On the mend

I got the stitches out of my broken toe, tonight, and figured what a better way to celebrate than with a lift...after a hearty meal at 5 Guys, of course!

I didn't go very heavy on anything but got some good volume in and felt a nice pump.  My toe doesn't particularly hurt, which is good, so I'm hoping I can start squatting or doing some deads soon.  It will likely be a few weeks before I'm running, though.

No video today, but here is the workout:

Shoulder warm-ups				25	600
Neutral grip bench				65	15
				175	6
				225	6
				245	6
Bent rows				135	10
				135	10
				135	10
				135	10
				135	10
				135	10
Triceps pull-downs (band)				75	15
				75	18
				75	25
				75	30
Upright rows (band)				75	25
				75	25
Abs				60	60
Cool down and stretch

Recovering

Coming off the break on Wednesday, I've been trying to be careful but needed to lift.  I stretched yesterday and did some light rotator cuff motions, and today I lifted but only with bands, cables and light dumbbells.  Nothing very spectacular to report, so here's the workout and until next time:

Shoulder warm-up (rotator)				25	600
Upright rows (band)				100	15
				100	15
Lateral raises				20	20
				25	20
				30	20
Front raises				30	20
				35	20
				40	20
Shrugs (band)				150	20
				150	25
Rows			medicine ball	50	25
				50	25
				50	25
Lat pulls				100	20
				100	20
Standing rows (band)				100	25
				100	25
Curls				50	50
Abs				60	50
Cool down and stretch

I broke my toe and kept on lifting

Today I broke my toe while I was lifting, and kept on going.  It was nice and bloodied up when I finally checked it out, and the toenail had detached from the growth plate.  Here is a quick video of how it happened:

As an aside, here was the workout:

				Weight	Reps
Shoulder warm-up (rotator)				25	270
Triceps warm-up (bands)				50	40
Full-range flat bench				135	8
				225	3
				275	2
				315	1
				335	1
				355	2
Incline neutral grip bench				155	8
				155	8
Incline DB press				75	14
				75	10
Skull-crushers				75	10
				95	6
				115	6
Band lockout press				150	25
Front raises KB				53	10
Big-Hun's				45	50
Cool down and stretch

Conan's Wheel

I tried the Conan's Wheel for the first time ever this weekend.  The apparatus belongs to Van Hatfield, who, as I understand it, hates it, and considers it his worst event.  After my first attempt, I have to concur that I'm not a fan.  I did it, though.  I'd seen it enough on World's Strongest Man, that I knew, roughly, what I was doing and could figure it out on the fly.  I never did get comfortable, though.  I'm guessing this is the sort of thing we'll do once a quarter, or thereabouts, because it is taxing, and not a common event in strongman, these days.

We ended up doing 4 sets, working from 300's up to around 700 lbs.  I left with the sorest biceps I've ever had, and my forearms, where the bar rests, felt, and still feel, obliterated.  Education!

We then did the super yoke, but I stayed light and only went up to mid 500's.  I basically ran with it, though, so I'm pretty happy with how my yoke is sitting right now.

We lifted with the better part of a dozen people, so didn't get through that many sets, but met some new people that are into the sport, and had a good time. 

Moving forward, Brian and I are going to focus on gym lifts with one event day each week, and 1-2 sessions with the larger group each month.  I think this will help us sort our weaknesses and continue to improve, while keeping a relatively close tie with our counterparts, and still remaining familiar with the implements.

That's it for today - thanks for reading!

Recovering from the yoke

I couldn't bring myself to do anything weight-related this week, until today.  I'm still so sore from the yoke on Saturday, that real lifting is simply out of the question.  I was able to strictly cord/band/light lifts today to get my blood flowing and ease back into things.  This is a combo of my standard rotator-cuff (shoulder impingement) workout I like to do with a bit of arms.  I'm feeling decent after this, and plan to bench tomorrow (light!!).

Here is today's workout:

				Weight	Reps
Back fly (cable)				25	300
Shoulder rotator work (cable)				25	300
Curls (cable)				25	100
Triceps extension (band)				50	100
Shrugs (hack-style with band)				75	200
Calf raises (single-leg bodyweight)				300	60
Shot-style press (band)				50	100
Curls burnout				15	100
Grip work (zenith)				50	350
Stretch - warm-up/cool-down

Heaviest yoke of all time...well, for me!

WOW does my back hurt after this!!!  Check it out:

Before this we'd gone heavy on deadlift.  I didn't have much in the tank after a few bad nights of sleep as my poor 3 year old has a double-ear infection.  I did pull about 530, but I didn't feel great.

We also did log, and I bowed out around 260...not a bad start to the year.

I'm feeling it, though, now, and resting up.

Thanks for reading!

Recap of 2013: Progress and Goals

2013 was a really good year on the strength side.  I train clean and don't take any illicit substances, so with that in mind, my strength jumps are pretty good.  Here's a snapshot of where I stand going into 2014, what my gain was over the last year, and where I hope to land by the end of this year:



Deadlift
585 lbs, up about 40 lbs, new goal 620 lbs
This is decent.  I'm really strong off the floor, but need to improve mid-range.

Squat
600 lbs, up about 45 lbs, new goal 630 lbs
I'm pretty happy with this.  Slow and steady wins the course.

Bench
420 lbs, up about 10 lbs, same goal 430 lbs
I'm pretty flat here, but in an area of diminishing marginal returns!

Log/Overhead
260 lbs, up about 30 lbs, new goal 300 lbs
I have some real growth opportunity here if I can stay healthy in my shoulders.

Rolling Thunder
203 lbs, up about 20 lbs, same goal 225 lbs
My grip is solid, but my goal is world-class!

Captains of Crush
Stuck on 2.5, aiming for 3.0
IBID to the RT comment.

Atlas Stones
Van's red (once), vastly improved, want to run his whole stack
I need to man up and run it!

Farmer's Carry
708 lbs for 50 feet, up about 100 lbs, same goal 760 lbs
I feel this is easily within reach.

Yoke
750 lbs for 80 feet, up about 100 lbs, goal 850 lbs
I think I'll do this in the next 3 months.

Frame Deadlift
730 lbs without straps, new goal 800 lbs
I think this is within reach without straps, definitely with them.

Double-overhand Axle Deadlift
400 lbs, up about 40 lbs, new goal of 450 lbs
This is tied to the other grip-strength stuff.  I'll be hitting this in 2014!

If the year goes as planned, I'll be knocking the door of a 1,700 lb. 3 lift max, which I think is very respectable for being raw and clean.  I'll be working hard to get there.

SO, that is the 2013 snapshot.  Here I come 2014!  Thanks to everyone for reading, and remember, that Rome wasn't built in a day!