Current Stats

Total weight lifted 2015: 3.6 M lbs
('14-6.5M, '13-6.6M, '12-8M, '11-5.2M)
Total cardio logged 2015: 22.0 hours
Current body weight 301 lbs, Height 6'8

Here's my lifting progress!






Progress!

Progress!

Monday, June 29, 2015

Speed bench day

Today was all about speed.  I'm loving lifting with chains.  It adds a new dynamic that is hard to explain if you've never tried it.

Most of the workout was flat bench where I worked up to 10 sets of 2 on 295 (including chain weight).  It felt really good and I didn't have any pain, anywhere.

I rounded out the lift with some auxiliary triceps and pressing work, as shown below:

6/29/2015
Weight Reps
Warm-ups and stretch
Bench with 90 lbs chains 155 6
155 6
205 4
245 3
295 3
295 2
295 2
295 2
295 2
295 2
295 2
295 2
295 2
295 2
295 2
245 10
155 20
Incline Medicine Ball 100 15
100 15
French Press 85 15
superset - descending 85 6
65 8
45 10
25 20
Skier to burnout 150 25
CoC (2.0) 195 20
Stretch and cool-down

Saturday, June 27, 2015

Strongman Saturday

Today was event day - Strongman Saturday.  I was fairly beat-up from the week having lifted four times.  Fortunately, yesterday was a day off.

We spent the entire lift on the medicine ball which mimics both stones and sandbags, and has reaching benefits into all things full-body.  Here is a quick video of me and Brian:



Here is the workout:

6/25/2015
Weight Reps
Warm-ups and stretch
Medicine ball to 50 inch 100 10
100 10
100 10
150 10
150 10
Abs 60 40
Stretch and cool-down

Thursday, June 25, 2015

Speed back day

I'm short on time, today, so here's the lift, and until next time:

6/25/2015
Weight Reps
Warm-ups and stretch
Speed deadlift 135 6
135 6
245 3
245 3
385 2
385 2
385 2
385 2
385 2
Band rows with monster grips 150 25
150 20
150 20
Ring pull-ups 300 8
300 8
Superset
Romanians 245 36
Monster DB rows 60 72
Abs 150 45
Stretch and cool-down

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

First ever use of safety squat bar as well as chains

I've never used a safety squat bar, nor have I ever lifted with chains, so today I broke precedent and incorporated both, together.  It took a little getting used to...

Even with the pads, the SSB digs into your shoulder's far differently than a normal squat.  It also requires far more supporting muscles in the back and abs as it feels more like a front squat.  It was hard, but I liked it.

The chains add a cool element as they allow you to really focus on explosion and speed.  I'll be working those into future bench workouts, too.

Here is a quick video of a few sets, including my top set of 510 lbs:



And here is today's lift:

6/23/2015
Weight Reps
Warm-ups and stretch
Safety bar squat 160 10
90 lbs chains 160 10
270 6
270 6
320 4
370 3
420 2
470 2
510 1
320 12
270 15
Hammer curls 35 24
45 24
55 24
Thinker curls superset 25 60
Calf raise superset with curls 270 40
Rolling thunder  120 60
Reverse Hyper 200 30
Stretch and cool-down

Saturday, June 20, 2015

Deadlift Saturday

Today was about speed with some decent weight, but nothing overwhelming.  I used bands on about 2/3 of the lift.

I had a number of issues with my neck and back, but once warmed-up, was able to pull without much issue.  A good sweat goes a long way to feeling better, sometimes.

Prior to my workout I was able to get about 90 grams of protein, mainly from yogurt and shakes.  I consumed about 25 grams of isolate during the workout, and greased myself up with a 1/2 burger with an egg, post workout, and about 60 more grams of protein.  After dinner and tonight's casein shake, I should finish the day close to 300 grams.

And here is today's workout, where I backed-off, then went back up before backing-off a second time:



6/20/2015
Weight Reps
Warm-ups and stretch
Deadlift warm-up 135 8
135 8
Deadlift from wheels (13 inch) 225 4
225 4
375 2
425 2
465 2
515 2
595 2
425 2
465 4
465 4
375 6
Grip work 100 100
Stretch and cool-down

Wednesday, June 17, 2015

Diet and catching-up

It has been too long...

We were in Europe for 2 weeks, and had a couple injuries, but there is no excuse for not keeping a record of what I've been doing.

About a month ago, I spent an entire Saturday working the yoke, on a yoke that I really don't like.  I ended up hurting my back and overworking the CNS.  That made it almost impossible for me to lift going into our trip, and it wasn't until the middle of last week that my back finally started to feel better.

I basically didn't lift for the better part of a month, and I felt it yesterday when I benched.

That said, I did carry kids all over Europe and log a ton of cardio (ish), but proper lifting, very little.

Yesterday was a lackluster bench day with flat up to 275 x 4, where I stopped because my elbow pinched on me.  We then did 4 sets across on 225 on incline, then finished with some DB work and triceps burnouts.  I'm sore today, but it was a pretty easy lift.

I wanted to highlight my breakfast, today, as I'm back on the wagon of focusing on my diet.  If I don't, I feel it.  So I started the day with a bunch of water as my hydration levels stink, then tried to get 100 grams of protein with breakfast:

4 oz of steak - est. 24 grams of protein
2 slices whole wheat bread - 12 grams of protein
Power shake concoction: 77 grams of protein
MusclePharm Whey Protein Isolate - 40 grams
2 glasses skim milk - 16 grams
2 large scoops peanut butter - 14 grams
1 serving chia seeds - 3 grams
malted milk - 4 grams

I'm off to a good start with just over 110 grams of protein.  Now it is time for vitamins, EFAs and some BCAAs.  I'm planning to squat today, so I've got to find some energy somewhere as I'm still terribly jet-lagged.  The last 4 nights amounted to roughly 2 nights of normal sleep...not fun.

Anyway, thanks for reading, and here's to me posting a bit more frequently!