Becoming Canis dirus - SvenG's Training Log

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w1d3

Tuesday - 03 January 2023
Workout: Back, 0520-0640 (80 minutes)

Indigo-3G - 0500
Surge - 0530-0629

Warm-up
Jumps only (no throws)

Begin: 0539; End: 0636; Duration: 57 minutes
Deadlift - 150x5, 190x5, 225x5 | 265x5, 300x5, 340x5
Bent-over row - 145 lbs - 15, 13, 12, 10
Chin-up - 15 lbs - 10, 10, 8 + 2, 8 + 2
Good morning - 135 lbs - 10, 10, 10, 10
HLR - 12, 12, 12, 12
Incline french press - 50 lbs - 15, 15, 15, 15

Semi-fasted: black coffee upon waking, then Indigo-3G and Surge as above.

Used every ounce of that Surge this morning. Needed every ounce of that Surge this morning—I’m toast!

Pouring down rain, so I skipped throws today. Top set moved alright. Not as easy as I’d like, but it wasn’t impossible. Used straps for that one, but only that one.

Warm-up sets in 5 minutes, main work in 10 minutes, supplemental rows in 9 minutes. Took that up 10 lbs from Cycle 19, got all 50 in 4 sets without a rest-pause. Might’ve had some body english on the last few reps of a few sets, but I’ll work into it over the weeks ahead.

Pretty happy with the weighted chins today: that’s up 5 lbs from Cycle 19 too, and I only had to rest-pause the last two sets. Can’t decide whether or not I’m gonna find those incline french presses to be effective, but we’ll give it a few weeks to see—I haven’t done those in forever, may just need to find the groove.

Swings and Pwn’s Tabearta planned for later today. My son’s basketball practice starts today, so that might complicate the evening, but I’ll get it done one way or the other!

[cstan097]

Man you have made tons of progress just from working the shit out of 531. Awesome consistency!

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w1d3

Tuesday - 03 January 2023
Workout: Daily work & extra conditioning, 1500-1535 (35 minutes)

5 rounds of:
KB swing - 28 kg - 10-15-25-50 reps
Time: 19:03

Pwn’s Tabearta - 8x20/10 - 70 lbs - 8x2

Knocked off a bit early today, just to be sure I could get this in. But I think it’ll be alright, generally speaking, because I could squeeze it in after little man’s basketball practice, if necessary.

Grip is still the weak point, but I think it’s improving. I might’ve done an extra 15 or 25 reps, too, because I was well ahead of starting a new round every 4 minutes, and then all of a sudden I wasn’t. Whatever, no big deal either way: I’ve got LOTS and LOTS of swings ahead of me yet, so there’s plenty of time to improve.

Tabearta was up 5 lbs from Cycle 19, 'cause that was my reward for hitting 8x3 with 65 lbs in the last week of 5/3/1 & Bodybuilding. I probably could’ve hit 3 reps easily enough in the first several rounds, but like the WOD yesterday, this was just to get a bit more work in quickly. I’ll probably progress the reps over the weeks ahead—maybe I’ll even be able to work up to 8x3 by the end of Cycle 21 or something?

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w1d4

Wednesday - 04 January 2023
Workout: Easy conditioning, 0535-0630 (55 minutes)

1-pump burpees + 28-kg KB swings - 2x(25 + 25), 25-second rest between
Bike@120-140 bpm - 10 minutes
Weighted vest walk - 30 kg - 15 minutes

Fasted. Done.

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w1d4

Wednesday - 04 January 2023
Workout: Daily work, calves, & extra conditioning, 1720-1835 (75 minutes)

Jump rope - 300+ reps

3 rounds of:
a) Kroc row - L/R - 65 lbs - 20, 20, 20
b) JM press - 55 lbs - 25, 25, 25
c) Seated CR - 240 lbs - 25, 20, 15

Jump rope - 300+ reps

5 rounds of:
KB swing - 28 kg - 10-15-25-50 reps
Time: 18:39

Man! I don’t know whose idea THAT workout was, but I hate them whoever they are.

That workout sucked. Took way too long—I was able to give the time today, but I’m not sure that’ll be the common case. That said, it also took over 10 minutes to set up, so I can help that by setting up after the morning’s easy conditioning. But even so, I really need something that’s in the 45-60 minute range…

On the plus side, I crushed the swings today: 500 solid reps in 18:39 isn’t too bad at all!

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w1d5

Thursday - 05 January 2022
Workout: Chest & triceps, 0515-0630 (75 minutes)

Indigo-3G - 0500
Surge - 0530-0617

Warm-up
Throws + jumps

Begin: 0534; End: 0627; Duration: 53 minutes
Bench - 110x5, 140x5, 165x5 | 195x5, 220x5, 250x5
Dip - 75 lbs - 13, 10, 8, 7, 6, 6
DB flye - 2x35 lbs - 12, 12, 12, 12
Band pushdown - red - 20, 20, 20, 20, 20
Push-up - 34, 28, 21, 16 (99 reps)
Underhand straight-bar pushdown - 15 lbs - 15, 15, 15, 15, 15

Semi-fasted: black coffee upon waking, then Indigo-3G and Surge as above.

If that doesn’t kickstart some triceps growth, then I don’t know what will!

Rough night: I went to bed about an hour-and-a-half later than usual, slept terribly, then got up before 0400. But needs must when the devil drives, so I knocked this out with as much intensity as possible.

Top set moved alright, though the last rep was a little wonky. Not really going to worry about it, though. Dips, on the other hand, were just pi$$-poor: No intensity, my mind wasn’t willing my body to fight, and I just felt off. Poor sleep? Yes. Triceps fatigue from the extra work this week? Probably. Poor mentality? Absolutely!

I wanted 50 reps in 4 sets, and I realize now that 50 reps in 4 rest-pause sets would also meet the Malcom-X intent, but today it took 6 sets, so it is what it is. (And, for the record, that’s a basis from which to improve.)

Warm-up sets in 4 minutes, main work in 7 minutes, supplemental in 13 minutes. If the dips were disappointing, at least the push-ups were decent. I decided several weeks ago that in this run I wanted to see how far I can get without any rest-pause sets. The goal is to once again add a rep to each set, which I accomplished this week (based on the first part of each of my Cycle 19, Week 3 sets). Realized after the fact that I was one rep short of 100, which I would’ve been able to eke out somewhere along the line, but alas: What you see is what you get—99 reps represent a real and genuine effort this morning.

It’s also worth noting that those underhand pushdowns hit my triceps in a way that band pushdowns don’t. With the latter, I find my pecs and even my anterior delts get involved—particularly in the later sets—but the underhand ones were all triceps, all the time. I’m gonna like those. And while 15 lbs isn’t much, the carriage on the cable machine itself adds some weight (another 5-10 lbs, maybe?), but either way, they’re gonna do the job nicely!

Swings and the Wednesday WOD—yes, the Wednesday WOD on a Thursday!—later today.

[cstan097]

Man your lifts have gone up a lot over the past year. Great progress!

[SvenG]

@cstan097 - Thanks, my man! 5/3/1 has been good to me, so I’m just trying to keep the ball rollin’…

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w1d5

Thursday - 05 January 2023
Workout: Daily work & extra conditioning, 1630-1715 (45 minutes)

5 rounds of:
KB swing - 28 kg - 10-15-25-50 reps
Time: 17:48

(Modified) Wednesday WOD - AMRAP, 10 minutes
a) 6 burpees over bar
b) 8 deficit RDL - 135 lbs
c) 10 pull-ups
Rounds: 3 + 6 reps

Wow! That was surprising in so many ways… First, how 'bout those swings? 500 in 17:48!?! I saw my time and wondered if I missed a set (or several) or something. And they felt effortless today—my grip was still challenged, but effortless nonetheless. Maybe I missed a set, maybe my body’s just adapting, but either way, I’m pleased—though I’ll only call it “good” when I repeat it.

Then, wow! That WOD! I finished the first set of burpees over bar and it hit me: I was exhausted. Like dead-on-my-feet exhausted. And almost not on my feet, haha!

And to make matters worse, I couldn’t catch my breath for the remainder of the 10 minutes. Ugh!

I modified it to go for 10 minutes instead of 8 and to use deficit RDLs rather than regular deadlifts. Oh, and I call it “Wednesday WOD” because that’s the name the website where I found it used, but if you google “Wednesday WOD,” a million other ones come up. Whatever, I’m sticking with that name…

There’s about 10 minutes left on the meatloaf I’m having for dinner, so: Let’s eat! (And eat. And eat. And…)

[aholding88]

Awesome work, making those swings with a 28kg bell look easy!

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w1d6

Friday - 06 January 2023
Workout: Legs & abs, 0520-0635 (75 minutes)

Indigo-3G - 0530
Surge - 0530-0629

Warm-up
Throws + jumps

Begin: 0537; End: 0633; Duration: 56 minutes
Squat - 125x5, 155x5, 185x5 | 215x5, 245x5, 275x5
BB hack squat - 150 lbs - 20, 20, 20, 15
Leg curl - 85 lbs - 15, 15, 15, 15, 15
Leg extension - 110 lbs - 12, 12, 12, 12
Ab wheel - ramp (19) - 12, 12, 12, 12
Overhead triceps extension - 2x25 lbs - 15, 15, 15, 15, 15

Semi-fasted: black coffee upon waking, then Indigo-3G and Surge as above.

Another decent morning. Top set moved alright, even if the last rep or two were kinda squat-mornings. I might’ve done better with a bit more rest between sets, but whatever.

Warm-up sets in 4 minutes, main work in 8 minutes, and supplemental in 13 minutes. Took the weight on the BB hack squats up by 5 lbs and I crushed 75 reps in 4 sets! Not sure I’ll ever be able to get 75 in 3, but I’m gonna work toward it for sure. Took the leg curls and extensions up by 5 lbs each as well, those went alright considering. The overhead triceps extensions are today’s triceps daily work, and I’m gonna like those as well—they were just the right kind of hard on the last several reps in almost every set.

Swings and a randomly-generated WOD—power cleans, push-ups, and sit-ups—later today. Seeing that now, I might swap pull-ups for the push-ups, though… Guess we’ll find out!

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w1d6

Friday - 06 January 2023
Workout: Daily work & extra conditioning, 1600-1640 (40 minutes)

5 rounds of:
KB swing - 28 kg - 10-15-25-50 reps
Time: 16:30

Randomly Generated WOD - AMRAP, 10 minutes
a) 8 power cleans - 95 lbs
b) 10 pull-ups
c) 12 sit-ups
Rounds: 3 + 8 reps

Yes, folks, you’re reading that time correctly. And just let me say:

“They’re It’s real and they’re it’s spectacular.”

I thought maybe yesterday was a fluke or I miscounted or something, but no: We’re witnessing ADAPTATION in ACTION. And today was awesome—swings were crisp, breathing was even, and my grip held up. It’s amazing how quickly the efficiency I developed in October is returning.

In fact, I’m beginning to think I’m going to have to move to AMRAP in 20 or 25 minutes or something, but we’ll just see how things go… I don’t actually want this afternoon work to be efficient—these swings are supposed to be driving my appetite through the roof! (In that regard, though, they’re working: I’m already hungry again, and I ate a late lunch today.)

Followed that up with a randomly generated WOD—my only constraint was 10 minutes, and it spit out: AMRAP, 8 power cleans at 95 lbs, 10 push-ups, and 12 sit-ups. I thought that complemented yesterday’s 6-8-10 scheme quite nicely, so I went with it.

Well, almost—I did end up swapping in pull-ups for the push-ups, and I’m glad I did: Like yesterday, they were the weak link in each round, so the extra practice is worthwhile.

That’s a wrap!

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w1d7

Saturday - 07 January 2023
Workout: Easy conditioning & BB curls, 0655-0755 (60 minutes)

1-pump burpees + 28-kg KB swings - 2x(25 + 25), 25-second rest between
Bike@120-140 bpm - 10 minutes
Weighted vest walk - 30 kg - 15 minutes

BB curls - 100

Fasted.

This just in: BB curls still suck. A LOT.

100 unbroken in 4:44. Calves, daily work, etc. planned for later today.

[jdm135]

Nice reference.

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w1d7

Saturday - 07 January 2023
Workout: Daily work, calves, & extra conditioning, 1645-1750 (65 minutes)

Towel hop tabata - 4x40/10

3 rounds of:
a) CT’s modified French press - 95 lbs - 15, 15, 15
b) Seated CR - 240 lbs - 25, 20, 15
c) Devil’s press - 2x30 lbs - 15, 15, 15

Towel hop tabata - 4x40/10

5 rounds of:
KB swing - 28 kg - 10-15-25-50 reps
Time: 18:25

That was a mental battle.

That was a physical battle.

But I came out on top.

I hate devil’s presses. And those modified french presses are today’s triceps work. Swings went alright, but I had no fight in me this afternoon: My forearms were shot after the first set of 50 reps, and honestly I just wanted to survive. So that’s what I did—I survived! But the effort was there, and it wasn’t a horrible time in the end.

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w1 - summary

I like the combination I’ve come up with here in this Frankenbuilding mash-up. My mind (and maybe my body) just handles 5s PRO better, it seems. The weights moved pretty well for a 3s week, and the mix of daily work and conditioning is giving me the effect I want—even the swings, which have improved significantly over the past 7 days, but which still aren’t easy. And I don’t know if it’s the swings, the 10-minute WOD-style work that follows, the pairing of those two, or what, but the afternoon work IS driving my appetite, so I’m going to stick with that combination again this week.

My goals for Cycle 20, Week 2 are:

• Complete all 4 lifting workouts
• Complete 3 days of easy conditioning & direct calf work
• Hit my triceps with a high-rep movement every day
• Do 500 28-kg KB swings every day
• Continue to eat well

Not much to say here, so let’s just put our heads down and get to work!

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w2d1

Sunday - 08 January 2023
Workout: Easy conditioning, 0525-0615 (50 minutes)

1-pump burpees + 28-kg KB swings - 2x(25 + 25), 25-second rest between
Bike@120-140 bpm - 10 minutes
Weighted vest walk - 30 kg - 15 minutes

Fasted.

Calves, daily work, and plate ground-to-overheads to follow this afternoon.

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w2d1

Sunday - 08 January 2023
Workout: Daily work, calves, & extra conditioning, 1700-1800 (60 minutes)

Towel hop tabata - 4x40/10

3 rounds of:
a) Seated CR - 240 lbs - 25, 20, 15
b) EZ bar skull crushers - 40 lbs - 20, 20, 20
c) Plate ground-to-overhead - 45 lbs - 25, 25, 25

Towel hop tabata - 4x40/10

5 rounds of:
KB swing - 28 kg - 10-15-25-50 reps
Time: 17:14

Slow swings are a blessing and a curse when your grip is shot—still not sure the right way to play that game. But I got 'em done and in decent time, too.

Rest of it was fine, even if I got started way later than I intended.

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w2d2

Monday - 09 January 2023
Workout: Shoulders & biceps, 0520-0625 (65 minutes)

Indigo-3G - 0500
Surge - 0530-0615

Warm-up
Throws + jumps

Begin: 0538; End: 0623; Duration: 45 minutes
Press - 60x5, 75x5, 90x5 | 105x5, 120x5, 140x5
DB press - 2x45 lbs - 17, 13, 10, 10
Lateral raise - 2x15 lbs - 12, 12, 12, 12
BB curl - 70 lbs - 12, 12, 12, 12
Preacher curl - 50 lbs - 10, 10, 10, 10
Triceps kickback - L/R - 12 lbs - 20, 20, 20, 20

Semi-fasted: black coffee upon waking, then Indigo-3G and Surge as above.

Pretty happy with today’s work, the top set moved well. Warm-up sets in 4 minutes, main work in 5 minutes, supplemental in 8 minutes. But, wow! I crushed that first set of 17 reps, and it was a real battle from there. Rested 60-75 seconds between sets, and I might’ve done better with a bit longer, but those last 33 reps were just hard. Still got 'em in 4 sets without a rest-pause, though, so that’s a win.

Rest of it was decent, too. Still liking those triceps kickbacks: The MMC there is awesome—they hurt so good!

Swings and a (Half) Cindy WOD later today.

[SvenG]

Frankenbuilding - c20w2d2

Monday - 09 January 2023
Workout: Daily work & extra conditioning, 1640-1520 (40 minutes)

5 rounds of:
KB swing - 28 kg - 10-15-25-50 reps
Time: 16:14

KB swing - 28 kg - 50 reps
Time: 1:46

(Half) Cindy WOD - AMRAP, 10 minutes
a) 5 pull-ups
b) 10 push-ups
c) 15 air squats
Rounds: 8 + 8 reps

Killer time, but I convinced myself it wasn’t real and that I missed a 25-rep set somewhere along the line. So I put the bell down immediately after “rep 500,” recorded my time, reset my timer, tried to relax my hands, and did another 50-rep set, just to make sure I got (at least) 500 total. It was 1:46 from the time I clocked the final round until I clocked the penalty set.

I then turned in a solid performance on the WOD—but let me tell you: I was dying. The swings, whether 500 or 550 or what, caught up with me in Round 3 of that WOD, and I had to fight until Round 7. Luckily I caught a second wind and finished strong.

Just about 12 hours until tomorrow’s deadlifts, so now I eat and rest.