February 23, 2014 Conditioning

• Battling Rope - Rope Clap SS: 30-25, 30-25, 30-25

real quick session, don't want to tire myself out for the last week before I start trying for PRs

December 10, 2013 Upper Body

• Completely Flat Bench Press / BB Row Superset: 225*8 / 225*6 225*8/225*8 225*6/225*5
• Seated Press: 105*10 120*8 135*4-delts done...VERY intense
• Neutral Grip Pullups: 10, 8
• Landmine Laterals: 50*10 50*8

24 minutes!

So on bench today I decided to do it completely without an arch, with my feet in front of me on the ground, not pulled back (as I would to help with an arch).  Was interesting, definitely harder.  The rows suffered a tad because it wasn't a setup off a rack, I had to pull it off the pins of the bench.  Also...seated overhead press! WOW....my delts were FEELING this.  Way more than on the standing press, even with the strict form I had been using.  Intense!  

October 20, 2013 Conditioning

• Jump Rope: 30, 25
• Unilateral KB Swings: 28kg*15 28kg*15
• Row: 400m*1:21 NEW PR!!
• Bench Plyo Clap Pushups: 5,5,5
• Battling Rope-Rope Slam S.S.: 35-10, 35-10
• Row: 200*0:38

Good session, shins are a bit splinty still from all the jumping recently, going to lay off it for a bit.  On rowing for some reason I notice my ass muscles get sore, not sure why. My hips aren't tight or anything by the time I get to the rowing, I just get this really uncomfortable feeling in my hips, quads, and glutes when I row really fast.  Did manage to set a PR here though, so yaaay, etc. 

January 11, 2013 Lower Body

• Squats: 245*10 255*10 265*10
• Pin Squats: 255*3 265*3
• BB Split Squats: 95*10 115*10
• Wide-Stance Anti-Rotational Chops: 50*10
• Battling Rope-Rope Slam S.S.: 30-10 42-10

42 minutes

Much better with 3 sets of squats instead of 4.  I was still beat after the workout, but the rest of the workout itself wasn't as impeded as the last couple weeks.  Numbers everywhere went up.  Definitely like that.  250-260-270 next week on squats.  

January 2, 2013 Conditioning

• tiny-small-medium overbox jump - broad jump superset: 10
• knee-down mb push 1/2 court sprints: 16*5 per knee
• Viking Quest: 200*0:40 400*1:27 800*3:14

Good session, a couple notes:  

1) My broad jumps were at least 10' each time, had 10' 2" a couple times.  Good stuff.  I want to measure it from a stand-still.  I feel like these are actually short for me.  

2) The knee-down sprints go like this:  Start with one knee down, like you're about to start a sprint. Hold a soft medicine ball.  Instead of just bursting forward to start the sprint, burst forward and simultaneously push the ball (basically two-hand shot-put it) as hard as you can down the court.  

3)  I realized on the concept2 rower I had been using it at a difficulty setting of 10. Apparently around 4 simulates water pretty well. Whoops.  Discovered that after I finished the 400, figured I'd try setting it to 4 for the 800.  It was actually harder, because even though pulling was easier, each pull amounted to less distance traveled. I actually like it better at the highest resistance.  

December 26, 2012 Conditioning & Olympic Lifts

• Hanging Power Snatch: 135*2 145*1 150*1
• Hanging Power Cleans: 155*1 175*1 185*1 195*1
• High Pull: 205*1
• tiny-small-medium box over jumps - broad jump superset: 10
• P.U.P.P.: 10

39 minutes

Amazing what not deadlifting 450 lbs. before olympic lifting does for the lifts. I felt great on these, my  form was great, and the weights moved so rapidly.   That last high pull was supposed to be a clean but I couldn't flip it over so it ended up being a high pull.  Added 5 lbs. to the snatch & cleans.   It was about 28 degrees out today, and I need leggings or something before I can run in those conditions, going to go tomorrow most likely and grab some.  Did a series of jumps over boxes into a broad jump, as a supserset.  Love doing that stuff.   Finished with some planks.  

December 13, 2012 Upper BOdy

• Incline Bench: 235*4 240*3 225*4
• Pullups: 80*2 80*2 80*2
• Rope Pullups: 7, 7
• Standing Press: 135*5 150*2 160*1
• DB Rows: 120*8 120*8
• DB Flat: 100*6 110*2-gassed
• Battling Rope-Rope Slam S.S: 40-10 40-10

40 minutes!

Wow...blazed through this one.  I will say though I'm getting a little weary of using the light weights on things. I think I may go back to the 3 rep sets on several movements, including standing press and incline bench.  I feel a bit listless for this bulk, I had some goals about increasing volume, and  using DB work as well as some unilateral leg stuff.  That's going fine, but I wonder if the extra work is burning the extra calories I'm taking in. 

I'm having trouble in the evenings getting all the calories in; usually in previous bulks I'd eat more rice, more chicken, more steak. This time I've tried adding in extra kinds of foods, sometimes I miss the 2nd shake, but I try to have more earlier in the day in the form of bread or something carby to make up for it.  Still though without that shake I'm probably a shade below 200g of protein per day.  I thought going in that by eating more carbs my body would be more efficient in delivering protein to where it's needed....looking like total broscience.  I think I need to be at 225 consistently to be  gaining how I want. Because right now things are just going way too slow gain wise.  I don't feel like on the main movements I'm gaining that much.  The extra DB stuff I added in I am, but that's because I haven't done them in a while.  Otherwise I feel stagnant, if not weaker than when this bulk started...going to give it another week and see how it goes. 

Workout itself was decent, db rows added a rep, db flat upped the weight. 

November 25, 2012 Conditioning

• Unilateral Medium Box Jumps: 10, 10
• Battling Rope - Rope Slam S.S.: 30-10
• Kneeling start 1/2 court sprints: 5 per leg
• Viking Quest: 200*0:39 400*1:27 800*3:41

30 minutes

The unilateral jumps are particularly taxing, may move up to the large box next time.  Good session, was tired by the end of it; my legs are still dead from that workout on Friday. 

October 14, 2012 Conditioning

• 34.5" Plyo Box Jumps: 5
• 31.5" plyo Box Jumps: 15
• 31.5" seated plyo box jumps: 15
• Battling Rope - Rope Slam S.S.: 40-15 40-20
• 10 lbs. plate transfer planks: 4*1 4*1

Got 5 jumps at 34.5 before psyching myself out.  Finished with the 31.5 jumps.  I may try to just add one jump onto the 34.5" each week, or at least try to get myself to before chickening out, until I'm at 15-20 again.   Did some rope work, then plate transfer planks; forgot how hard these are, since your forearm crosses over the midpoint of your body while planking. 

October 11, 2012 Upper Body

• Incline Bench / Pullup Superset: 240*3-80*3 250*3-80*3 260*2-80*2
• Standing Press: 135*7 145*3
• Unilateral Pullups: -14*2 -17*4
• Bird Dogs: 10, 10

Supersets went good, felt like the pullups went well. Standing press went ok.  I'm still on the fence about whether or not to put it first this coming bulking cycle and see how high I can get it or not.  I really like incline benching though.  Tried unilateral pullups on the pullup assist machine, I had the idea that I could slowly build up to a bodyweight one arm pullup by using decreasing assistance each week. But honestly I don't like how the one arm pullups feel on my shoulder joints.  Probably going to ditch that plan. 

October 4, 2012 Upper Body

• Incline Bench Press / Pullup Supserset: 240*3-80*3 250*3-80*2 260*2-80*2
• Pullup Iso-Hold: 23 seconds
• Standing Press: 135*7 145*4
• Paloffs: 50*10 60*10

Good session, I think I may try a muscle up next week. We'll see how that goes. Paloffs still bring out the strain/whatever in my piriformis/lower back.  All core/ab work does.  Doesn't stop me from going in on it though.  

September 30, 2012 Conditioning

• 34.5" Plyo Box Jumps: 5
• 31.5" Plyo Box Jumps: 15, 15
• 31.5" Seated  Plyo Box Jumps: 15
• Plyo Bench Clap Pushups: 6, 5, 5
• Battling Rope - Rope Slam Superset: 60-10, 50-15

Wheeee. First Sunday conditioning session in a couple months.  Back/whatever injury kept me from doing jump stuff, plus summer day trips. Back at it now.  Did some tall+short (34.5") box jumps.  Honestly I still have the same problem. I do several, and then start over thinking the motion, and how to do it, and what if I catch my shins, etc.  Then my body just locks up. No idea why.  On the 31.5" jumps when I land on the box it's pretty forceful because I'm like 7" over the top at my peak, minimum.  Still had fun here. Did some clap pushups, liked them a lot, need to work more plyo bench stuff in to work on bar speed.   Love my jumps though. Missed them greatly.  

September 6, 2012 Upper Body

• Incline Bench / Pullup Superset: 245*3-80*3 255*3-80*2 265*2-75*3 
• Pullups: 75*3
• Standing Press: 95*10 115*8 135*4-? not sure what happened there
• Low Box - Medium Box - Broad Jump superset: 10
• Bird-Dogs: 10, 10

Didn't sprint yesterday, track was soaked from storms. Not good times. Will go Sunday.  Pullups were difficult today for some reason, not sure why.  Felt like I had no strength at the top of them. We'll see what happens next week.  Trying some higher rep stuff on shoulders with the standing press.  Not sure why I only got 135 for 4, probably because I haven't done them in over a month. Hopefully I bounce back quick.  Did a superset after all this of a jump over the low box, into a jump over the medium box, into a broad jump.  My back was not happy about the landings when I was more flat footed, felt like my lower back was getting 'compressed'.  Figured I wanted to get back to jumping though.  We'll see how I feel tomorrow. Going to foam roll the heck out of my back tonight. Finished with bird-dogs, definitely felt lower back & piriformis stinging on them.  Also, noted they now have a super-low box that's only about 3", have to put that to use when I stack boxes. 

Also...holy crap. Took these pics back at the end of August, never took them off my phone to check.  I have no idea what it was about that day, but it looks like I have an extra serratus showing, and I don't think I've ever looked that cut before.  I really wish I didn't have hips as wide as I do...otherwise, happy with these.  Probably my favorite progress pics I've ever had. 

August 23, 2012 Lower / Upper

• Low Box Squat / Pullup Superset: 255*5-80*3 265*5-80*3  275*3-80*3 sore from sprints
• Incline Bench Press: 250*3 240*3 230*3
• Hanging Power Snatch: 95*3 135*3 145*2

Wow...not putting squatting the day after sprints ever again.  Hamstrings,etc. were completely exhausted.  I liked super-setting though with the pullups.  Did some Incline Bench after, haven't done it in a few weeks, numbers should be back up next week.  Also getting back into the olympic lifts as well. Took it easy here, didn't want to torque back / piriformis.  Everything went fine though, didn't feel a thing.  

July 29, 2012 Conditioning

• Low Box Jump Over - Medium Box Jump Over - Broad Jump Superset: 10, 10, 10
• Bench Plyo Clap Pushups: 5, 5, 5
• PUPP: 2:01, 1:31

After those first two supersets I thought my lungs were going to immolate. Holy crap that drained me.       Definitely what I was looking for in a conditioning workout.   I got a couple videos of me doing them, the first from the side/back and the other going towards the camera

June 26, 2012 Lower Body

• Front Squats: 225*2 250*2 275*1 300*1
• Hanging Power Cleans: 165*3 185*3 205*1
• Battling Ropes - Rope Slam Superset: 70-10 60-10

Wow...so I wanted to do something different besides deadlifting here.  Tied my front squat record. Had no intention of going for it, I just have issues not going heavy when lifting.  Was exhausted for power cleans.  Hamstrings are still beat to heck from kb swings on Sunday. 

June 14, 2012 Upper Body

• Incline Bench / Pullup Superset: 260*3-70*3 257.5*3-70*3 245*3-65*3
• Pullup Iso Hold: 25 seconds, 22 seconds
• Standing Press: 135*5 155*2-tired
• DB Goblet Walks: 110*1:00 110*0:40
• Wide-Stance Anti-Rotational Chops: 50*10 60*10

Whoo. Good times.  Superset at the beginning saves me time and lets me do more stuff in the time I have.  Forgot to pull a 2.5 off one side, hence the 257.5 on that 2nd set.  Iso Holds at the top position of the pullup felt great. Was gassed by the time I got to standing presses, so I moved along. Can't believe I got 1:00 this quick on the goblet walks.  Finished with some chops. 

June 08, 2012 Lower

• Squats: 320*3 330*2 340*1
• Hanging Power Snatches: 135*3 145*3 155*3
• Unilateral Deadlifts: 175*6 195*4 215*4
• Battling Ropes / Rope Slam S.S.: 55-10 50-10

I think I need to box squat again for a while, I'm losing hamstring & hip drive again. I may just cycle in box squats every 6 weeks or so from now on, and do a TON of them when I do them.  Snatches went well.  On unilateral deadlifts as the weight goes up I'm dropping reps; this will allow me to move up quicker through the weights.  Finished with some rope work. 

March 4, 2012 Conditioning

• 34.5" Plyo box jumps / seated box jump superset: 15/15
• Battling Ropes / Rope Slam S.S.: 60/15 50/15
• Wide-Stance Anti-Rotation Chop: 40*10 45*10

Good session...the rope work gasses me. 

February 26, 2012 Conditioning

• 34.5" Plyo Box Jump / 34.5" Seated Plyo Box Jump S.S.: 15/15 15/15
• Plyo Bench Clap Pushups: 5, 5, 3 

Loving the supersets here.  I pick up the pace within the actual sets themselves when I do them supersetted for some reason.  Feels good.  Completely gassed afterward.