* Final bridge week workout: competition is tomorrow. In turn, I kept it stupid easy and took off the vest. Watched the majority of Happy Gilmore 2 on Netflix. It's ok. Free was the right price, and it was a good distracter. Barely sweat for this workout and still weighed 79.7 for post workout weigh in, so my weight is in a real good place for the comp. As long as I don't eat too physically heavy of a dinner tonight, I should still be able to have breakfast in the morning before weigh ins, which is always a good thing.
* Sparring was fun last night. Actually got in 3 rounds, taking down a senior student in the second round and having a spirited match against the Valkyrie in the third. With the bridge week, my hips feel better, which meant I was a lot more active and had a stronger kick game.
* Been adding a little more food to my breakfast, trying to keep my weight from submarining too much.
Thursday, July 24, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3577
AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)
BRIDGE WEEK
"GO RUCK YOURSELF" (lightly)
Treadmill walk w/20.4lb tac carrier
Incline: 1.0
Speed: 3.5
Distance: 5 miles
Time: 86 minutes
Notes:
* Started with incline 6.0 and it felt challenging compared to yesterday, so I dropped it to 1. It's bridge week, and the point is to go into the competition feeling strong. Don't need to turn this into workouts: this is just recovery.
* Sparring night was a little more active than yesterday. I'm feeling healthier, so I'm a big springier and faster.
* Woke up at 80.2kg. I tend to get this sort of free fall on these weeks, which I attribute to the reduced inflammation from the lack of training. It's a balancing act now though: I don't want to show up TOO light. As a result, I'll be including a little more food in my meals, and soon enough it's just going to be gaining time.
Wednesday, July 23, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3576
AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)
BRIDGE WEEK
"GO RUCK YOURSELF"
Teadmill Walk w/20.4lb tac vest
Speed: 3.5
Incline: 6
Distance: 5 miles
Time: 86 minutes
Notes:
* I'm pushing things a little harder this bridge week compared to last by including the tac vest and the incline, but I'm feeling really strong. I kept wondering if I had set the treadmill wrong, because this walk felt incredibly easy. Seem to be healing and recovering well. Which, upon my reflection from yesterday's write-up assessing how the SSB for 5 sets was beating me up, I forgot to take under consideration that I was also training in a deficit state, which further contributes to difficulty recovering. My engines are revved up to start growing again.
* Weighed 81.3kg post workout shower, again with a low sweat workout. Weight is staying on point. I'm at the point where I'm not concerned about fat gain but about physical mass in my guts and water retention, so dietary choices are made to impact that.
* Sparring was pretty low intensity last night: ended up going out in the first round and then the Valkyrie got hit with a foul shot in her own match that had me tending to her. Got in as decent a workout as I could. The AC has been broken in the Dojang, so we've been limiting activity, but it's supposed to be getting fixed today, so hopefully things will pick up.
Tuesday, July 22, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3575
AM WORKOUT (0510 wake up via Valkyrie’s alarm)
BRIDGE WEEK
22 minutes low intensity rower
Notes:
* It’s so hard to not push harder, as I’m so used to doing so, but this week is accomplishing exactly what it needs to. My body really feels incredible. Which has a 2 part benefit, as for one, I’ll feel great for my competition, but secondly, it’s good to know that the only reason I was feeling so beat up and hurt was because I was pushing myself too hard and needed rest. I’m at the age where it’s hard to determine what pain is from training and what pain is just something I have to live with. Bridge weeks are good, and this is a sure sign that it’s time to move away from Operator and onto Mass/Specificity so I can reduce the loads. However, it also means I was most likely pushing too hard on Operator in general: it shouldn’t be beating me up. I think, moving forward, if I prioritize the SSB, I’ll do so with a reduced volume approach to Operator: 3 work sets vs 5. Save the higher work sets for front squats or buffalo bar squat.
* Weighed in at 81.8 post workout. I’m not sweating much for these workouts, so those weigh ins bode well.
* Tang Soo Do sparring night tonight. Have to make sure to avoid getting some sort of stupid injury from this.
Monday, July 21, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3574
AM WORKOUT (0358 natural wake up)
BRIDGE WEEK
Deadlift
10x425
Treadmill walk w/20.4lb tac vest
Incline: 6.0
Speed: 3.5
Distance: 3 miles
Time: 51:30
Notes:
* I know it doesn’t seem very “bridge week” to pull a heavy set of deads, but this was the end of the ROM progression cycle. I exercised discipline and kept it very controlled and did not push past my limits on it. Very controlled on the concentric and eccentric. In turn, 10 reps is a pretty significant drop off, but I’m please that I can still churn out that number in these circumstances. That’s a good “every day strength” marker.
* Treadmill walk is what the rest of this week is going to look like. Want to stay active, keep weight controlled, and promote recovery. I walked 3 miles today because that’s what I had time for, but without the deadlift at the start of the workout, I’ll most likely get in longer distances for the rest of the week.
* My body is already feeling strong from the time away from squatting. I definitely think 6 weeks is the longest I should run SSB as a main lift. It got me strong, but it was beating me up, and this week of recovery and supercompensation will be good for me.
* Weighed in at 81.6kg this morning, same as last week. It bodes well, as I didn’t sweat as much with this workout as I do on typical ones, so less water weight loss. I had my carby meal yesterday: cheeseburger alfredo casserole, made with piedmontese 93% lean beef, drum wheat pasta, Tillamook cheddar, no sugar cured bacon, whole cream and parmesan, alongside 3 of the Valkyrie’s oatmeal peanut butter butterscotch chocolate chip cookies with some local raw honey and a mug of fairlife skim milk. I absolutely could have eaten the entire casserole dish and many more cookies on top of that, it was phenomenal. I continue to be excited at the prospect of no longer needing to meet a weight class. Which, on that note, a 4th person has signed up for the weight class (counting myself), which is the largest competition I’ve had in quite some time. I’m excited about that.
* That's a PR for performance, hitting it perfectly on the training cycle. I really found my rhythm on this these past few weeks. I went without the long socks and it paid off, because I didn't get hung up on them. I'll remember that come contest day.
* I imagine foregoing the squats yesterday also helped on this, although to the surprise of absolutely no one, I am a bit sore from 300 burpee chins.
Friday, July 18, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3572
AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm)
300 Burpee Chins in 60 Minutes (5 EMOM)
Notes:
* This was supposed to be the final lifting workout for Tactical Barbell. I woke up feeling really good and like it was going to be a good day. When I get under 315 for the squat warm-up, I noticed how heavy it felt during the walkout, and how my lower back was saying “stop” when I started squatting, and I recalled how the deadlifts on Wednesday went and concluded that I’ve simply pushed myself to my limits and it was time to shut it down. One more workout isn’t going to make me any stronger for my competition, but it can certainly mess me up, so the juice wasn’t worth the squeeze. At that point, I found myself with an abundance of time, and knowing that Cindy was only going to take around 23 minutes, I decided to do something I’d been wanting to do for a while that would require no external load on my body.
* Yes, the decision to having "Somewhat Damaged" on a loop the entire time was intentional and metaphorical.
* I originally was going to do just 50 minutes, but my schedule was pretty flexible this morning and I was able to push the workout a little longer into a far more satisfying full hour/300 reps. I ended up spraining my right middle finger somewhere in the mid 40s due to a misgrab on the chinning bar. That finger has been injured before, so this is a re-injury. It’s already quite purple and swollen, but should most likely be good by the day of the comp.
* Tang Soo Do went well last night. Kiddo and I knocked out our Hyung and got in a decent workout. We’re going out for Texas Roadhouse tonight, so more steak and eggs on the horizon.
* Incline: 6.0 for the first 2.5 miles, 7.0 for the next 1.5, 8.0 for 1 mile, 15.0 for the final .25 mile
Notes:
* With how brutal training has been, I opted to reduce the vest weight and focus on the incline today. Figured this would be more restorative. That final quarter mile at 15 was a fantastic challenge: at the end, my heart rate on my watch was showing 160, which, given than my RHR is 36, that’s quite a jump.
* Weighed in at 79.6kg post workout. Weight is in a very good place for the competition, and I got 2 ketobricks in the mail, which will most likely be competition fuel, so that bodes well.
* Tang Soo Do was an outstanding workout last night. We would roll a six sided die, and whatever the number was, we’d do that many forms/hyung/kata, and then we’d draw a card from a pack of exercise cards and perform that movement either for 10x the die roll in seconds or 10x the die role in repetitions. We rolled a lot of 5s and 6s, and people were making the smart call and picking seconds instead of reps. It came to me, I rolled a 6, and I drew a card that was effectively half a burpee (start in the push up position, bring your legs to your chest, kick them back out, do a push up, repeat) and I selected repetitions. 60 of those on top of everything else we did was a challenge, and then trying to do hyungs with blown out shoulders was an exercise in overcoming. We’ve got another class tonight, where I’ll be performing a hyung with my kid on my shoulders, so that should be a pretty solid workout as well.
* I’m definitely reaching some levels of burn out here. Did the thing where I woke up and tried to figure out if there was some way I could push this workout off and realized my schedule couldn’t support. That this was my deadlift day and the day I only have to do 3 sets of the main work tends to be enough to motivate met to get going, but it was a no sale. In turn, when it came time to pull the deadlifts, I was fried. The first rep was much harder than it should have been, so I shut it down. I’m 10 days out from comp, and grinding through a set I have no business doing won’t do me any good but will do me harm.
* Reading the tealeaves, this was something to expect. I noted that my output yesterday wasn’t as good as last week, and I had a REALLY good week last week on pulls, which most likely means I went further into my recovery reserves than normal to get that good outcome. Combine that with the oppressive heat we’ve been dealing with, and it just wasn’t the best day for pulling. Deadlifts are a sensitive lift.
* Highlight includes crushing the squat now that I have the correct weight loaded on it. 345 on the SSB was plenty heavy and these were challenging squats, which also most likely contributed to my deadlift, but it was awesome to get through them. Meanwhile, the press felt very light compared to Monday’s misload. I’m thinking I’ll finish the week off going 3-4x2 with the final week loads, to blend weeks 5 and 6 together before the comp. Planning on using next week Monday to do a set of pulls off the floor and from there head into the bridge week for the comp. Body can definitely use the break.
* Weighed in at 80.9kg. Weight is dropping and body is presenting very lean, and this coincides with INCREASING the fat and decreasing the protein. The alchemy explanation from the carnivore community is that a body fed high fat recognizes that we’re in a period of feast rather than famine, so it sheds bodyfat knowing that it no longer needs to store it for energy reserves, whereas when we feed the body lean foods and restrict fat, it stores fat because it thinks we’re in a period of famine. This, of course, directly contradicts the notion of a protein sparing modified fast, but I can’t discount how often this experience has run true for me. I seem to get my leanest when eating the fattiest foods, and Robert Sikes has presented a similar construct. Another less alchemical explanation is that ketones are muscle sparing, and protein requirements are reduced when the body is producing ketones, which is what tends to happen when fats are high and protein is moderate to low in the absence of carbs. All this to say, things are going well, rib fingers are delicious, and I’m really excited to start gaining after this competition.
* Tang Soo Do tonight. Last night wasn’t too terrible of a workout. I’ve got a good warmup going though: I’ve been doing my staff form 5-10 times in a row, and it really blows up my shoulders.
* Almost talked myself out of this when I woke up, thinking of opting for just an all rower workout, but was glad I settled on this again. It’s just incredibly effective. Didn’t have as high an output on the rower today as I did last week, but I imagine it’s because the training is much heavier for the weights.
* Was really sleepy yesterday. Got to bed early and got some good rest. Hoping that helps. I imagine the heat is part of that.
* Tang Soo Do tonight. It’s wildcard cardio week, we’re a month out from testing so physical testing requirements show up in class, and in general it should be a pretty solid workout.
* Physique is really looking sharp these days. I’m in a good spot to gain.
* I swapped a 55 and a 45lb plate between the axle and the SSB, unbeknownst to me until I was unloaded the bars and noticed. In turn, I was remarking in my head how my squat was continuing to climb while my press was regressing and wondering what mechanism was at play the entire time I was working through all 5 sets. It ended up turning this week into a hybrid of weeks 5 and 6, which is fitting given I’m skipping week 6 to take a bridge week before my comp. Also awesome is that I initially thought I was pressing 173 and struggling, and instead I was pressing a weight I haven’t pressed in a LONG time and absolutely crushing it. Really boosts confidence for the comp, as I’m now strict pressing MORE than comp weight. As for the squats, I think I’ll bring it up to the correct weight next workout and do the 3x5, and then finish out the week with 5x5. For the press, I might just keep it at 193 for the rest of the week and keep hitting doubles.
* I woke up really stiff this morning, and really throughout the weekend. Not sure what the specific cause is there. Possibly dehydration from the heat. We got some new couches/chairs for our sitting room that are MUCH more comfy than what we had before, so I’m hoping that helps.
* Weighed in at 81.5kg post workout, which is a significant regression from last week. Really just playing the razor’s edge with the bodyweight at this point, but I’m so excited to step away from competition for a bit and be able to just eat and recover.
* Between warm ups and post set chins, I got in 115 today. Had to cut the ab work a little short for the sake of time.
* Very first round was clownshoes, but after that I totally found my groove and hit a PR of 10 sequential doubles. Went for a triple in the final minute and hit the bar on the way up. Really took away a good lesson that the deeper into my hips I got the bag, the higher up I could get it over the bar. Previously, I was just barely getting the bag to my knees and trying to wrestle it over the bar, which was expending a lot of energy. Now, if I get it deep in the hips, it's higher up on my chest.
* I'm training with a grip shirt, but from what I've read in the competition rules we won't be allowed it for the event. Still, I'd prefer to train with the gear so that the training doesn't beat me up, because going without the shirt tends to force me to use my biceps more. I'll save that for show day.
* Getting in a Tang Soo Do class later today, and helping move a sectional into a minivan later as well, so be getting in some general activity.
* We ended up skipping Tang Soo Do last night because we had a tornado watch, baseball sized hail and 70-90mph wind gusts forecasted. In turn, when I went to squat this morning, I felt REALLY good. Much better than I anticipated. I thought for sure I’d need to cut the sets short today, but every rep felt incredible, fast and strong. However, the press was the opposite story: super grindy today, and I cut the last set short because I didn’t see any value in grinding out more reps. Part of it was being gunshy from my neck: it’s still not quite 100%, and I don’t want to keep re-tweaking it.
* Had to get to work a little early today, so I set a limit of 20 minutes for the Cindy WOD. I tried an experiment of performing the circuit EMOM, vs just blitzing through, thinking that taking the extra rest at the end of the round would allow me to finish faster than usual. I found out I was wrong: it still just sucks, and I was on pace to finish the same time as usual if not slower. Next time, I’ll just blitz though, but I’m glad I gave it a try.
* Will have to skip my lunchtime walk today, but I’ve been getting in a lot of steps this week.
* Got in an interesting mini workout yesterday. My kid and I are doing a “creativity open hand form” (hyung) for our dojang’s summer hyung challenge. We named ours “Two dogs in a trenchcoat”, because I put my kid on top of my shoulders like Master Blaster from Mad Max and they do the upper body movements while I do the lower body movements. It ended up being pretty sweaty work.
Thursday, July 10, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3568
AM WOROUT (0355 wake up via alarm, rough night of sleep due to storms)
* Overcoming my instincts here and trying NOT to become the best rucker of all time with this workout. Just letting it be low intensity and restorative. Kept everything the same from last week, minus that final minute at a high incline. Just a final little challenge there.
* Weather has been sweltering, even inside with AC. In turn, I weighed in at 79.8kg post workout, with a lot of it being sweat I’m sure, but it’s why I weigh myself Mondays and Thursdays to get an idea of where I am at my heaviest and lightest. The definition diet is still working, and I’ve been eating a LOT of beef ribs this week, so that’s pretty awesome.
* On that note, walking to a grocery store during my lunch breaks might not be the best thing for me, as 2 days ago I bought that rack of beef ribs, and yesterday I bought 4 corned beefs and 6lbs of rib fingers. The corned beefs were on manager discount: $3.89 a pound. Couldn’t pass up the deal. I’m going to be in a good place when it comes to time to gain, as I’ve now got a freezer full of lamb legs and corned beef to slice into steaks. The rib fingers will be breakfast next week.
* Tang Soo Do wasn’t quite was active yesterday, due to very intense heat in the dojang. Still got in some activity. Will be going again tonight as well. Beforehand, Valkyrie and I got in a 3 mile walk in the VERY hot/humid sun. It’s beating us down pretty good, and my calves are cramping from dehydration.
Wednesday, July 9, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3567
AM WORKOUT (0355 natural wake up, snoozed until 0400)
(3) Texas Deadlift Bar Mat Pulls (12 deep breaths between attempts)
12+5+5x425
ASSISTANCE
4 rounds of
* 10x80lb rows
* 20x270lb reverse hypers
* 10x53lb axle curls
* 6 hanging leg raises
Notes:
* After having about 4.5 days off of work and my knee and back feeling really awesome and then coming back and the pain returning, I think I’ve identified that sitting too much at work is causing me issues. Going to try to work around that.
* Things felt heavy today, so I was glad it was just 3 sets. I’m thinking about making all of next week 3 sets, in preparation for the comp. I could also do 4-3-4, or 4-3-5 or play around in other ways.
* Deadlifts are really just feeling great again. It used to basically be a competition to see how long I could endure the pain of the deadlift, but now it’s just another exercise. Good to be back to that.
* Made it through the full 4 rounds of the assistance work. After those deadlifts, it’s exhausting.
* Weighed 81.6 again: same as Monday. That was after sweating quite a bit, but it also does mean I have a little wiggleroom for making weight. Balancing act of being confident I can make weight without losing so much that I get weak before the comp. Contemplating just brining a ketobrick to the competition and eating it post weigh in, to have one less thing to worry about.
* Tang Soo Do again tonight. One of our black belts is going to test for the next rank, and it requires being able to do 50 push ups, 50 sit ups and 50 jumping jacks at the end of the test, and we’ve been told we’ll be ending all classes with that same requirement until they test, so that we can all get stronger. That said, we completely didn’t do that last class, but maybe we’ll be held to it for the remainder. Be good to get in a little more fitness.
* This continues to be a really awesome conditioning workout. I appreciate how full body it is. Between all 3 movements I’ve got everything covered.
* I made a point to focus on making that 1 minute rest a workout in and of itself. Specifically, the goal was to get my breathing and heart rate back to normal. “Active resting”: instead of just dying for a minute, specifically focused on trying to slow down my breathing and calm myself. It’s a valuable skill in competition.
* On that note, my resting heart rate has returned to 38, according to my watch, and I even had a few days at 36 last week. I’m sure this vacation time was good on my recovery. I’ve been able to sleep in 5 days in a row now, which is pretty awesome.
* Yesterday was physically exhausting. After the workout, I ended up doing lawn work for around 2 hours in the sun during the hottest point of the day. Today we’ll be doing some Tang Soo Do.
* Did some quick calculations today and figured out I shaved off about 500 calories from my breakfast by switching from leg of lamb to piedmontese steak tips. Funny how that works out.
6 rounds on rower (30 seconds max intensity/1 minute rest)
Notes:
* Got the day off work, so slept in and split my workout. Got the pressing done before I had to get the kiddo up for summer program, dropped them and the puppy off at doggy day care, came back home and finished out the workout. Had the garage door open because I was waiting on some landscaping folks to come by and didn't want to miss them in case they showed up.
* My neck isn't 100%, but it's substantially better than it was on Friday. Annoying little tweak.
* Back in business in general. My folks made it back home yesterday and I'm back on the program. 19 days until my competition: I'm feeling good.
* Weighed in at 82.9kg first thing this morning, then 81.6kg post workout/BM. I've had slow digestion through the holiday weekend, and imagine things will even out over the next few days.
* Cut the conditioning on the rower once my power started to fade. Doing my best to make all training intentional. Be strong on the strength workouts, struggle on the hypertrophy workouts, be powerful on the power workouts.
* Fasted through breakfast and treated myself to a fantastic post training lunch of 2 piedmontese grassfed beef chuck bone-in short ribs alongside 3 pastured eggs, 5 whites and some beef liver
* Also finally hung up the flag I got from the renaissance faire.
* To keep it at basic level, I wore the lighter vest and kept the incline at 1. It was hard to fight my instincts to push harder on this, but I’m sticking with the protocol of easy conditioning to support the hard lifting. Helpful for recovery from that deadlift work.
* My right knee has been a little achy this morning: maybe it’s from Tang Soo Do.
* Schedule is going to be a little off the next few days with family and holidays. Fasted through breakfast this morning because I’m going to eat at a work BBQ for lunch. Still preferring 2 meals a day.
(4) Texas Deadlift Bar Mat Pulls (12 deep breaths between sets)
13+5+4x425
ASSISTANCE
4 round circuit of
* 10x80lb DB row
* 20x270 reverse hyper (skipped 4th round)
* 10x53 axle curl
* 6 hanging leg raise
Notes:
* Another morning where training just didn’t sound like an awesome idea, and it was just the notion of breakfast and not being able to fit this in anywhere else today that got me out of bed. The prospect of deadlifting excited me, and knowing it was the day of the week where I do only 3 sets made it a bit easier to negotiate. Was just feeling beat and blah though, and actually ended up figuring out a way to get MORE chin ups in during the warm ups BECAUSE I didn’t want to do them: instead of just a set of 10 before squats, I did a set of 5 before squats, a set of 5 AFTER squats and a set of 5 after chins, getting in 15 reps per warm-up round vs 10. Still cut it at 50 before the main work started, but this can help me accumulate some more reps in the future. Total of 80 for the workout.
* Trying to focus more on sitting back in the squat. I see myself on the video reverting to old habits of just sitting straight down and not loading the hamstrings. I’m doing this because my back is sore from the SSB squat, but in doing so I’m putting more pressure on my hips and knees. This, once again, speaks to the value of rotating the bar between cycles.
* The mat pulls moved incredibly well. I slid my knee sleeves down over my shins, and it made a significant difference in not snagging the bar on the concentric portion. Things just moved smooth, and none of the sets were taken to my absolute limit. Hip is feeling awesome on these as well: figuring out the starting position and pull has really gone a long way for my longevity.
* I cut that final round of reverse hypers on the circuit, primarily for the interest of time. I figured my lower back had seen enough work for the day.
* Another Tang Soo Do class tonight, and then we’re done for the week. My parents come into town tomorrow to celebrate the holiday, so schedule will be a little off. Also, we got our essay assignments for our belt test in August: “What is mental discipline, describe a time in your life when you have exercised it, and describe a time in your life where you failed to employ it and what you learned.” I am bummed we only have 1 page to cover the topic.
* 25 years ago today I made the decision to "turn the ship around". I was 14 years old, and had been a fat kid my whole life. Years later, I learned I was set up for failure, having been born at a low birth weight, resulting in my bottle formula augmented with cereal to bring my weight up, but I was also a product of poor decisions, like having Koolaid as my primary hydration choice and a lifestyle of processed/fast food. But on 2 Jul of 2000, I decided I didn't want to be that way any more, and set out only with effort and some stories from my dad as my North Star. I cut my food intake to a third of what it used to be, switched to water and diet coke, and used the money I had saved up to buy a standard weight bench with a preacher curl/leg extension/leg curl station and 2 spinlock dumbbells with 130lbs of weights and set about changing myself. I lost 20lbs that summer and came back to school radically transformed and learned that my physical fat was within my control, which was one of the most valuable lessons I ever learned.
* Hard week of lifting means basic week of conditioning. For the trinity, it means 3 rounds vs 5, but it certainly doesn’t mean that those 3 rounds don’t absolutely suck. Coming into this post carb up meal, I was definitely itching to go full throttle, and I was gassed at the end of that third round.
* I remain a fan of this modification to the original Devil’s Trinity as I feel like the rower helps answer a lot of the questions left from the swings and the burpees. This is very full body, and the order of the exercises also lends itself well to the rhythm of the conditioning.
* Tang Soo Do is on the schedule for tonight. It’s basics/forms week, which tends to be a pretty good workout.
* I’ll post my meals later, but I’m keeping up on those venison burgers for breakfast, and it’s honestly amazing how simple it is to make them. Take a pound of ground venison, break it in half, smash it flat into patties, cover with salt, put in the air fryer at 450 for 9 minutes, flip at halfway point. No real meal prep needed. I can see myself making use of this strategy for the future.
Monday, June 30, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3560
AM WORKOUT (0400 natural wake up…3 seconds before the alarm)
* I had a really good weekend, but it was really busy and, in turn, when I got up this morning, I tried to come up with a plan to be able to sleep in. It’s awesome I’ve become sleep seeking, but ultimately I let my breakfast and tonight’s dinner (we’re doing our family meal tonight, new recipe, carbonara style casserole and, of course, some cookies with honey) motivate me to get up and train.
* I got in 100 total chins, because I had 1 extra warmup set to get in a set of 10s, and then I threw in 2 extra chins at the end of my work sets to make it an even 100.
* My warm-up set of 315 on the squat was actually more challenging than the work sets. My back is getting beat to hell from the SSB squats, which I felt yesterday during the sandbag as well. It dawned on me that the last time I prepped for a strongman comp I used the front squat because it would reduce loading on my back to allow for more energy to be put into the event work. That was probably a smarter move. But here my thought was that the SSB would make me statically stronger for strongman in general, so I suppose we’ll test that theory. But either way, these workouts are getting heavy.
* Press moved very well. Felt strong there.
* The shoulder assistance circuit continues to totally blow up my shoulder girdle. I’m glad I brought this back. Great lesson I learned nearly 5 years ago. Made slow growth by adding a rep to the end 3 rounds, and to the raises and pull aparts.
10 minutes, doubles when I could, singles otherwise, 200lb bar, 50" bar
Notes:
* This was rough today. I was a day off schedule, and just felt beat to hell over the hard training week last week. Got in what I could. Re-discovered that I'm training with a bag that's 50lbs heavier than what I'll be using in competition, so that bodes well.
* Also got in 6 miles of walking today, 3 of it with a 20.4lb vest.
* In the middle of the night, I contemplated sleeping in and doing this workout later. I woke up 2 minutes before my alarm and strongly considered shutting it off and getting more sleep. I did some calculations on how I could possibly squeeze this workout in on the weekend sometime instead, then eventually bit the bullet and got out of bed. Heading downstairs, I told myself I could just do 3 sets instead of 5 and that would be fine. During the workout itself, I told myself I’d just go by feel. And then, I hated how each set of squats felt better than the previous one, and each time I said “I’ll see how this one feels and shut it down if it’s time”, I knew I could do another set. And suddenly 5 sets were over, the workout was done, and it was the best one of the week. It’s funny how that happens. Ultimately, I think the heat/humidity is what has been crushing me, alongside 3 nights of sparring, which has gone well, but is always exhausting in some way. And then my food intake is a bit lower than it’s been, which I’m sure is a factor. Ultimately, it’s awesome I’m still crushing my performance, but it’s clearly beating me down.
* Focusing on trying to move the squats as fast as I can, which is still slow, but not artificially slowed down. The faster I move, the better I feel.
* Cindy’s time was the same as last week, but set under significantly higher state of fatigue, as this was 5x5 with 40lbs more on the squat, alongside the heat/humidity and sparring fatigue. I’ll take that as a PR.
* Sparring last night was the best so far. Didn’t have to go up against any family members, which meant an opportunity to really go for it. Went 3-0 against a senior student, and then 2-3 against our senior black belt, losing in overtime on a close decision. Got in some free rounds as well: just a good workout overall. This was on top of over 24k steps that day: lots of activity.
* This continues to be the biggest favor I do myself each week. Woke up stiff and sore, finished off feeling good. Breathed through my nose the entire time and kept the intensity at the right spot. Still humid as hell, so lots of sweating.
* I've pretty much eliminated the daily chins from Operation Planet Mongo, just getting in the work on my lifting days. Been keeping the daily sandbag carries though, as they're playing toward my strongman competition. Balancing act continues to go well, keeping my body held together.
* Didn't try to set the world on fire with this workout. I haven't walked an incline since Mount Vesuvius, and that was more challenging than this, so it's good I've stayed in shape. Next week is the easy week, and I can evaluate from there. The fascia in my left foot finally healed from my 10 mile run, but I could feel it getting agitated from this workout, so I know to be smart here.
* Weighed in at 80.3kg post workout: a 2 kilo drop from Monday, and right back to where I was pre-cruise. This gives me a good buffer for the upcoming 4th of July holiday, with my parents coming to visit, so I intend to do some eating and celebrating.
* Another night of sparring tonight. Last night was a bit more active. Valkyrie and I were paired together in the first round, so that's as far as I went, but the class was small, the tournament ended quickly, and I got in some extra rounds afterwards.
* My hips were really sore yesterday, which I attribute to DOMS from the heavy SSB squats. I’m learning that, when things get heavy, I shift weight to my hips, which explains why they tend to be in agony during my heavier training cycles. They’re most likely where I hold most of my strength, but I can overload them in turn, so it’s something I need to watch out for. In addition, my Valkyrie kicked me square in the knee last night during sparring and completely dropped me. It’s the knee with the torn meniscus, and she got me in the most sensitive part of it. I applauded her for being able to drop a grown man with combat sports experience with one light kick: a testament to the effectiveness of what we’ve been studying, but it also became a psychological factor during the training session today. Once I warmed up, I was fine, but I still wanted to baby the knee a little. Previous lessons learned still apply: the slower I squat, the more my hips hurt, so I did my best to move the reps as quick as I could in spite of the heavy weight.
* I think I forgot to do the push press on the second set of presses, but I’m pleased with my ability to own the weight.
* Did sets of 10 chins during the warm up, getting me 76 chins total for today.
* The mat pulls didn’t move as well as they did last week, but last week as an afternoon training session, with this being my first AM session with these weights. Biggest x-factor is that the bar kept snagging on my knee sleeve. I’m wearing the sweats to try to prevent that, but I think next time I’m just going to roll them down like I used to and reduce drag. Still got in some awesome effort.
* More sparring on the docket tonight. Last night I went up against a junior student and then the Valkyrie before I was eliminated from the tournament. Tonight tends to be a smaller class, but it may mean more reps once our tournament is done.
* This is originally “Devil’s Trinity”, but I replaced the heavybag rounds with the rowing, hence the name change. It was a good change. It’s a little easier for me to dog the heavybag than it is the rower, since the rower has the immediate feedback on screen for my performance level. I was definitely feeling this when it was over, and the swings, rowing and burpees were a solid full body workout. Definitely want to keep this in the rotation.
* Left hip is a little pissy from yesterday’s workout. Can’t let that compound over time. Deadlifitng tomorrow.
* Tang Soo Do sparring tonight. Tends to be a solid workout.
6 round circuit (90 seconds rest between rounds) of
* Press (98lb trap bar, 95lb BtN, 93lb axle) sets of 10 first rotation, 5s for second
* Dips to failure
* 15x10lb lateral raise
* 15 pull aparts
Standing ab wheel
3x10
Notes:
* This was a challenging workout. I’m glad it fell the morning after I had the carby meal. The squats actually felt the best on set 4 of all things. I’m trying not to let my body fishing pole on these, but at this point it’s just a matter of getting the reps in. SSB makes me stronger in general, while other squats make my legs strong. This is why I’ll rotate the implements.
* I did sets of 10 for chins during the warm ups, so I managed 100 total reps when the workout was done.
* Got in the 6 rounds for assistance, but cut the reps short on the second run through. I’ll attempt to build up to a full 10 per. Controlling what I can for my upcoming competition, I can show up with the strongest shoulders possible and really blow away the press event if I prioritize this.
* Weighed in at 82.3kg this morning, post workout, which is dead on the exact weight I need to be for the competition. That bodes well. I’m still going to try to drop a little weight to give myself a buffer, especially with holidays and family visits coming up, as I want to be able to enjoy myself during that time. But it’s good to see the system working here. I got a little lighter than I needed before the cruise so I could come back right about where I needed to be.
* Cut out any additional assistance work, as the Valkyrie was heading to work early and I wanted to see her before she left. Truthfully, I was wiped out after Cindy anyway, and all I was really going to manage was some band pull aparts.
* Heat was a big factor. We’re starting up a heat wave today, and it was beating me down in the garage. I FLEW through the first 8 or 9 rounds, but started hitting a slump after that.
* Upper back was quite sore, and lower back was a little stiff. I’m sure that’s a result of deadlifting for the first time in 3 weeks. This entire week has been a re-introduction back into training after the hiatus. “Softening up”, ala John McCallum.
* I could tell my SSB squat was becoming very “Conan approved” ala Jim Wendler. Which is to say, I’m relying more on my back to carry me through vs my legs. Given this is my strongman prep cycle, that works totally fine for me, but also cements my idea that I should rotate between SSB front squats, buffalo bar and SSB squats as I rotate through cycles of Tactical Barbell. I really dig the idea of that approach. I’m far less married to particular movements these days, and I’m realizing the benefits of the different movements AND the benefits of not staying with one movement for too long. My last cycle with the buffalo bar demonstrated to me that I still “got” that low bar when I want to use it, and coming back to it every few cycles will help maintain that.
* On a similar note of rotating approaches, this week I’ve gone pure lean meat for breakfast (minus yesterday, where I fasted through breakfast), relying primarily on turkey breasts, with 1 day of canned salmon. This was primarily in an effort to “dry out” after 2 weeks of travel eating, but I’ll say I’ve enjoyed the experiment. I definitely don’t have the “dog with kibble” effect as I do when eating fattier meat at breakfast, but I am certainly still satiated. Possibly even moreso, because you can only eat so much dry turkey breast before you decide “I don’t really want to eat any more of this”. Walking away from the high fat meal, I was full and happy, whereas walking away from the lean meal I’m full but still “on”: alert and “lighter”. And I know, from an energy intake perspective, I’m taking in less with the leaner meal vs the fattier, even if portion sizes are equated. I’m considering re-introducing the “Feast, Famine and Ferocity” approach to coincide with Tactical Barbell’s “OMS” (Operator-Mass-Specialization) model, in that I’d have higher fat breakfasts during Mass and Specialization phases of training and leaner breakfasts during Operator blocks. And, of course, this is combining with the “Maximum Definition Diet” as well, because I tend to just blend everything together, which would mean 1-2 carb meals a week as well, and I’d include higher fat meals at dinner time so that I’m not running fats stupidly low. I really just enjoy the constant tinkering and experimenting: it’s fun to discover this stuff.
* Tang Soo Do last night was a decent workout. Lotta bodyweight works, running and forms/kata/hyungs.
* Got one of the photos from my trip, of me standing on the arena floor of the Roman Colosseum. Since it was a Disney trip, I actually wore nothing but Hercules shirts the entire time. It was a BIG hit with the locals: Italy and Greece both loved it, and it was funny who they both “claim” him. But I’m also posting because I’m flat out happy with how I looked. This trip was celebrating the year I’m turning 40 (my actual birthday is in October), and I remember how my dad looked at this age and it was NOT like this. And that I can look this way while eating the way I want to eat and living the way I want to live is ultimately hitting the hat trick of life.
...especially given that this is a photo of my TORN bicep, haha.
Axle strict press from rack 3x5x143+1 push press rep per set
(6) Texas Deadlift Bar mat pulls 15+5+5x425
ASSISTANCE
Circuit superset (no rest) of
Axle curls 3x10x53 1x8x53
HLR 2x10 2x8
Band pull aparts 1x70
Notes:
* My 15 year old pug passed (Yoshi) away last night, peacefully in her sleep. Work was awesome and gave me the day to grieve and get her affairs sorted, but in turn we didn't sleep much after we confirmed she has passed at around 0155, so rather than train at 0400 I slept in and got this done around lunch time. Kept it to the bare essentials, since the Valkyrie is still home and I want to be near her. This is pretty much how this day will run in the future anyway, I just intend to include more assistance work, and to perform chins in between sets of main work.
* I DID get in 40 reps of chins during the warm ups.
* Despite the circumstances, this was actually an awesome feeling workout, most likely because I got to train later in the day when I was more limber.
* Those mat pulls feel better and better each week. Specifically how I'm starting the pull with a leg press and finishing with a hinge, compared to my old injurious method of hinging from the start. As much as I hated pulling with the trap bar, I'm certain that helped regroove that pattern.
* Tang Soo Do last night was a decent workout, but we'll be skipping tonight.
* Rest in Peace girl
Pictured with steak and eggs, which I made for her 15th birthday
* Woke up quite sore from yesterday, so settled on Fobbits again. The lower intensity rowing was good for getting some bloodflow, and the workout in general still got my heart rate up, sweat going, and breathing heavy. Mission accomplished.
* Went with burpees in place of the snatches, as the latter just beat me up pretty fierce. Burpees answered the mail completely. Getting up and down from the ground is always a solid choice.
* Tang Soo Do tonight. First class in 2 weeks, and it’s “Wildcard Cardio” week, so I’m sure to get in a good workout.
* Keeping my protocol of sleeping in on Tuesday to go with these shorter HIC workouts. I have the day off on Thursday for Juneteenth, so I’ll be skipping my ruck this week, but will most likely still get in a good walk.
5 rounds of 30 seconds on/60 seconds off rower (max intensity)
2 minute cooldown
Notes:
* I woke up in Rome at 0515 on Sunday, flew for a total of about 11 hours, arrived home on Sunday at 1730 (because of timezone changes) and got to sleep around 2130, which was about 23 hours of being awake, and then got up and did this workout. Honestly, I slept really well and felt pretty normal, which is awesome. I think years of shift work gave me this super power. I DID have my first cup of coffee in about a year on one of those flights: it just sounded good. I ended up having more: 2 decafs and one full strength.
* After 2 weeks away from training, I still felt strong coming back. I was specifically curious how the SSB squats would feel, since I haven’t trained that particular movement in quite a while and they tend to eat my lunch, but they actually felt VERY strong today. I upped my training max from last cycle, despite being a different movement, and it’s feeling solid. Depth was awesome as well, which once again points to bar placement having such an impact on that.
* It was very hot in the garage, and my headbands were all in the laundry from travel, so that sucked.
* This is no longer Planet Mongo, so the back is not the priority. I’m still keeping parts of it that were awesome (like chins during my warm ups and between work sets), but I’m shifting focus toward competition prep for 26 Jul. I brought back my “ultimate shoulder circuit”, because my press got stupidly strong when I did that. I only went through 3 rounds of it, because it was feeling tough at that point and having come back from 2 weeks off I didn’t want to push too stupidly hard. I need to drop the weight on the lateral raises next time.
* Rower afterwards is still a good way to get the whole body tuned up and get in some more back work. On my vacation, I really saw how the prioritization paid off, because I’m looking much wider than I was when I was at the same bodyweight. Filled out well.
* Got in a good walk during my lunch break as well. Still prioritizing activity.
* Going to give myself a week to bounce back from travel before I weigh myself. Don’t want to make stupid decisions based off bad data.
* Got in sets of 10 chins during the warm ups, getting 50 before the main work.
* Last lifting workout of the cycle, so I played around, as I’ve already achieved all my goals. That said, I REALLY wanted 50 in one shot on that set of 225, but equipment issues plagued me. Bar was sliding down my back a bunch on the main sets alone, and the longer the workout went, the more I sweat, so the more slippery the bar got.
* I actually almost fell forward on the very first rep, as I tried putting the bar a little higher to prevent the slippage, but then it just slid right down. It made the first 20 reps REAL easy, having the bar so low on my back, but then I wasted a lot of energy trying to hise shrug the bar back into place between breaks. It did create a pretty interesting training effect, as it was effectively one squat set with a variety of different squats, ranging from high to low bar. And it was certainly exhausting.
* This is making me think that, for the next training cycle, I should implement SSB squats. They have a good carryover into strongman, the bar will stay in place, and my elbows will really be spared, meaning I can invest more energy into my pressing and sandbag work.
* My right knee was feeling kinda crummy leading into this, so the really low bar squatting was actually pretty nice on that. Everything else selected was just light work but also stuff I won’t have access to for the next few weeks.
* I leave for my cruise tomorrow. I’m going to get in a conditioning workout in the morning, and I’m actually intending on getting in some training time over this vacation, just because it’s 2 weeks away vs 1 and I have a competition coming up.
* Weighed in at 81.1 kg, which will be the final weigh in for this cycle.
* Got through 7 rounds of doubles, then 2 singles, then a round of 4. Best performance yet. Setting up a little further away from the bar gave me more room to get the bag over: good to know. Body was feeling solid and strong as well.
* Took the squats as low as I possibly could, because whenever I review them on the video, they seem like they’re high, but I gotta accept the reality that, as long as my knees travel forward, my hips are going to appear high. Since I’m not powerlifting, depth doesn’t matter, just ROM, and I’m getting that intended effect here.
* That PR on Cindy was unexpected. I know I accomplished Murph last week using the same vest, so this wasn’t uncharted territory, but I didn’t have a time to compare against. I enjoyed a slice of my kid’s birthday ice cream cake last night, so maybe some of that extra energy came to show for the workout.
* As is usual, once Cindy was done, so was I, so just slapped on the pull aparts and rowing to get in a little more back volume. Planet Mongo is almost done, and my goals have been achieved with it: my back is feeling much stronger now, and my chins are back in a good place. I don’t want to lose this moving forward, but maintaining will be easier than growing. Next phase will focus on getting ready for my comp, but I would like to spend some time bringing my arms up as well.
* My in-laws come into town today to help house sit while we leave on our trip on Tuesday. Schedule will be slightly disrupted, but that’s not a bad thing.
* It’s the easy week, but rather than go completely vestless, I went with a lighter one and a slightly lower incline. Felt like a totally weightless walk just didn’t have as much value. This still felt light and restorative.
* Tang Soo Do last night was brutal. Back to back classes, and with it being basics week, it was a lot of drilling and bodyweight exercises. Which most likely explains why I got my weigh in this morning at 79.2kg. I’m right at the same bodyweight I was when I started the Mass Protocol last year, and significantly stronger and more muscular in appearance, so ultimately my time with Tactical Barbell has proven to be a huge success. Also some props to Gironda there as well.
* We’re celebrating my kid’s birthday today, so I’ve got Texas Roadhouse coming up for dinner, and then actually getting in my 2 carb meals this week by having a slice of some Coldstone ice cream cake later tonight.
* 4 rounds of 30 seconds max intensity/60 seconds rest
* 6 minutes of low intensity
Notes:
* Back on schedule. The holiday weekend got me a little out of the groove. The extra rest was beneficial though, as I came in feeling ready.
* Squats and presses were challenging but not insurmountable. It’s what I continue to appreciate about the TB programs: I’m always set up for success. Just a matter of getting through the workout. The press weight is comp weight as well, so the fact I can strict press it at 0400 after some heavy squats bodes well. I do think I’m going to keep the weight the same on the press next cycle, since I’ll be upping the sets.
* I did sets of 8 chins between my warm-ups, which got me to 40 total before moving on to the actual work sets. Between that and the assistance, I finished the day with 200 dips and 150 chins: great spot to be in.
* In keeping with the “light conditioning” aspect of this week, I cut the high intensity stuff at the end in half. In truth, I was fading at that point any way, so it timed out well.
* I’ve got back to back Tang Soo Do classes tonight. We got our 4th stripe last night after passing our weapons evaluation, so the whole family is set to test for new belts in August. The Valkyrie was also crowned Dojang sparring champion for the month, with the kiddo coming in second place, so it was a good night for us all.
* Daily sandbag continues to get better by the day. Really getting a good feel for the bearhug carry.
* On the nutrition front, I think I may be done drinking green tea. Just haven’t been feeling it. Once I stopped mixing in the stevia enhanced electrolytes, it lost the appeal, which leads me to believe I was just using it as a vehicle to drink stevia. This will mean I’ve cut caffeine completely out of my life, which is pretty nutty when I consider I was consuming over a gram of it a day about a year ago between 2-3 energy drinks a day and 10 cups of coffee.
* Weighed 81.1 this morning. Seems to be where I've settled. Between this and 80.8.
* Set timer for 15 minutes, row for 2 minutes, 20 KB swings (24kg bell), row for 2 minutes, 10 snatches per arm, repeat until 15 minutes is up
Notes:
* It’s the heavy week of training, so the light week of conditioning. I continue to really appreciate Fobbit Intervals for allowing me an opportunity to do swings, snatches and rowing all in one workout, and it even has a solid conditioning hit, but it lacks the sprint/high intensity of some of the other work. I have to do my best to not always fall back on this one, but regular rotation of it has been awesome.
* Sticking with doing the snatches all with 1 arm and then moving to the other. I need to stop death gripping the bell.
* My elbows/forearms have been feeling awesome. KB work tends to beat them up, but so far I think I’ve found a really good balance with all the demands I’ve placed on them. Being able to low bar squat, get in lots of chins, train the sandbag and get in the KB work while preserving my arms really is the golden ticket here. I’ve never been able to do that before.
* I forgot to weigh myself in yesterday, since it was a holiday weekend, and I came in at 82.2kg this morning, which is a jump from last week, but the circumstances for the weigh in are so different it’s really a non-data point.
* I’ve got Tang Soo Do tonight, then a double class tomorrow.
Monday, May 26, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3543
**OPERATION PLANET MONGO**
AM WORKOUT (1100)
Deadlift 15+3+4x405
Notes:
* Had the realization that, with the way my schedule breaks down and my extra training day on next week Monday, I can roll the final week of Tactical Barbell one workout to the right and finish it on Monday, so I made today purely a day to get in this deadlift set, which also worked out since it's Memorial Day and we all had the day off. Didn't want to spend it lifting.
* Being able to perform this set in isolation from everything else was awesome. Total focus and dedication. And it felt AWESOME. Typically, once I get to the floor, I lose some reps, but I kept all 15. Yeah, the final one was a grinder, but it was there, and I actually got 8 reps before I needed another breath, which was big for this training cycle.
* Focusing on getting my hips under my shoulders at the start has really paid off: zero hip pain. Last time I attempted this, I got in 12 reps, and I hurt from it.
* I MAY have been able to get in some more reps on those follow on sets, but juice wasn't worth the squeeze. The first pull was the goal.
* Before all this, I did a bunch of mowing and weed whacking while wearing my 20.4lb Tac Vest, so got in some decent general activity for the day as well.
Sunday, May 25, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3542
**OPERATION PLANET MONGO**
AM WORKOUT (0700 wake up, 0900 workout)
EMOM sandbag over bar for 10 minutes
Notes:
* 200+lb bag, 50" bar, doubles until I couldn't, and then finished up with 4 at minute 10. Still holding some fatigue from Murph.
* Also did a day of sparring at Tang Soo Do. Got to go against an adult in the first round, that I went 3-0 on with a combination of head kicks and body punches. Squared off against the kiddo in the second round, and gave them some openings to capitalize on. It resulted in them making it to the finals and winning, so that made my day.
* Got in my 10k steps, push ups and squats in the morning, and chins through out the day.
Axle strict press from rack 4x173 2x5x173 +1 push press on the first 2 sets
MURPH Hero WOD
1 mile run 100 chins 200 push ups 300 squats 1 mile run
w/20.4lb vest
Time: 46:08
Took footage of the bodyweight exercises, but paused it during the run.
Notes;
* I've got the day off work and it's my kid's last day of school, so I slept until the Valkyrie got up and was able to cram all this into one session, which worked out great for the schedule.
* Wasn't feeling particularly bad this morning, but not all that strong either. Finished our 4th sparring class for the week yesterday, and I ended up walking 28k steps, 8.25 miles of which were with some manner of weighted vest (I tested out my tac plate carrier walking the dog last evening for 3 miles). So I most likely am carrying some fatigue.
* On the final set of squats, I felt something shift in my right patella, which is the one that gives me trouble. I was dainty for those squats, and felt it a little during the first mile of Murph. Thankfully didn't present during the squats. Right now, it's a little tender, but nothing terrible.
* Press continues to fluctuate day to day. Small changes in bodyweight and fatigue play a role.
* I typically prefer to do Murph unpartitioned (do 100 chins, THEN 200 push ups and THEN 300 squats), in order to make it more miserable for the sake of a memorial workout, but my schedule couldn't permit it. However, performing the workout immediately after a Tactical Barbell lifting session helped increase the misery and difficulty, so I'm happy with that.
* First time running since my fitness test last month, which was the first time running since the 10 mile race. Been trying to let my foot heal. Thankfully, didn't present any pain today.
* I'm fasting through breakfast, since my kid has a half day and we're going out for lunch to celebrate. I'm getting a breakfast burrito with carne asada: go steak and eggs.
* The Fringe Sport tactical plate carrier gets my seal of approval. It jostles a little, but I can adjust it to be a little tighter if I need to. It allows more maneuverability on the bodyweight work compared to my Ironmaster vest, and when I do push ups with this vest my face hits the floor before the vest does, so that's a win.
* I pinched a nerve in my back on something in yesterday's workout, and was concerned it would make sleep difficult, but aside from waking up a little stiff, I felt good enough for this. The walk the day after deadlifts continues to be very tonic.
* We had a great night of Tang Soo Do yesterday. We had back to back classes, and on the second one, only our family showed up, so we just did a sparring clinic. Full hour of various matches with various conditions set (kicks only, non-dominant side only, etc). We eventually did a hands only match and I went up against the senior black belt and just HAD to go back to my boxing days, put up the peek a boo guard and just bobbed and weaved right through their offense into 3 consecutive body blows.
* My new tactical plate carrier arrived yesterday, and I think I'll give it a go with Murph tomorrow.
* Wasn't able to get in my daily sandbag yesterday: schedule was just too crazy.
* Weighed in at 80.4kg this morning, which is an increase from last week, but continues a downward trend over the past 4 weeks of Thursday weigh ins.
Sets of 6 chins between sets (65 total before moving on to mat pulls)
(2) Texas Deadlift Bar Mat Pulls
15+6+5x405 (12 deep breaths between attempts)
ASSISTANCE
4 rounds of
* 11x80lb db rows
* 11x270 reverse hyper
* 6 standing ab wheels
* 20x38lb axle rows
Notes:
* Once again, the days I don’t want to train are the days I train the best. I have a double Tang Soo Do class tonight, so there was no possible way to delay this training day, despite me waking up wondering if it was possible. Had a rough night of sleep with the dog getting up at 0130 to poop. I moved slow through the warm-ups, but once it was time for the work sets, I felt incredibly strong. The squats didn’t feel heavy on my back, I crushed all the pressing sets (redeeming myself from Monday), and those mat pulls moved the best they’ve moved in a long time. Just really firing on all cylinders.
* Elbows continue to feel awesome. I’m thinking switching to a bearhug carry on my daily sandbag is paying off there for preservation sake, because I’m squatting stupid low bar again without issues.
* About the only issue I have with the mat pulls is I still struggle to hold my breath past the 7th rep, and get a reflux like feeling. But it’s not slowing me down. Focusing on getting my hips under my shoulders at the start and leg pressing the weight rather than hinging it to break off the floor is really paying off. I save a lot of strength for the remainder of the set, and my hips feel SO much better.
* Kept the assistance at 4 rounds. I upped the reps on rows and hyper, and upped the weight on curls. I can try for 5 rounds next week. I COULD have squeezed in that 5th round if I rushed, but it wasn’t worth it.
* Miscalculated my schedule, but for the better. I won’t have an extra week after the final week of this cycle, but just an extra day or 2. We depart on Tuesday, rather than Friday. I’m contemplating doing something really stupid and challenging on Monday to cap off the program and kickstart my 2 weeks of rest.
* Sparring last night went pretty well. I completely shut out one of our black belts during the opening match, going 3-0 without running into the time limit. First point was a sneaky hook kick to the head, and last 2 points were body punches, with the final one involving moving off angle and sending it straight through an open guard. From there, the Valkyrie and I got to spar, and I used that same punch with the same effect to score my initial point, and managed another body punch for a second, before we went into overtime and she managed to come in with a body punch to secure the W and move on to the finals against our Senior black belt. Great seeing her get more reps.
* Also still got in my daily sandbag, and a 3 mile walk with a 20lb vest with the puppy last night. Lot of general activity.
* Wasn’t feeling KB snatches this morning, and this is sparring week so I should get a decent workout in Tang Soo Do, so went with the classic of Oxygen Debt. That said, with the rower, it’s less my oxygen that gives way and more my body, so it’s a bit of a different hit. I think I’ll keep Fobbits as more of a primary, but this was a good diversion.
* The 10 chins as the end were effortless. Planet Mongo is paying off.
* Daily sandbag yesterday was another winner. The bearhug style is suiting me, and sparing my elbows.
* Didn’t have much appetite yesterday after those McDonald’s patties, but it came back this morning, so that’s good. Was worried I may have gotten a food bug.
Monday, May 19, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3537
**OPERATION PLANET MONGO**
AM WORKOUT (0400 wake up via alarm, rough night of sleep due to storms, was awake at 0315 and just dozed)
Rower intervals (30 seconds max intensity/60 seconds rest)
7 rounds
2 minute cooldown
Notes:
* With the squats being a 50lb jump from last week, I set the bar silly low on my back. Elbows felt fantastic though, so that’s a positive. I was doing sets of 7 chins during my warm-ups to get 35 before moving on to main work. And the squats themselves felt find. Heavy, sure, but not world ending, and my right knee was very game to play.
* Presses were too damn heavy. I’ve been playing with fire by upping the max while my bodyweight continues to slowly drops, and bodyweight tends to be the biggest driver for success with my pressing. That second set getting all 5 reps in leads to believe I’ve got this in me to finish the cycle though. May just need to increase rest periods a touch.
* The assistance continues to get better. 190 dips total, and zero issues getting through the chins this time, which got me 145 total for the workout.
* I cut off the rower intervals once I started slowing down. Feel that’s been a good metric on when to shut it off.
* Yesterday I had the best daily sandbag workout ever. Bearhug carried it 4 lengths with no stop/rest/reset. And that was on top of walking over 26k steps between a 5 mile walk with the dog, 3 mile walk with the family, and general physical activity.
* I weighed in at 80.8kg this morning, and that’s post carb up weigh in. We did a tuna casserole last night, and I had a biscuit alongside that and then 5 of the Valkyrie’s cookies (3 were oatmeal peanutbutter chocolate chip butterscotch, 2 were chocolate chip with caramel chips) with some raw honey from Catalina island and a mug of fairlife skim.
* I looked over my data, and since starting the Maximum Definition Diet, I’ve lost 1.2kg in 5 weeks, which is a rate of .528lbs per week. And since starting Operator in general, I’ve lost 5.6kg over 18 weeks, a rate of .685 lbs per week. Once again: all of this without counting, measuring, or tracking calories or macros, aside from occasional bouts of interest. I’m right at the rate that many folks suggest to be ideal for weight loss while maintaining strength/size, and I’m definitely experiencing that in my training. Prior to the Maximum Definition Diet, I was effectively employing the Velocity Diet with a carnivore meal for my daily healty solid meal, and then weekends of just carnivore eating. Shows the viability of these approaches.
* I've cut Stevia out of my diet. Currently using only non-flavored electrolytes.
* I’m fasting through breakfast this morning, because my kid’s school is putting on a picnic event I can attend.
