First game back after a calf injury. Played the second half, really bad conditions and I slipped with my first touch and had to go to ground. I saw loads of the ball, also got involved in a few rucks but the 10 was dropping back to the wing and I was going in the back line and I also had a few crash balls. Nearly scored, 9 was a little slow to pass to me so I lost all momentum and caught it static but I got about a yard away from the line.
One huge criticism would be my fitness, which was tested too often as they liked to kick for the corners and by the time i’d run to collect it near our own try line I could barely muster a jog and was probably responsible for them getting possession leading to one of the tries. I was shockingly unfit, though my issue is with the repeated short bursts as i’m fine when I have a chance to catch my breath.
Jan 26
Track Work
1200m - 4 mins 55 secs
10 x 180m (40 secs on 20 off)
10 x 150m (30 secs on 30 off)
10 x 110m (20 secs on 40 off)
1200m - 5 mins 04 secs
I will leave the repeated bursts work to weekends I don’t have rugby, today was about volume and I think that works out around 6.5km of tempo. Hard to do it on the track and if I did it again I think i’d just run for 40 and walk for 20 rather than set a distance. When the pitches near me are no longer flooded I will go back out on them and do the shuttle run session as that feels more specific to a winger.
Deadlift 8 x 117.5kg, 6 x 122.5kg, 4 x 127.5kg, 2 x 137.5kg - back rounded on the double, fatigue rather than a limiting weight
HS Swiss Ball Curls 5 x 9
Ab Wheel 3 x 20
Calves are tight from running yesterday so I took out calf raises. Good to get extra reps in the back squat, I pushed it a bit more than last week. Everything else was fine, i’m on top of my nutrition most days and feeling the benefits. Took creatine and glutamine today but I struggle to remember to take it consistently.
I see you do some tempo work and I was wondering if thats something I should be doing, or is doing hill repeats twice a week enough enough to get the stamina levels up?
The hill that I use it about 120 meters long and the angle is about 30-40 degrees. I run up(50 seconds), and then walk back down(140 seconds), and then repeat for about 6 reps(want to build up to about 12 reps).
I’m not the man to speak to about stamina work, haven’t got much idea what i’m trying to accomplish but I do tempo to get myself out of breath and hopefully improve my CV fitness. Hill reps are probably enough if they’re getting you through 90 minutes of football. If you think about the energy pathways then 50 seconds effort is roughly when more than half the energy is aerobic. I’m going to try something like this (http://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com/images/interval_training_soccer.jpg) to work on aerobic endurance on Wednesdays.
Jan 28
Bench Press 8 x 85kg, 5 x 97.5kg, 2 x 102.5kg, 8 x 82.5kg - sore forearms, couldn’t push properly
Pendlay Row 6 x 3 x 75kg
A1 OHP 5 x 5 x 60kg
A2 Pullups 5 x 6
B1 Bicep Curls 2 x 5 x 45kg - struggling with forearm tightness
B2 Skull Crushers 1 x 5 x 45kg - actually dropped the weight at the start of second set as I didn’t have the grip strength to hold it
Pretty useless session, my forearms are battered and bruised from rugby and they were the limiting factor in a lot of my lifts. I’ve foam rollered them and they should be fine by Thursday.
The site I got it off said to do 3 reps (so two runs & two jogs = 1 rep), rest 2-3 mins and repeat 3-5 times. I started with 4 x 3 reps with 3 mins between sets and found it a bit much.
Jan 29
Track Work - Aerobic Endurance
3 x 6 x (2 x 55m run [ second run with rugby ball ], 55m jog), 1 x 3 x same - 3 mins rest between sets
Adapted this off a session I found, I wanted a shuttle component of changing direction and I placed the ball so that I could pick it up for the second half of the run. My major struggle was that jogging was the rest period and i’m unfit enough that only walking or standing still actually helps me so I was breathing hard for the full five minutes it took to do each set of six runs.
I could’ve pushed it more but it was my first attempt and I wanted to save something for weights, gave up halfway through the last run as my ‘run’ phase was indistinguishable from my ‘jog’ phase.
Weights
RDL 3 x 12 x 80kg
Back Squat 25 x 60kg, 20 x 70kg, 15 x 80kg - much better than last time, adapted well and although a massive struggle I finished it
BB Fwd & Reverse Lunges 30 x 50kg - one set of each, reverse ones felt more solid
Ab Planks 3 x 90 secs
No calf work as they were getting tight during the track work. Really enjoyed that session, that’s the hardest i’ve worked in the lunges. My week feels like it has much more balance and i’m not taking away from my 4 main sessions, although rugby did impact my ability to do upper body due to forearm fatigue. Upper body tomorrow then hopefully another rugby game on Saturday.
A1 Incline BB Chest Press 15 x 55kg, 12 x 55kg, 20 x 45kg
A2 DB Row 15 x 27.5kg, 12 x 27.5kg, 20 x 22.5kg
3 Way Raise 12, 10, 8 x 5kg
Incline Hammer Rows 3 x 15 x 17.5kg - dropped the weight and went slow eccentric
B1 DB Preacher Curl 2 x 15 x 15kg
B2 OH 1 Arm DB Ext 2 x 15 x 15kg
Really solid session, everything was tough but manageable. Want to increase the angle of the bench for curls as I don’t feel i’m hitting my biceps as much as I could.
Rugby cancelled yesterday due to weather. Had some good acceleration runs today and the weather was nice with no wind so we tried a 400m time trial. Very pleased with my time, went through 200m in 28 secs and held it well at the end. Finished with the aerobic stuff and abs. Away to a friends for a few days to watch the Superbowl so will probably do legs Monday eve or Tuesday morn.
Rugby cancelled yesterday due to weather. Had some good acceleration runs today and the weather was nice with no wind so we tried a 400m time trial. Very pleased with my time, went through 200m in 28 secs and held it well at the end. Finished with the aerobic stuff and abs. Away to a friends for a few days to watch the Superbowl so will probably do legs Monday eve or Tuesday morn. [/quote]
Bench Press 8 x 85kg, 5 x 97.5kg, 3 x 102.5kg, 1 x 112.5kg, 2 x 1 x 110kg, 5 x 97.5kg
Pendlay Rows 2 x 3 x 75kg, 4 x 3 x 80kg - haven’t increased these in ages, had been cruising at 80% for these sets
A1 OHP 5 x 5 x 60kg
A2 Pullups 5 x 6
B1 Bicep Curls 3 x 5 x 45kg
B2 Skull Crushers 3 x 5 x 45kg
Missed legs yesterday, will do tomorrow and just miss out high rep legs this week. Bench felt very heavy and I took the 1RMs down and still struggled a lot at the lower weight. Everything else was good, particularly Pendlay Rows which I was doing at 75kg for ages and my training partner pointed out they looked far too easy today.
A1 Incline BB Chest Press 15 x 55kg, 12 x 55kg, 20 x 45kg
A2 DB Row 15 x 27.5kg, 12 x 27.5kg, 20 x 22.5kg
3 Way Raise 12, 10, 8 x 5kg
Incline Hammer Rows 3 x 15 x 17.5kg
B1 DB Preacher Curl 2 x 15 x 15kg
B2 OH 1 Arm DB Ext 2 x 15 x 15kg
Treadmill Walk 6.4-6.7ph, 3 degree incline, 46 mins
Same session as last week, think the chest press could be 57.5 & 47.5kg next week. I moved house yesterday which took all day so no legs, visiting friends all weekend so won’t be able to sneak in a workout. Have access to a treadmill at the moment, did some PWO brisk walking as i’m getting a little soft in the mid-section and could do with trimming the fat.
Bench Press 8 x 85kg, 5 x 97.5kg, 3 x 102.5kg, 3 x 1 x 112.5kg, 5 x 95kg
Pendlay Rows 6 x 3 x 80kg
A1 OHP 5 x 5 x 60kg
A2 Pullups 5 x 6
B1 Bicep Curls 3 x 5 x 45kg
B2 Skull Crushers 3 x 5 x 45kg
Treadmill Walk 12 mins
It used to be that the 1RM were the hardest but i’m now struggling at the 5 and 3 reps prior to it. No spotter, 112.5kg felt ok but not great. OHP was easy to begin with but last set got so much harder. Finished with a short walk on the treadmill to burn some cals.
Deadlift 8 x 115kg, 6 x 120kg, 4 x 125kg, 2 x 135kg
HS Swiss Ball 4 x 12
SL Calf Raise 3 x 20
Ab Wheel 3 x 25
Felt very comfortable in squats, will increase that next week. Deadlifts were a breeze, increased reps on ab wheel too. I’m a day behind schedule so I might do Heavy Upper tonight as I want to be back on track for rugby on Saturday (games cancelled last weekend).
Bench Press 8 x 85kg, 5 x 97.5kg, 3 x 102.5kg, 3 x 1 x 115kg, 5 x 97.5kg
Pendlay Rows 6 x 3 x 80kg
A1 OHP 5 x 5 x 60kg
A2 Pullups 5 x 7
B1 Bicep Curls 3 x 5 x 45kg
B2 Skull Crushers 3 x 5 x 45kg
Technically the last bench set was 2 @ 107, 3 @ 97 as I miscalculated the final load. Bench felt a lot better than last week, the final single was slow but I was confident about it. I threw the barbell about like a toy in the pendlays. OHP was still tough, i’m trying my best to not arch my back and about half of them are push presses rather than strict reps. Last superset pairing was quite easy, don’t feel it hitting bi’s and tri’s as much as it used to but I feel if I increase the weight then my curls will involve a lot of body lean and squirming.
Shuttle Run (Triangle - ~45m run, ~45m run, ~45m jog)
10 x 2 laps, 2 mins rest between each
Included going to ground at each cone and picking the ball up and moving it round a cone every lap. I was woefully unfit last rugby game and I want to incorporate getting off the floor as that makes it so much harder on CV system. I collapsed after every rep, took me about 1:40 for 2 laps, did it in a muddy field on a slope. If I cut the rest any more i’d have been jogging 3 sides rather than running and I don’t want that.
Feb 20
A1 Incline Chest Press 15 x 57.5kg, 12 x 57.5kg, 19 x 47.5kg - very strict with my 60 sec rest period and got halfway up on final rep
A2 DB Row 15 x 27.5kg, 12 x 27.5kg, 20 x 22.5kg
B1 DB Curls 2 x 15 x 15kg
B2 DB Ext 2 x 15 x 15kg
Treadmill Walk 25 mins
I took out 3 way raise and incline hammer rows last week and kept them out today. My delts and lats are probably ahead of my other upper body muscles in terms of development so taking those out should bring more balance to my physique. Worked on a nice slow eccentric for curls and I can still feel my biceps now. Might do treadmill walk & stretches tomorrow morning and then with any luck i’ll get a game of rugby on Saturday.
Really good game, back from 19-7 down to draw and then conceded in the final minute. I played outside centre (for non-rugby folk that’s the guy infield of the winger) and saw a lot more of the ball. I was much happier with my fitness and the ground was slightly firmer so I could run faster. I had a few breaks from our own 22 and went 60-70 metres each time, I had a 1 v 1 with their full back which I should’ve taken but I tried a long pass that didn’t work out. Broke down the wing beyond two people and kicked it through for our wing to chase, there was a scramble on the try line and I touched it down but not sure whether the try was mine.
Knees are a little bloodied and bruised but no injuries, changing up my sessions as a former training partner has sent me some new training outlines that I want to try and follow, including shorter rest periods and higher volume as well as a cardio & abs day in the middle of my four lifting days.
I say it a million times but diet is my biggest problem and i’m trying to get back on track, keeping it simple and looking to be consistently decent rather than stick to an unrealistically clean plan.
Ab Circuit 2 mins (before session), 2 x 2 mins after session
Treadmill Walk, 15 mins 3 degree inclince 6.5kph
New format, strict 60 second rest between all sets and strict 3 minutes between exercises. I was pretty slow taking the bar off the rack to go from lunges to rdl so it wasn’t very effective as a superset, but tough with the ~45 second rest I got from that. I liked introducing abs at the beginning of the session, my track coach used to make us do single leg planks just to activate our muscles before a session rather than trying to fatigue them.
