* 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.
* 200lb+ sandbag, 50" bar, doubles until I couldn't do it, which was about round 6. Finished with a triple. Really felt good on this one: much better job getting my hands in position to take stress off the elbows. Conditioning held out strong.
* I am quite sore. I think all the Tang Soo Do “Wildcard Cardio Classes” compounded with the regular training I’m doing and the reduced food intake is starting to show itself. My ability to perform isn’t compromised, but my ability to bounce back appears to be.
* I set the bar low on my back again today. With 300 squats waiting for me after the squat workout, I decided it was the right call for sparing my knee. I went a little higher up on my back for the final set.
* I was FLYING through Cindy at the start. Almost a full round ahead of the EMOM pace. I added about 10 seconds compared to last week, with a 5lb heavier load. I’m pleased with that. Part of me is legit thinking about keeping this even post Murph, because it’s certainly keeping me fit and getting in my volume, but we’ll see. Definitely wouldn’t want to keep scaling up the weight: hold it at 20lbs. But we’ll see: ultimately that cycle is going to be about getting ready for the competition.
* Like last week, once Cindy was done, I was done. All I had in me was some pull aparts and light rower. Second week where I cut out the ab work, and I’m totally fine with that, as we’re doing a ton of that in Tang Soo Do, plus all the push ups with the vest are essentially weighted planks.
* I got in my daily sandbag today, and actually tried it a little different. I started with a bear hug carry, rather than the horizontal carry. I think I might continue to do that, as it spares my elbows, and that position will allow me even longer on the max distance carry.
* Incline: 4.5 for first 2.5 miles, 5.5 for remainder
Notes:
* We’ve experiencing a heat wave right now, and some decent humidity, so this was pretty miserable as far as general suckage goes, but wasn’t taxing to my cardiovascular system or muscles, which is good. I wake up an extra 5 minutes earlier to get in one more quarter mile and be able to get in exactly 90 minutes of rucking. It seems like a worthwhile trade.
* I think I’m going to continue my strategy of NOT doing my daily chins on this day to spare myself for tomorrow’s Cindy workout. I also had to skip the sandbag yesterday due to a very tight timeline, but we got to Tang Soo Do on time and got in 2 full classes. Neither individual class was as tough as the class on Tuesday, but combined they were exhausting. I’ve got another single class tonight, and then we’ll be done for the week.
* Weighed in at 79.8kg, which was post walk/shower, meaning there is a water loss element there, but I’m also just seeing a general downward trend, that is thankfully moving gradually. This is a 1.1kg drop from last week’s Thursday weigh in. I’m appreciating the twice a week data points.
* On the supplements front, I started using a K2 supplement yesterday. It was 200mcg, which is 2x the recommended dosage, so I may go with an every other day protocol. Crazy inexpensive.
* Put the bar low today. Thought process was, with mat pulls in this workout, I wanted to stay fresh, and the low bar is more mechanically advantageous for me. It feels so much better to squat that way, just a matter of taking care of my forearms. Had the x-factor of sweat making the bar slide down today, so even when I tried to make it NOT stupidly low bar, it ended up there. The spot on my traps from Monday where I had the bar is pretty tender, which is a sign that area isn’t conditioned for the load yet. Lots of room to play around, but I kinda like the idea of making Mon and Fri higher bar and Wed lower bar, similar to how I made Wed the lower volume workout on the previous cycle. As always, when you introduce limitations, you introduce creativity.
* The mat pulls felt amazing today. I’m really focusing on breaking off the floor by getting my hips underneath me and leg pressing the weight off, and from there transitioning to a hip hinge, whereas before I was just hip hinging the weight right off the floor and ending the set in agony. The initial break is, of course, slow, but once that’s done it’s a smooth transition between the two and I feel a lot of power. I feel very in control of the weight, which is great for 405lbs. I lost a rep here compared to last week on the final rest pause set, but it’s one of those where I know it was there if I wanted to fight for it, but the cost of that fight wouldn’t’ be worth the reward.
* First workout where I got through all 5 rounds of the assistance work. Debating on if I want to up the weight and go back to 3 rounds or keep trying for 5s.
* I had the time to get in a quick conditioning workout at the end, but decided against it. We’re doubling up on Tang Soo Do tonight, so I should get plenty of additional activity. Last night was a solid workout: 60 minutes of non-stop moving, with a LOT of push ups.
* Kept meaning to log this, but I hit a new PR on the weekend: I sat through the full performance of “Hamilton” at our local theater WITHOUT my right knee being in agony the entire time. This time moving back to low bar with a wider stance has been good for me. It’s good to know that the damage I did to myself wasn’t irreversible.
* Got in the sandbag yesterday. With how the schedule is shaping up today, not too sure if it will happen, but I’m doing it often enough that I can miss a day here and there.
* Last week I did the basic version, and this week I did the full. For the first round of snatches, I tried out single arm clean and press instead, and found it not as effective. For the second round, I did alternating hands each time. On the final round, I stuck with the same hand for 10, then switched, and found that ultimately the best way forward for the future. In total, I got through 3 rounds of swings and 3 rounds of snatches in the 20 minutes time.
* I like this choice because it allows me to get in the rows and the swings, which are both high value. It has a decent enough conditioning impact, and I like that I’m active for the full 20 minutes. However, this isn’t a lung breaker like Oxygen debt 101 or Power Intervals, so I need to ensure I don’t ALWAYS pick this one. That said, I got in some intervals yesterday as well, and I have enough time at the end of other lifting workouts to get in short interval work, so there are lots of avenues for success.
* Elbows held up well enough. I have to start the snatches with my left arm: my right seems to bear most the brunt of the pain. That I was able to work in a set of chins afterwards is a great sign. Razor’s edge still.
* I’m continuing my tradition of sleeping in until my wife’s alarm on Tuesdays. I pick shorter conditioning workouts and manage to still get my morning done, and this way I get a day of extra sleep and get to wake up next to my wife one extra day a week, which we both appreciate.
* Got in the daily sandbag and some more walking last night. Tonight we have Tang Soo Do, and it’s “Wildcard Cardio” week, so we may get in a decent workout. We’ll be doubling up class tomorrow as well, to give us some freedom on Saturday.
* I put the bar at practically high bar height today, just to see how it felt. It was a little tougher than my stupidly low bar height, but still within my abilities, which I think might be a solid way forward on the lightest week of the cycle. Spares my forearms some pain, gets me stronger, gives me room to grow. Really focusing on sinking the depth. The video is unsatisfying, but I know I’m out of ROM at the bottom.
* Went with sets of 6 for chins on the warm-up, which got me to 30 total. They’re feeling better and better, which is the goal of Planet Mongo. I went without the chins yesterday, but did get in the sandbag. I’m feeling better about managing the balancing act here.
* Press felt solid enough.
* My chins felt better on the assistance circuit, but still fell apart a bit at the end. I used the underhand grip more, which helped. Meanwhile, dips continue to climb, and this week I got 180 in the 20 minutes, which is 40 more than what I started with. It dawned on me how this day pretty much is BtM day 1: 3x5 squats, 3x5 press, and all the same assistance work. Just slightly different percentages.
* I really liked the interval I came up with on the rower. 1:2 work to rest ratio really seems to be pretty gold as far as power output goes. Saw my heart rate get into the 130s.
* Weighed in at 81.1kg. That’s a 1kg drop from last week. These continue to be post carb-up weigh ins, for the sake of consistency, and I’ll throw in a Thursday weigh in as well when I’m fairly depleted to keep that standard tracked, but things continue to trend in the leaning out direction with the Maximum Definition Diet. Last night was spaghetti with 93% lean grassfed piedmontese meat sauce, some breadsticks, and a dessert of 2 cookies and 2 brownies from the Valkyrie with some honey and a mug of fairlife skim. Upon reflection, this actually was a pretty light weekend for food. We went out more than we usually do, for the Mother’s Day weekend, and aside from my full rack of ribs on Friday, I was eating lighter portions from a combination of 1: being so goddamn full from those ribs and 2: going out to eat and not wanting to buy 2 entrees worth of food. We’re pretty good at family style these days, and so I split my rice and mac salad at the Hawaiian BBQ place between the kiddo and the Valkyrie and they gave me some extra helpings of BBQ chicken and kalbi ribs, and at First Watch I gave the Valkyrie and kiddo my fruit and toast in exchange for their breakfast sausage, sunny side up eggs and butter, but even still, it’s lighter fare than usual. I say it not to complain (I still love how little food I need to be satiated for a LONG time), but more to document in case I see a bump up next week.
* Heck, while I’m talking about food, lemme just say that this week started week 3 of chuck roast for breakfast, and like a dog with kibble, I am SO excited for my breakfast every morning. It’s legit what motivates me to get out of bed and train: knowing that I have that waiting for me at the end of the workout. I genuinely don’t know if there’s ever any going back from this Maximum Definition Diet approach.
* I’m thinking VERY far into the future and thinking about my mass gaining phase after my second round of Operator before my competition on 26 Jul. I came up with the idea of taking Grey Man and making it Building the Monolith-esque. Instead of A/B/A, B/A/B, just stick with A/B/A on repeat each week. This would have me squatting twice a week and deadlifting once a week, and that deadlift workout would be a ROM progression mat pull cycle. I’d pair a press with the squat workout, because I’m prioritizing that lift, and then a bench press with the deadlift workout. This makes the assistance pretty simple to figure out as well: I’d put GHRs on the squat days and lever squats on the deadlift day, so I’m still training posterior and anterior chain 3x a week. I’m thinking either incline bench or dips on the press days, and behind the neck press on the bench days. For that “either incline or dips” discussion, I could legit do 1 on 1 day and 1 on the other, but I’d be straying a bit far from the frequency principle at that point. I’d want some back work, although there’s a fair chance I’ll keep the chins between sets of everything as that’s been good to bring back. So perhaps make chins a “free movement” and then have a row on the press days: either DB rows or a landmine row. What’s left is not programmed assistance: abs, reverse hyper, pull aparts, and possibly some shrugs. I learned from my last go-round that I don’t want to program weight/loads for those things. And there’s a fair chance I’ll keep in the daily sandbags, and perhaps be naughty on the weekends and still do some sort of strongman loading work, taking full accountability of the impact it will have on my recovery. I’ve run the Mass Protocol in earnest at least one time: I get to play around with it now and take full responsibility for my actions.
* My kid is done with music theater for the season, so we get our Monday nights back. I’ll still most likely get in some sort of walk today after dinner, but it’ll be good to breathe.
200lb+ sandbag over 50" bar for 1 min, rest for 2, 5 rounds total
Notes:
* Got triples every round, with a fourth threatened. I have the bag better set up as far as slack goes, and practicing reps. Technique is coming along. Still playing it tender with the forearms. No issues with cardio.
* Also got in my push ups, squats, and a bunch of walking and yard work today.
Friday, May 9, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3529
**OPERATION PLANET MONGO**
AM WORKOUT (0445 natural wake up, 45 seconds before alarm, late night, slept in)
* Got to bed late last night, so decided to get in 45 extra minutes of sleep and just really dial in the training today. Normally, I meander a little bit in the morning, take the warm ups a little slow and ease into things. Instead, got out of bed right away, booked it downstairs, hit the majority of my warm-up sets but with no rest between and kept VERY strict on the 2 minute rest intervals. Managed to get in the most important parts of the workout: just cut out the abs, pull aparts, swings and low intensity rower time. And this is exactly why I settled on Tactical Barbell: it’s adaptable that I can add to it as needed, but when I need to just get the job done, the base is enough.
* Still playing the razor’s edge with my elbows/forearms, and I feel like I’m winning. I cut out the daily chins yesterday, and today, after the first set of squats, I focused on putting the bar higher on my back. Pain doesn’t present DURING the squat, but when I rack the bar, most likely as I suddenly shift the weight off my back and directly onto the arms. Having it higher up on the back limits that, and ultimately makes the squat harder anyway, so that’s a win. I also think cutting the chins on Thursday makes sense given that on Friday I do Cindy. That may just be a way forward for the future.
* I am thinking that for my next training cycle I'll rotate in SSB squats in order to give the arms a break. It may be a forever way forward with TB: Alternate between SSB front squats, buffalo bar squats and SSB squats with training cycles.
* Press felt very strong today.
* I was crushing Cindy at the start. My conditioning is very solid there. Around round 9 I start regretting my life choices, and then I hold on until it’s over. I tied last week’s performance with 5 more pounds in the vest, so that’s pretty clutch. I REALLY get toasty doing this workout, as along with the vest I throw on a shirt because the webbing of the vest will chew up my torso during push ups and chins otherwise. Also worth noting that I do the push ups on patio pavers, because otherwise the vest will run into the floor before I get a full ROM, so I’m doing my best to really get the most out of this. Consequently, my pecs are always sore after this workout, which is pretty cool.
* Tang Soo Do was pretty fun last night. Got to do some improvisation on grab self-defense, and some breakfalls. Also got in a decent 2+ mile walk after dinner last night, and my daily sandbag. Ended up with about 22k steps overall.
Thursday, May 8, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3528
**OPERATION PLANET MONGO**
AM WORKOUT (0348 natural wake up, snooze until 0355)
* Every week this remains one of the best favors I do for myself. The day after deadlifting I’m pretty beat up, and this becomes pretty tonic. Since it’s the easy week, I went without the vest, but I upped the incline a bit to allow some sort of challenge without pushing the pace any harder. My feet are finally in a good way after my race, and with my trip to Italy and Greece coming up in 3 weeks, I want to keep it that way. I intend to do the European thing and do a lot of walking, and I bought a brand new pair of Bearfeet shoes to get me there.
* Took my Thursday weigh in and came in at 81.1, compare to 80.9 last week, so things are pretty consistent. I don’t really care to be any lighter at this point, but may push just a little harder in these last few weeks to allow for gluttony on my vacation.
* This marks 2 months of gum sobriety: not a single stick or piece. I’m not opposed to ever having any again, but I’m appreciating not using it right now. If nothing else, I can say it’s to comply with the Maximum Definition Diet. Eliminating the artificial sweeteners has most likely done me some good.
* Tang Soo Do was low intensity yesterday, but fun. Lot of creativity in one steps. Got another class tonight. We’re also doing pretty well on our family walks post dinner these days.
Sets of 5 chins between sets (55 total before moving on)
(4) Texas Deadlift Bar mat pulls
15+6+6x405
ASSISTANCE
4 rounds of
* 10x80 DB rows
* 10x270 reverse hyper
* 6 standing ab wheels
* 20 axle curls
BREAKFAST
40 minute walk while truck got maintenance
Notes:
* Very interesting mental shift happened yesterday: while I was walking my dog and thinking about my next day of training, I caught myself thinking “I get to deadlift tomorrow” vs “I have to deadlift tomorrow”. I was pretty delighted with myself for that.
* Used sets of 5 in the warm up AND the main work for the chins between sets. I’m getting better at chins, but I find myself gravitating toward the wider grips, avoiding the narrower ones, and I can feel a familiar ache in the elbows. I’ll keep my eye on things. I should note that I SAY “elbows” but I really mean more “forearm flexors/extensors”, similar to what I run into from too much aggressive grip work. I may start eliminating the daily chins, and just focus on volume in the training itself.
* I decided to let the squat bar hang low today on the low bar. Specifically, I allow myself something of a forward shrug before I unrack the bar, to get it to really settle in the meat of my lower traps/rear delts. It just feels better to squat that way, and my knee continues to appreciate this change. I feel like I’m still doing myself a service by taking these squats so much deeper than I ever did in the past.
* I really focused on getting my hips under my shoulders at the start of the mat pulls, and it paid off. I broke the weight off the mats comically easily and had TONS of energy for the set as a result. Managed to make it to 8 reps before having to take my first breath, which is a 1 rep PR in that regard, and I’m still not taking any cluster to failure like I used to. My hips feel much better as a result. This seems like a solid middle ground to operate off of.
* Ran out of time on the assistance. Was wanting to get in 5 rounds. But I still got value out of that.
* I had to take my truck in for regular maintenance, so I used the downtime to get in a short walk. I managed 3 miles with the pup last night as well. We’ll be doing Tang Soo Do tonight, but it’s one steps night, so not a whole lot of energy demand.
Row for 2 minutes, hop off, 20 KB swings w/24kg bell, row 2 minutes, hope off, 10 snatches per arm, repeat until 15 minutes is up
Notes:
* It’s the heavy week of lifting, which means the light week of conditioning, and Fobbit Intervals looked like exactly what I needed there. Basic means going from 20 minutes to 15, but I was pretty surprised with how effective of a conditioning hit this workout had. The rowing is more just to keep the heart rate in a constant elevated state: the money is on the KB work. It’s basically short burst intensity, 2 minutes active rest, repeat.
* Been a LONG time since I did any sort of KB snatch, but thankfully I was never good at them in the first place, so this felt as awful as before. They definitely were the start of the show for getting my heart rate up, but they also tend to beat up my elbows, so something to watch out for. I’m actually thinking this could work by throwing in some ABCs instead.
* Got in a nice hour long walk last night while my kid was at music theater rehearsals. Also been getting in my lunchtime walks. The consistency is paying off, along with he time in the sun, because I’m really leaning out, just in time for the cruise.
* Got some zipties for my sandbag to make it a bit more like what I’d see in competition. It was a little tricky to handle yesterday as a result, but I’ll have plenty of time to get in more reps.
* Knees were a little sore this morning. Wondering if I’m seeing the effect of Cindy as an assistance WOD, along with all the walking around from the weekend. Cindy will be cut after this cycle, so not the biggest concern, but something to track on. I’m also a little tender from sun exposure, which made the squat bar slightly uncomfortable, but nothing game changing.
* Had the bar a bit too low on the back for the first set. Put it up higher for the next 2.
* Pleased with how the press moved. Thought it was going to feel heavier.
* I had 50 reps of chins between warm ups and sets between sets before I started the EMOM, having me end with 130 total reps. However, the 4th rep of each round was getting sloppy at the end, so I’m going to stick with 4s until it’s clean. Dips were a pleasant surprise in performance: 170 total, which is 30 reps ahead of where I was in the prep week.
* Those rower intervals were solid at the end. More recovery time, to allow for stronger intervals. This is the easy week of conditioning, so that may feature in other workouts.
* Weighed in at 82.1kg this morning, which is a .9kg drop from the previous week. Once again, these are different, as they’re post carb up weigh ins. I’ll take a Thursday weigh in as well to track on Deltas, but I’m still seeing trends in the downward direction, and my abs are coming in deeper.
* I realized the technique that works on log works here too. Don't row the bag into my lap: deadlift it, then grab it. This will save my elbows.
* I used an extra ziptie on the bag, and it lasted for 4 rounds before breaking. I'll need to rig that up again, because it really changed things.
* This was much better than my last time. I'm getting better with the technique. I'll need to start getting in more reps soon.
* Spent the rest of the day walking around at the Renassance festival. Got a cool new gym flag that says "Victory or Valhalla", some raw local honey, and other goodies. Also got my turkey leg
And dinner was 20 smoked chicken wings, so a LOT of white meat/poultry today
Go Gironda.
Friday, May 2, 2025
Training Log: Entry 3523
**OPERATION PLANET MONGO**
AM WORKOUT (0400 natural wake up: 30 seconds before the alarm)
* TGIF. I’ve been exhausted this week, primarily due to the emotional events with the dog on Monday and then just not really having any breaks since then. We ended up canceling Tang Soo Do last night, since kiddo had a musical performance which, though we COULD have made both events, it would have just been too much stress. Absolutely the right call: went to bed early and slept like I was dead. Woke up feeling much better. Sore in the traps from deadlifts, but otherwise good. I’ve noticed I’ve had a good amount of muscular soreness these past 2 weeks. Part of that is novel stimulus, but I wonder if the two meals along with cutting breakfast from 16oz to 12 on the meat is impacting recovery.
* For the last 2 sets of squats, I set the bar a little higher on my traps. I don’t need to go as low as possible, and doing this should put my elbow in a good spot to keep from getting bungled. Still very pleased with the depth I’m achieving, and my knee keeps feeling better with this approach.
* Press is feeling heavier than I like, which is most likely a result of my bodyweight dropping slightly. I’m getting leaner and leaner, but I have to ensure it’s not at the cost of muscle.
* I was flying through CINDY at the start. I honestly wonder if I’d have better results treating it like a true EMOM and resting at the end of the set to recover, but I’m doing this ultimately to prep for Murph, which is about suffering. 5lb vest doesn’t impact much, but it does restrict my movement on chins, so I want to get used to that feeling. Only a 20 second delta between weighted and unweighted, which is nice.
* Realized I didn’t do any KB swings. I’ll have to make a point to include them. They’re good for me.
* Got in the daily sandbag yesterday. Today may be canx due to weather.
Speed: 3.5 Incline: 5.0 for first 2.5 miles, 5.5 for second 2.5 miles Distance: 5 miles Time: 85 mins
9 chins
Notes:
* Keeping the pace on the easy side and just pushing the incline. Figure that will be good for my feet, as trying to walk too fast is how I hurt the fascia in my foot previously.
* This was a good return to rucking. It's been a while. According to my watch, I got my HR up to 110 at one point.
* Still getting in the daily chins. Had to skip the sandbag yesterday due to weather. Tang Soo Do was a little lower intensity, but I needed that after my deadlift day.
* Weighed in at 80.9kg, which seemed more accurate. If I keep on eating the family meal on Sunday, I may make Thursday my more permanent weigh in day, as it's a little closer to reality, and closer to when I would weigh in for a competition.
