Thanks, man! Really it’s just life, but it got the better of me yesterday.
Dips at any weight just make you feel strong, IMO. I tend toward the chest variation, but today they were hitting my tris like crazy!
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Hope all is well @SvenG
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this is about the only thing I can count on.
right next to taxes and death
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@dietdrfapper - Thank you. Like so much else, I’ve just gotta learn to go with the flow.
@throwawayfitness - “Death, taxes, and SvenG.” Love it!
Seriously, though, I am humbled by your words—that’s super-high praise coming from you.
3 Likes
5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d2
Monday - 07 February 2022
Workout: Hard conditioning, 1555-1640 (45 minutes)
6 rounds of:
a) 10 chin-ups/pull-ups (strict, various grips)
b) 15 1-pump burpees
c) 20 KB swings - 24 kg
Time: 17:31
Sled push - 10x50 yds, 135 + sled = 222 lbs
Time: 13:44
So if yesterday’s circuit was hard, today’s was… harder. Got though 4 full rounds before having to drop on the chins, and the last two rounds both went 7+3. That’s pretty awesome, because I had already done 40 chin-ups in the earlier workout.
The sled push felt awful today (paper cut), then I’m browsing my log and I notice I was doing 8 rounds in just over 6 minutes last September (lemon juice). Wow, what’s happened to me!?!
Anyway, I wanted to hit EMOM (on average), but fell behind immediately. From there it very quickly became an exercise in, “One foot in front of the other. Do the work. Don’t quit.” So that’s what I did: I put one foot in front of the other. I did the work. I didn’t quit.
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5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d3
Tuesday - 08 February 2022
Workout: Press + squat WM, 0745-0855 (70 minutes)
Warm-up
Throws + jumps
Begin: 0804; End: 0846; Duration: 42 minutes
Press - 55x5, 70x5, 80x5 | 95x5, 110x5, 125x5 | (95x5)x5
Ab wheel - ramp (15) - 25, 25
Decline DB press - 2x50 lbs - 15, 15, 10
Pull-up - BW - 14, 14, 12
Bulgarian split squat - L/R - 2x20 lbs - 20, 10
Band pushdown - red - 40
BPA - red - 15 high + 15 mid + 15 low
Squat - 195x20
Assistance totals:
Push - 80 reps
Pull - 85 reps
Single-leg/core - 80 reps
Got back on track yesterday. Slept well. Ready to go.
Everything moved well today, so that’s good. Happy to have knocked out the ab wheel reps in 2 sets. Switched to decline DB press, forgot how much I like decline work. Could probably bump to 2x55 lbs, but it’s assistance and that leaves me some room to grow. Really happy with the pull-ups—rep 14 was tough on those first two sets, but they were clean. Oh, and I was a little surprised at how hard 40 band pushdowns were—could barley get my arms straight on the last 7-8 reps, even with my pecs and abs fully engaged!
Also happy with the squat WM: wasn’t all that long ago 195x20 had me shaking in my boots. That set took about 1:39, started breathing deeply after rep 16.
Daily work and sled push later today.
14 Likes
5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d3
Tuesday - 08 February 2022
Workout: Hard conditioning, 1610-1655 (45 minutes)
6 rounds of:
a) 10 chin-ups/pull-ups (strict, various grips)
b) 10 alternating DB snatches - L/R - 35 lbs
Time: 13:25
Sled push - 10x50 yds, 135 + sled = 222 lbs
Time: 11:40
Okay, not bad today. Chins went 4x10, 7+3, 8+2 for 60 total. And that’s on top of 40 pull-ups (i.e., supinated grip) earlier today. I’ll take it! Straight sets of 10 with each arm on those snatches, so 60 total per arm. Sled was much better today: still huffing and puffing, still feeling my lower back and shoulders (and everything else!), but not such a mental battle.
It’s taco night—yep, Taco Tuesday here at SvenG’s!—and there’s 1-1/3 lbs of ground beef with my name on it. (And some cheddar cheese, too!)
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Without going back thru 1500 ish posts of yours, can you pls elaborate on your ‘light conditioning’ routines mate?
Hah! No need for that, my man. Hopefully I’m the only person that ever goes back to my old posts!
I try to keep things pretty straightforward: a weighted vest walk, (stationary) bike ride, easy run, or some combination is “light” or “easy” conditioning, usually 3-5x a week. The “hard” conditioning is sled pushes or Farmer’s walks, usually 2-4x a week. JW includes hill/stair sprints in that category, too, but I really hate running—even the easy runs I do are pushing it for me…
I’ve blatantly stolen Pwn’s notion of daily work and many of his conditioning workouts, movements, rep schemes, etc., but I totally scale those down because, well, I’m not him. And while I wouldn’t characterize any of those as easy—I’m dying throughout every single one of them—they’re not hard on my recovery, achy body parts often feel better after doing them, and they have totally improved my work capacity. I tend to fall into patterns with those, but they’re supposed to be chaotic.
Happy to elaborate more or address specific questions if that overview sparks any, but hopefully it saves you from having to read through past posts!
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Thanks for this. The weighted vest is on the ‘to buy’ list one day. Nothing wrong with not being a running fan. Same here!
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I hear you man—they aren’t cheap. But they are well-worth the investment. I use mine mainly for walks these days, but it’s honestly one of the most versatile pieces of equipment I own. Great way to make any work that much harder!
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5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d4
Wednesday - 09 February 2022
Workout: Press WM + easy conditioning + calves, 0745-0905 (80 minutes)
Press - 95x20
Seated CR - 230 lbs - 25, 20, 15
Bike@120 bpm - 15 minutes
Weighted vest walk - 30 kg - 32 minutes (to/from park)
Fasted.
Happy with the press WM this morning: I’ve hit all 20 reps at 95 lbs a couple of times before, but I wasn’t super confident going in. Did it cold, basically—some high knees and arm circles, a handful of light DB presses, then load the bar and press away. Last 2-3 reps were hard, but clean.
Track remains buried in snow. Or, really, ice at this point. Still likely several weeks of above-freezing temps required before running there becomes an option.
Daily work and a variation of Pwn’s The Last Castle later today.
7 Likes
5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d4
Wednesday - 09 February 2022
Workout: Extra conditioning, 1405-1450 (45 minutes)
52 chin-ups/pull-ups (strict, various grips)
Time: 6:15
A Variation of Pwn’s The Last Castle - 8 rounds
a) Farmer’s walk - 25 yards - 2x77 lbs
b) 10 1-pump burpees
c) Farmer’s walk - 25 yards - 2x77 lbs
d) 10 KB swings - 24 kg
Time: 21:47
50 alternating reverse lunges - L/R - BW
Time: 2:54
Needed to keep it short and sweet this afternoon—did mostly that. A little disappointed in the chins, sets went: 13, 8+5, 6+5+2, 6+4+3 for 13 total per grip. Biceps started giving out in the second set, then biceps and breathing in the last two. On the average each set was just over 1.5 minutes, and I was careful to keep the rest between sets way less than a minute. Probably something closer to 40-45 seconds, if even that. Rest-pause drops were 15 seconds, tops.
Moved slowly through The Last Castle. Did a bunch of DB snatches yesterday, so threw some burpees in there instead. Thought dropping the weighted vest would help speed things up—and it did, just not as much as I anticipated. Got through 7 full rounds in 19:01 and was just starting the burpees in Round 8 when the 20-minute timer expired. Finished that round and finished off the daily work with 50 bodyweight reverse lunges (per leg). Keep those crisp and clean.
Done before 1500, so mission accomplished.
10 Likes
5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d5
Thursday - 10 February 2022
Workout: Deadlift, 0740-0910 (90 minutes)
Warm-up
Throws + jumps
Begin: 0808; End: 0904; Duration: 56 minutes
Deadlift - 120x5, 155x5, 185x5 | 220x5, 255x5, 285x5 | (220x5)x5
Ab wheel - ramp (15) - 30, 20
Dip - 75 - 15, 15, 10
Chin-up - BW - 16, 15, 9
Deficit reverse lunge - L/R - 2x20 lbs - 20, 10
Lateral raise - 2x15 lbs - 23, 17
BFP - red - 40
Assistance totals:
Push - 80 reps
Pull - 80 reps
Single-leg/core - 80 reps
I’m toast. And it’s only the first workout of the day!
Guts were talking back during setup, and that left me feeling drained once I actually got underway. Not a great way to start, and I was moving slowly throughout: took almost an hour from first set of deads to last set of lateral raises.
Got the ab wheel work done in two sets again today. Not sure I’ve worked harder on those than with that first set of 30. Dips were even harder today than earlier in the week. I tried to figure out what’s the weak link there, but it’s just a full upper-body blast, plain and simple. Even hits my core and glutes with bracing. Anyway, the last rep on those first two sets were both grinders, but I did get to lockout eventually. Lateral raises and BFPs left my traps and rear delts super-pumped, so that was cool.
Pwn’s ToB with clusters and daily chin-ups/pull-ups plus some sled pushing later today. Oh, and food—lots and lots of food.
12 Likes
5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d5
Thursday - 10 February 2022
Workout: Hard conditioning, 1255-1340 (45 minutes)
Burn Down the Tower
Clusters (95 lbs) + chin-ups/pull-ups (strict, various grips)
1, 2, …, 5, 6, 7, 6, 5, …, 2, 1
2 30-second burn-out rounds: 3 clusters, 6 chin-ups
Time: 19:21
Sled push - 10x50 yds, 135 + sled = 222 lbs
Time: 10:11
Digging deep on that sled push. EMOM or better is (once again) in sight…
And if I was toast earlier, I’m definitely straight-up burned now. But it was a great workout. I took Pwn’s Tower of Babel with clusters and chins to a top set of 7 reps each (in 17:43) then finished off with a 30-second burn-out round of each move. Fumbled a bit with the timer, took a 10-second “rest” to transition between the moves, and would’ve like a few more reps of each, but the burn-out served its purpose: 52 clusters and 55 chin-ups/pull-ups for my daily work.
I was gassed after that and sweaty as all get-out, but found an extra gear during that sled work. Pretty happy about that, particularly given how I was feeling throughout the deadlift workout this morning.
More food now (and later!) then some rest.
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5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d6
Friday - 11 February 2022
Workout: Bench + deadlift WM, 0755-0905 (70 minutes)
Warm-up
Throws + jumps
Begin: 0812; End: 0853; Duration: 41 minutes
Bench - 95x5, 120x5, 150x5 | 175x5, 200x5, 230x5 | (175x5)x5
HLR - 20, 20, 10
Seated DB press - 2x35 lbs - 15, 15, 10
Pull-up - BW - 14, 13, 13
Good morning - 115 - 20, 10
Band pushdown - red - 40
BPA - red - 15 high + 15 mid + 15 low
Deadlift - 220x20
Assistance totals:
Push - 80 reps
Pull - 85 reps
Single-leg/core - 80 reps
Woke up feeling lean today (go sled push!), but then I remember this: my digestion still off. But luckily not my appetite—ate well yesterday, will do the same today. Staying hydrated, too.
Bench was fine and assistance was good, though pull-ups were particularly hard today. Moved to seated DB press, and I like how that changes things—feels much different in my core, kinda like when moving from OHP to Z press with the barbell. Anyway, think that’ll be good for me.
Deadlift WM was harder than it had any right to be. Lower back was tired (good mornings?) and my HR was way up in the high 160s. But I got it done in 2:12, which includes about 1:05 fighting the strap on my second hand again—still haven’t mastered that—so really it was just less than 1:10 of actual pulling.
Daily work and hard conditioning to follow.
9 Likes
5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d6
Friday - 11 February 2022
Workout: Hard conditioning, 1355-1430 (35 minutes)
6 rounds of:
a) 10 chin-ups/pull-ups (strict, various grips)
b) 15 push-ups
c) 20 air squats
Time: 12:39
Sled push - 10x50 yds, 135 + sled = 222 lbs
Time: 9:32
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again:
I am my weaker self’s worst nightmare.
No idea what was different today, but I was moving faster and pushing harder from start to finish. Beat last Sunday’s time on that circuit by over a minute, and I did better than EMOM on the sled push.
I’m wasted, yes, but I did it.
Edit: On second thought, it was this: punk rock and Irish folk. Nothing like a little Dropkick Murphys to get a body moving. Thanks, @dagill2 and @Koestrizer!
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Solid work in here as always brother
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Definitely among my go to bands (for training)!
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5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d7
Saturday - 12 February 2022
Workout: Bench WM + easy conditioning + calves, 0545-0720 (95 minutes)
Bench - 175x20
Seated CR - 230 lbs - 25, 20, 15
Weighted vest walk - 30 kg - 35 minutes
BB curls - 100
Fasted. Had a hard time distinguishing between nausea and hunger this morning. I ate really well yesterday, so I was probably just reacting to adrenaline or something…
Bench WM was fine—high knees, arm circles, some push ups, then 20 reps. Walk felt like it took forever, and my traps were pumped from the vest. Curls were awfully hard today: biceps started giving out early (rep 45, give or take), and I was taking deep breaths between reps from about 60 forward. Got my 100 straight and called it—forearm and bicep pump was painful, but I was happy to have made it all the way through.
Daily work, etc. later today.
14 Likes