Boatguy's New Log - Starting 2 On/2 Off

09 January 2012

1A. Pullup - BW x 10, 50 x 10, 75 x 6, 100 x 3, 100 x 3, 100 x 3, 100 x 3, 100 x 3;
1B. Overhead Press - Bar x 10, 95 x 6, 115 x 5, 135 x 3, 135 x 3, 135 x 3, 135 x 3, 135 x 3;
2. Paloff Press - (Horizontal/Vertical) - 50 x 8, 50 x 8;
3A. BW Pullup - 4-7, 4-7, 4-7, 3-8;
3B. 1 Arm OH Press - 55 x 8, 60 x 8, 65 x 6, 70 x 6;
4. Lateral Raise - 30 x 8, 30 x 8, 30 x 8;(all palms down)

Nothing special today. Did the hot tub again for 5 minutes only, and felt like it was a bad idea. Weighed 210.5 today immediately after waking up.

Paloff Press - did 1 rep horizontal followed by 1 rep vertical, counting both together as one rep.

Bodyweight Pullups - All of these were neutral grip, about shoulder width. The first 4(or 3) reps were done as explosive as possible, pulling to the nipple line between the handles, followed by 7(or 8) normal speed reps.

Hey Boatguy,

Interesting reading. Keep up the good work !

Thanks sen.

10 January 2012

Since a good portion of today was spent sitting in doctor’s offices with the wife, I only did a 2 mile run this morning. Was going to do 3, but got out of the house a little later than I had planned.

2 mile - 15:28 (7:44 average pace)

Haven’t been to work since December 22. This is the longest I have been out of work in several years, and have spent the last 9 days or so just sitting around the house, aside from hitting the gym - that’s the longest I have taken vacation to just sit around in quite some time. Usually go nuts, but this time it was pretty nice. I think I have gone too long without a meaningful amount of time off.

11 January 2012

Went back to work today, with every intention of doing lower body. Get to work, and I am told we are starting command PT again, which we haven’t done in quite a while, and I have never liked. Not a bad PT program, just that I have never been the type who had to be forced to PT, so I kind of dislike being forced to do someone else’s program.

But, whatever. Figured I’d do PT and then do lower body on Thursday. Then they come out and tell us we are doing brass PT, which is where they bus us out to the magazines, we sort brass(sort out the links and separate .50 from everything smaller), and then we run back, about 4.6 miles. Figures.

So I did a 4.6 mile run in 40:43, including the 3ish minutes I walked, because my lower back and thighs were screaming. Averaged about 8:51, with the walking. Actual running speed was closer to 8:20 pace.

Then was on the range late(got home after 10PM), and burned my hand on a hot barrel(yes, I am stupid), so just skipped today and rested. Another late(r) night tonight, and I will hit lower body Fri, and upper again on Sat.

Slept in and came in late after last night. Got to the gym at work, and kept getting sucked into work stuff; just wasn’t feeling it this morning.

13 january 2012

1A. Deadlift - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 275 x 4, 315 x 4, 365 x 5(used straps on top set only);
1B. Box Jump - 38" - 3, 3, 3, 41" - 3, 3;
2. Front Squat - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 275 x 4;

Got to 275 on Front Squat, and my back felt like shit. I don’t think I’ve ever deadlifted heavy and then front squatted on the same day. After getting sucked into a couple things on the way into the gym, I was getting pressed for time anyway, so I called it.

After seeing your workouts I started doing some chest and back alternating sets and I must say its a good workout. Not causing me much of a shoulder issue, which is a good thing.

Got a workout for you to try, heres what I did today:

Full body circuit 30 sec rest between exercises 1-2 min rest between rounds:

Trap bar deadlifts: 135x10-225x10-225x10-225x10
Hammer Strength rows: 225x10-335x9- 335x7- 335x6
Flat Smith Bench: 135x12-245x8- 245x8- 225x7

About ready to puke after last round then did this:

Hammer leg press: 495x12-495x12-495x13
Hammer seated bench: 185x12-185x12-185x13
Close grip pulldowns: 140x12-160x10-160x9

Finished with a few light sets of arms.

Totally spent after this.

Got the basic idea from this article:Lose Fat, Stay Strong

JC - The antagonistic supersets did wonders for my shoulder health. I like that circuit, definitely going to write it down and try it out some time.

14 January 2012

1A. Seated Cable Row - 120 x 10, 140 x 10, 160 x 8, 180 x 8, 200 x 6, 220 x 6, 240 x 4;
1B. Bench - Fat Grip - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 5, 245 x 3, regular grip - 275 x 2, 295 x 1, 325 x 1, 325 x 1(butt up), 225 x 12;
2. Ab Wheel Rollout/Hanging Leg Raise - 10/10, 10/10, 10/10;
3A. Deadstop Row - 70 x 8, 80 x 8, 90 x 8, 100 x 8;
3B. Low Incline DB Press - 55 x 8, 65 x 8, 75 x 8, 85 x 7;
4A. Heavy T - 20 x 8, 20 x 8, 20 x 8;
4B. Cable Cross - 70 x 8, 70 x 8, 70 x 8;

Treadmill - 1/4 mile at 12mph x 2, with 90 seconds rest between, followed by a third at 11mph.

Felt great in the gym today, was real happy with my workout. The sprints sucked, but then they always do. Third set was at 11mph(actually 11.2) because I moved to a different treadmill, and the speed wouldn’t go past 11.2. Second set at 325, I got the rep, but my butt came up at the midpoint.

I’ve been looking at my logs, and I have been letting the cardio drop off again. We’ll have to remedy that, won’t we…(movie reference anyone?)

Hope everyone had a great MLK day. That’s one of the bennies of my job, we get all kinds of holidays off(when we are home). Little trivia: a guy I used to work with, who was from Richmond, VA, claimed that they called MLK day Lee/Jackson day. Supposedly, at least in VA, that was a semi-holiday, until MLK Day was established. Apparently, in his neck of the woods, MLK Day replacing Lee/Jackson day was a bit of a sticking point. Anyone else heard of that? I grew up in northern GA, and had never heard of that before.

16 January 2012

1A. Pullup - BW x 10, BW x 5, 50 x 8, 70 x 6, 90 x 4, 90 x 4, 90 x 4, 90 x 4, 90 x 4;
1B. OH Press - Bar x 10, Bar x 8, 95 x 10, 115 x 6, 135 x 4, 135 x 4, 135 x 4, 135 x 4, 135 x 4;
2A. BW Pullup - Wide Neutral Grip - 4, 4, 4, 4;
2B. Hammer 1 Arm Pulldown - 90 x 8, 100 x 8, 100 x 8, 100 x 8;
2C. Seated DB OH Press - 45 x 8, 50 x 8, 60 x 8, 70 x 8;
2D. Incline Situp - 15, 15, 15;
3A. Pullover - 70 x 8, 70 x 8, 70 x 8;
3B. Lateral Raise - 30 x 8, 30 x 8, 30 x 8;
4. External Rotation - 20 x 20, 20 x 20;

Woke up at 213 this morning, which was a sudden jump from 210. Didn’t feel all that great at first, but as my session progressed, I felt better and better. Totally skipped the hot tub today, so maybe that has nothing to do with any of it. Definitely seems to help on the other days though.

All pullups were done using semi-neutral grip handles, which are slightly wider than my shoulders. I dropped the weight this week, thinking I would get better work at a slightly lower weight, but it felt like I grabbed the 100 DB instead of 90.

The 2s - Yes, you are reading taht right, I effectively did these as a mini-circuit. I did the BW pullups as explosive as possible, then immediately move to the Hammer machine, do each side individually, then move to seated OH Press. Incline situps suck. That’s all I have to say about that.

Pullovers were done lying lengthwise on the bench, using a limited range of motion as advocated by John Meadows. Once you get past about 45deg, your mechanical leverage is so great that you are hardly working the muscle, so I went from a deep stretch position, to about 30deg above parallel.

lateral raises, I should have grabbed 35s. I felt like I got good solid reps, but I probably could have gone up and got some good work in still. I have noticed(as has my wife) a definite improvement in my shoulders since I started putting more focus on them, making sure to hit them every week instead of skipping them more often than not(like I did for years). Still not pressing a ton, but it’s coming. Keep meaning to try handstand pushups against a wall, just never do.

bump

18 January 2012

1A. Squat - 135 x 10, 225 x 6, 275 x 5, 315 x 3, 365 x 3, 425 x 2;
1B. Box Jump - 38" - 3, 3, 41" - 3, 3, 3, 3;
2. Ball Crunch - 55 x 8, 55 x 10, 55 x 10;
Kind of a long break and then -
3. Front Squat - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 275 x 4, 315 x 2;

Came in early to lift before work, but didn’t come in quite early enough. Then I had to run upstairs to show my face, and had a pretty long break before I got back in for Front Squats. Looking back, my leg days have been suffering the last couple weeks. Have to shake things up a bit…

19 January 2012

Had an endoscopy performed today, so the GI doctor could visualize my esophageal probelm and fix it. I had what’s called a Schatzki’s Ring, where one of the rings in your esophagus starts to close. The doc sent a balloon down and stretched it back out, at least that’s what he told me. I remember up to just past when the murse pushed versed(apparently followed by demerol, I don’t remember), and then I was coming to in the recovery room. Total blackout, kind of cool. Also found out my stomach has partially herniated through my diaphragm, so they put me on prilosec.

20 January 2012

After the endoscopy, the Dr. told my wife I should take it easy the next day, so no heavy lifting.

Treadmill Run - 3:00 warmup, 10:00 intervals (1:00 @ 6mph/1:00 @ 10mph), 5:00 cooldown HR Avg - 145,
HR Peak - 175 (18:00 total, 1.8 miles)

I got that from Muscle and Fitness(of all places) several years ago, and have used it a bit over the years. After the 5:00 period, you are supposed to do another 10:00 of intervals, and then cooldown, but once again, I cut myself short on time.

21 January 2012

1A. Cable Row - 140 x 10, 160 x 8, 180 x 8, 200 x 6, 220 x 5, 240 x 4, 260 x 3, 220 x 8;
1B. Bench - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 5, 245 x 3, 275 x 2, 295 x 1, 315 x 1, 335 x 1, 245 x 10;
1C. Smith Machine Bench Toss - 50 x 4, 50 x 4, 50 x 4, 50 x 4, 50 x 4;
2. Cable Twist (slight incline) - 100 x 10, 100 x 10, 100 x 10;
3A. Deadstop Row - 70 x 8, 80 x 8, 90 x 8, 100 x 8;
3B. Low Incline DB Bench - 55 x 8, 65 x 8, 75 x 8, 85 x 8;
4A. TRX 1 Arm Inverted Row - BW x 5, BW x 5;
4B. Cable Crossover - 70 x 8, 70 x 8, 70 x 8;

Felt GREAT in the gym today. 335 is a PR(or at least matches one, I forget) on bench, so I was definitely psyched. I’ve started doing a little mental checklist while setting up for my heavier sets, just some basic stuff - stay tight, elbows tucked, leg drive, etc.

Haven’t done the Smith Toss in a while, it’s supposed to help with explosiveness. You just have to be careful at the release, so the hooks don’t roll back in and catch. You get some dirty looks from staff when that happens.

Cable Twist says slight incline, the cable was set a little below shoulder height, so as I twisted, I brought it above my shoulders. To get better tension, I faced slightly toward the pulley, instead of sideways to it.

TRX Row - These were harder than they sound, probably due to the work I put in before. As I pulled up to the handle, I would slightly twist toward the pulling hand, and reach up the strap with my free hand.

A little gym humor - I got caught staring at a chick, but I wasn’t ogling her. She was using lifting straps on the pulldown machine. Being very short(I doubt she was over 5’), she was standing on the seat to get the straps set, with her boyfriend/husband/whatever standing behind her. I was staring because I was fully expecting him to grab her by the shoulders and push her down until she could hook her knees under the pad. Instead, she just hopped and dropped her weight, which was enough.

23 January 2012

1A. Pullup - BW x 10, (5), 50 x 8, 75 x 5, 100 x 3, 100 x 3, 100 x 3;
1B. Overhead Press - bar x 10, 95 x 8, 115 x 5, 135 x 4, 145 x 3, 155 x miss, 135 x 3;
2A. Pullup - 4-7, 4-6, 3-7;
2B. Seated DB OH Press - 45 x 8, 55 x 8, 65 x 8;
3. Lateral Raise - 30 x 8, 35 x 8, 35 x 8;
External Rotation - 13 x 20, 13 x 15;

My pullup/press days just haven’t been feeling right lately. The only thing I can figure, is because I did bench/row on Sat, less than 48 hours prior. So next week I will make sure to get an extra day in there before pullups again. I was going to do the day after this workout(24 Jan), but after a bad pullup day, thought maybe I should give it another day before I do anything. So cardio on Wednesday(25 Jan) and legs on Thursday(26th).

[quote]boatguy wrote:
23 January 2012

1A. Pullup - BW x 10, (5), 50 x 8, 75 x 5, 100 x 3, 100 x 3, 100 x 3;
1B. Overhead Press - bar x 10, 95 x 8, 115 x 5, 135 x 4, 145 x 3, 155 x miss, 135 x 3;
2A. Pullup - 4-7, 4-6, 3-7;
2B. Seated DB OH Press - 45 x 8, 55 x 8, 65 x 8;
3. Lateral Raise - 30 x 8, 35 x 8, 35 x 8;
External Rotation - 13 x 20, 13 x 15;

My pullup/press days just haven’t been feeling right lately. The only thing I can figure, is because I did bench/row on Sat, less than 48 hours prior. So next week I will make sure to get an extra day in there before pullups again. I was going to do the day after this workout(24 Jan), but after a bad pullup day, thought maybe I should give it another day before I do anything. So cardio on Wednesday(25 Jan) and legs on Thursday(26th).[/quote]

Balancing recovery time has become an art form for me. Ideally I want to train a muscle and then train it again 72 hrs later (2 full days off). This usually works for me doing a similiar system to yours. Sometimes I’ll still be sore 72 hrs later and I’ve learned that training in this state is a mistake for me. Sure I can power thru the workout but I’ve started to overtrain and theres sure to be joint aggravation in the near future. Its not easy but I try to go with WHEN IN DOUBT TAKE AN EXTRA DAY OFF.

I see you doing your rotator work at the end of your training, ever think about doing them as a preworkout warm up? Thats when I do my shoulder health routine and it seems to work well.

JC - Definitely seeing what you mean. I just turned 35 in August, and it wasn’t that long ago I could lift almost without thinking about recovery. Now I am finding I have to ensure it is part of my overall plan. The thing is, I rarely get sore anymore, unless I take more than a week off completely, or drastically change my routine(at the end of my south american holidy(haha) I was limited on equipment, and shifted to more of a circuit/cardio focus, out of necessity). Thanks for the advice though. As far as rotator work, the only time I have done it at the beginning of a workout is if I was only doing rehab type stuff that day, or when I was doing the old Muscle Media 7-week Bench program(which I still have my copy of!). I haven’t been mentioning in my log that before upper body days, I have been doing some shoulder mobility stuff(band dislocates and wall slides mainly), so there really is no reason I couldn’t do the rotator work there as well. Thanks for the tip.

25 January 2012

Treadmill Interval Work -
5:00 warmup (started walking, and built up to 5mph before 5:00 mark)
10:00 intervals (1:00 @ 6mph/1:00 @ 10mph)
5:00 active rest (dropped to 3mph, then built back up to 5 before the end)
6:00 intervals (same as above) (was supposed to be 10:00, but cut it short after the third 10mph period)
4:00 cooldown (worked down to 3mph)
---- HR Average - 143, HR peak - 186
30:00 total

Was really feeling it by the time I got into the second set of intervals, so I finished out the third interval, then went into the cooldown. Heart rate just wouldn’t drop out of the 170s during the intervals, even in the 6mph jog. The active rest in the middle brought it down, but it immediately jumped back up tot he same range. Followed the run up with a good stretch, and then a single set of DB Curls - 50 x 10. You may have noticed I rarely do any direct arm work, but I had seen somewhere that curls could be good for elbow health if you are doing a lot of pressing. I also do a lot of pullups and rows, but not near the poundage.

Got behind a couple days…

26 January 2012

1A. Squat - 135 x 10, 225 x 8, 275 x 6, 315 x 6, 365 x 4, 405 x 2, 405 x 2;
1B. Hassock Box Jump - 38" x X, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3;
2. Front Squat - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 275 x 4, 315 x 3, 185 x 20;
3. Snatch Dimel - 185 x 20, 185 x 20;
4. Leg Press - 360 x 8, 450 x 8, 540 x 8;

Added a couple things back in that I had been neglecting. Helped that I had my full PT period to do everything. Just to refresh everyone’s memory, the Hassock Box Jump is a box jump starting from a static sitting position on a small box about 8-10" in height.

28 January 2012

1A. Bent over Row - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 185 x 8, 185 x 8, 185 x 8, 205 x 6 205 x 6;
1B. Bench - 135 x 10, 185 x 8, 225 x 6, 245 x 3, 275 x 2, 315 x 1*, 315 x 1, 245 x 6;
2A. Free-standing 1 Arm Cable Row - 60 x 8, 70 x 8, 80 x 8;
2B. Low Incline DB Bench - 55 x 8, 65 x 8, 75 x 8;

Felt like I just couldn’t get going today. I got up early to lift before what was supposed to be a work day at the church, but the work day was cancelled without my knowledge. Would have gotten a better session in if I had known that and went a little later.

Bench single marked * was horrible, my setup was good, but I came down way too slow, and stalled on the way back up, causing me to lift my butt off the bench to get it up. Took a brief rest, reset, and got a good solid single on the next set. Called it there, because the weight just felt enormous. Dropped to 245 to rep out again, and barely got 6.

I feel like I am stalling out, so I am going to change things up. I have been letting my conditioning slide lately, trying to put on some weight(got as high as 213, currently right around 210). Took Sunday and MOnday off, will be testing on Tuesday, and then filling in the rest of the week before hitting the new program next week.

31 January 2012

Operator Ugly (PT Test - from Mountain Athlete)

Warm Up - 4 rounds
10x Goblet Squats @ 12kg KB(I used a 16kg)
8x pushups
10x situps

TEST


  1. Max Rep Bench @ 185#(95# for women)<each rep is 1 point> - 20
  2. Max rep Front Squat @ 185#(95# for women)<each rep is 1 point> - 20
  3. Max rep Deadlift @ 225#(135# women) in 60 seconds <1 rep = 1 point> - 22
  4. 25m sprints - 4 rounds - 60 sec sprints/60 sec rest <1 length = 1 point>(sprint back and forth until timer goes off, rest, repeat) - 10/9/9/9 = 37
  5. Max Rep Pullups(dead hang) - no kipping <1 rep = 1 point>
  6. 80#(60# women) sandbag getup, max reps in 10:00 <2 reps = 1 point> - 10 (20 reps)
  7. 3 mile run wearing body armor or 25# vest - goal is under 30:00 - 26:58

Rest as needed between lifts, then short break before sprints. Rest 3-5 minutes before pullups, then another couple minutes before get ups. Start the run within 10:00 of finishing the get ups. Absolute minimum to pass is 100 points, plus run under 30:00.

Male over 200#
Respectable - 145
Good - 160
Great - 170+

My score: 130, plus a run time of 26:58. And that is with my rest period before the get ups being screwed up. Went up to my office briefly during the break, turned into 30 minutes up there before I came back down(stupid work stuff). Sandbag getups were easier than I expected(only because I didn’t think I would even get off the ground with that beast), but still a kick in the dick. I’ll try the test again in a few weeks, just to see my progression.

Did this as a baseline before starting the Horsemen Program next week. I will take tomorrow and Thursday off, then do the Secret Service Snatch Test on Friday or Saturday. SSST is 10:00 of KB snatching with 53# KB. ‘Official’ (or ‘Gentlemen’s’) Rules allow unlimited hand switching, rest as needed with bell on ground. ‘Tier 1’ rules dictate only one transfer swing, no grounding the bell, and any rest is done with the bell at full extension over head. I’ll be doing Gentlemen’s Rules, thank you.

I tried the Horsemen once, last spring. Made it two weeks, and at the end of that I had zero motivation to continue. This time, I will add in more recovery days in order to avoid burn out. I read Craig Weller’s ‘HRV’ article, wish I had two bills to drop on the Bioforce, that would be invaluable for Horsemen. The workouts are insane. To (roughly) quote the intro, the goals are to bench 1.5 BW, squat 2x BW, front squat 1.5 BW, score 200 on SSST, and run sub-20:00 3 miles. It is designed from various sources (CrossFit, Gym Jones, Mountain Athlete, API-not Verstegen’s, Rippetoe, and a few others), for optimal operator fitness.

04 February 2012

Secret Service Snatch Test - ‘Gentlemen’s Rules’(switch hands as many times as necessary, ground KB to rest)
53# KB, max snatch reps in 10:00

My score - 160
Considered ‘good’, minimum Team guy standard is 150

This told me exactly what I was expecting: I have really let my cardio slide. Last time I did this(last Sep/Oct), I just broke 200(‘Really Good’). 250 is ridiculous, and 275 is record, according to my copy of Horsemen. I have only ever done it the way I did it today, I attempted Tier One rules(only one hand switch, rest with KB locked out overhead) once, and switched to the regular way before minute four was over.

Sunday(tomorrow) will be completely off, and then I will hit my first workout of the program Monday morning. I plan on using more recovery and off days this go round, at least initially, to keep from burning out in the first two weeks, like I did last time.

06 February 2012
Monday

Horsemen Day 1 - Strength

WARM UP - BB COMPLEX
4 rounds, 6 reps each - deadlift, row, hang clean, front squat, push press, squat, pushup
75 - 85 - 95 - 105

TONGUE LASHING
Work up to 1RM Standing OH Press - 150
6 rounds -
overhead press x 3@75%1RM(115)
10m walking lunges w/ 55DBs
5 rounds -
Curtis P x 5 @ 95
Pullup x 10
/Jingle Jangles - 30/30 - x 4

Unless otherwise specified, all these workouts are rest as needed. And I did.

Curtis P - hang clean, left lunge, right lunge, push press = 1 rep
These took some work, especially this late in the workout. After the first two rounds, I started playing with the order, like doing all 5 hang cleans, then all 5 left lunge, etc. What seemed to flow the best was to do all 5 hang cleans, then lunge-lunge-press. This was purely fatigue management.

Jingle Jangles - Set two cones 5m apart, sprint back and forth for 30 seconds, touching the line at each side, then rest 30 seconds. The number of rounds was not specified, so I did four.

Not a bad first day. Felt like I had done something, but wasn’t wiped at the end. I redid the schedule from what I tried last time, incorporating more recovery days this time. Hopefully that will help.

07 February 2012
Tuesday

Horsemen - Power Endurance

Skipped the warm up, since I got to work a little later than I should have.

Concept 2 Rower - 5km, ‘all out effort’, goal under 20:00
My time was 19:50, average HR - 158, peak HR - 181

Felt good, but I wasn’t putting out the whole time, just holding a good pace(hence the quotes on all out). Today was a lesson in self discipline, because I usually can’t stand steady-state work for that long. I usually get bored really quick, and often quit early due to boredom. Turned on some lower tempo/ballad type stuff, and just grooved on through. I prefer the metal for lifting stuff, but I found a while back that if I listen to that during cardio, my heart rate feels like it goes through the roof. So I listen to my ‘chill’ playlist during LED-type cardio and running. Anyone else do that?

08 February 2012
Wednesday

Horsemen - Recovery

Swim - sidestroke - 20:00 continuous

Haven’t swam since last spring at least, and I had forgotten how much I don’t care for it anymore. Very boring, up there with running on a treadmill.

09 February 2012
Thursday

Horsemen - Strength

GITTY UP
Warmup - 4 rounds
10 x KB swings @ 16kg
10 x Goblet Squat @ 16kg KB
5 x Deadlift @ 95#
5 x BW pullup

8 Rounds
3 x Deadlift - increase weight until 3x is hard but doable (185, 225, 225, 275, 275, 315, 315, 365)
3 x Shoulder Sweepers

6 Rounds
5 x Floor Press(per arm) - weight same as DL) (16kg, 20kg, 20kg, 24kg, 24kg, 32kg)
5 x Renegade Row - 16kg

6 Rounds
5 x Mr. Spectaculars
3 x Burpees
10 x situps

Trained in the early afternoon, since we were on the water fairly early and I had no interest in getting up at 5 so I could get to work about 6, and possible be rushing to finish before muster at 7. Pretty good workout, I liked this one.

Shoulder Sweepers - Wasn’t sure, so I did what we used to call arm haulers, where you lay prone with your arms reaching together straight out over your head, then keeping them straight and swinging back to touch your hip, then back out front.

Mr. Spectacular - 2KB clean and press, then set KBs next to feet, walk hands out to push up position, do pushup, then walk back in and grab KBs on way back up, and repeat.

10 February 2012
Friday

Horsemen - Job Specific(Long)

SOMETIMES GANGSTERS JUST HAVE TO BANG HAMMERS

(skipped the warmup, and didn’t realize it until I was already into the workout)

10x strict pullups
20x handstand pushups
30x overhead squats @ 45#(bar)
40x jumping lunges
500m row (1:55 or less)
60x KB swings @ 44#
70x deadlift @ 95#
80x arm haulers
90x sit ups
100x pushups
90x flutter kicks
80x sledge swings on tire
70x push press @ 65#
60x ball slams @ 20#
500m row (1:55 or less)
40x KB snatch @ 44#
30x box jumps @ 20"
20x 1 arm pushups
10x KB getups @ 53#

Time for the workout - 1:17:14

This was a REALLY long workout. You should rest as needed, and I took some breathers which were a little too long.

hand stand pushups - these sucked, and my shoulders ached after all was said and done.
overhead squats - my shoulder/thoracic mobility sucks, so my form on these were horrible
deadlifts - these killed my lumbars
arm haulers - figured these would be fairly easy, but I still had to break it up into chunks. Lay face down, arms extended overhead, swing arms back to hips, then back overhead.
flutter kicks - after the pullups, almost all sets were broken up. Flutter kicks have always been fairly easy for me, so these were one of the only exercises I performed straight through.
1 Arm Pushups - HA, yeah right. Not sure I could do this many fresh, let alone after over an hour of work. I tried one, failed, and simply did 20 more regular pushups.
KB getups @ 53# - once again, not getting these even fresh. Dropped weight to 16kg KB, and managed to grind out 10 of these. Still sucked.

11 February 2012
Saturday

Horsemen - Recovery
(commercial gym)

Started off jogging on the treadmill, at a fairly easy pace. At the 1-mile mark(9:05), I slowed to a walk, and increased the incline to 10 degrees, adjusting speed to keep my heart rate right around 140. Paused the HR monitor at the 20:00 mark, and switched machines. I intended to get on the rower, but they only have one at the gym, and it was taken. Got on the recumbent bike, and did another 15:00, again keeping my HR in the 130s. HR Average - 132, HR Peak - 149: for the whole session.

12 February 2012
Sunday

day off

13 February 2012
Monday

Horsemen - Strength

Warmup-
Row 500m (1:48)
3 rounds

  • 10x deadlift @ 135#
  • 10x pushups

WELL DONE IS BETTER THAN WELL SAID
Every 50 seconds for 10 rounds-

  • 3x deadlift @ 75% 1RM (285) <30 reps total>
    Every 50 seconds for 10 rounds-
  • 3x bench @ 75% 1RM (225) <30 reps total>
    5 rounds
  • 15x swings @ 53# KB
  • 3x Turkish getup @ 35# KB
  • 30m sled drag (15 forward/15 backward)
  • 10x weighted situp @ 45#

Felt good today. The extra recovery days plugged in where last time I did more crazy conditioning days, seems to be the ticket, at least right now(for me). Todays workout was good, though my back didn’t care too much for the deadlifting-during the workout. Afterward, it felt fine(mostly). Pretty straightforward workout, so I don’t see a need for any explanations.