Personal Record - Rolling Thunder

Where is a camera when I need it!?!

Last night started as me teaching the Boy Scouts the Personal Fitness merit badge.  They like to come over twice a year and use some of the workout equipment - fun night.

What should have been just them exercising turned into me being compelled to beat them at everything...handily, of course! :)

I had to bench 205 for 25 reps.  I wasn't done but it was good enough to win the debate.

I had to do some chin-ups.  I beat most of the boys there, but I weigh over 3 bills, so not really a fair fight!!!

And we did rolling thunder...and I hit a PR!  198 LBS!!!!

With that, I'm nearly to my RT goal for the year and it feels really good to make that big of a jump!  While I didn't catch it on camera, I did have 7 witnesses.

A day at Gold's

I went with Brian to Gold's, yesterday, to hit some machines that we can't quite replicate at home.  Here is a video of Brian, and I'm in it periodically, mainly standing awkwardly, or as the guy in the background doing the lady's abductor machine to work on my hip area!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWPKFX_WX10&feature=g-all

We stayed mainly on legs, but hit a little bit of back (lats) too:

Leg Press
     405 x 10, 495 x 8, 585 x 6, 675 x 5, 675 x 5
Box Squat with full stop on box (hard as you start from nothing at bottom)
     225 x 8, 315 x 5, 405 x 3, 505 x 3
Leg extensions (weight is per leg)
     60 x 12, 90 x 10, 130 x 10
Abductor machine
     100 x 100
Outward rotator machine for hips
     100 x 50
Leg Curls
     110 x 10, 190 x 6, 190 x 8, 110 x 15
Lat pulls
     Wide grip - 175 x 12, 205 x 10, 235 x 8
     Superset - wide, tight, reverse, 110 x 10 x 10 x 10
Seated rows
     Low - 130 per hand x 8 x 2 sets
     High - 50 per hand x 20 to burnout

As always, thanks for reading!

Cardio, shoulders and hips

About time for a video - here is a crazy superset!

Today's workout:
2 miles jogging
500 total cable shoulder reps
Shrugs (straight bar)
     135 x 15, 295 x 10, 135 x 15
Shoulder Super-SUPER Set with 10 exercises
     15 lbs per hand, 15 reps each per exercise, all without stopping
     Upright rows, lateral raises, half presses, front hammer raises, shrugs, bent rows...
          back flyes, rotating lateral raises, front raises, half presses
Hip thrusts
     200 lb resistance rogue bands
     3 sets of 30 to max extension
Abs - 75 total reps

As you can clearly see, hit some cardio, then mainly shoulders, with some hips and abs, as well.  Nothing too extraordinary, but felt good!

Thanks for reading.

Over the weekend

We had quite a crew over at Brian's on Saturday.  I was there (obviously) along with Brian, Roger and Cameron.  They did a little bit of yoke to warm-up but I abstained as I see no reason to hurt myself mid-recovery.  I spent the time stretching, instead.  We focused on back, and didn't get that many sets in, but did go heavy.  I forgot my camera, but here is the workout:

Frame Deadlift
       340 x 4, 440 x 3, 520 x 2, 620 x 2, 694 - failed...too much that time!
Axle Deadlift
       135 x 12 warm-up, 315 x 4, 405 x 2, 455 x 2, 505 x 1

All of the axle and frame lifts were done without wrist straps, which makes it pretty tough!  I ran out of time as Britt and the girls came to pick me up and saw the 505 lb lift.  They had been to see Santa, and it was time for dinner, so that was the full workout on Saturday.

Thanks for reading!

All about stretching...and ice

So I quite nearly broke down and got a massage today.  Fortunately for my wallet, the few places I tried were closed or booked-up! :)

I did the next best thing which was my workout as follows:

1.5 miles jogging
Full body stretch for 40 minutes!
15 minutes on the roller
       Heavy back focus to work on some knots
       A very uncomfortable roll for my abductors and outer hips
       A bit of everything else from the feet up to the neck

I feel really good right now.  My abductors aren't bothering me terribly, so I am getting better.  I do need to continue to be careful though.

I really need a day like this every week, and need to make it a goal to ensure it gets worked in.  While I'm definitely improving at all my lifts, I'd bet a dime to a dollar that I'm holding myself back a bit by not treating myself well enough in between lifts.  Without proper recovery, sustained gains will be difficult.

I also place quite a bit of emphasis on ice - a gift from the heavens!!!  I LOVE ICE!  Here is a pic of my nightly routine.

First of all, I know you love the socks!  Secondly, and I don't know why, my left leg looks oddly small in this picture...peg leg!!!  I use the red packs on my shoulders and upper arms, the blues are for legs, primarily, and the black one wraps around my arms (usually elbows).  Getting beat up in the gym all the time, the ice is crucial to cutting inflammation, and thereby easing pain and allowing for quicker recovery...and a quicker return.  Thus, ICE = GROWTH!

With that gem of info, until next time!  Hopefully tomorrow...

Strongman training, cardio and shoulders

Yesterday was strongman training with Brian at Eastside.  Here is a video of the log press work we did.  We've been hitting seated log press, on a steep incline to work on locking-out. 

We did a few more sets after this and I actually did 250 without much trouble, as well.  Here was the workout:

Seated log-press
     110 x 12, 160 x 6, 180 x 4, 210 x 3, 230 x 2, 250 x 1, 210 x 4
Bent rows using log - 1 set on 110 x 20 reps
Bent rows using axle
     145 x 8 + 8 upright half-rows for a semi-super-set, 145 x 8, 195 x 8 x 2
Truck push (big Ram heavy duty)
     3 sets, 1 starting on incline going for distance

Today was basketball for some light cardio.  When I say light, I mean really light, due to my abductor pull.  Still good to get out and jog a bit and break a sweat!

Then today after basketball, a hefty McDonald's breakfast and some errands followed by some shoulder rehab stuff, and more stretching.

Token trip to the gym

I almost never go to the actual gym anymore, mainly because time doesn't allow, but also because I feel a bit out of place with mainly 80 year old men wiping down the machines and not breaking a sweat.  But I can't hit everything at home, so today off to the Holladay Rec Center to get in some machine work!  I didn't overdo it so that I'd have something in the tank to lift with Brian in Draper tomorrow afternoon.

Here is today's workout:

Leg curls (focused on arching back towards feet like reverse hyper):
     100x15x2, 125x12, 150x10x3
One-armed tricep extensions with rope pull-down
     60x15x2 (left and right on all), 70x12, 80x10, 90x10, 110x8x2
Equivalent of pec-pull-overs (mainly for chest, a bit for outer part of triceps)
     110x15x3
Arm bike with 50 lbs of resistance for 250 rotations
Stationary bike for 20 minutes

Tomorrow will probably be more event-specific so I'll try to upload a video.

Thanks for reading!

Arms workout

After a few days off nursing an abductor pull on my left leg, I decided to get back to it today.  Nothing too crazy, but here is today's workout:

Full body stretch - 20 min
Dumbbell curls
     20 x 20, 25 x 15, 30 x 12, 35 x 12, 40 x10, 45 x 8, 50 x 8, 40 x 10, 30 x 12, 20 x 20
Calf raises
     135 x 20 x 4
Rolling thunder
     30 second hold both hands two times, 40 second hold all sets on 65 lbs
Full body stretch to cool down - 10 min

While the abductor (for those of you who don't know, that is a fancy name for groin!) is feeling a bit better, it isn't ready to squat or deadlift, so I'll probably need to lay off those types of lifts for a few more days.  Stretching is helping it, so hopefully with some ice, rest and stretching I'll be back to normal here soon.

Thanks for reading!

The last two days

I haven't done anything that interesting in the last few workouts, so no videos to show.  I did lift yesterday with Brian, and today with Dave, Paxton and Nate.  Yesterday's focus was on log-press and a bit of yoke.  Today was mainly about grip with some side-work on shoulders (rehab type) and biceps/forearms.  Here are the last two day's workouts:

Wednesday
Static yoke lifts
       100 x 15, 280 x 12, 380 x 10
Log Press (seated) - highest incline before military position
       100 x 10, 100 x 10, 130 x 8, 160 x 6, 180 x 6, 180 x 6

Today
Shoulders - 220 total reps
Standing rows - 75 x 25, 75 x 35, 75 x 50
Shrugs - 135 x 25, 135 x 25
Axle hold - 115 x 60 seconds, 115 x 85 seconds (max time)
Hammer curls - 20s x 25, 20s x 25
Axle curl - 25 x 40
Reverse axle curl - 25 x 40
Rolling thunder - 65lbs for 77 seconds per hand

Both days also had warm-ups and stretching.

Hopefully I'll have something more exciting to report tomorrow after I go to Disney on Ice with my daughters!

Bench day

Football season is over for the high school kids, so Nate hit bench day with me on Monday.  We didn't overwork ourselves but did enough to get sore.  In good news, Nate has passed his 2 compatriots on bench max so Paxton and Nathaniel have some work to do!  Here was the workout:

Flat Bench
225 x 6, 275 x 5, 315 x 4, 335 x 2, 115 x 30, bar x 50

Incline with dumbbells
Fly 35s x 15
Hammer press 35s x 20

Plate supersets
Descending 55 x 35, 35 x 35, 25 x 40
Ascending 25 x 40, 35 x 35, 55 x 35

I also did some stretching as my back has been really tight lately.

The rest of the week - log day and a day of pain!

I got a bit behind this week!  On Thursday I went out to Brian's and we did log-press on an incline working up to a few sets of 6 on 230.  Here is a video of Big Brian, as opposed to me, Little Brian as I barely clear 300 lbs of body weight.  I didn't film myself, but this will show Thursday's main lift, at least, and not to worry, as I walk into frame at the end to prove I was really there!

Yesterday, Brian and I drove down to Springville to lift with Van.  Much like last week, I left feeling like a pansy.  The good news is I am getting stronger!  Here is what we did:

Clean and press medley
     warm-ups, up to 260 on log and 215 on axle (quite a few sets!)
     I pressed the axle, but never tried on the log as I didn't want to hurt my shoulders
Deadlift
     warm-up on 245 on straight bar and 235 on axle
     356 x 3, 456 x 2, 546 x 1
     Deadlift and hold for time on axle with 300 lbs.  I had my hand taped so barely made 24 sec.
          This was done with both hands facing backwards which made it very tough!
Strongman Cardio Medley
     Each set as follows:
          Using 115 lbs - 6 cleans, 6 squat presses, 6 upright rows, 6 bent rows (never drop)
          10 heavy kettle bell pull-throughs up over shoulder
          10 squat then throw 40 lb medicine ball to about 12 feet against wall
     We did this twice and at that point, Van and I were beat, so we called it!

If we hadn't done so many sets on the clean and press of both the log and the axle, I wouldn't have been so tired, but by the time we got to deadlift, I had nothing in me, so I was pretty happy to get as high as I did there.

On the hold for time, I simply couldn't compete as I had my hand taped-up.  On Wednesday, when I did deadlift lockouts, I ripped a callous off my hand, so I had it covered with tape which just slipped when holding the bar.  Brian held the axle for 25 seconds and Van for 30, so while I didn't get slaughtered, it wasn't a great showing...next time!

I've got some cuts and bruises...left hand callous, groin pull, forearm welts, etc, but mainly just sore all over the body...I'll pull through!!!

As always, thanks for reading!

Push-pull: Bench and deadlift

Today started as a Kazmaier lift - bench with shoulders.  I like to periodically find guys' lifts and replicate them to see how I do.  I did really light weights on the upper body stuff as my shoulders were a bit stiff today.  As the lift went on, I had energy, so I added some deadlift, and some rehab work, along with some abs that left me cramping by the end.

Here is a video of the deadlifting I did.  I call these lockouts.  Some people call them rack deadlifts.  I situated myself so that the bar was mid-kneecap which is a point of weakness for me.  This is an awkward position from which to generate power as you have no speed from the low end, no acceleration and are really just powering through a sticking point...fun stuff!  I felt pretty good about doing 2 reps on 585 since I tore a callous off my left hand on the final rep...no choice but to stop there for the day!!!

And here is today's full workout:

Thur		11/7/2012
Lift	Weight	Reps
Full warm-up (stretching, shoulders)	n/a	n/a
Wide grip bench (incline)	100	10
	100	10
	100	10
Narrow grip bench (incline)	100	10
	100	10
	100	10
Front shoulder raises	20	16
	20	16
	20	16
	20	16
Dumbell seated press	35	20
	35	20
	35	20
	35	20
Side shoulder raises	15	20
	15	20
Lying french press	75	6
	25	15
	25	15
	25	15
	25	15
	25	15
Deadlift lockouts	200	10
	245	8
	245	8
	295	8
	345	6
	415	3
	485	3
	545	2
	585	2
Abs	60	180
Shoulder rehab work	25	320
Stretching/cool down	n/a	n/a

Video from Saturday

Here is a video of me deadlifting 535 on Saturday...felt good and was quick.  I tried for 605 and missed, but I'm coming for it!!  Thanks to Brian for filming this!

I needed an ice bath!

I went to a cross fit gym in Springville, today and lifted with Brian, Roger and Van Hatfield.  Cool to finally meet Van...made me feel small!!!

Had a really good workout:
Log clean and press up to 210, clean only at 260
Deadlift up to 535, attempt at 605 but missed
Super yoke up to 620, then back down to 560 for speed
Atlas stones, multiple reps on 249 stone
Keg pick (both keg and stones onto a 53 inch platform!)

By the time I got home I was so beat I had no choice but to hit an ice bath!  While I am getting stronger, this is kicking my butt!  I'm going to stick to it as I want to see how strong I can get, but I definitely need to be eating better, icing better and resting more if I want to continue to progress.

I came in a little light on miles this week, but continued with my weight goals.  Thanks for reading and please keep my in your prayers so I can walk tomorrow, and lift on Monday!! :)