3/12
Happy to have ended on such a positive note as I abandon powerlifts for the next few weeks.
I’ve printed out the ESOLFL program in giant font so I can follow this stupidly-simple program for the next few weeks, and easily scribble my weights and times on the pages to note progress.
Have brought the weight vest back, and doing a ton of family walking outside of scheduled training; but the bulk of “training time” for the next few weeks will be just the weighted walk. There is very little lifting in this program.
fat loss is the goal
6 Likes
3/13
ESOLFL, W1D1.
Everything per program, and the majority is the same every day, so workout summaries are going to be very brief for the next few weeks.
Every session starts with a 30 sec hang, then a 30 second sit at the bottom of a 50lb goblet squat.
Then 3 round of 8 reps each of a complex (RDL-snatch-OHsquat-squat) with a dowel rod.
Then the actual work, which isn’t much:
Snatch: Today was 5x2x85lb
C&J: Today was 5x1x115lb
Then a loaded carry. Today was 50lb suitcase carry “to the stop sign and back” which is a reasonable distance.
Then a walk. Wore the weight vest. I’m targeting 1-2 miles per session, today I was running late so just 1.1 mile (lap around my block).
7 Likes
3/15 Wednesday
ESOLFL W1D2
Rx warmup.
Snatch 3x3x95
Cj 3x1x125
Suitcase carry 50lb
2.1 mile weighted vest walk, pretty brisk pace.
6 Likes
3/17 friday
ESOLFL day 3
Including snatch at 75lb, c&j at 105, and a 1.1 mile holding the baby (making the best of an unfortunate situation).
Last 24 hours have been extremely stressful, the next 48 probably moreso. Jumping on a plane in a few hours for last minute emergency.
5 Likes
Hope everything turns out okay.
3 Likes
Currently at airport to fly home.
Diet summary: I was good. Hit a grocery store on arrival and bought tuna, egg whites, milk, salami, cheese, carrots, cucumber.
With no hygiene or prep areas available (see below) i could still eat clean food, in sufficient quantities and quality.
Restaurant trips at the end (and now at airport) were responsible choices, like steak and eggs.
Sleep summary: the first night i worked and had a couple naps in my rental car on the worksite. Not healthy at all, probably 3 hours cumulatively? But the second night i was able to shower and sleep in a hotel.
Everything went well work-wise.
8 Likes
3/20/23 Monday
ESOLFL w1d4 or w2d1 depending on how you measure lol.
To simplify, I’ll call it C1D4. A cycle is 5 sessions which should be done in a week but difficult for me to achieve that.
Standard mobility and warmup.
Snatch was 5x2@95, c&j was 5x1@125.
Suitcase carry, 2 minutes per side marching in place because baby.
The walk was 1.1 miles carrying said baby.
The lifting was horrible because when snatching, one should focus on snatching, rather than making sure the baby isn’t going to walk underneath.
And one should not have Winnie the Pooh on in the background either.
And other complaints but i digress.
5 Likes
Ignore this, just venting.
Im frustrated. Started lifting at home because ESOLFL isn’t conducive to the gym, but requires very little equipment. Seems like a great idea, right?
Well, welcome to my house. I have 4 kids and one is under 2 and apparently insomniac. Im waking up even earlier than before, but still get suckered in to watching the baby between 5am and 7 (when i leave for work).
When i go to the gym, the headspace is totally different.
ESOLFL is a VERY minimal program. Its nominally 5 days per week but tgat is simply not on the table with the family situation; so i definitely feel I’m working NOT HARD ENOUGH. I know, DJ says “its called easy strength. Its not supposed to be hard”. But i do feel that by doing only 60% of the weekly volume of this low-volume program, its too low.
On the other hand, maybe this break will be good for me to reset.
I derive a certain pleasure from more intense workouts and im not getting it. Need to just let it go for a while and see what happens.
Therapy session over.
4 Likes
This is age old issue of training at home with a young family and exactly why when my kids were young I was a runner and didn’t train at home. Is there any way to carve out specific training time in the schedule that you agree with your wife and you train at that time regardless of what Armageddon is happening with the kids (that sounded like a crap idea now I have read it back). Maybe a better option is to simply only train a couple of movements and to just get daily work in. Lots of guys have stayed strong or even progressed on just a few sets of dead lifts or squats done daily. An y days where there is more time, work on sandbags and just get a pump ?
2 Likes
3/22/2023
Despite having clearly asked for my workout time this morning, I was once again foiled by a baby who’d been up all night and a wife who wanted more sleep.
Rather than let this destroy the program, I decided to just switch the order of operations - do the long walk FIRST, then hand the baby off and do the lifting. It worked great!
Packed the baby into the stroller with a snack, and pushed him for - guessing - 2.6 miles/46 minutes. That and a couple cups of coffee killed enough time that I could lift guilt-free!
ESOLFL C1D5
2.6 mile walk;
Mobility; Rx Warmup;
Snatch: 5,3,2 using 75, 95, 105lb;
C&J 1x115, 1x135, 1x155
Loaded carry: 100lb bag bear hug carry to stop sign and back. No drops. Feeling my erectors big-time.
ANOTHER WALK HAHA! Had enough time to add 1.1 mile wearing a weight vest.
So I have snatched a “yes” from the jaws of “no”.
Took video of my C&Js and will post in BSL for critique when I have a chance.
9 Likes
It got moved to a subforum i cant find so I’ll
Link my form check post here:
Edit: welp nvm, I can’t get the link to post right.
“Bacon and beer bells” on Instagram has some epic videos of him lifting in his garage with his kid
1 Like
This is really inspiring
1 Like
aww thanks!
Do you mean accomodating my wife and kids, or “getting to yes” in the face of obstacles?
Either way, I’m blushing! haha
getting to “yes”.
99.99999999% of ppl (including myself) would have made an excuse and skipped
1 Like
3/23 lots of weighted walking.
3/24 ESOLFL C2D1
The rx mobility and warmup. Snatch 5x2x90, c&j 5x1x120. Suitcase carry. 1.1mi weighted walk.
2 Likes
3/25:
So far today, about 3 miles pushing baby in stroller while everyone else sleeps.
Next, after breakfast and everyone awake:
4 rounds:
5 pullups, 10 pushups, 1 snatch of 95lbs into 5 overhead squats into 5 BTN press.
Another mile pushing stroller.
Light yard work.
3 Likes
3/25: Major update!
A lifelong friend recently got back in to training. He’s invited me to join him at a Spartan Race in May. I’m in! I have 8 weeks (maybe less?), of which two will be spent overseas on vacation, to prepare for this 10 K obstacle course with 25 obstacles - and in which I don’t want to be the weakest link!
I’ll need to make a plan, but most importantly, Easy Strength ain’t gonna cut it for this level of intensity - I need to be working more like Chong or Pwn (I’ll be the first to say, it will be nothing like either of them) to get that conditioning AND endurance up for this.
At a minimum, actual running and the kind of lifting that keeps my heart rate elevated for a decent period of time will be required. I have a feeling this is exactly the stimulus I need to finish the T-ransformation anyway.
11 Likes
3/26
One hour pushing stroller, run/walk alternating.
3 Likes
Mulling over possible training approaches for this event. Its amazing how a contest totally reshapes and motivates training. I would not be this willing to work this hard without a date on the calendar and a specific goal (though this is a bit unspecific as the obstacles are unknown).
The starting point:
Pretty sure I’m strong enough for this already. The obstacles include a lot of climbing, pulling, and carrying. Strength training should focus on those.
I’m not well enough conditioned, although I learned today that I’m better off than I’d feared. The race is 10K with 25 obstacles; so a) being able to run 6 miles without dying and b) being able to overcome an obstacle every 1/4-mile is key. So training needs to address both of these, while making sure I get plenty of practice picking, carrying, crawling, and pulling. Climbing would be great too, but I don’t have anything other than a pullup bar to practice that skill on.
The plan of attack
Training 3x/week is still the default, plus the option on weekends depending on family status.
I think the best kick in the ass for me will be to start and end each session with a mile run.
This will be hard, and a huge change for me, but it will force me to adapt to the running portion of the challenge.
In between the runs - the meat of the training sandwich - will be 10-40 minutes (targeting 30-60 minute sessions) for “lifting”. Fast and light, no need for heavy loads but a definite need to KEEP GOING and move quickly.
Movements should include:
-100lb bag pick and carry
-Pullups (not this week though, because my right elbow is Effed)
-Hanging leg raises and that ilk
-Cleans
-Snatches
-Bear crawls
-Jumping maybe?
-Hill sprints (if I can run to a hill)
-Burpees
-More as I think of them.
I think that’s enough to put together a program.
-3 days per week, 1 mile run, followed by 10-40 minutes of one of the above (or more running), followed by another mile run.
-Optional additional work weekends.
What about nutrition?
I’ve been trying to lose fat. This will melt it off. I’m going to need to eat more, but hopefully I can avoid that and keep leaning out for a bit the first two weeks. Will probably need to develop a better relationship with carbs too.
More on this later. I’ve got enough ideas down to crush it tomorrow and adjust.
7 Likes