To Infinity.... and Beyond!

thanks! today I just did 2 miles of cardio then coached a couple friends on beginning Olympic lifts this morning. otherwise its a rest day. I want to deadlift so bad but i know the body needs a rest.

I have to go to San Diego Feb 12th or so. so my goal is a 1rm attempt (maybe 300?) just before I go. we'll see if i can keep the momentum up that long.
 
bench
bar x 20
105 x 10

lateral raises
forward raises
db curls

105 x 10
155 x 5
195 x 1
225 x 1
240 x 1
250 x 3 x 3
260 x 1
270 x 1
275 x 1
280 x failed...

squats
bar x 10
95 x 10
135 x 10
165 x 5
185 x 5
205 x 1
225 x 1
230 x 3
230 x 1
185 x 3sets x 10r

notes
so I kinda knew yesterday was going to be an off day and I missed my 5's on bench. unfortunately, the back wasn't going to give me 5's on squats either. but still, tied my current 275 PR. so IDK. maybe sunday or monday give it another go. its's been a hard and productive couple weeks though so I'm not too upset. but I really wanted that 250 x 3 x 5.

weight
181.
 
deads
bar x 10 RDLs
135 x 10
185 x 10
225 x 10
275 x 10
295 x 10
295 x 8

deficit deads
225 x 10

notes
I knew I didn't have it in me to go up today for heavy 5s so I decided to attempt a volume day.
 
pretty awesome dlift volume there sir. i sure hope you can keep rehab going on your back issues. looking pretty promising right now!
 
thanks man. I fear its time for a deload week. my numbers are drifting backwards again.

bench
bar x 20
95 x 15
105 x 10
145 x 7
195 x 5
225 x 3
245 x 3

OH Press
bar x 10
95 x 10
115 x 5
115 x 8
115 x 8

cable flies
3 sets

db curls
3 sets

notes
weight = 182.5 but that's post a shaker of protein shake and another of pre-workout.
just out whack today. unorganized and not feeling it.
 
i think you're doing a better job of fatigue management than i am. i pushed as far as i felt i could for my squat hyper volume and i haven't really bounced back yet to push on into the strength volume ahead of me.
 
yeah sadly I need to deload. I keep peaking at 250lbs for 5 on my bench. hitting 245 x 3 x 5 was a GREAT session for me and basically a PR.

I also need to stop back squatting and front squat only for a while. I face zero issues when I stick to front squats at any weight or rep scheme but as soon as I try to back squat it sets me back a week or two on the back. which really, should be fine. the front squats + deadlifts will give me my oly lifts. I just miss back squatting.
 
Warsheeper

Warsheeper said:
A Deload isn't really straight forward our Deloads are pretty much just reduced sets and a lower RPE rating, only the technical lifts are reduced by % but just slightly, we ended the last cycle with 80% with the Snatch, Clean&jerk, we Deload with 70%, the Squats we're a Top Set of 8 with 85% + 4 down sets with 70%, Deload was 2 sets of 8 with 80%, for upper body we ended with 6 working sets per exercise all with an RPE rating of 8, Deload is 3 sets @6, those are just a few of many ways to go about Deloading
Click to expand...

Invalid Link Removed

I didn't want to highjack his thread but in regards to deloads, I think my issue is that I would do my heavy 5's or 3's until I plateaued, then I'd drop weight but still go to failure. so for instance;

if my bench went up 5lbs every week for 8 weeks then I plateaued hard, I'd probably drop from 250 x 5 to like 215 x 10 or something (and end up at like 215 x 9 of course), then 205 x 10, then 185 x 10, then 155 x 20 etc etc to feel like I worked hard. when in actuality, I needed to just cut the weight in half and let the body rest.
 
bench
bar x 20
95 x 10

lateral shoulder raises
forward shoulder raises
db curls

105 x 10
135 x 7
185 x 5
215 x 3
240 x 5
250 x 5
240 x 5
225 x 5 + 5 eccentric only (with spot on the concentric)

notes
so I was gonna drop back, hit 240 x 5 but the first set went so well I decided to give 250 another go. I hit my 250 x 5.
when I dropped back, i wanted to experiment with with assisted eccentric presses since I had my brother there to spot me. it was a practice opportunity for he and I both to see how it would go. the first 5 x 225 were all unassisted. then I did 5 more (without racking the bar, so 10 reps straight) where I did the slow lowering/eccentric movement, then had him spot me on every rep to the top.

My thoughts are that maybe this could be a fun thing to add to the really heavy weights. I know I can unrack and lower 275 safely no problem. being able to do 5 x 275 with eccentrics and having a spotter for the lift could be an interesting way to hit the body with more weight.

db curls
3 more sets

bb curls
3 sets, slow eccentric

weight
185 - moving up
 
I think my issue is that I would do my heavy 5's or 3's until I plateaued, then I'd drop weight but still go to failure.

If you could do 10reps just go for 6 etc, even during the regular training cycle going to failure alot might not be the best idea anyway
 
Warsheeper said:
I think my issue is that I would do my heavy 5's or 3's until I plateaued, then I'd drop weight but still go to failure.

If you could do 10reps just go for 6 etc, even during the regular training cycle going to failure alot might not be the best idea anyway
Click to expand...

well yeah! that's the idea! the problem is self control.
 
front squats
bar x 10
95 x 10
115 x 10
135 x 10
155 x 5
175 x 5
185 x 5
195 x 5
205 x 4
190 x 5

hang cleans (full/squat)
135 x 5
155 x 5
175 x 5
185 x 5

RDL
185 x 10 snatch grip
185 x 10 regular grip

deads
185 x 15
225 x 2 sets x 15

dead hang pullups
3 sets of 10-12

weight
184.5 post workout

notes
front squats felt great. I think I've decided my 3x5 weight right now should probably be 195 on next session.
I wanted to incorporate a lot more back work into todays session but just ran out of time.

kept dead lifts light to really work on form. I want to work on really straightening out my back more. its a serious challenge for me. tonights workout was good.

Food is at
Carbs = 290g
Pro = 280g
Fat = 23g
Cals 2535

So this has helped me gain about 5lbs so far, and its been a decently lean gain. I want to keep these macros exactly as is until I have one or two sessions where my weight is 185 post workout. Then I'll drop carbs and increase protein and see if I can cut. My goal is to cut bf but not bodyweight if I can pull it off.
 
nice hang clean volume there sir. at this point i have totally forgone anything over 3 reps for any comp. lifts or variations lol.
 
you know whats funny is 2016 turned me into an old man. because my back issues were so bad I feel like my T levels dropped and it became second nature for me to say, eh that's pretty good, and leave it at that. I saw this in me yesterday because...

I did the hang cleans at 135 and stood up and said, OK I'll hit 3 sets of 5 there. and then I thought.. na maybe I'll do 155.

but then I started thinking back to my best, I once was hang cleaning 225 for reps. so I thought **** that, its time to man the **** up and move some weight again.
 
warm up
50 / 40 / 30 / 20 / 10 double unders
KB clean and press while I partner alternated with me on DU vs KB

power cleans
115 x 10
135 x 5
155 x 3
175 x 3
185 x 3
195 x 3
205 x 3
215 x 1
225 x 0

wod
8 Min EMOTM
8 x 115lb strict press
8 x burpees
(press on minute 1, burpees on minute 2, and so on)

7min EMOTM
5 x double 44lb KB press
5 x double 44lb kb burpee deadlifts

weight
183.5 post workout
 
today was a little team series comp at our box. its just for the members and a fun way to get about 50 people all together on one day to hang out and lift. For me, it felt great to actually be able to move properly. great conditioning day. tonight will be comedy club with friends and tomorrow will be a complete rest day and food day.

instead of trying to explain each wod i'm just logging my work for today.

warm up wod (neat idea. totally just a warm up, yet competitive and added to the comp format)
25ft crab walk
45lb ground to overhead (with bumper plate
25ft barecrawl
25ft lunge
4 x turkish getups
25ft lunge
lateral cone drills
squat cleaned thruster med ball tosses to partner (basically do a clean then a thruster with med ball and throw it to the partner)

we had four people on our team and three people do planks while the one person does the above stuff.


95lb snatch AMRAP
60 seconds = 30 reps
30 seconds = 15 reps
15 seconds = 10 reps

(about 1 minute rest to two minutes between)

then no rest, into max 3 rep effort of

thrusters
145 x 3
165 x 3
185 x 3

5000 meter row for time (split by team)
500m = 1:23/500pace
350m = 1:30 pace
250m = 1:35 pace
400m = 1:42 pace

5 min amrap
15 pullups
12 box jump overs
9 x 125lb push press
I had about one full round and a few reps, as my partner did too.

no rest, then next wod

5 min amrap
32 x 20lb wall balls
16 x 53lb kb snatch
we had about 2.5 rounds total split in half between us.

it was a lot of fun. we tied for 3rd place. ten or 11 teams in all. some really great athletes to hang out with.
 
bench
bar x 20
95 x 10
95 x 10
135 x 7
185 x 5
205 x 3
225 x 1
240 x 5

EMOTM
255 x 10 singles

strict oh press
95 x 10
115 x 5
135 x 5
145 x 1
155 x 1
165 x 1
175 x 0
(i wanted to test to see where this was)

push press
185 x 5
205 x 1
225 x 1
230 x 0



rest, eat, take a nap... then 4hrs later

front squats
bar x 10
95 x 10
135 x 10
155 x 5
185 x 3
205 x 3 singles with 6 second pause
185 x 3 singles with 6 second pause

wod
16min amrap of
5 rounds of Cindy
5 x pullups
10 x pushups
15 x air squats

followed by
3 rounds of DT
12 x 155lb deadlift
9 x 155lb hang power cleans
6 x 155lb push press.

Completed Cindy + DT + another Cindy + 7 more deadlifts in the 16 minutes.

notes
we got a lot of snow so work was closed today. that's why I Had time to hit the gym, rest for a while, then go to xfit.

Calories are staying at about 2700 pretty sharp. roughly 300carbs/225+ pro/ rest in fat.

weight
183
 
I don't even know really how to explain what I did today but I'm going to try. it was kind a low key circuit day yet I still soaked my shirt with sweat.

11min amrap
12 x 20lb med ball shoves
12 x kb snatch
I did 4 rounds. 12 x 35lb kb, 12 x 53lb kb, 12 x 62lb kb, 12 x 70lb kb. I don't think i've ever done a 70lb kb snatch before so that was cool.

11min amrap
10 x 55lb db incline press (6 second eccentric every 3 reps)
3 x 5 second slow eccentric ring rows
10 x 55lb double db front squats
4 rounds

11min amrap
15 back extensions
15 strict situps on ghd machine
15 box jump overs (24" )
I did 3 rounds

11 min amrap
4 x turkish getups
20 x banded pull aparts
20 x ring dips
I did 1 full round but then I played with the getups for the rest of the time.
4 x 35lb kb TGU
2 x 44lb kb TGU
2 x 53lb kb TGU
2 x 62lb kb TGU
1 x 70lb kb TGU

kind of a low key night but the body needed that. tomorrow i'll take an actual rest day. hang out with my boy, maybe laser tag.
 
bench
bar x 20
95 x 10r x 2s
135 x 7
175 x 5
215 x 3
240 x 1
250 x 3sets of 4

front squats
bar x 10
95 x 10
115 x 10
135 x 10
155 x 5
175 x 5
185 x 2sets of 5

mini wod
5 x 135lb squat-cleaned-thrusters
5 x burpees
10 x 20lb wall balls
3 rounds (5:20)

weight - post workout
182.4

so i'm dropping weight too fast again. need to change something.
all next week i need to be in san diego for work, so i'm looking for a gym around the convention center...
 
I'm down in San Diego this week so logging is a bit of a pain. The weather is fantastic tho. So nice to escape the snow and rain.

Bench
95 x 10
135 x 10
185 x 5
220 x 3
240 x 5
245 x 5
250 x 4

Hammer curls
3 sets

Ez bar curls
3 sets

Tri cable push downs
3 sets

Cable flies
3 sets

And one mile jog to and from the local gym.
Not sure of weight. Hard to track macros very well while traveling but trying. Sleeping more than usual which is good.
 
jogging? what's that haha? i used to be able to run for forever when i played rugby but am in no shape or form an endurance athlete anymore. my teammate and i ran about 3 miles from his apartment up to the local high school track and did a timed mile once. i believe i did 6 m 15 sec., it was pretty good but i couldn't push the kind of pace you need to get a real fast time through an entire mile. he on the other hand did 5 m 30 sec. i guess when he did track in high school he could consistently get around 5 flat.

and congratulations on your travel destination. where i live is one of the greyest, least sunny places in north america, especially in the winter time. every day the sun is out right now is like a miracle from above.
 
Got home from San Diego Thursday night. the weather was pretty great the whole time, 69-75f. spent a lot of time in the gas lamp district at night and my buddy and i made a game of trying out street tacos at as many places as possible.

Friday made it to xfit for a wod but have been taking it easy all weekend otherwise.

EMOTM - 12 minutes
6 high hang power cleans on minute 1
4 low hang power cleans on minute 2
2 power cleans on minute 3
then repeat for the 12min
ran a 165lb barbell the first half, the finished with 175lbs

wod
15min amrap partner wod
60 cal row
40 x 155lb shoulder to overhead
30 x strict pullups
50 x pushups
we got about 2 full rounds. it was good and fairly heavy.

started food prep again today so tomorrow I'll be back at the grind. I did log my food all week even though I was gone. what I realized is how hard it is to get a lot of protein in when you're eating out a lot. I still hit the same calories roughly but they all came from carbs and fat. so it will be good this week to get the body back into normal nutrition mode. Going really clean the first few days and working more veggies back in.
 
forecasting more snow this weekend...

warm up
rowing, wall balls with 30lb ball, band work

front squats
bar x 10
95 x 10
115 x 10
135 x 10
155 x 5
185 x 3
195 x 3 x 3

wod
6min EMOTM
15-18 wall balls even minutes
10 burpee box jumps odd minutes

rest 2min

10min emotm
44lb double kb box step ups
8 x strict toes to bar

notes
kinda silly wods but still go super sweaty.
front squats went well considering i haven't been able to squat in a while. I threw it on my back and tried one at 195 to see how it felt and it felt light and easy. didn't want to risk hurting the back though so only did the one rep.
 
bench
bar x 10
95 x 10
95 x 10
135 x 7
185 x 5
220 x 3
245 x 3
250 x 2

notes
did some curls and a few accessory items as well, but really only had 30 minutes at the gym and that effected me quite a bit. haven't been getting more than about 5hrs of sleep either and just burning the candle at both ends so I need to get my sleep caught up and get productive gym time in.

weight
183.5
 
man, it sucks that you're still having limitations. you do so many movements with the xfit stuff that require a ton of mobility but it's a no go as soon as weight is involved. i can certainly understand thought. when i was doing some research on what i should do for my si joint, i read that picking up a 40lb box from the ground literally puts about an entire ton of pressure on the si joint due to all of the muscle tension anchored from it.
 
Balthazar said:
when i was doing some research on what i should do for my si joint, i read that picking up a 40lb box from the ground literally puts about an entire ton of pressure on the si joint due to all of the muscle tension anchored from it.
Click to expand...

Lol I read the same article I think. except they said the barbell was equal to a car I think.

yeah I can do any movement at all, it just becomes an issue with weighted backsquats over 185-205 for some reason. however being honest with myself, life changes in the last year have made some things difficult in the gym as well. I'm running off 5-6hrs of sleep per night which is sleep deprivation by definition. that's NOT good for healing the body or testosterone levels.

I took measurements for the first time in probably a year and my quads are a full 2" smaller than they used to be.
 
snatch
95 x 5
115 x 5
135 x 5
145 x 3
155 x 1
160 x 1

power snatch (isabel wod, untimed)
30 x 135lb power snatch in sets of 5

rest 1 minute

grace
30 x 135lb clean and jerk
time; 3:40

front squats
185lbs x 3s x 5r

RDL's
185lbs x 3sets x 15reps


weight
185 post workout

notes
best oly day I've had in a long time.
i missed every snatch on the first try, I need to just get comfortable with the movement again. stopped at 160 to be safe.
the 135lb power snatch were all in fast sets of 5.

front squats were brutal after all that. but it was a good back pain-free day and i'm glad to be moving oly lifts again.

Grace is still about a minute and a half slower than my old PR but given i did it on no rest and out of shape, i'm happy.

putting am emphasis on leg work (front squats, cleans, RDL's) to rebuild that size. I'm now at the weight i want to be at so I'll tone down my carb and caloric intake about 300 calories I think and hit a mini cut while focusing on leg work and see what happens.
 
Always behind. Which tells me the strength is there... I'm happy about that.

I AM out of practice though. A year and a half ago I snatched a couple times a week. But since I had that back injury I probably only snatched 4 times in 2016.

So I need to get back to the basics.

I'm getting full extension which is good. I could tell in my power snatch that my extension and second pull felt good.

First pull is OK and tight.

I need to build confidence again in third pull and rebuild the routine of snapping under and locking my arms out.

My GUESS, knowing myself and knowing how I snatched a year+ ago, is that I'm jumping back. I'm probably not holding a straight line with the bar. So I need to work on that.

I'm guessing though since I don't have video of it and didn't have anyone watching my feet.
 
jumping back isn't that bad, maybe you are just pulling to much? yesterday we had power snatches for the first time in 4 months and today full snatches again, had to adjust back and stop pulling way over the midline of my stomache, maybe you have the same problem but more severe
 
Totally possible. My strength has been all over the map this past year. I used to be able to do Isabel in like 3min (30 x 135lb power snatch) and a few months ago I couldn't even power snatch 135 one time. So things are coming back to life finally.

Another note, I'm happy to be able to put so much focus on oly again because it also gives me the pulling movements back. I was spending my whole life pushing! All pressing movements practically. Need those pulls to equalize and keep healthy.
 
do muscle snatches with your warm up and lou raises, maybe that helps with actively pushing up in the bottom position and stabilizing the weight with your traps Invalid Link Removed in the top position internatlly rotate the shoulders and push your head through just like the snatch
 
Warsheeper said:
do muscle snatches with your warm up and lou raises,
Click to expand...

Ha too, funny. I do exactly that. except i haven't gone fully to the top with Lou raises, I usually do db lateral shoulder raises followed by db muscle snatch to get everything warmed up. the lou raises would be a nice addition.
 
front squats
bar x 10
95 x 10
135 x 10
155 x 5
175 x 5
185 x 5
195 x 5
200 x 4 (failed 5th)

wod
30 x 135lb clean and jerk
25 x pushups
20 x 135lb front squats
12 x 135lb clean and jerk
time; 12 min.

back squat
200lbs x 1

(just tested it in between front squats. zero pain, felt easy.)

notes
feeling good. zero back pain. front squats starting to grow again. my grace time was down to about 3:00.
 
it kinda cracks me up. even though my backsquats are dog **** right now, my front squats aren't that far away from my old PR. I'm pretty sure I never front squatted more than 245 tops when I back squatted 300s.

so the cool thing is there, I could PR front squats in March or April feasibly , lol. they dont seem to bother my back AT ALL. i dont get it, but i'm glad to have found squats i can do!
 
that's the game plan. I'm doing what I can to maintain some balance though RDL's etc. but just enjoying seeing squat progress again!
 
last nights work was kinda a weird mix of mini wods, but it thoroughly worked me. i was drenched in sweat.

only 1min rest between wods
9 min amrap
15 toes to rings
21 x 70lb russian kb swings

9min amrap
27 - 21 - 15 - 9 reps of
calorie row
PNF deadlifts with 44lb kb

9min amrap
20 x barbell landmine twists
15 x banded good mornings

9 min amrap
10 x ring rows with slow decline
5/5 x seated kb press
3 rounds; then 4 minutes:
farmers carry step ups with 2 x 50lb dbs.
 
bench
bar x 20
95 x 15
115 x 10
155 x 7
195 x 5
225 x 3
240 x 4r x 2s
230 x 5r x 3s

bb curls
3 sets

dips
3 sets of 20

weight
183.5
 
bench
bar x 20
105 x 15
145 x 10
190 x 5
225 x 5
240 x 3s x 5r

front squats
bar x 10
95 x 10
135 x 5
155 x 5
185 x 1
205 x 1
215 x 1
225 x 1

wod
7min emotm
5 x 115lb hang squat cleans

rest 1 minute

5min emotm
3 x 135lb push jerk
2 x 135lb split jerk
(moved up to 165lbs by last set, this was too light)

rest 1 minute

3min max reps
115lb squat cleaned thrusters (or, "clusters" if you will)
22 reps.
 
snatch
95 x 5
115 x 5
135 x 5
145 x 3
155 x 1
165 x 1

overhead squats
165lbs

power snatch
135 x 5
(wasn't feeling it)

deads
185 x 10
225 x 5
275 x 5
315 x 10
225 x 21
 
just got back from spring training down in Peoria. I dont know if any of you guys are baseball nuts, but that was about the coolest baseball experience i've had. it was like baseball mardi gras. watched the Mariners beat the cubs and the Reds, got some 90 degree sunshine, and hiked up in Sedona. i'm ready to be back in the gym, but i'm definitely going back to Spring Training in AZ next year.
 
OK my body was destroyed this week, not near enough calories. i cut back way too much these past two weeks with all the travelling, etc.

bench
95 x 10
135 x 5
175 x 5
195 x 5
215 x 3
230 x 5
230 x 1

run
about 2 miles

notes
weight is down a few lbs, bodyfat is below 10%. I leaned up way too fast. waaaaay too fast. I was feeling it bad in the gym last night. joints felt dry and sore. the bench press felt awkward and painful.
 
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