Aero51's Log, Goal: Consistency, Records, Health

3/11/16 - complex day

In a complex, I did the following:
Axle OH Press x 10
zercher good mornings x 10
hammer the tire x 10
sandbag carry x 10

with 60 seconds of rest for 5 “sets”

Followed by:
5 minutes on the exercise bike at 400 rpm.

Notes:
Im going to replace the good mornings with overhead squats next time around. They were difficult to incorporate into the complex. Other than that everything felt good. I only used 65lbs for the OH, but by the 5th set I needed to use leg drive.

So I went to the doctors yesterday after having a sore throat for the last two weeks. The doctor said I might have mono so I think my training is going to have to be toned down until I heal up. I am still maintaining my 2500kcal/day diet, and as of Sunday I am down to 255lbs - a few lbs ahead of schedule.

The doctor told me to take yesterday and the day before easy, but because he said he didnt find anything obvious that it may just be allergies. I lifted this afternoon as I had a terrible night sleep where I woke up many times despite getting to bed at a reasonable hour. On with the workout:

Zercher Squats: 105x3,155x3,175x3,195x3,205x3,225x3,235x3,235x3,235x3
Chain drag: 15’ 25’ 25’ 15’
Overhead Press: barx3, 65x3,95x3,110x3,115x3,135x3,140x3,140x3,140x3
Snatch Raises: Barx10x2

Notes:
I did better than expect given that I have been dieting. I am down to 254lbs from about 3 weeks ago. I am surprised how fast I am losing weight too. I have been upping my protein significantly (today I had ham, turkey, fish, and chicken for all my meals) so maybe that has something to do with it. I opted to do zercher squats since my back has been funky lately. Only mild pain today that dissipated quickly. Im also liking these sets of 3 at 75 to 80%. They are heavy enough to be challenging but easy to recover from so I can do many sets.

3/19/16
Complex today:

DB Bench: 5x10x45lbs
DB Row: 5x10x45lbs
Step Up: 5x10x45lbs
60 seconds rest between each circut

Prowler + 50lbs, 3x80feet sprints
Farmers Walk 150lbs x 10x40 feet with minimal rest between reps
Keg carry: 2 x 150lbs x 40 feet

Notes:
The complex was much easier today. The prowler was a bitch, my strength levels havent dropped much surprisingly.

3/2/16

Heavy Day Again:

Deadlift: 135x3.185x3,235x3,285x3,335x3,335x3.285x3
Paused Axle SLDL: 105x3,125x3,145x3,165x3,195x3,215x3,235x3,215x3
Bench Press: 135x3,155x3,175x3,195x3,195x3,195x3,195x3,195x3
Rev Row: BWx3,+10x3,+10x3,+25x3

Notes:
Deadlift didn’t bother my back as much, but I do need to find an alternative that doesn’t bother my back. I heard a story about one of my friends at the gym that just had a serious injury and it looks like his lifting career will be over. I am being more mindful of the fact that my back seems to be more aggravated than usual, so I need to focus on finding a variation that doesn’t bother my spine - just as I found zercher squats don’t bother my back. The bench press was a little easy this time around, Ill have to add another 10lbs to that lift and do triples again. The rev. rows were easy too, hence putting the 25lb plate on my stomach. The paused deadlifts were also easy except at 235, when they all of a sudden got very difficult.

3/25/16
Complex day

In a conplex, I did the following
Overhead Press x10
Front squat x10
Hammer the tire x 10

For 6 sets with 1 minute rest between sets.

Notes:
I felt very weak today. I planned to include the keg carry in my complex, but the 150lb felt heavy so I opted to listen to my body and forgo that exercise. I normall do an extra lift but I didnt feel like I had much stamina and left early. The good news is that I am now 253lbs and on track with my weight loss goal. I am not entirely surprised that I performed poorly - I have not used my sleep apnea machine in about 2 weeks due to this chest cold that Im finally getting over. The poor sleep quality obviously had a significant effect on my training. I found myself exhaused after work throughout the week. The machine will be put to use again and I should be back on track next week.

3/28/16
Zercher Day

Zercher Squats: 15x3,105x3,155x3,205x3,225x3,245x3,245x3,245x3
Chain Drag: 30’x5
Bench Press: 135x3,155x3,175x3,195x3,205x3,205x3,205x3,205x3
Rev. Row: Bwx3,+10x3,+10x3,+25x3,+25x3

Notes:
Somehow I am getting stronger even though I am eating less. The chain drag felt like nothing (it weighs between 600 and 700lbs) and the zerchers were easy, I stopped to avoid back pain (which came anyway).

3/3/16
Complex Day

It was beautiful out so I changed it up:

Complex 1 (5 sets, 60 seconds rest/set):
2xSandbag Run x 10
Pushup/Bag Lift x10
Bag Row x10

Complex 2 (2 sets, rest as long as Id like)
Stair Climb:
Left Shoulder x1
Right Shoulder x1
Center x1

Notes:
I think the bags weighed between 60 and 75lbs. Regardless, the complexes were very difficult and by the end I had to take longer than 1 minute rest as I couldn’t recover. Running up and down the bleacher stairs was awesome. I was shaking after the workout and got some nutrients ASAP!

4/2/16
Deadlift and Overhead Press Day

Deadlift: 205x3,255x3,305x3,355x3,385x1,415x1
Paused Deadlift: 105x3,155x3,205x3,205x3,205x3,205x3
Overhead Press: 95x3,115x3,135x1,145x3, 145x3, 145x3, 145x3, 145x3
Assisted Pull-Up: BWx5, BWx5, BWx5, BWx5

Notes:
The trap bar deadlift felt great, though I didn’t lift as much weight as I could. I think Ill stick with reps at 80% of of 415 for reps.

Ok, computer issues kept me from logging in for the last week. Details:

Day 1: circuit day
Running with sandbags, pushups, overhead press
Running upstairs with sandbags

Day 2: squat day
Zercher From Top (never do these again it is impossible to get a good grip while standing)
Front Squat: Up to 225lbs, but the zerchers made me fatigue prematurely
Zerchers from Bottom: up to 205 to check my form

Day 2a
Too tired to finish my lift the day before, finished off with bench
Bench, worked up to 5 sets of 3 of 205lbs, this felt heavier than usual. Maybe the extra 195x3 was too taxing
Reverse Row, worked up to 5 sets with +10lbs on my chest

Day 3 (Saturday)
In a circuit in 10 yard increments for a total of 50 yards
Tire Flip
Overhead press
Stair climbing with sandbag (these are a real big bitch): 3 sets up bleacher stairs with a 50lb bag on my back as fast as possible, don’t 3 times with 2 minutes rest between set.

Oh, and the good news is that I am down to 246 as of this weekend. My calculations indicated that I in about a 1000kcal/day deficit. I eat whatever I want one or two days a week, then for the rest of the week stick to 2500kcal/day. I was previously at 260 about 40 days ago.

Oh crap I keep forgetting to update this.

Well, I did a deadlift day workout up to 360 for 3 sets of 3 and a final set of 7.

I did a zercher day where I modified my form, working up to 3 sets of 3 at 245, then back down to 225 and back up to 245.

I did a cardio day where I tested out my new sandbags, which broke lol

I did another cardio day where I did tire flips and sandbag carries, this time the sandbags held up.

And, I am down to 245lbs.

Apparently I am doing super shitty with keeping this update.

Anyway, on Saturday I did:

  1. Tire Flip + Sandbag Carry for 100 yards, switching between flipping and carrying every 15 yards with no rest in between lifts.
  2. I carried the sandbag up bleacher stairs for 3 sets of 5 stair climbs. Very difficult. 1 minute of rest between sets.

And on Monday, I did:
Zercher Squat = aborted due to pain from lifting the bags on Saturday (forearms)
Front Squat = 135x3,185x3,235x3,255x1,275x1, 235x1, 185x1.
700lb chain drag = 2 drags pulling, 2 drags pushing
Bench Press = 135x5,155x5,175x5,195x5,215x5

Notes:
My front squat sucks, but I think that is from doing zerchers first. I found a form that finally doesn’t bother my lower back. Basically, getting my feet slightly wider than shoulder with allows me to hip hinge in such a way that I can reach depth with little pain. Oddly this was more taxing on my hamstrings despite being a front squat. Im not entirely surprised my squats and DLs are taking a hit between dieting and finding variations that don’t bother my lower back.

More Updates:
I did 2 days of outdoor lifting (tire flipping + whatnot), getting in an intense workout, feeling pretty good

I did one day of trap bar deadlifting, working up to 4 sets of 5 at 325lbs

Today I did front squat working up to 3 sets of 5 at 205lbs. My form is odd for this. I take a wide stance and go deep. This helps me avoid back pain, but the weight I can use is significantly reduced.

Note:
Make a graph to estimate long term progress.