Saturday, September 28, 2013

3rd workout of cycle - 3 ladders to 3 - added dumbbell bench backoff sets

BP: 155 x 1-2-3, chased down with 2 x 25 lb. dumbbell BP x 5 w/ very long pauses
Speed DL: 165 x 10 r/u
FSQ: 155 x 5 - these are getting easier but still are far from easy for me.

Repeat above, alternating DL grips per ladder, total 3 times through

Onward and Upward!

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Variety - Headstand, OAOL Pushup, Pistol, Walk, Swing

Quite a variety of things on my variety day

Stretching, including windmills bw only, and a short headstand - did one yesterday, too, felt great both times.

2-step OAOL pushup x left, right + bw pistol x left, right

Repeat above

walk 2 mi

13 swings, 2-handed, w/ a 36 kg bell

Onward and Upward

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Workout #2 (again): 2 Ladders to 3

Stretch, walk

BP: 155 x 1-2-3, Speed DL l/u: 165 x 10, FSQ: 155 x 5

BP: 155 x 1-2-3, Speed DL r/u: 165 x 10, FSQ: 155 x 5

Completed w/o in 30 min - excellent!

Onward and Upward

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Variety - Stretch, Windmill, Walk

A solid cossack sequence and splits on the front porch.

A 1-mile or so walk

Windmills - bw x 3 each side, 12 kg x 1 each side w/ exhale at the bottom (palm on floor)

Still tired from antibiotics but improving slowly.

Onward and upward

Monday, September 23, 2013

Starting Cycle Again

The antibiotics I was on all last week just took a lot out of me, and I was in recovery mode, anyway, so I decided to start my cycle again today, with:

BP: 155 x 1-2-3, Speed DL: 165 x 10, FSQ 155 x 5

Plan will be to do 2 ladders next workout, 3 ladders the workout after, then start Heavy/Light/Medium weekly rotation.  I finished my antibiotics last night - no doubt there is still a clinically significant amount of the stuff running around my system.

NB: Speed DL is up from 115 then 135 - 165 feels like a more appropriate challenge, and it's not moving all that quickly so quicker is my goal, but I'm also noting that it is now heavy enough to notice in my legs, which 115 and 135 weren't.

10 minutes after I finished lifting, I feel better than before I started - always a nice, and a good, thing.

Onward and Upward


Friday, September 20, 2013

Variety - Kettlebell Double Presses, Weighted PU, Swings

Woke up this morning and had a very sore back - it passed after a few minutes, just felt "out" somehow but it righted itself, which was _good_.

Walk, stretch on the front porch with the full cossack sequence

A few see-saw presses with a pair of 20's

1 set of 5 mil presses with a pair of 20's

2 PU singles, one each foot, with a 24 kg bell on foot

Swing double 20's - set of 10, rest, set of 6

Overall, tired from antibiotics, I think, but basically feeling OK.

Onward and Upward

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Light Day, First Lifting in a Week

An ease-back-into-it day

Walk about 3 miles

BP: 155 x 1, DL: 115 x 10 (fast), FSQ 155 x 1

BP: 155 x 1, DL: 115 x 10 (fast), FSQ 155 x 2

BP: 155 x 2, DL: 135 x 10 (decided to try these a little heavier, probably should be  at 175 or so), FSQ 155 x 3

That feels like all I want to do today - still not 100% recovered, but this was a good workout, maybe a more complete Light Day on Saturday, or maybe a Medium Day - we'll see how it feels as we ease back into things.

Onward and Upward





Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Still Tired, Still Taking a Break from Lifting

It's Wednesday - my last lifting was a week ago today, but again I'm not going to do much today.  I'm still tired, and I've learned that too much is worse than too little for me because I tend to want to push myself too hard.

I'm also on an antibiotic, which I don't like to do but I don't have any choice, since Monday, and that might be taking a toll on me, too.

Today, a nice walk and some stretching, followed by:

crane pistol, rf, 1 each side

1A1L pushup, 2 step height and didn't even make it all the way down, but kept my glutes tighter and that's progress so I'm happy - also just one per side, also right side first.

24 kg: mil press + windmill right, same thing left, and we're done.

Onward and Upward, and perhaps I'll rejoin my ladder program tomorrow, Thursday.

Monday, September 16, 2013

A Busy Weekend - Figuring the Rest Of Life into the Training Schedule

I thought about lifting last Thursday or Friday but didn't because I knew I had a very tiring weekend coming up, conducting in synagogue.

Just walked on Thursday last week, did another walk on Friday before I left, then spent several hours in the car doing some Philly-area errands before heading to the hotel and then to the synagogue

Saturday, I walked a couple of miles before going to work, and I elected to stay over another night to avoid the problem I have most years with feeling very drowsy in the car on the way home.

Sunday, I walked a couple of miles in the morning, drove home, walked another couple of miles at home.

Today, Monday, more walking, lots of hanging from the pullup bar, stretching, especially getting my back and hips loosened up.  Also did a few 24 kg mil presses and a couple of behind-the-neck pullups, bw-only

I have learned over the years that it's very important for me to not lift heavy the day after anything that tires my back - best just to stretch and get things loosened up and then lift the day after.

Onward, upward, and back on the horse tomorrow or Wednesday.

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Variety - Walk, Shop, Carry, Stretch, Swing

Medium Day yesterday was great.  I did some crawling yesterday, and that felt good, too.  Very interesting that it un-jacks-up my right shoulder but leaves my back hurting, so I think it's safe to conclude that the jacked up shoulder is a compensation to take some of the load off the bad back.

Today, picked up 4 x 50 lb bags of pellets for the water softener, put them in the car, took them out of the car and into the basement.

Skipped dessert the last two nights and, lo and behold, bodyweight is down from 155 to 153.

Walked a couple of miles in the high heat and humidity today - a taste of summer, showing 95 F on our front porch thermometer in the shade.

Cut the lawn, surprisingly not tough in the heat.

Stretched a little, will try to stretch some more.

This coming Friday night and Saturday are Yom Kippur, and they are the most physically demanding non-exercise days I have in my year, so I will do an Easy Day tomorrow, Thursday, and then take it easy as much as I can.

Had the urge to do some swings, so did just that, but first

Towel PU x 3 - these really have a way of making everything line up correctly for me.

36 kg: 2-hand swing x 20 in about :30

Onward and Upward

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Hurried Medium Day

BP: 155 x 3 - 1-2 was the plan, 3's are fine, though
DL: 115 x 5
FSQ: 155 x 3 - not warmed up enough, not much rest at all between lifts

BP: 155 x 3
DL: 115 x 5
FSQ: 155 x 5 much better, a little more, although still not much, rest between lifts

BP: 155 x 3
DL: 115 x 6 - tried to do the last rep fast - and it was faster.
FSQ: 155 x 5

BP: 155 x 3
DL: 115 x 7 - first one had to be slow, but tried to make second one faster and the rest fast
FSQ: 155 x 5

BP: 155 x 3
DL: 115 x 10 - first one was quick, the rest were not all that fast but they weren't slow - kind of missed the point of trying to make it faster in my effort to do 10 reps and not lose count ...
FSQ: 155 x 5

Onward and Upward - whole workout in about 45 minutes today, excellent!


Saturday, September 7, 2013

First Heavy Day = 5 x 1-2-3 plus DL 285 x 8 reps x 2 sets

BP: 155 x 1-2-3
Narrow Sumo DL: 115 x 3 (thin 6' bar)
FSQ: 155 x 3

5 ladders

Note the inclusion of a few light sumo DL's between BP and FSQ - was demonstrating something for my wife, decided these helped my back make the transition between BP and FSQ, so I included them in every set today.

Last DL workout was on Friday, August 23, two weeks and one day ago, when I did 275 x 8 reps x 2 sets narrow sumo, right under first.

Today, we're hoping for 285 x 8 x 2, narrow sumo as we've decided to stick with of late

DL: 225 x 3 r/u, 2175 x 1 l/u - warmups

285 x 8 r/u - tried to push with legs and not pull with back

285 x 8 l/u - hot damn, that was good.  1RM calculator says 354 lbs, makes me happy

Onward and Upward!

Friday, September 6, 2013

Variety - Stretch, Walk

After my lifting on Wednesday, I drove 2+ hours to Philly.

On Thursday, I led the choir for Rosh Hashana - was in synagogue from 9 AM until 1:30 PM, then drove 2+ hours home and felt plenty

Today, Friday, the weather is absolutely beautiful here, and my wife is off, and we needed to pick out a new storm door at a place 2-1/2 miles from here, so we walked - 2-1/2 miles there, picked out our storm door, and walked home with a stop at the grocery store on the way.  Stretched a little before walking, will try to stretch some more later.


Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Second Workout of New Ladder Cycle

Bodyweight 154.4 lbs.

Planned 4 BP ladders of (1-2-3) + FSQ, up from 3 of everything at our first session 2 days ago.

4 x (BP: 155 x 1-2-3, FSQ: 155 x 5)

Notes:

Have been taking my FSQ super deep, paused, and partially relaxed at the bottom.  I need to stop doing that - I think the way I've been doing them will have a better carryover to deadlifts, but I need carryover to my barbell back squat as well, and I need to be able to go heavier, and these almost-dead-start FSQs are too different from competition squats, and don't allow enough weight, so we're going to start staying tight at the bottom, and we're also going to take only short pauses and/or no pauses, and maybe even try to learn to bounce a little.

BP feels pretty strong

Onward and Upward

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Off/Easy - swings, walk, stretch, pistol, windmill

24 kg: swing, 5L+5R+5L+10R+10L - sort of lost count as to which side was first, but all done w/ no break at all - good.

Walk

Stretch

A few 8 kg pistols, 1L DLs, and windmills


Monday, September 2, 2013

First Day of New Ladder Cycle

Bodyweight is up to 155, feels good but feels like it's time to lift again, too.

New Cycle:  BP comp grip and high bar, very deep FSQ, both w/ 155 lbs. on the bar.

Today, the plan calls for 3 x (BP x 1-2-3, FSQ x 5).

We will work on increasing that to 5 ladders to 3 then work on upping heavy day, per usual for the modified ROP ladder progression we're doing.

BP: 135 x 1 warmup, 155 x 1-2-3
FSQ: 135 x 2 warmup, 155 x 5

BP: 155 x 1-2-3, FSQ: 155 x 4 - playing with form and, so far, sitting back more feels like it makes me weaker, not stronger.  Only got 4 reps.

BP: 155 x 1-2-3 - tried pinkies on rings for set of 2, felt stronger at lockout but weaker at bottom, went back to ring fingers on rings, my competition grip, for set of 3,   FSQ: 155 x 5 - my wife says my right hand is further from my right shoulder than my left hand is from my left shoulder - need to be mindful of that for next workout.

36 kg: 2-hand swing x 10

Onward and Upward

Sunday, September 1, 2013

A Bike Ride

Saturday: 90 minute drive, 10-mile bike ride - mountain bike but on the roads.  Haven't ridden in a year, felt great, just a little unusual.  Strong is good.  Another 90 minute drive home.

Today, Sunday: short walk, then
24 kg mil press, lf, 4 - felt good, helps right the back from the bike riding and driving yesterday

8 kg windmill, lf, 5 - haven't done these except bodyweight in a while, decided to start light.

Onward and Upward!