Saturday, December 12, 2020

Making A Plan for 2021: Spondylo-wha?

IT HAS been an enlightening week. These last few sessions that I am posting up now will be the last of that template for a while. A number of these exercises I can still use, but I will have to scale back in terms of loading. And there's a bunch of things - things I really enjoy - that I won't be able to do for several months, it seems.

Adam Yeates of Fieldwork Physiotherapy has been working with me this last week, and has developed an intensive rehabilitation program for my current predicament. He explained in great detail the various ways in which the blind spots (my term, he used a much more technical one) and weaknesses in my strength development and mobility over the last decade and more have helped to exacerbate the Spondylosis. Combined with the loss of core strength that resulted from my Diastasis Recti (an injury sustained I know not when but noticed mid-2016, from memory), this condition will only improve if I work on my hip flexors, glutes and anterior chain.
 
And the suspected fracture could be new or old, but best to assume it's new and drop all the goddamn weight off the bar for... a while.
 
As of this Saturday session coming, there's going to be a whole lot of weird hip-thrusting and yoga moves performed on the gym floor before I am finally able to bust out with... paused box squats, with an unloaded Axle. I at least was able to swap out the standard bar here.
 
A realistic goal, Adam advises, would be returning to competition mid-2021. I had been hoping sooner than that, but fine. This really can't be rushed. Spondylosis is career-ending if it gets bad enough.

REHAB PULL+ WK2 Thursday 03/12
Stretch & Decompress spine
Reverse hyper extension:
+20 kg x 3 x 10
Seated rows:
52.5 kg x 5
75 kg x 5
97.5 kg x 5
120 kg x 5
Lateral pull downs:
60 kg x 3 x 8
DB front raises (p/h):
12.5 kg x 2 x 10
10 kg x 2 x 10
Cardio:
Assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

REHAB PRESS+ WK2 Tuesday 01/12
Stretch & decompress spine, tendon warmup
Chest press (p/h):
20 kg x 10
Incline barbell press:
20 kg x 6
40 kg x 6
50 kg x 6
60 kg x 6
70 kg x 6
80 kg x 6
90 kg x 6
100 kg x 5
Axe swings (l&r):
31.5 kg x 3 x 10
Preacher curls w/EZ bar:
23 kg x 3 x 10
DB side raises (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
Super set w/DB curls (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
Face-pulls:
43 kg x 3 x 20
Cardio:
Assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

REHAB SQUATS+ WKEND 28/11
Stretch & decompress spine
Cambered bar squats:
15 kg x 10
60 kg x 10
80 kg x 5 x 10
Cambered bar Good mornings:
15 kg x 10
45 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
Assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

Saturday, December 5, 2020

Training Recap & MRI Results

IT HAS been a week for compliments, from both old and new gym mates, bosses and car enthusiasts. It has also been a week for disappointing news. In retrospect, those double decker deficit deadlifts I did that day in early October, not long after recovering from the lumbar strain I sustained late August, were probably a bad idea. I used a rubber mat on top of a blue twenty kilogram bumper plate under each foot... might have been too much. My last deadlift session ended poorly. I pulled 230 for 9, as programmed, no straps or belt, and using a newish bar that tore up my hands real nice. It wasn't till I'd finished and sat down that I knew something was not right with my back. I only stayed seated for a few moments, but standing up again was excruciating. I needed the assistance of an old acquaintance to unload the bar.

I had the MRI Monday. The diagnosis is attached.








 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
REHAB Press Thursday November 26th
stretch & tendon warmup
Incline barbell press:
20 kg x 8
40 kg x 8
50 kg x 8
60 kg x 8
70 kg x 8
80 kg x 8
90 kg x 8
Preacher curls w/EZ bar:
23 kg x 3 x 10
DB front raises (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
DB front raises (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
Triceps pushdowns:
90 kg x 10 wide
90 kg x 10 narrow
63 kg x 10 rope
90 kg x 8 wide
90 kg x 6 narrow
54 kg x 6 rope
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

REHAB Squats Saturday November 21st
stretch & decompress spine
Cambered bar squats:
15 kg x 10
35 kg x 5
55 kg x 5
75 kg x 5 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm
 
EVENTS Saturday November 14th
(stretched, but did not decompress spine...)
Log clean-press:
80 kg x 3
90 kg x 2
Deadlifts w/barbell:
75 kg x 10
125 kg x 5
175 kg x 3
215 kg x 1
230 kg x 9 no straps, no belt, spinal injury apparent
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

Friday, November 27, 2020

EVENTS Saturday November 7th

TODAY was a very good day. It hasn't exactly been a good week, evidenced by this being my first training session since last Saturday. Fortunately, it feels as though the time out has allowed the knotting in my spinal erectors to chill. It hasn't been affecting my sleep this week, and it didn't resurface while pulling today. I am hopeful that, so long as I keep monitoring it (and continue to decompress my spine before each lower body session), it won't become a bigger problem down the track. But I'm keeping that MRI referral in case it does.

I inhaled a stack of pancakes and spent the first part of the day in domestic bliss: doing chores and washing and detailing the car.

Deadlifts w/barbell:
70 kg x 10
120 kg x 5
170 kg x 3
200 kg x 1
220 kg x 10 TPR - no belt, no straps
Deficit deadlifts w/barbell:
135 kg x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm 

Sunday, November 1, 2020

EVENTS Saturday October 31st


flashback to 2015
SOMETHING I have found I need to do before every session that works my posterior chain is to hang upside down from the glute-hamstring machine and wait for my spine to release just a little bit. What I really need, obviously, is a spinal adjustment... and an MRI. I have the referral for the latter, at least. But for now, this is working alright.
 
During my last pull session I decided to add some more height to my deficit deadlifts (a metal 25 kg plate + one inch rubber mat under each foot), which it turns out was a bad choice. This time around I knew it would be wise to avoid anything with too great a range of motion, and risk further aggravating my back issue. And I was prepared for farmers walk to feel, well, shit, especially since I'd not done it in quite a while. But it did not. The silver dollar deadlift I was not a fan of first go, but it also did not tax the region of my spine that is currently giving me grief, so I was able to do some reasonable work there before my grip strength gave out.

Today's effort definitely was not my best, at ten kilos per hand and about half a minute off, I think. But, again, first time in a long time. I always enjoyed farmers walk. I should start doing it more regularly again.
 
Farmers walk (p/h):
60 kg x 2 x 10 meters
110 kg x 2 x 10 meters
130 kg x 2 x 10 meters
130 kg x 10 meters
Static hold:
140 kg x 5 seconds, maybe
Silver Dollar deadlifts:
165 kg x 1
265 kg x 3
Face-pulls:
54 kg x 3 x 20
Lateral pull-downs:
90 kg x 5
75 kg x 8
60 kg x 10
DB front raises (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
12.5 kg x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

Training Recap: Just Not Enough

TO GET the disappointing stuff out the way first, no I did not compete in Static Monsters, which does mean this year is more than likely a total bust as far as competing is concerned. I still intend to try some new 1RMs before the year is out. I just couldn't risk further injury on the day.

While I've waited out lumbar strains that, in the past, took a few days to subside and wouldn't interrupt my training for more than a week, this last one was different. It caused what Dan Macri suggested is 'neural guarding' - muscle knots that graduated up my spine, from lumbar to thoracic. I carried it through training over the next two months as it mostly seemed not to be too bad, and I honestly assumed it would dissipate in time. But a week out from the comp, it flared up again - in the thoracic - during log press, and took a bunch of my power in the clean.

My current work/life situation has not made things any easier. I am sleeping an average of not even four hours per night, so my recovery is for shit. This was really apparent on the fifteenth, when I was barely able to do two of the three sets of squats I had programmed without passing out. I scrapped the rest of the routine, did some extra cardio, and went home to try and sleep.

All in all I felt, on the day, that entering Static Monsters would be foolhardy, so I sat it out and assisted where required instead. Had a good chat with a bunch of people I'd not seen in some years, from some of the first trainees I coached at PTC to some of the strongest men and women in the state, one of whom was my first coach. By my figuring, there was a combined total of well over fifty years of experience in strength sports, in that one room, on that one day, in our little gym in West Perth.

Of course, the day belonged to Navarre Top, current Western Australia's Strongest Man and the owner of a shiny new 400 kilogram axle deadlift! I have had the experience of training alongside this Minotaur, who is only in his mid-twenties and has decades of national and international accolades in his future, if he remains this passionate and committed to the sport. He is a phenom in a funny hat.

PRESS Saturday October 17th
Chest press (p/h):
15 kg x 10
Log clean-press (strict):
45 kg x 6
65 kg x 3
80 kg x 1 - back injury!
Cardio:
assault bike 10 mins @ +50 rpm
 
SQUAT & PRESS Thursday October 15th
(bent as shit) Axle squats:
23 kg x 10
70 kg x 5
110 kg x 3
150 kg x 1
170 kg x 1, 5, 5
Good mornings w/cambered bar:
15 kg x 8
45 kg x 5
75 kg x 10
Glute-hamstring machine:
base x 10
+10 kg x 10
+20 kg x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

PULL Saturday October 10th
Deadlifts w/wagon wheels:
100 kg x 8
150 kg x 3
200 kg x 3
230 kg x 1
260 kg x 1
Deficit deadlifts w/barbell - extra height:
135 kg x 2 x 10
Seated rows:
52.5 kg x 5
75 kg x 5
97.5 kg x 5
120 kg x 4
Face-pulls:
54 kg x 3 x 20

Saturday, October 3, 2020

TRAINING RECAP: KODIAK + COLLAGEN CAKES FTW

SO, TWO weeks ago I performed the heaviest set of good mornings that I've done in several years: 130 kilograms for eight reps. Back when I was repping 200 kilos I never performed multiple money sets, it was always one and done (after several warmup sets, of course) but this program called for two. And on the third repetition of the second set, I pulled my right hamstring just a little bit.
 
I aggravated it further during log clean-press later that week. And then on Saturday I could feel it tearing as I attempted a 305 kilo axle deadlift. I was perturbed at having to leave it there, but knew it was the wise option. I wrote myself something like a rehab routine that evening while eating a fat stack of pancakes.
 
Lately I have been eating a lot of pancakes. Specifically protein- and collagen-laden pancakes. I used this injury as an excuse to eat even more of them. And today, after a thorough stretch session, I dove back into log press, working up to a 115 kilos, strict. I think that makes it the heaviest log I've clean-pressed since the first Static Monsters Perth in 2017. The press was a grind but the strained hammie didn't bother me at all.

I am taking this as proof that the switch of focus over the last several months to other press variations including Z-press and seated inclines has improved my press events strength. I am really hoping I can do 117.5 or 120 on game day. And I am taking the sudden abatement of my hamstring strain as proof the pancakes are working too. I don't care if they make me fatter. I feel strong as fuck.
 
STATIC MONSTERS PREP Saturday October 3rd
Chest press (p/h):
15 kg x 10
Log clean press (strict):
eight inch
30 kg x 5
ten inch
50 kg x 5
twelve inch
80 kg x 3
85 kg x 2
95 kg x 2
105 kg x 1
115 kg x 1 TPR
Cambered bar OHP:
60 kg x 5
70 kg x 5
80 kg x 5
90 kg x 4 PR
Cardio:
assault bike 10 mins @ +50 rpm
 
HAMSTRING REHAB & CURLS Tuesday September 29th
Front squats:
60 kg x 3 x 8
Kettlebell swings:
16 kg x 10
20 kg x 10
24 kg x 10
28 kg x 10
Leg press (light weight, high volume, full extension):
55 kg x 20
95 kg x 20
115 kg x 20
135 kg x 20
Preacher curls w/EZ bar:
23 kg x 4 x 10
DB side raises (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
DB curls (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm
 
STATIC MONSTERS PREP Saturday September 26th
Deadlifts w/wagon wheels:
110 kg x 8
160 kg x 3
215 kg x 3
265 kg x 2
305 kg x FAIL - right hamstring tearing
Seated rows:
52.5 kg x 5
75 kg x 5
97.5 kg x 5
120 kg x 5
Face-pulls:
54 kg x 3 x 20
Lateral pulldowns:
60 kg x 3 x 10
DB front raises (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm
 
STATIC MONSTERS PREP Thursday September 24th
Log clean-press (strict):
eight inch
30 kg x 10
ten inch
50 kg x 5
swiss bar
60 kg x 5
70 kg x 3
twelve inch
80 kg x 3
90 kg x 2
100 kg x 1
105 kg x 1- right hamstring strain
Cardio:
assault bike 10 mins @ +50 rpm
 
SQUAT & PRESS Saturday September 19th
Axle squats:
35 kg x 10
80 kg x 5
120 kg x 3
140 kg x 1
160 kg x 4 x 5 TPR
Axle OHP (strict):
35 kg x 10
55 kg x 5
75 kg x 2
90 kg x ME 8 PR
Good mornings w/cambered bar:
15 kg x 10
45 kg x 5
65 kg x 5
85 kg x 5
105 kg x 3
120 kg x 1
130 kg x 8, 3 - right hamstring strain
Cambered bar OHP:
75 kg x ME 7
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

Saturday, September 12, 2020

Training Recap: Breaking Some PRs

THE LAST two weeks have seen some pretty good lifting and pressing, though I was reminded I needed some dry needling when I was squatting and felt significantly under-powered just finishing the first money set. I thought my lacklustre pull session the week before had been crap due to the recently sustained lumbar strain - and no doubt it was a contributing factor - but over the last few months my quads and VMOs had taken as much as they could, and attempting to squat made it quite apparent. And my physio has been on maternity leave since April!
 
Lucky I was able to track down another excellent physiotherapist who is skilled in dry needling and deep tissue massage, because add to this, I've got a knot in the muscle to the left of my lower lumbar, right around where that nerve that sometimes gives me grief is located. I discovered it while foam-rolling prior to deadlifting Saturday just gone. It's been messing with my sleep the last few nights. I'll be glad to have to sorted in the coming days.

In the last two weeks I have:
* Strict overhead pressed an 85 kilogram axle for 10 reps (an all time person record I'm pretty sure),
* Deadlifted 210 kilos for a set of 11 with no belt, no straps, and had at least two more good reps in the tank (and maybe a shaky third one after that),
* Performed the heaviest set of Good mornings I've done since maybe 2014: 125 kilos for 3 sets of 8,
* Performed the heaviest sets of Face-pulls I've done in several years, and lastly
* Doubled my cardio from 5 to 10 mins on two training sessions

I have about six weeks left to get everything sorted for Static Monsters. So I need to transfer some of this pressing over to the log before I run out of time. If this training block is working, it will result in a stronger log press at the end of October.

PULLS Saturday September 12th
Deadlifts w/barbell:
70 kg x 10
120 kg x 5
160 kg x 3
190 kg x 1
210 kg x 11 TPR no belt, swapped to mixed grip at the 5th rep
Deficit deadlifts w/barbell:
125 kg x 2 x 10
Seated rows:
150 kg x 5
120 kg x 5
97.5 kg x 5
75 kg x 5
52.5 kg x 5
Face-pulls:
54 kg x 2 x 20
Lateral pulldowns:
60 kg x 3 x 8
DB side raises (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

PRESS Tuesday September 8th
Chest press (p/h):
20 kg x 10
Incline barbell press:
75 kg x ME 16
60 kg x ME 15
Savickas OHP:
60 kg x ME 5
Preacher curls w/EZ bar:
23 kg x 4 x 10
DB front raises (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
super-set w/DB curls (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
Triceps pushdowns:
90 kg narrow grip x 10
90 kg wide grip x 10
63 kg rope x 10
90 wide grip x 10
90 kg narrow grip x 10
54 kg rope x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

SQUAT & PRESS Saturday September 5th
Axle squats:
35 kg x 10
80 kg x 5
120 kg x 3
140 kg x 1
160 kg x 5
Axle OHP (strict):
35 kg x 8
55 kg x 5
75 kg x 1
85 kg x ME 10 PR
Good mornings w/cambered bar:
15 kg x 10
45 kg x 5
65 kg x 5
85 kg x 3
105 kg x 1
125 kg x 3 x 8 TPR
Cambered bar OHP:
75 kg x 7
Cardio:
assault bike 10 mins @ +55 rpm PR

PULLS Thursday August 27th
Deadlifts w/barbell:
60 kg x 10
100 kg x 5
140 kg x 3
Deficit deadlifts w/barbell:
125 kg x 10
Seated rows:
150 kg x 10
120 kg x 10
97.5 kg x 10
75 kg x 10
Face-pulls:
54 kg x 3 x 20 TPR
Lateral pulldowns:
60 kg x 3 x 8
DB side raises (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 10 mins @ +50 rpm TPR

Sunday, August 23, 2020

Training Recap: Static Monsters 2020 Prep

IN THE PAST, deficit deadlifts have been a go-to rehab exercise for me, to get my pulls back up to strength. Years before my first bicep detachment, good mornings were a staple of my training, and were key to me developing the lower back strength that I possessed. Over time I dropped the GMs and other glute and hamstring exercises in favour of more strongman-specific movements and, slowly but surely, my lower posterior strength diminished. I began to get muscle spasms in my adductors, which (I realise now) were over-compensating for my weakened glutes and hamstrings.

In the few months I've focussed on technical, higher volume movements including squats, good mornings and deficit deadlifts, my strength base has returned. And, over the last few weeks, I've had the chance to test that base. Three weeks back I pulled 300 for a comfortable triple, and yesterday I pulled 335 - twenty kilograms off my best ever with an axle at competition pull height.


PULLS Saturday August 22nd
Deadlifts w/wagon wheels:
80 kg x 8
130 kg x 5
180 kg x 5
230 kg x 3
285 kg x 3
315 kg x 1
335 kg x 1 - twenty kilos off my 1RM with an axle
Yoke walk:
130 kg x 2 x 15 meters
230 kg x 15 meters
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm
 
SQUAT & PRESS Thursday August 20th
Axle squats:
35 kg x 10
80 kg x 5
120 kg x 3
150 kg x 4 x 6
Axle OHP (strict):
35 kg x 5
60 kg x 5
70 kg x 3
80 kg x ME 8
Good mornings w/cambered bar:
15 kg x 10
45 kg x 5
65 kg x 5
85 kg x 3
105 kg x 1
115 kg x 3 x 8
Cambered bar OHP:
75 kg x ME 6
Glute-hamstring raise machine:
base x 10
+10 kg x 10
+20 kg x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm
 
PULLS Thursday August 13th
Deadlifts w/barbell:
60 kg x 10
100 kg x 5
140 kg x 3
180 kg x 1
200 kg x 12
Deficit deadlifts w/barbell:
115 kg x 2 x 10
Seated rows:
150 kg x 5
120 kg x 5
97.5 kg x 5
75 kg x 5
Face-pulls:
49.5 kg x 3 x 20
Lateral pulldowns:
52.5 kg x 3 x 10
DB side raises (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm
 
PRESS Saturday August 8th
Log clean-press:
70 kg x 4 x 5
Incline barbell press:
60 kg x 3
70 kg x ME 16
Savickas press:
55 kg x ME 14
Preacher curls w/EZ bar:
23 kg x 3 x 10
DB front raises (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
super-set w/DB curls (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
Triceps pushdowns:
90 kg narrow grip x 10
90 kg wide grip x 10
63 kg rope x 10
90 kg narrow grip x 10
90 kg wide grip x 5
54 kg rope x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

Saturday, August 1, 2020

Feels Great to Pull Heavy Again

...HEAVY-ISH, at least. This week just gone has been a solid attack on my lower posterior. My squat & press upper-lower split routine on Sunday instead of Saturday, barbell deadlifts - including high volume deficits - on Thursday, and then wagon wheel axle deads on Saturday... with a bunch of other stuff thrown in. That was my bad for assuming I could do everything Navarre had programmed that day. Still, I kept up with him for most of it, and I pulled a triple of 300 on the axle, from a regulation 40 cm pull height. It's something to build from, certainly.

Add to this, I'm actually pretty happy with my axle overhead and squat progress also, and it's been a while since I've been able to say that last part. Squats have historically been my weakest movement. I'm not hitting properly heavy numbers yet and wont be for another couple of months. Focus has been on form and depth, and clearly the regular good mornings are assisting with my squat (and pull), so I won't be changing anything about that aspect of my programming any time soon. But I do need to start focusing on Static Monsters prep, hence the wagon wheel pulls. Next week I've roped Navarre into a log press session too, where no doubt he will show me how it's done, just as he did today with the axle.

For comparison. This was my 350 kilogram axle deadlift, from 2014:
And this is Navarre's from today (and sorry it's sideways!):

STATIC MONSTERS PREP Saturday August 1st
Deadlifts w/wagon wheels:
80 kg x 8
120 kg x 5
180 kg x 5
230 kg x 3
280 kg x 3
300 kg x 3 TPR
Reverse bands deadlifts w/axle:
135 kg x 6
210 kg x 3 x 6
Front squats:
60 kg x 8, 4
super-set w/kettle bell swings:
28 kg x 2 x 10

PULL Thursday July 30th
Deadlifts w/barbell:
60 kg x 10
100 kg x 5
140 kg x 3
170 kg x 1
190 kg x 12 - no belt but swapped from double overhand to mixed grip half way through
Deficit deadlifts w/barbell:
105 kg x 3 x 10
Seated rows:
full stack, 1 pulley x 3 x 20
Face-pulls:
49.5 kg x 3 x 20
DB side raises (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

SQUAT & PRESS Saturday July 26th
Axle squats:
35 kg x 10
80 kg x 5
120 kg x 3
140 kg x 4 x 7 - all no belt, no sleeves. Zero knee issues
Axle OHP (strict):
35 kg x 5
50 kg x 5
65 kg x 3
80 kg x 3
95 kg x ME 5 - not bad!
Good mornings w/cambered bar:
15 kg x 10
40 kg x 5
60 kg x 5
80 kg x 3
105 kg x 4 x 8
Cambered bar OHP:
60 kg x ME 9 TPR
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

Friday, July 24, 2020

Squats Presses & Pulls

PULLS Tuesday July 21st
Deadlifts w/barbell:
60 kg x 10
100 kg x 5
140 kg x 3
170 kg x 1
180 kg x 13 - all with no belt, double overhand, and plenty more left in the tank
Deficit deadlifts w/barbell:
95 kg x 3 x 10
Seated rows:
full stack, single pully x 20, 20, 12
Face-pulls:
49.5 kg x 3 x 20
Lateral pull-downs:
52.5 kg x 10, 10, 8
DB side raises (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

PRESS Saturday July 18th
Incline barbell press:
60 kg x 5
70 kg x ME 14
60 kg x ME 10
50 kg x ME 10
Savickas press:
50 kg x ME 10
Preacher curls w/EZ bar:
18 kg x 10
23 kg x 10
28 kg x 10
DB front raises (p/h):
10 kg x 4 x 10
super-set w/DB curls (p/h):
12.5 kg x 4 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 8 mins @ +50 rpm TPR

SQUAT & PRESS Saturday July 11th
Axle squats:
35 kg x 10
80 kg x 5
110 kg x 3
130 kg x 4 x 8
Axle OHP (strict):
35 kg x 8
55 kg x 5
70 kg x 10, 9, 5
Good mornings w/cambered bar:
15 kg x 10
60 kg x 5
95 kg x 2 x 10 - right inside knee strain
Cambered bar OHP:
60 kg x ME 7
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

Saturday, June 27, 2020

Press Thursday & Pull Saturday


PULL Saturday June 27th
Deadlifts w/barbell:
60 kg x 10
100 kg x 5
140 kg x 3
160 kg x 1
170 kg x 14
Deficit deadlifts w/barbell:
85 kg x 3 x 10
Seated rows:
Full stack, 1 pulley (75 kg I think) 20, 15, 10
Face-pulls:
52.5 kg x 3 x 20
DB side raises (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

PRESS Thursday June 25th
Log clean-press:
45 kg x 4 x 6
Savickas (aka 'Z') press:
20 kg x 8
40 kg x 5
50 kg x 3
60 kg x 10
Incline barbell press:
60 kg x 5
80 kg x 2
90 kg x ME 6 - weak!
70 kg x ME 8
60 kg x ME 8
Preacher curls w/EZ bar:
18 kg x 10
23 kg x 3 x 10
Triceps push-downs:
90 kg narrow grip x 10
90 kg wide grip x 10
63 kg rope x 10
90 kg narrow grip x 10
90 kg wide grip x 5
54 kg rope x 10
DB front raises (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
super-set w/DB curls (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

Sunday, June 21, 2020

Time to Use My Whole Ass Again

EACH time my training takes a back seat, when I return to it I drop the loading and increase the volume. I did an upper/lower split last Saturday, as it had been so long since I'd moved anything it made more sense than jumping straight back into events. I added some direct bicep work after pulls Thursday night as my tendons felt like they needed it. Everything right now feels pretty weak. I'm going to stick with the upper/lower split on Saturdays until this condition improves, and I've just finished writing up a thorough mid-week press template that will see me clean-pressing with the log again after a seriously long time not touching one. Legendary Lifting now has a twenty-incher I'm keen to test out.

During the lock down period, Navarre and Anthony made it to mine for a Saturday training session (which I haven't recorded here), and I made a half-assed effort to squat or pull at Nav's place mid-week. But now that the gym is back to more or less normal operating hours again I have no excuse not to get back on with it, full time and using my whole ass.

If I train consistently over these next six months I'll be primed and ready to compete in the New Year... just like I was at the start of 2019, before my second bicep tendon detachment.

UPPER/LOWER SPLIT Saturday June 20th
Axle squats:
35 kg x 10
80 kg x 5
100 kg x 3
120 kg x 4 x 9
Axle OHP (strict):
35 kg x 10
50 kg x 5
60 kg x 3 x 10
Good mornings w/cambered bar:
15 kg x 10
60 kg x 5
85 kg x 4 x 10

PULL Thursday June 18th
Deadlifts w/barbell:
60 kg x 10
100 kg x 5
140 kg x 3
160 kg x 15
Deficit deadlifts w/barbell:
75 kg x 3 x 10
Bent-over rows w/barbell:
90 kg x 8
80 kg x 8,5 - lost form
Lateral pulldowns:
52.5 kg x 3 x 10
Preacher curls:
18 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm
 
UPPER/LOWER SPLIT Saturday June 13th
Squats w/axle:
35 kg x 10
80 kg x 5
110 kg x 4 x 10
Axle OHP (strict):
35 kg x 10
50 kg x 3 x 10
Good mornings w/cambered bar:
15 kg x 10
55 kg x 5
75 kg x 4 x 10
OHP w/cambered bar:
75 kg x 6
Cardio:
Assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm
 
PULLS AT NAV'S Wednesday May 13th
Deadlifts w/axle from floor:
80 kg x 5
130 kg x 5
150 kg x 3
180 kg x 10 - fewer reps due to lower pull height
Deficit deadlifts w/axle:
85 kg x 3 x 10
Bent-over rows w/barbell:
85 kg x 10,10,8

Sunday, May 3, 2020

Lock-down Training Catchup



RETURNING to some semblance of a training routine, this week has been the best since lock-down began. Tuesday's pull and press session was a brutal re-introduction to 40 centimetre pull height axle deadlifts. I am making sure to do deficits and bent-over rows after, to thoroughly hit the lower posterior. And the max-effort Savickas (or, as it's better known now, 'Z') press is really kicking my ass and reminding me why it's such a great press variation. I do really need to clean-press though, and intend to do some axle work in the vacant lot next weekend. Navarre and another Legendary strongman, Anthony, will be visiting Saturday afternoon for assorted implement toss, farmers walk, and whatever else we have the energy to do. Hopefully clean-press.


Mid-April I did a squat session that was so-so and didn't end with me completing all reps as written due to feeling faint and re-racking out of paranoia. I didn't want to dump the bar and/or collapse in Navarre's tiny garage, possibly destroying the piano that was directly behind me at the time. Fortunately, Navarre moved the piano before our next session, which was an altogether better one for me. Though we didn't have Nav's cambered bar for it and so learned how much more taxing straight bar Good mornings can be on the thoracic, my squats all felt strong and deep, and there was no dizziness/loss of vision/et cetera.


Anthony also joined us for training Saturday just gone. Just to show how out of condition I am, I programmed only two events: yoke and farmers walk. And I was so screwed after yoke, I quit and went home with another bruised diaphragm, which is the new 'lumbar strain' - an injury I'd sustain on what felt like a quarterly basis, back when competitive lifting was new to me. It sets me back a couple of days at most.


While the three of us are still working on the structure of our training sessions together, which will get progressively more complex, my home pull and press routine is now in it's final form. A twenty-six to (eventually) thirty set push/pull split, with some isolation and isometric movements thrown in. I did skip the hammer holds at the end of this one as my grip strength was already shot.


EVENTS @ NAV'S Saturday May 2nd
Yoke walk:
130 kg x 2 x 20 meters
180 kg x 2 x 20 meters
230 kg x 6 x 20 meters


SQUATS @ NAV'S Thursday April 30th
Squats w/axle:
35 kg x 10
85 kg x 5
125 kg x 3
145 kg x 1
165 kg x 3 x 7
Good mornings w/axle:
30 kg x 8
60 kg x 5
80 kg x 3
105 kg x 2 x 8


PULL & PRESS Tuesday April 28th
Deadlifts w/axle (40 cm):
70 kg x 10
110 kg x 5
150 kg x 15 - double overhand, no straps
Deficit deadlifts w/barbell:
75 kg x 3 x 10
Bent-over rows w/barbell:
75 kg x 3 x 10
Savickas press:
20 kg x 8
35 kg x 5
45 kg x 3
55 kg x 13
Skull crushers w/EZ bar:
29 kg x 3 x 10
Standing curls w/EZ bar:
29 kg x 3 x 10
Front raises w/EZ bar:
19 kg x 4 x 10
Triceps pushdowns w/rubber band:
20, 15, 10


SQUATS @ NAV'S Thursday April 16th
Axle squats:
35 kg x 10
85 kg x 5
125 kg x 3
155 kg x 8, 8, 4
Good mornings w/cambered bar:
30 kg x 8
60 kg x 5
80 kg x 5
95 kg x 3 x 10

Saturday, April 4, 2020

Squats in Nav's Garage


THURSDAY night was my first time training with Western Australia's strongest man, Navarre Top, in his garage. The nostalgia was palpable for me, as it was in then Western Australia's strongest man, Daniel Macri's garage that I first began properly training strongman events, in June of 2011. It's eerie coincidences like this that caused the ancient Greeks to conclude that time was non-linear, and whatever was happening now has happened before, in the past, and will occur again in the future. Hence their recording of significant events is allegorical.


We are, at this point, somewhat limited in what we can do. So we did enough squats and good mornings to make sitting and standing the next day a constant challenge. Between sets we also discussed what other movements and events we could conceivably add down the track. I mentioned that there's a vacant block of land next to my house which is crying out for some keg toss, I've just never had kegs to toss (and wasn't about to buy a set only to have some prudish neighbour tell me it was private property and yadda yadda), but now given the circumstances, I will train wherever the fuck I possibly can. And Navarre may have access to things we can toss.


One of the exercises I used to do regularly is Good Mornings. Recently I've mentioned how I became quite proficient at this particular movement during my early years of Strongman training, but gradually performed them less and less frequently. Well, now they have made a return to my weekly programming. They are one of the most useful exercises one can perform for strengthening the glutes, hamstrings, and lower posterior chain - especially if you don't have access to machines. I was supposed to do three money sets tonight. Next week I will need to rectify that. And do some goddamn cardio. My resting heart rate is already climbing due to the inactivity.


Here's a blog entry from late 2012 where I'm doing reps of 200 kilograms, on a cambered bar. About a month later I dropped back to 150 kilograms, and went deeper for almost ten reps. These loadings are several months away from me at the moment, but I do intend to be moving 150 kilos plus for deep, comfortable reps by early July, maybe sooner.


SQUATS @ Nav's Garage Thursday April 2nd
Axle squats:
35 kg x 10
85 kg x 5
125 kg x 3
145 kg x 3 x 9 TPR
Good mornings w/cambered bar:
30 kg x 10
60 kg x 10
80 kg x 10
90 kg x 2 x 10 - missed 3rd set!

Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Return to the S.T.F.

Or, the Savickas Testing Facility as I called it. All the stuff in this video I sold, more's the pity. Admittedly, a lot of the plates were rusty and mismatched, and the 'squat cage' would crimp if I loaded it with the weight I can move now, so it wouldn't be of any real use if I still had it. But I really miss my extra-long handled loadable dumbbells. And I am in dire need of a bench.


I am still tripping a little about how this is where I began, and almost exactly ten years to the day
I started this journey with my dinky little bench and dumbbells at home, I'm back here again. Only now I'm a strength athlete. Won't the neighbours be thrilled.


My first session at home went pretty well. The routine was improvised and is likely not the final form of whatever pulling and pressing template I put together. It was just as many movements as I could think of at the time. With variations limited, volume must increase, so I'll be doing four or more sets of most exercises that are not main lifts.


It's lucky I decided not to go heavier on deadlifts today, as there's now two divots in the paving and the bar already rolls straight to them. I will need to get something sturdier to put between the pavers and the mats... or only deadlift from blocks (boo).


I put together a short video of some of the things I did during this session, primarily to showcase the Savickas press. This is a great way to totally isolate the pressing muscles. It removes any drive or power provided by the lower posterior, and makes it all about the triceps, deltoids and pectorals. But you can use this contraption to bench and even squat, if you begin the squat (or press) from the bottom of the movement... and, if you're using your pergola, you aren't loading up hundreds of kilograms on it.





I finished off with some Ez-bar skull-crushers and curls, weaksauce rubber band triceps pushdowns and isometric holds with my dusty old SISU Warhammer wrapped in a Fatgrip 'Extreme' to make it a little harder.


No, squats I'll be doing at Navarre's place rather than risk my pergola. He's very kindly offered to let me train with him, and he lives real close by, so it's actually pretty sweet, all things considered.


Pull & Press Tuesday March 31st
SISU Warhammer w/Fatgrip 'Extreme'
Deadlifts with barbell:
65 kg x 10
105 kg x 5
145 kg x 3
165 kg x 3 x 5 double overhand
Barbell bent-over rows:
70 kg x 4 x 10
Savickas OHP:
20 kg x 8
40 kg x 5
50 kg x ME 10
Skull crushers w/EZ bar:
24 kg x 10
29 kg x 10, 10, 6
Standing EZ bar curls:
29 kg x 4 x 10
EZ bar front raises:
19 kg x 4 x 10
Rubber band triceps pushdowns:
3 x 20
Warhammer +Fatgripz 'Extreme' isometric side holds:
30 seconds per arm x 2

Monday, March 30, 2020

Last Training Session @ Legendary Lifting

FOR A WHILE, at least.


The Corona virus has forced us all back to where many of us - me included - first began: at home. My home gym I facetiously referred to as 'The Savickas Testing Facility' due to the Savickas press I jerry-rigged with some heavy chains slung over my back yard pergola, and the fact that it was still kinda rickety and experimental. It wasn't much, but it did allow me to overhead press and bench heavy weight safely, and even squat comfortably enough. Now, of course, there's a spa where the Savickas press was located. Also, I sold all my home equipment when I outgrew it and moved my training to the Muscle Pit.


Well, now I'm back where I started, almost exactly ten years to the day I first began exercising. The great people at Legendary Lifting allowed me to borrow all the plates, bars and mats you see here (save for the axle and blocks, which are mine), which is an excellent start to a new setup, and will keep me going in the mean time, albeit with some limited exercise options.


I hope to get more sessions done through the week by training at a variety of other people's home gyms. Until I can get my own, I am in dire need of access to a squat rack and bench - preferably adjustable.


But nothing will stop me from training. Certainly not this goddamned virus. I guess this is the reason I became almost entirely debt-free this year: so I could reinvest in my training at home.


LAST SESH Saturday March 21st
Deficit deadlifts:
65 kg x 10
105 kg x 10
145 kg x 10
Good mornings w/cambered bar:
20 kg x 10
40 kg x 10
60 kg x 10
80 kg x 10
Incline barbell press:
50 kg x 8
70 kg x 5
90 kg x 2
100 kg x 1
110 kg x 1
120 kg x 2 FAIL
110 kg x 4, 3
Axle OHP (strict):
20 kg x 5
50 kg x 3
70 kg x ME 12
Reverse hyper-extensions:
20 kg x 4 x 10
Cardio:
Assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm


EVENTS Saturday March 14th
Yoke walk:
130 kg x 2 x 15 meters
190 kg x 2 x 15 meters
230 kg x 10 x 15 meters
Cardio:
Assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

Friday, March 13, 2020

Pull, Press, Squat: Rehabbing a Strained Hamstring

DEADLIFTS on Saturday were going well, till I strained my hamstring half way through the third and final set. But it wasn't major. I could tell at the time and was certain by the end of the session, seeing as I could walk without a limp, that it would need only a little time to heal and I'll be back at it soon enough. But what this means is I need to stop neglecting my hamstrings and glutes and incorporate more movements into my training that work the *other* side of the leg.

Good mornings used to be a mainstay in my programming. They need to return. Hamstring curls I do already, but not regularly enough. That needs to change. I also need to try out that machine I think I can perform glute-ham raises with. I've not been able to do them properly on the regular apparatus for this movement as I always tip it over.

As if to confirm I needed that leg looked at, early the following morning the adductor spasmed violently. It got me out of bed and writhing on the floor for twenty minutes or so, trying to make it release. When I was finally able to stand and walk, I booked an appointment with my physio for Monday to have the whole left leg needled.

Presses are still going well. I even managed a fourth set of three at 115 kilograms this week. Though I feel there is something about the position - particularly the initial lift out of the rack - that is aggravating my left shoulder. It hasn't done any damage as yet, but that fourth set just felt wrong from the start.

Keeping off the leg meant I achieved very little with 'leg day' this week. I will hit events pretty hard this weekend though. Yoke and farmers especially: now is an ideal time to give the deadlift a break and knock out my required money sets on some events.

SQUAT Thursday March 12th
Axle squats:
20 kg x 10
60 kg x 5 x 10
DB front raises (p/h):
10 kg x 4 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

PRESS Tuesday March 10th
Chest press machine flat (p/h):
25 kg x 8
30 kg x 8
Incline barbell press:
50 kg x 5
70 kg x 3
90 kg x 1
105 kg x 1
115 kg x 4 x 3 PR
Axle OHP (strict):
50 kg x 3
75 kg x 8
Triceps pushdowns:
90 kg wide grip x 10
90 kg close grip x 10
63 kg rope x 10
63 kg wide grip x 10
63 kg close grip x 10
45 kg rope x 10
DB front raises (p/h):
12.5 kg x 4 x 10
DB curls (p/h):
12.5 kg x 4 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +58 rpm TPR

EVENTS Saturday March 7th
Deadlifts w/barbell:
65 kg x 10
105 kg x 5
145 kg x 3
185 kg x 2
205 kg x 1
225 kg x 6, 6, 3 - left hamstring strain
Incline barbell press:
50 kg x 5
70 kg x 3
90 kg x 1
100 kg x 1
110 kg x 4, 4, 3
Axle OHP (strict):
20 kg x 5
50 kg x 3
70 kg x 10
Preacher curls:
24 kg x 10
29 kg x 10
DB curls (right only):
12.5 kg x 10
10 kg x 10
7 kg x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

Saturday, March 7, 2020

2 Week Catchup: More Conditioning Needed

Squats last Tuesday were a disappointment, as my squats sometimes are. The first set I performed with no knee sleeves or belt and they felt pretty comfortable. I put the sleeves on for set two but remained belt-less as the weight really didn't justify sacrificing breathing comfort. Coming up from the seventh rep, I went light headed, lost my vision briefly, and my legs began to shake; all indicators I was about to pass out, so I hurriedly racked the bar and waited till I felt steady on my feet again before continuing with the routine.


At this time, I had not had any dry needling to my traps in several months, and there is a definite relationship between the blood flow to my brain and having loose, unknotted trap muscles. I got both traps and quads needled later in the week.


On Saturday, I tried to keep up with the Legendary Lifting Arnolds crew and wound up with a bruised diaphragm. If you take a look at the stuff I was doing with the yoke, harness and prowler, you'd understand why. I'd not been doing anything like it prior, and was not sufficiently conditioned. At all.


When you bruise the wall of muscle that is your diaphragm, the worst thing you can do is lie down. That's what I did the first time it happened, several years ago. I had decided to do some reasonably heavy sets of leg press after an even heavier deadlift session. Everything went fine till I was finishing up, when I felt a pain in my chest as I pulled myself out of the 45 degree leg press machine. The inside of my chest felt tender and sore, and hurt to breathe a little. This condition worsened later that evening. I attempted to get out of bed and was unable to sit upright without intense pain through my chest. I basically had to roll on to my side, hang my legs over the edge of the bed and swing myself upright, so I could stand and go take a piss.


This time I was better prepared. I remained seated or standing that evening and did regular tensing exercises (think Kegels but for your abdomen) up till bed time, and felt 100% again by Sunday evening. This is not the reason I didn't make it back in to train till the following weekend, but because of this latency I used the Saturday to hit money sets on both deadlift and incline press. I was pleased I completed all required reps - something I was a little worried about since my last press session. This success means I'll be continuing with the incline program as written.


Navarre, Jacqui and Anthony were again hitting their Arnolds prep hard that Saturday. In the two-plus years I've known Jacqui, her strengths and abilities have increased at a remarkable rate. She was beaming with pride as she told me of the six reps of a 105 kilogram atlas stone she'd lifted and placed to 1.4 meters that day. When she began training Strongman with me in early 2018 (or maybe late '17), she could manage only two reps of a 65 kilogram stone. That's one hell of an improvement.


Shit, I haven't even attempted a properly heavy stone since before my first bicep tendon detachment. Going to have to remedy that.


EVENTS Saturday February 29th
Deadlifts w/barbell:
65 kg x 10
105 kg x 5
145 kg x 3
185 kg x 1
215 kg x 3 x 7 PR for total reps at this weight
Incline barbell press:
20 kg x 5
55 kg x 5
75 kg x 3
95 kg x 1
105 kg x 3 x 5 TPR
Axle squats (de-load):
20 kg x 10
60 kg x 10
100 kg x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm


EVENTS Saturday February 22nd
Yoke walk:
130 kg x 2 x 15 meters
190 kg x 2 x 15 meters
230 kg x 2 x 15 meters
+ Truck pull harness attached to prowler:
250 kg + 65 kg x 2 x 15 meters
1 arm DB curls (right only):
12.5 kg x 15, 10, 5
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm


SQUAT+ Tuesday February 18th
Axle squats:
20 kg x 10
60 kg x 5
100 kg x 3
120 kg x 2
140 kg x 1
150 kg x 9, 7 FAIL
Leg extensions (p/l):
20 kg x 15, 15, 10
Hamstring curls (p/l):
15 kg x 3 x 15
DB side raises (p/h):
12.5 kg x 4 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

Monday, February 17, 2020

Remembering How to Deadlift

I AM not yet ready to give up on these incline bench presses. My last press session didn't produce quite the number of reps I wanted, though I am still not sure if I repped it five or six times in the second set. I am going with five as I'd rather underestimate than overestimate. Even so, I programmed three sets of six and, at most, managed two of them. If the next press session is just as disappointing, I will reconsider.

Last week I began my new axle squat template, and at the start of Saturday's events session I rolled out my new deadlift template, which looks like this:

Barbell deadlifts
wk01 205 kg x 3 x 8 - done
wk02 215 kg x 3 x 7
wk03 225 kg x 3 x 6
wk04 235 kg x 3 x 5
wk05 245 kg x 3 x 4
REST
wk07 255 kg x 2 x 6
wk08 265 kg x 2 x 5
wk09 275 kg x 2 x 4
wk10 285 kg x 2 x 3
wk11 295 kg x 2 x 2
REST
wk13 305 kg x 4
wk14 310 kg x 3
wk15 315 kg x 2
wk16 320 kg x 1


I am adding rest weeks because I need them, and previous years have ended prematurely thanks to injuries sustained from going too hard for too long. But even so, I recognise this program is pretty ambitious. I'll be extremely happy if I can manage to perform all reps as written.

I had plans on moving some decent weight on the farmers picks but after the deadlifts and dumbbell rows my grip was already beginning to fail, so I backed off and did my requisite cardio to finish up.

It's a shame too, as our farmers picks are currently damaged: we were using Jacqui's pair for the day. She came to do some training with Navarre and Anthony, as all three are in comp prep mode for the Arnolds! I had not caught up with Jacqui in some time. It was excellent to see her as strong and determined as ever. She's one of those athletes who always looks like she's having fun, because she really is.

EVENTS+ Saturday February 15th
Deadlifts w/barbell:
65 kg x 10
105 kg x 5
145 kg x 3
185 kg x 1
205 kg x 3 x 8
DB bent over rows (l&r):
30 kg x 8
40 kg x 8
50 kg x 8
Farmers walk (p/h):
80 kg x 2 x 15
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

PRESS+ Tuesday February 10th
Chest press machine flat (p/h):
25 kg x 8
30 kg x 8
35 kg x 8
Incline barbell press:
50 kg x 5
70 kg x 3
90 kg x 1
100 kg x 6, 5, 4
Axle OHP (strict):
50 kg x 3
70 kg x 9
Triceps pushdowns:
90 kg wide grip x 10
90 kg close grip x 10
63 kg rope x 10
63 kg x wide grip x 10
63 kg x close grip x 10
45 kg x rope x 10
Preacher curls:
24 kg x 10
29 kg x 10
34 kg x 8
DB curls (p/h):
12.5 kg x 2 x 10
DB side raises (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

Saturday, February 8, 2020

Squat Saturday: Ten Kilos Lost in Three Months





Ten kilograms lost in 3 months
I unofficially started eating in a caloric deficit at the end of October / start of November, when I was still hovering around 135 kilograms body weight. I didn't do anything overly scientific; I just made sure I was hungry all the time and gradually reduced the amount I ate each meal. The less I trained the less I needed to eat, and I was training only once a week on average at this point. It would always include some cardio at the end, coz I'm not keen on dying in my forties, and while I suck at it and will never actually enjoy doing it, I know I need to.


I would subsist on a small bowl of muesli in the morning, a piece of banana bread around ten o'clock, a small meal for lunch (on days I had time to sit and eat lunch), and a couple of nut or grain bars in the afternoon; one around two o'clock, another around four. I'd have a small meal when I got home at six, and dinner would be anytime between eight and ten o'clock. It was only really on post-training days that the hunger pains were hard to deal with. I'd have a protein shake some time during the day after a session if they got really bad. Like, dry-retching bad.


From the beginning of December I was on holidays, so was able to de-stress (which had a great positive impact on my quality of sleep, amongst other things) and focus on things other than training, while still keeping fit and active. But, while most people were indulging in food and drink over the holiday season, I was abstaining and sticking to my goal. And by the end of January, that goal was reached.


Today before doing my money sets on yoke I had to adjust my Inzer belt again. I am one notch away from the smallest setting I've ever used. And, while it was only 250, the yoke didn't suck, even after high volume squats, which I was happy about. I am looking forward to getting back into more regular events.


EVENTS Saturday February 8th
Axle squats:
20 kg x 10
60 kg x 5
100 kg x 3
120 kg x 1
140 kg x 3 x 10 TPR maybe a PR
Yoke walk:
130 kg x 15 meters
190 kg x 15 meters
250 kg x 3 x 15 meters
Cardio:
assault bike 5 minutes @ +50 rpm

Friday, February 7, 2020

Three Week Recap

When I began exercising properly for the first time, I was 30 years old, weighed over 150 kilograms, smoked and drank excessively, and just wanted to get healthier. But, when I found Strongman about 18 months into it, I also found a training method that I really enjoyed and a level of intensity I’d not experienced before in any gym, or following any of the usual bodybuilding-style templates I saw most other people doing.

My endeavours in the sport over the following 10 years aside, it has allowed me to drop over 25 kilograms on the scale while recomposing my body from 50% body fat to around 25%-30%. My blood pressure, resting heart rate, liver function, and all other vitals are checked twice a year and are in ideal ranges. I have to monitor my cholesterol on the occasions I decide to bulk up, but that’s not a major issue. I have learned *so much* in the last decade that has helped me be a better athlete and healthier person.
There are people I went to school with, who had the same attitude to health and fitness that I used to, and who are dead now because of it. I think about that a lot nowadays.
 
PRESS+ Thursday February 6th
Chest press machine flat:
25 kg x 10
30 kg x 10
35 kg x 5
Incline barbell press:
20 kg x 5
55 kg x 5
75 kg x 3
85 kg x 1
95 kg x 7, 8, 3
Axle overhead press (strict):
25 kg x 5
55 kg x 3
75 kg x 5
Triceps pushdowns:
90 kg close grip x 10
90 kg wide grip x 8
63 kg rope x 8
63 kg close grip x 10
63 kg wide grip x 10
49.5 kg rope x 10 PR
Preacher curls:
24 kg x 10
29 kg x 10
34 kg x 9
DB curls (p/h):
12.5 kg x 10 - left elbow issue
DB front raises (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

PULL+ Thursday January 30th
Deadlifts w/barbell:
75 kg x 10
115 kg x 5
155 kg x 5
DB bent-over rows (p/h):
20 kg x 10
30 kg x 10
DB meadows rows (p/h):
60 kg x 3 x 8
Seated rows (neutral grip):
90 kg x 3 x 10
Lateral pulldowns:
60 kg x 10
52.5 kg x 10
37.5 kg x 10
Face-pulls:
54 kg x 3 x 20
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm

PRESS+ Thursday January 23rd
Chest press machine flat (p/h):
20 kg x 10
25 kg x 10
30 kg x 10
Incline barbell press:
20 kg x 5
55 kg x 5
75 kg x 3
90 kg x 4 x 4
Axle overhead press (strict):
25 kg x 5
55 kg x 3
75 kg x 2
90 kg x ME 4 - FAIL
40 kg x 15
Triceps pushdowns:
90 kg close grip x 10
90 kg wide grip x 10
63 kg rope x 10
63 kg close grip x 10
63 kg wide grip x 10
45 kg rope x 10
Preacher curls:
24 kg x 10
29 kg x 10
34 kg x 10
DB curls (p/h):
12.5 kg x 3 x 10
DB front raises (p/h):
10 kg x 3 x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm

Friday, January 17, 2020

2019 Ends: 2020 Begins



DECEMBER was a pretty significant month for me, in terms of health and fitness, yet I spent hardly any of it in the gym! I took some extra time off over the end of year break - the longest leave period I've ever taken from work. During those four weeks I burned more calories, on average, per day, than at any stage in the previous year! And I did it while working around the house.

Amongst other things; I built a shed, from scratch, following my own design and making use of some timber and ply board I had lying around from past projects. I did it without a work bench or vice: two items it would behove me to purchase if I intend to keep building things... and I do. It's incredibly satisfying.

In the last week of leave I walked more steps than ever previously recorded. My resting heart rate reached (for only the second time) its lowest reading of 58 beats per minute. I lost weight and body fat (now down to just 127 kilograms) and am currently wearing clothes that haven't fit me since 2014.

Returning to regular training this week has reminded me just how much strength is lost when I fall out of the groove. Even with all the activity, a few weeks without regular squatting, pressing and pulling is enough to make my back feel like it's never done any of this shit before. It will remember, though.

Thursday night I threw myself back into events training, with some barefoot, no belt yoke walk and axle clean-press. 230 felt *heavy* on the yoke... it's certainly been a while since I moved some serious weight on this contraption. I will need to get this, and all my other events, back up to snuff in time for the expected first qualifying round, some time in March. 

EVENTS+ Thursday January 16th
Yoke walk (barefoot no belt):
130 kg x 2 x 15 meters
190 kg x 2 x 15 meters
230 kg x 2 x 15 meters
Axle clean-press:
55 kg x 10
Deadlifts (double overhand):
75 kg x 10
105 kg x 5
125 kg x 5
145 kg x 5
165 kg x 5
Lateral pulldowns:
60 kg x 10
75 kg x 10
82.5 kg x 5
Face-pulls:
54 kg x 2 x 20
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +55 rpm



Saturday January 11th
Axle squats:
20 kg x 10
60 kg x 5
100 kg x 15
Chest press machine flat (p/h):
20 kg x 10
25 kg x 10
30 kg x 10
Deadlifts:
75 kg x 10
105 kg x 5
125 kg x 15 double overhand
Incline barbell press:
20 kg x 5
50 kg x 5
70 kg x 15
Axle OHP (strict):
20 kg x 5
50 kg x 5
70 kg x 10
Cardio:
assault bike 5 mins @ +50 rpm