Another lift

I had a good lift today. Not much to mention about it. Here it is:

Squat - 5x45#, 4x60#, 2x80#, 3x5x92#
Press - 5x45#, 2x55#, 3x5x65#
Deadlift - 5x135#, 2x150#, 5x165#
Chin-up - 1, 1/2+1neg, 1neg

Progress

This morning's lift felt strong. I ended up making some progress on each lift, but especially squats and overhead presses. I've been here before on deadlifts, so that isn't spectacular. I think I do like the lower volume of DLs. I think they helped give me SI joint pain before. Good form is a must.

Squat - 5x45#, 3x60#, 2x75#, 3x5x90#
OH Press - 5x45#, 3x55#, 3x5x62#
Deadlift - 3x135#, 2x150#, 5x162#

Pressing more!

I thought this was as much as I've pressed, but it ends up I've been up to 65# before. For more reps, too. Oh well. I am pressing more than last time, though!

4 Sun Salutations
BB Squat - 5x45#, 3x60#, 3x75#, 3x5x87#
BB OH Press - 5x45#, 2x55#, 3x5x60#
Deadlift - 3x135#, 2x150#, 5x160#
Chin-up - 1 (right before 1st OH Press working set)

A couple days off does wonders

I felt strong today after a couple days off. I kept getting to bed late and one night I couldn't seem to get to sleep, so I slept in a few times and enjoyed the extra hour of sleep.

Today, I was back at it with a lifting session. I felt strong and in control today. Yay!

Foam rolling
Squat - 5x45#, 5x60#, 3x70#, 3x5x85#
Overhead Press - 5x45#, 1x52#, 3x5x57#
Deadlift - 5x135#, 2x145#, 5x155#
Chinup - 3/4up, 1/2up (I should move these to the start!!)

Short but sweet KB workout

Yesterday I lifted. I was dropping back on two of the moves, now I'll drop back on the third! I'm going to stick with this a while, even though I don't know if it is working well for me, yet.

Squat - 5x45#, 5x60#, 3x70#, 3x5x80#
Bench Press - 5x45#, 4x60#, 3x75#, 4x90#, 3x90#
Deadlift - 5x135#, 3x147#, 5x150# (oops, I made the 2nd weight thinking I was heading toward 160#, not 150#!)


Now, for today, a quick KB workout. The TGU portion really worked my shoulders. Great stuff.

Mobility complex
TGU - LR slow, LR 10sec at each position - 12kg
Swings 8 rounds of 30sec on/30sec off
2H 2x20 - 20kg
1H 2x (2x5R5L) - 16kg
1H 2x (5R5L3R3L2R2L) - 16kg
2H 2x20 - 20kg

Not a good lifting day

I knew the day didn't feel right going into my workout, but I chose to forge ahead. Squats felt bad. Ugh. It didn't help that accidentally put on too much weight at one stage of the squat warmup and didn't feel like removing it, essentually skipping one warmup set. Presses felt good. Deadlifts didn't feel too bad, but I stopped midway through my final set because something wasn't feeling right. I'll drop back in weight for squats and deadlifts next time.

Squat - 5x45#, 5x60#, 90# fail
OH Press - 5x45#, 3x5x55#
Deadlift - 5x135#, 3x145#, 2x155#, 3x165# stopped before 5 reps = fail

More lifting!

Sunday was this kettlebell workout:
3x LR TGU 12kg
2x (20 2H swings 20kg)
2x (2x 5L5R 1H swings 16kg)
5x 2L2R 1H swings 16kg
10x LR 1H swings 16kg
2x (20 2H swings 20kg)

Then today was this workout:
Foam rolling
Squat - 2x5x45#, 5x55#, 2x5x65#, 3x75#, 3x5x87#
Bench Press - 5x45#, 5x65#, 3x75#, 3x5x87#
Deadlift - 5x135#, 5x160#

And this morning, I found a trigger point in my back. I'm thinking of going to a masseuse to see if more can be found...

That's about it for now!

20km down!

Ooops, haven't updated in a while... again.

This past weekend, I ran the Dam to Dam 20k again with my brother. It went really well, considering we both hadn't trained for it like we should have. The longest run I had done was a 6-miler last Monday. I've been wearing my Merrell Pace Gloves and my Vibram Five Fingers exclusively for running since I got them. Of course, I haven't been running much, so that doesn't mean I've run in them a lot.

I was a bit weary, but I decided to throw caution to the wind and wear the Five Fingers for the 20k. It actually went really well. I was worried that my calves would seize up like they had done during my earlier practice runs. They actually did fine. I had zero problems with them. In fact, afterwards, it was my hip flexors and knees that were sore. That is normal for me. I had no abnormal or scary pain. Yay! We took the run easy and ended up at 2:24, which was more than a minute faster than my first D2D, even though we stopped for a bathroom break this time. My second D2D was longer due to an extended bathroom break :)  All in all, I think this speaks volumes to my current state of fitness. That I could even hold a slow pace for more than twice the distance I trained is satisfying. I'm happy.

So, today, I'm back to lifting. I created a plan for the next month or two based on Starting Strength. (I've had the 2nd edition, but recently sprang for the Kindle version of the 3rd edition. I also love his DVD companion to the book. I don't know how many times I've watched that!) I wanted to go back to the basics and focus on strength. A lot of the plans I've been doing do increase strength, but they are more focused on fat loss. This plan is pure strength. I will also make up a plan for kettlebells, which I will alternate with this. Also, I'll probably run once or twice a week when the weather is nice.

The first couple weeks have a lot of squats and deadlifts. Depending on how bored I get with this setup, I may drop the last two workouts. The idea is to do warm up sets and then three "sets across," which means to do them at the same weight. If you can't complete the three sets with good form, you drop back a bit next time (or stay the same?). If you do complete them with good form, you increase the weight next time.

June 8, 2012
Foam rolling
Back Squat - 2x5x45#, 4x65#, 2x75#, 3x5x80#
Overhead BB Press - 5x45#, 3x5x50#
Deadlift - 5x135#

I held the deadlift weight low because of an injury I got a week ago. I slammed my hand in a sliding closet door. Ouch! I bruised something deep in two of my fingers and it hurt like crazy. My grip has been affected and it is still sore when picking up heavy things, so I'm keeping the weights low until it is healed up.

That's it for now!

Done deloading

Last week was a deload week, so I didn't have much to post.

Yesterday, I did my grip-killing workout. Then, today, I made the mistake of doing a kettlebell swing workout. Yikes. Forearms are not happy. I had to switch to the lighter kettlebell just to finish.

Yesterday:
mobility and foam rolling
Barbell deadlift - 4x135#, 3x145#, 7x155#, 2x7x160# (misloaded the last set; thought I was putting on 165#, but forgot a 5# plate. Doh! Didn't notice the imbalance at all.)
Romanian deadlift - 5x7x135#
Hanging knee raise - 5x8

Today:
Lots of 2-handed and 1-handed swings thanks to Tracy Reifkind.

Deload week

I got to the 4th week ok the Simple Strength 1 program from Beautiful Badass. This is a deload week where I am supposed to lower the weights. It went well. Having the video was nice. My form seems ok.

Mobility
Deadlift - 3x5x115#
RDL - 4x10x120#
Hanging knee raise - 4x10

Deads :)

Late evening lift tonight. Couldn't miss my deadlifts, though!

A&C mobility
Deadlifts - 5x135#, 7x155#, 7x165#
RDL - 2x8x145#, 3x8x155#
Hanging Knee Raise - 2x8
Hanging Bent Leg Raise - 3x8
Foam rolling and back buddy

and some pushups:
8, 6, 6, 4, 4, 5

Getting heavier

I'm working my deadlifts weights back up. Feels good!

I took my time resting between sets. It's nice not to have to rush on weekends. The RDLs were giving me a bit of grip strength challenge. I only used a mixed grip on the last set, though.  I used Lynx grips for the hanging knee raises and focussed on keeping my lats tight, like the start of a pull-up.

What a great way to start the day!

BB Simple Strength 1
Mobility & foam rolling
DL - 4x135#, 9x145#, 9x155#
RDL - 2x6x145#, 2c6x150#, 6x155#, 6x160#
Hanging knee raise - 6x6

I'm baaaack!

Yesterday I finished up Body of Fire. It felt great to be done. It was a tough program. There wasn't much heavy lifting, but it was still hard. I definitely improved my push-up capacity. All in all, I did 1740 push-ups, not including ones that were included in the combos.

Now, I'm on to Beautiful Badass, using the Simple Strength program. I also warmed up with the Desk Jockey Option 1 warm up from Assess & Correct. I miss Eric Cressey's mobility work, so this was welcome.

The program was shorter than I've been doing, so I had more time to do some soft tissue work afterward. That will be helpful. I think I will call this day my grip strength day.

Here is is:
SS1
DJ1 Warm-up
Deadlift - 9x135#, 9x145#
RDL - 4x6x135#, 6x145#, 6x150#
Hanging Knee Raise - 6x6
Foam rolling and soft tissue work

A bit of an ego check

Today I completed Phase 2/ Week 6 / Workout 3 from Body of Fire.
I didn't have a dip station or any parallel bars this time, so I did pushups with my hands touching. Those are hard! I knocked the deadlift weight down to #140 because last time I did this workout, I felt like I overdid it. I did #155 DLs that time.  Also, this time, the combo goes up to 3 rounds.  So, I dropped to #10 DBs. Still plenty hard.  I checked the manual and the combo goes up to 5 rounds by the end of this phase.  Holy cow! That is going to be tough, even with 10# DBs!!

High reps again

Normally, I don't like high rep workouts.  Today's lift called for 2 sets of 15 reps.  I often dread these. However, today something clicked and it was fine.  I even enjoyed the feel of the speedy deadlifts.  They felt strong.  I remembered this time to wear longer pants and my long socks for the deadlifts.  Even with loads of Eco Ball on my legs, bare-legged deadlifts are not a good idea.  It only takes a slight rub with the bar and I've got bar burn on my legs.  It's not the knurled part that hits my legs, it's the smooth, shiny part.  It sticks and pulls my skin with it.

 I had to take a couple mini-rests in the middle of some of the reps, but overall, it went very well.  I almost talked myself out of lifting this morning, since I didn't sleep very well last night.  With only two sets, it was slightly on the short side of the FBB workouts rather than the long side.  6 workouts left in FBB!

Fine Tune B3
1:10
Foam rolling and warm up.
Swiss Ball Crunch - 2x10/10#
Complex - High Pull, Front Squat with Push Press, Back Squat 4/8x45#
Deadlift - 2x15/135#
Dumbell Rotational Overhead Press - 3x15/15#
Single-Leg Squat - 2x15 to bench (niggle in the knee, so I didn't do the last two sets)
Bent-Over Row - 2x15/65#

Another circuit

Today I put together a circuit for myself. I did 20s off, 1:10 on for 4 rounds:
KB swings (16kg, 16kg, 12kg, 12kg)\
JG pull up
jumprope
KB L/R clean (12kg, 20#, 20#, 20#)
JG push up

I don't know what was up, but I couldn't jump rope for anything.  The Jungle Gym XT (JG) push ups were hard.  Really hard.  By the 3rd and 4th round, I was kind of getting them.  The JG pull ups are great.  I can see them really helping my regular pull ups.
Here is Saturday's FBB workout:

Fine Tune B2
1:22
Foam rolling and warm up.
Swiss Ball Crunch - 10/10#, 10/10#
Complex - High Pull, Front Squat with Push Press, Back Squat 4/8x45#
Deadlift - 3x5/155#, 5/160#
Dumbell Rotational Overhead Press - 2x5/20#, 2x5/25#
Single-Leg Squat - 2x5 to bench (niggle in the knee, so I didn't do the last two sets)
Bent-Over Row - 4x5/75#

Darn allergies! Lifted anyway.

Today was Female Body Breakthrough Fine Tune B1.  I was determined to finish the whole thing, regardless of how long it would take.  The kids joined me for a while.  They were doing deadlifts and farmer carries.

Fine Tune B1
1:22
Foam rolling and warm up.
Swiss Ball Crunch - 10/15#, 10/10#
Complex - High Pull, Front Squat with Push Press, Back Squat  4/8x45#
Deadlift - 3x10/135#
Dumbell Rotational Overhead Press - 3x10/15#
Single-Leg Squat - 3x10 to bench
Bent-Over Row - 3x10/65#

Done dialing it in!

Today I finished off the last A and last workout overall in Female Body Breakthrough, Dial it In phase.  Before I broke the workouts up.  Today I did the whole thing in 1:30.  Two round of each, except the finisher, of course.  I mistakenly added a 90s prone cobra at the beginning.  That shows I shouldn't try to remember the workout on my own!  This was the first time doing this finisher after the whole workout.  I only added 30 seconds on to my lowest time, so I'm happy with that!

Dial It In A4
1:30
Warm up and foam rolling
Plank on a Swiss Ball - 2x90s (hard!!)
Upper-Body Core Stability Russian Twist - 2x10/20# (legs in the air)
Deadlift - (warm up 6/115#) 6/145#, 6/155# (good speeed)
Military Press - 2x 6/30#ea (oops, thought I was going lighter than this!)
Forward and Back Stepover - 8+8ea/BW (8 forward and 8 backward on each side)
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press - 2x15/30#ea
Single-Leg SHELC - 2x15ea (nice and slow = HARD!!)
One-Point Dumbbell Row - 2x15ea/35#
Finisher A: Squat thrusts + tuck jump - 3+1, 6+2, 9+3, 12+4, 9+3, 6+2, 3+1 (4:32)

More cautious DLs

We were out for a few days sailing.  What fun!  Now, back to lifting.

I didn't have enough time to finish, so I just did the first two alternating groups, but did 3 sets of each.  Then, I followed up with jump roping.  During the DLs, I could feel some tightness in my right hamstring.  I assume this is all part of my messed up right side.  Hmmm... I played around a bit with how it would feel if I raised my left heel a bit.  I might try that in the future.

Dial It In A3 (part 1)
~0:58
Warm up and foam rolling
Plank on a Swiss Ball - 3x90s
Upper-Body Core Stability Russian Twist - 3x10/20# (legs in the air)
Deadlift - (warm up 68/115#) 6/135#, 6/145#, 6/150#
Military Press - 6/25#ea, 6/27.5#ea, 6/28.75#ea
Jumproping - 6x(20s off, 45s on)

A week later...

No, I haven't been totally gone this past week.  "Life" changed up my schedule a bit.  Although working out is important to me, there are more important things.

Wednesday, July 20
I accidently repeated the B workout from Dial it In.  That kind of annoyed me because I was looking forward to deadlifts.  But, maybe it was a good thing.  After the last A workout, I felt some of the funniness in my hip (sacroilliac) again.  So, this gave me a little more rest.  My chinups were rather week.  But, I had some sleep issues over the past few days, so I should expect some weaknesses.
Here it was:
Dial It In B2
Foam rolling and Warmup
Prone Cobra - 2x90s
Front Squat Push Press - 6/55#, 6/60#
Chinup - 2x4/red 1" band
Romanian Deadlift - 15/95#
Dumbbell Push Press - 15/25#ea
Barbell Split Squat - 15/45#
Split-Stance Single-Arm Cable Row - 15ea/25#
Finisher B - 4:42
20 body-weight squats
20 body-weight dynamic lunges alternating
20 lunge jumps
20 jump squats

Friday, July 22
I did a metabolic circuit from FBB.  The timing was 10s rest, 45s work, two rounds.  Good stuff.
Exercises were:
Hop scotch
Single leg squat thrust
Mountain climber
KB cleans
Rope jump
Explosive step up
Prone step off Swiss ball
KB swing
Then I did 3 minutes of jump roping.

Sunday, July 24 (Today!)
Today, I went back to workout A.  I'll just continue from here and finish with A rather than B.  It was a good workout, but again, way too long.  I only got through 1 round of the superset and didn't have time for the Finisher.  It worked well to do that the next day last time, so I'll do that again.  After feeling the SI wierdness after my last DL session, I decided to take a big reset and start back at 135# for my working sets.  I was basically doing speed deadlifts.  That's ok.  I don't want to aggravate this any more.  I've read it takes a long time for these things to heal. 

Dial It In A2
1:23
Warm up and foam rolling
Plank on a Swiss Ball - 2x90s (hard!!)
Upper-Body Core Stability Russian Twist - 2x10/20# (legs in the air)
Deadlift - (warm up 8/115#) 6/135#, 6/145#
Military Press - 2x 6/25#ea
Forward and Back Stepover - 8+8ea/BW (8 forward and 8 backward on each side)
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press - 15/27.5#ea
Single-Leg SHELC - 15ea (nice and slow = HARD!!)
One-Point Dumbbell Row - 15ea/30#