Boatguy's New and Final Log (Ongoing)

Training Training Logs
141

Back on 531

07 January 2013
Monday - Bench/Row
HRV - 78, Green

1A. Seated Cable Row - 130 x 8, 8, 145 x 8, 8, 160 x 6, 6;
1B. Bench - 135 x 10, 155 x 10, 185 x 6, 210 x 5*, 225 x 5*, 240 x 9*;
2A. DB Row - 80 x 8, 8, 90 x 4, 100 x 4, 120 x 2, 2;
2B. Incline DB Bench - 55 x 8, 8, 65 x 4, 4, 75 x 2, 2;

Modified Hurricane - 0:20 work/0:40 rest @ 12MPH x 3/60 sec rest - 3 rounds (9 sprints total)
(tracked heart rate, but forgot to write it down before my next cardio session - monitor only stores most recent session)

Solid session, was pretty stoked with 9 reps at 240. I will admit the cable rows weren’t exactly phoned in, but they weren’t real intense. I mainly do them to balance things out, to keep my shoulders healthy. Doing this (not going real heavy on rows the first exercise) seemed to help with fatigue in the last set of bench.

Hit the DB rows a little harder, in order to still get in some good quality work. Moved into the Modified Hurricanes, and got through that without too much trouble. Cardio definitely suffered during my experiment, and now I’m playing catch up, at 4000 ft elevation. Good times.

142

08 January 2013
Tuesday - Squat
HRV - 82, Green

Squat - 135 x 10, 185 x 7, 225 x 5, 275 x 5, 300 x 5*, 320 x 5*, 340 x 8*;
Front Squat - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 205 x 6, 225 x 4, 245 x 4, 155 x 20;

Squat work sets felt a little heavier than I expected, though not too much. I brought my belt in expecting to use it, and then got into my work sets without ever putting it on. Might have been able to squeeze out another 2 reps on the last set, but I still had to work all day, and wanted to be able to walk fairly normal.

Front squats suffered a bit as well, since I didn’t do them for a month and a half. Just have to work on that some more.

143

09 January 2013
Wednesday - Cardio
HRV - 79, Green

Treadmill 1/4 mile Repeats - 1/4 mi @ 12.0 MPH/90 sec rest - x 4 Heart Rate - pre/post-
1- 116/171 2- 131/173 3- 141/179 4- 148/182 Average - 160 Peak - 182

I’ve always liked the results I get, when I do these consistently. Cardio seems to improve quicker. Hopefully I can get my high-40s morning resting heart rate back before too long. I know it doesn’t matter too much, but after having that low of a resting heart rate for so long, it bugs me to see higher numbers. My heart rate also seems to get higher during everyday activities than it used to, so that is part of it.

I also realized today that I am using the same speed for these as I am for the shorter 20 second jaunts I do in the modified Hurricane. Guess I’ll just bump up the speed (and/or incline) on the shorter ones.

144

10 January 2013
Thursday - Mil Press/Pullup
HRV - 80, Green

1A. Pullup - BW x 10, 25 x 8, 45 x 6, 67.5 x 5*, 72.5 x 5*, 77.5 x 6*;
1B. Military Press - bar x 10, 10, 65 x 8, 95 x 6, 110 x 5*, 115 x 5*, 125 x 7*;
2A. Neutral Grip Pullup - BW x 11, 11, 11, 11;
2B. Lateral Raise - 30 x 8, 8, 40 x 4, 4, 45 x 2, 2;
Hanging Leg Raise - 10, 10, 10;

Pullups felt solid, and I was moving between sets pretty quickly as well. Might have been the huge audience I had (a bunch of guys from the troop we are training were in there). Getting the goal number on the last work set of pullups wasn’t too bad, so I felt good getting 1 over. Military Press felt solid as well, putting up decent numbers on the last set. Changed to my new notebook at the New Year, so I couldn’t check myold starting weights for lateral raises, pretty sure it was right around 30.

145

11 January 2013
Friday - Deadlift
HRV - 77, Yellow

Deadlift - 135 x 10, 185 x 5, 225 x 5, 270 x 5*, 285 x 5*, 305 x 10*;
Leg Extension - 120 x 10, 140 x 12, 160 x 10, 180 x 10;

Today was short and sweet, since I had to get to work. tried the somersault extensions on the Smith machine, but couldn’t get them to feel like there was any work going on. So I switched to leg extensions, and did a few sets. The last couple, I was turning my toes out for most of the set, and got a really good cramping contraction at the mid-thigh insertion of the VMO.

Lower body was already sore starting out today; hopefully my legs will feel up to some more treadmill work (would love to use the field and track, but it is in the 20’s and colder out here every morning).

146

12 January 2013
Saturday - Arms, Cardio
HRV - 83, Green

1A. Dip - BW x 10, 75 x 8, 8, 100 x 4, 4, 125 x 2, 2, 150 x 2, 2;
1B. Screw Curl - 45 x 8, 8, 55 x 4, 60 x 4, 65 x 2, 2, 70 x 1, 1;
2A. Reverse Curl - 90 x 8, 8, 8;
2B. Kickback - 30 x 10, 10, 10;

1/2 Mile Repeats(Treadmill) - 1/2mi @ 10MPH/3:00 rest- x 2
1- 100/171 2- 115/175 Heart Rate Average - 145 Peak - 176

Slept in a little since it was Saturday, then hit the gym in the late morning. Before my little experiment, I hadn’t done a dedicated arm workout in quite some time, at least nothing more than throwing in some dips or curls after another major bodypart. Forgot how good it can feel. Dips were solid, I did 160 a couple weeks ago for singles, but the DBs here only go to 150 (I used plates for 160 anyway). Even though I am curling the 70s just for singles, it still feels kind of cool to be able to do it.

Finished arms, and then took a few minutes before getting on the treadmill. I wanted to be as refreshed as possible before starting. Both runs went good. I had contemplated doing a third (before I even started), but that idea was gone by the time I finished the second one. I was surprised my heart rate didn’t go any higher than it did, but my speed on these was slower than what I use for the shorter ones. When I hit the short sprints next week, I am going to bump up the speed a little.

147

I knew I got behind, but wow. Last week in Fallon was hectic, as usual, and then I’ve been catching up on late school work this week.

14 January 2013
Monday - Bench/Row, Sprints
HRV - 81, Green

1A. Seated Cable Row - X, 160 x 8, 8, 175 x 8, 8, 8;
1B. Bench - 135 x 10, 185 x 7, 205 x 5, 225 x 3*, 240 x 3*, 250 x 7*;
2A. DB Row - 80 x 8, 8, 100 x 4, 4, 120 x 3, 2;
2B. Incline DB Bench - 55 x 8, 8, 65 x 4, 4, 75 x 3, 3;

Mod. Hurricane - 20W/40R @ 13MPH x 3, 3 rounds with extra 60 seconds between rounds (2 rounds of 3, 1 of 2)
Heart Rate Average - 160 Peak - 179

Bench has been feeling great since the intense 6 weeker I pulled. Granted, I found out what my max is, and am working off the 90% training max (as Wendler says in 531), but still, I am consistently beating the required reps on the last set. (to be fair, this is the first cycle after testing)

Was pleasantly surprised to find that the treadmills in the base gym go to 14 mph, so I did the sprints at 13 this time. Figured since I was doing a shorter distance (time, however you want to look at it), I could up the speed on the short ones.

148

15 January 2013
Tuesday - Squat
HRV - 77, Yellow

Squat - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 275 x 5, 320 x 3*, 340 x 3*, 360 x 6*;
Front Squat - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 275 x 4, 185 x 20;

Short on time today, so I did the ‘get in, get out’ plan, though I did manage to squeeze in front squats as well. Scored a yellow on HRV today, but I know that was due to the long day on the range yesterday, after hitting the gym.

149

18 January 2013
Friday - Pullup, Military Press
HRV - 88, Yellow

1A. Pullup - BW x 10, 30 x 8, 50 x 5, 72.5 x 3*, 77.5 x 3*, 80 x 6*;
1B. Military Press - bar x 10, 10, 65 x 8, 95 x 5, 115 x 3*, 125 x 3*, 130 x 4*;
2A. Neutral Grip Pullup - 11, 11, 11, 11; 1 Arm Pulldown - 100 x 8, 115 x 8;
2B. Lateral Raise - 30 x 8, 8, 40 x 4, 4, 45 x 2, 3;

Wednesday and Thursday were both a bust, as far as the gym. Just had too much to do at work, and needed the extra sleep. Looking at the schedule earlier this week, I saw that Friday and Saturday would be empty, so I just pushed the last half to the right.

Pullups are strong, as usual, but military press is still a struggle. As long as I get at least the required reps, I’m happy, but I still feel like I should be hitting higher numbers.

150

19 January 2013
Saturday - Deadlift
HRV - 81, Green

Deadlift - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 5, 285 x 3*, 305 x 3*, 325 x 8*;
Suitcase Deadlift - 100 x 8, 8, 8;
Leg Extension - 140 x 10, 160 x 10, 180 x 10, 200 x 10;

Good workout today, felt real productive. Haven’t done suitcase deadlift in a dog’s age, forgot that odd soreness they give you in the midsection (deep, first time I felt it years ago I thought I messed myself up).

Caught the plane back to VA today, so finally back home.

151

21 January 2013
Monday - Bench/Row, Sprints
HRV - 87, Green

1A. DB Row - 80 x 8, 8, 95 x 4, 100 x 4;
1B. Bench - 135 x 10, 155 x 10, 185 x 8, 210 x 5*, 240 x 3*, 265 x 3*, 185 x 10 - 135 x 15;
2A. Standing 1 Arm Cable Row - 105 x 8, 8, 150 x 4, 4, 165 x 2, 180 x 2;
2B. Incline DB Press - 55 x 8, 8, 70 x 4, 4, 80 x 2, 2;

Mod. Hurricane - 20W/40R @ 13MPH x 3 - 3 rounds
Heart Rate Average - 157 Peak - 175

Was a little limited on options for rows today, since I was lifting at the Y. Hadn’t paid for Brute Strength yet, so that was what I was relegated to. Place was packed, between the holiday and the resolutioners.

Bench felt good, once again. Got 3 reps instead of one at the top weight, so I can technically say I did triple the required reps, HAHA!

Sprints were a little off today, since the treadmills at the Y suck. They go up to 15 or 16 MPH, I forget, but once you get them to that speed, they don’t like to stay there for long, and will shut off on you without warning. I ended up doing my 9 total sprints on 3 or 4 different mills. Got em done, just ended up taking longer breaks than I intended.

152

22 January 2013
Tuesday - Squat
HRV - 81, Green

Squat - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 275 x 6, 300 x 5*, 340 x 3*, 380 x 3*;
Front Squat - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 275 x 4, 185 x 20;
GHR - 8, 8, 8;
4 Way Neck - 50 x 20, 20, 20;

SO nice to be back in a proper gym! Bought a month at BSG again, since that is how long I am home.

Squats felt pretty good, but on the last couple sets I started getting this odd pain in my right knee on the way up. Being the stubborn bone head I am, I pushed through it, though on the last two sets, I would do a rep and then pause at the top for a couple seconds before doing the next. Oddly enough, when I switched to front squats (knee dominant), it completely vanished.

Since I was in a proper gym (did I say I love this place?), I was able to get a few sets in on the glute-ham, as well as the neck machine.

153

23 January 2013
Wednesday - Sprints
HRV - 81, Green

Treadmill - 1/4 mile repeats @ 12MPH/90 seconds rest x 4
Heart Rate Average - 156 Peak - 182

Have liked doing these for a long time. I hate distance running. It’s just really boring, and I have never liked it that much. I will say, though, when I was running a lot back when I was prepping (because I thought I was going to BUDS), I got to where I didn’t mind it that much. I still feel it is necessary for conditioning. I have tried doing other modes in the past, and pretty much all of them suck. Doing shorter repeats like I have been lately is much more tolerable, and should still give me a good training effect. I will still throw in the odd 3 miler occasionally, but I really see no need to go much beyond that. I’m doing it for the conditioning effect, not to compete.

154

24 January 2013
Thursday - Pullup, Military Press
HRV - 81, Green

1A. Pullup - BW x 10, 30 x 8, 50 x 6, 67.5 x 5*, 77.5 x 3*, 85 x 3*;
1B. Military Press - bar x 10, 10, 65 x 8, 95 x 6, 110 x 5*, 125 x 3*, 137.5 x 2*;
2A. Neutral Grip Pullup - 12, 12, 12; Cobra - 48 x 8, 60 x 8, 8;
2B. Lateral Raise - 30 x 8, 8, 40 x 4, 4, 45 x 3, 3;
Reverse Crunch - 10#med ball x 10, 10, 10;

Today felt like crap. Got to the gym, and felt like leaving right away, just zero motivation. Got started anyway, and still turned in a respectable performance. Got to 85 x 3 on pullups, which isn’t bad, but I was doing 8 x 3 at 100 on my old program. Old program had a decent amount of volume at higher weight, which I kind of liked, but it had a tendency to wear me down. Never really hurt, just would lose motivation every so often (which is when I should have taken breaks, but I would still push through). I like 531, but sometimes I miss the higher volume and higher weights.

Military Press went okay, no worse than usual. I’m now over 135 on my singles every three weeks, so I am slowly approaching old territory on that (when I did do mil press, I was doing about 165 for a few sets of 3-5 typically). Never really had a progression mapped out though, so 531 should get me higher than that, although it will take some time. Marathon not a sprint, though, right?

Lateral raises felt like ass. Just didn’t feel like I could move the weight very well. Whatever. Maybe I’ll take a deload week next week (probably not - hate doing that).

155

25 January 2013
Friday - Deadlift
HRV - 82, Green

Deadlift - 135 x 10, 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 275 x 5*, 305 x 3*, 340 x 5*;
KB Swing - 100 x 8, 124 x 8, 150 x 6;
Leg Press - 350 x 8, 440 x 8;

Deadlift felt good today, plenty of energy. Overall, I was happy with today’s session. Followed those with heavy KB swings, since I have read that these can be used as a deadlift accessory move. Started with the 100 and went up from there, them sumbitches is heavy. Getting them up wasn’t the issue, it was on the down stroke. As I hinged forward, the momentum with the 124 and 150 felt like it was going to throw me on my face. Had thought about trying to go higher, but after the 150, I was done with those. Definitely something to do in the future, though.

Moved to leg press, to help stretch out my lower back (discovered this some time ago, maybe my form sucks, but after a solid squat or deadlift session that leaves your lumbars pumped and painfully tight, heavy deep leg press stretches them out and loosens things up). Got two sets in, but on the second my sciatic/piriformis started acting up. I have issues with them periodically, but the last 2-3 days, they have been tight and painful on both sides. Stretching didn’t help much at first, but after soaking in a hot epsom salt bath last night, stretching helped a lot more. I sued to stretch these out quite often to keep them at bay, I’ll have to get back to doing that.

156

26 January 2013
Saturday - Arms, Cardio
HRV - 83, Green

A. Dip - BW x 10, 75 x 8, 8, 100 x 4, 4, 140 x 4, 4;
B. Screw Curl - 45 x 8, 8, 55 x 4, 4, 60 x 3, 3;
Kickback - 30 x 10, 10, 10;

C2 Rower - 1000m - 3:30 / 4:00 rest / 1000m - 3:45
Heart Rate Average - 147 Peak - 172

Decent workout, liked pushing the heavy dips for more reps. Brute was busy today, there were a bunch of guys training for the upcoming NAS competition next month, a pastor from south Florida who was fighting MMA Saturday night (he is one of four guys on an HBO documentary about the acceptance of MMA), and then the Norfolk Rugby club dropped in for a team conditioning workout. Still plenty of equipment to go around, though.

The meaty part of my tris is pretty good, been thick for years. The lateral head, though, needs work. The only move I know to target that is kickbacks, anybody out there got anything better or different? I’ve also thought about dropping dips and concentrating on the lateral head, but I’d rather not…I think I’d just feel foolish doing that.

Finished arms, and went to do 1/2 mile repeats on the treadmill, but the lone mill they have there wouldn’t even hold 10MPH, so…time to adapt. I hit one of the rowers, pounding through 1K as fast as possible, then resting and repeating. Got it done in 3:30 first go, rested 4:00, then hit the second one in 3:45. Legs were a little fried, but not too bad. Haven’t used the rower in a while, might do that more.

I’ve also thought about adding in more conditioning, but not each week. I don’t normally take a back-off week as prescribed in 531, but the new change I am contemplating would do that. Basically, I would do 531 for three weeks, lifting four days per week, and running or doing other cardio on three days. Then, on week four (back-off or deload week), I would only do the main lift on each day, and then do a Crossfit-ish/cardio/circuit type deal, using the same (or similar) movement patterns for that day. Repeat. Thoughts?

157

28 January 2013
Monday - Bench/Row, Cardio
HRV - 86, Green

1A. Seated Cable Row - 168 x 8, 8, 180 x 8, 8, 192 x 8, 8;
1B. Bench - 135 x 10, 155 x 10, 185 x 7, 215 x 5*, 230 x 5*, 245 x 9*;
2A. DB Row - 80 x 10, 90 x 8, 100 x 6; Cobra - 60 x 8, 8, 8;
2B. Incline DB Bench - 60 x 8, 8, 70 x 4, 4;
PM
Modified Hurricane - 25W/35R x 3/+ 0:60 rest - 3 rounds
Heart Rate Average - 147 Peak - 175

Got a good workout in, bench felt good, but I must have exerted a little more energy than I thought, as when I moved to inclines, I felt like I was having trouble staying in the groove. I also upped the weight on those, so that probably didn’t help. The last set of inclines I did, my right arm got about a third of the way back up, and it stalled hard. My elbow rotated out wide (I usually incline press with elbows tucked to about 45), and then I slowly got it all the way up. Since that was the final rep, and I was obviously experiencing more local fatigue than the other side, I stopped those instead of going up in weight. Didn’t want to tweak my shoulder again. Was going to do cable crossovers supersetted with the Cobras, but I couldn’t get a good position in which it didn’t hurt a little on the right side pulling in. So I just finished the cobras, and moved on.

I was running late at this point, so I skipped the sprints (Brute’s treadmill won’t hold speed anyway) until after work (which accounts for only 3-4 hours between lifting and sprints - did I say I love my job?). Hit the Y to use their mills, and ended up playing musical machines as one after the other would shut down on me at various times in operation. That is why my heart rate average is so low - I was going way over my prescribed rest times when I jumped from mill to mill.

158

29 January 2013
Tuesday - Squat
HRV - 80, Yellow

A. Squat - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 275 x 6, 310 x 5*, 330 x 5*, 350 x 8*;
B. Box Jump - 38" x 3, 3, 39" x 3, 3, 3, 3;
Front Squat - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 275 x 4, 195 x 20;

Hit some stupid traffic on the way to Brute, so after getting turned around to avoid it, I didn’t have time to get a good lift in at Brute and still get to work on time, so I went straight to work and used that gym. Kind of a trade off, because they have good plyo boxes, but we don’t have a leg press machine (I like using it to stretch out the lumbars after squatting). Haven’t jumped in a while though, so it was a welcome change.

Squats just didn’t feel right today, felt like I couldn’t get in the right groove. Two possibilities: I haven’t been doing any mobility work before squatting, so it could just be stiffness. Other option: I am very used to squatting in front of a mirror, so squatting without one always feels a little different (like today). Maybe both? Regardless, I need to start doing at least some minimal hip and ankle mobility prior to squatting.

Front squats felt a little off as well, not necessarily off as just heavier. I got a yellow this morning, and then had a quickie before leaving, so that probably didn’t help. I also bumped the 20-rep weight up by 10, so that obviously had an effect. At 185 I was getting to at least 10 if not 15 before slowing down, today I slowed around 8. Still got them all in one go, though.

159

31 January 2013
Thursday - Pullup/Military Press
HRV - 86, Green

1A. Pullup - BW x 10, 30 x 8, 50 x 6, 70 x 5*, 75 x 5*, 80 x 6*;
1B. Military Press - bar x 10, 10, 65 x 8, 95 x 6, 110 x 5*, 120 x 5*, 125 x 5*;
2A. Neutral Grip Pullup - 12, 12, 12;
2B. STR Press - 95 x 5, 6, 6;

Got a red on Wednesday, so I took the day off from training. Woke up to a green this morning, and got a late start out of the house, so I skipped Brute and hit the work gym. Felt decent at first, but seemed to wear down quicker than I would have expected. Got the numbers I wanted, but not much more.

After finishing my main lifts for the day, I decided to try scrape the rack presses, and see what all the buzz was about. Not sure why, but I figured they would be easier. I also started at 95, which is normally pretty light, especially after the heavier sets. STRs suck. Odd that just that one little tweak (pressing slightly into the rack as you press up) could make that much of a difference. Never would have believed it, if I hadn’t tried it. Meadows swears by these for good growth, so I’m going to use these for a bit as an accessory. Probably still throw in laterals one way or another, but sticking with the STRs for a while.

160

01 February 2013
Friday - Deadlift
HRV - 77, Yellow

Deadlift - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 280 x 5*, 295 x 5*, 315 x 9*;
Suitcase Dead - 100 x 8, 8, 124 x 6;
Single Leg Extension - 45 x 8, 8, 55 x 8, 8;

Felt good in the gym today. Hit Brute a little later than normal, and it was completely empty until right before I was leaving. Not that it matters, even when I’ve seen the place packed, I still had no problem getting done what I wanted.

Deads went good, managed to go all the way through without changing to mixed grip. I did have to reset my grip midway through the final set, but other than that pretty solid. I’ve thrown suitcase deadlifts back in, but at the weight I am using the KBs get pretty fat, rubbing up and down the side of my leg. Not too bad though.

Used the Hammer Strength plate-loaded leg extension today, haven’t really used that one much. Just goes to show how much the pulleys and cams in most selectorized leg machines decrease the actual weight moved. 45# was decent weight, compared to 200 on the gym machine in Fallon. The way the machine here is set up, the arm is resting on the bumper before your leg gets to 90deg, but that seemed to accentuate the squeeze at the top.