the minorest of twinges in my right hip, but I felt no pain during the workout, no pain putting the weight down, no pain post workout.  I genuinely wonder if it really has been as simple as reducing the frequency of the standing ab wheel.  I’ll keep playing with that and see how things go, but it felt good to feel good.

* That said, those trap bar lifts are still murderous.  I blow out blood vessels in my eyelid every week.  Feeling the heartburn like symptoms as well.  But I also know they’re getting me stronger.

* Kept rests close to a minute where I could.  I misloaded the bench for the first set, so had a bit of a break during the reload.  Also realized I misloaded the axle curls on the third set, so I pushed the 4th set for max reps to compensate.  Bonehead plays here, as I had a similar issue with my last work.  Measure twice, cut once.

* Seeing progress cycle to cycle here.  Still just a big fan of this protocol.

* Weighed in at 81.7 kg.  This is a .2 drop from 2 weeks ago, however, that was a first thing in the morning weigh in vs a post training weigh in, and it was a post carb meal for the former, whereas I’m the most depleted I’m going to be at this point (will carb up tonight on some homemade cookies: we’re actually doing a meat based meal).  In general, the weight is trending in the right way, and I’m willing to keep riding out my “intermittent feasting” strategy.  I DID feel like I underrate last night, but this upcoming weekend there will be ample opportunity for feasting.  I also have a weight class to make on 8 Dec, so if I ease off the throttle a touch, it’s not the worst thing.

* I’ll be getting in another walk later tonight, when I drop my kid off for show choir practice.

 Training Log: Entry 3393

PM WORKOUT (1230)

**OPERATION CONAN** Occupation Phase

*Tactical Barbell Mass Protocol* Grey Man, Cycle 3, Week 1, Workout 3

WARM UP

Roll out on LAX ball

50x180 reverse hypers

Warm up squats

Buffalo Bar Squat

8x275

2x8x280

9x280

SUPERSET

Axle strict press

4x8x123

SUPPLEMENTAL CLUSTER

Incline DB bench

4x12x60s

NG chins

4x12 (rest as long as needed)

Hanging leg raise

3x10

OFF CAMERA

GHRs

4x27

TOTAL TRAINING TIME: 45 minutes

Notes:

* Managed to have some time to get this knocked out today, so I'm back on schedule, which is awesome.  

* Realized I misloaded the squats after the first set, so did an extra rep on the final set to make up for it.

* Training in the afternoon is definitely different.  I'm a lot more limber and in less pain, so I can move faster.  And since I'm moving faster, I'm in less pain FROM the training.  

* Getting all the DB presses done was pretty awesome.  Clear progress.

* NG chins didn't have as good a showing as last time, but I can always attribute that to bodyweight gains and the HLR fatiguing them.

* Which, on THAT note, switching to hanging leg raises was definitely a money move here.  I genuinely wonder if the ab wheel has been the culprit this whole time.  I HAVE been training that movement exclusively for abs for a LONG time now: I may just be experiencing overuse issues.

 Training Log: Entry 3392

AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)

Roll out on LAX ball

90x320 reverse hypers

3.5 mile/60 minute treadmill walk at 3.5 pace.  Started at 4.0 incline and increased it by .5 every .25 miles, ending at 10.0 at the 13th lap, then dropping it down to 4.0 for the final quarter mile

2:30 hang from bar (pull up every 30 seconds)

BREAKFAST

Short walk w/dogs

Notes:

* Trick or treating out in the cold last night had me feeling pretty beat up, and I was originally going to just make this another recover walk, but I got bit by a bug after the first lap and decided to see what I could do playing with the incline.  It was a decent enough challenge.

* Still just kinda playing whack-a-mole with the hips.  Pain bounces from left to right, and from nerve to muscle.  This is still excellent recovery.

* Grip is getting better.