Hey Cal, Nice training mama! Getting everything in - upper, lower and the running! Great work!
That leg workout is awesome btw!! Looks like you hit every muscle! Well done.
You have been seriously killing it with the volume! WOW!
Glad that things are looking up regarding your elbow. I’m sure that the rehabbing will help your shoulder too.
And your running sounds like it has been doing you right. Keep up the good work, Cal!
I’m also loving the training. Speaks volumes of your mental strength for you to work with a sucky elbow.
And it’s the weekend again.
Warm-up/glute 'hab:
20 hypers
20 reverse hypers with V at top
20 clams (per leg)
20 single leg hip thrusters (foot on high bench) (per leg)
20 side leg raises (per leg)
20 bosu ball squat/sit up combo thing
Upper body/shoulder warm-up (using 2kg dumbells):
20 lateral raises
20 front raises
20 overhead presses
20 dumbell curls
20 hammer curls
20 L raises
20 rear delt raises
No rest between those.
4 x Superset:
Millies x 10
Body Rows x 10
Just used the empty bar (after last week’s debacle). The body rows (done in the power rack using the bar I’d just pressed) were high - not even 45 degrees, and really just done to activate scaps and rhomboids.
Superset:
Bench/Barbell Row
Bar x 20/15
2 x 30kg x 10/10
Actually less reps than last week. Didn’t realise I’d done 15 before. No explanation for this. My right shoulder wasn’t feeling great, however (that’t the one with the longterm RC problem and it gets pissy very easily)
Superset:
EZ bar lying tricep extension (empty bar)/hammer curls (4kg)
3 x 20/20
Added another set.
Superset:
Rope tricep pushdown (7.5kh)/standing dumbell curls (4kg)
3 x 15/15
Having not done any direct arm work in, well, years, I have to say I was quite impressed by my pump. Heh.
Went next door to the machine gym. Was going to do lat pulldowns but someone was on the machine, so I tried some assisted pull-ups. My shoulder didn’t like this much so I just did one set and left it at that.
2 x Superset:
Cable Row (15kg)/Straight arm scap row (30kg) 10/10
I don’t much like this machine - it’s not a good example of its kind - so I generally don’t use it. Perhaps I should as the scap retraction does need work. Lat pulldown became available, though, so I went over to that.
2 x Superset:
Lat Pulldown (25kg)/Straight Arm Pulldown (15kg) - I forgot the reps, actually. 20/20 I think? Anyway. I’d blown myself up by that point so I went and did some forward rolls, handstand practise and a lot of stretching.
arm pump ftw!
I see your clams and single leg raises. Clams are surprising difficult for me, and that’s without any bands or other resistance. Do you ever do monster walks? I feel those in my hips and butt quite a bit.
Keep on keepin’ on.
I don’t - I don’t have any (good) bands at the moment. I’ve got some crappy Nike tubing but I really need some proper bands so I can do assisted chins and rehab stuff. Anyway…
wow, that is a lot of stuff there.
i don’t have bands either, but i’m thinking they might be a good investment one day… and fractional plates…
I had planned to run yesterday but I just didn’t feel like it. I guess it was partly down to noisy neighbours having a barbecue that went on late, together with some not too stellar food choices of my own.
So I ran today instead. I did the same run as last weekend - three laps of hilly Streatham Common and a lap of Tooting Common with all the roads in between. I didn’t feel quite as good as last week - my sciatica bothered me a bit which is probably down to me sitting on my arse in front of the computer all day yesterday. I know damned well I shouldn’t do it, but I do it anyway. I am my own worst enemy at times.
Still, I got round and felt as though I had a good amount of energy. Curiously it took around 1 hr 50 which seems very slow for 9.5 miles (I ran my half marathon in 2 hrs 18) so either my measurements or out or those hills really do slow me down. It didn’t feel slow the rest of the time but then my first 10K of the year didn’t feel slow to me yet I ran my slowest time ever (1 hr 02). Not sure what’s up with that.
I have some pain on the inside of my ankle - more of a niggle than anything but I’m keeping an eye on it. I first felt it during the half marathon, and then again last week. It was back today. My best guess is flexor hallucis longus - given I’m a forefoot striker, it may be getting some strain. I slapped some ibuprofen gel on it after my bath and then gave it a blast of my TENS. It’s manageable now but I could do without it getting worse. I’m enjoying my running at the moment so I could do without something else going wrong.
I have my next 10K on Sunday - hoping for a better time than the last one. Under an hour would be nice.
Talking of pain, my brachialis/supinator problem is a lot better so I think I’ll be able to go back to gymnastics before long. I just better watch the cartwheels.
I forget…do you take any supps for your niggly parts?
Fish oils and glucosamine/chondroitin. I don’t think the latter does much but I keep taking it due to the horrible crepitus in my knees and neck. Better safe than sorry!
I’ve tried other supplements as well but I’m on a tight budget at the moment so I stick mainly with the fish oils and also sometimes ibuprofen if something is really bad.
Good to hear that your elbow is feeling better and up for gymnastics soon. Yay!
I hope the ankle won’t be a problem for the 10K Sunday.
Got a call from the fella yesterday. He was supposed to be starting his new job today but instead, he’s recovering from pneumonia. He has been run down for a while (he had some blood issues last year - low platelet count - and what with his company going under he’s had a lot of stress) and thought he had flu.
He called up NHS Direct (national health service help line) to get advice and the guy on the other end told obviously didn’t like what he was hearing so told him to keep his door open and they’d send someone round.
Four paramedics turned up, carted him off to hospital and put him on a drip and a bunch of meds (antibiotics, I’m assuming). His blood pressure was very low and he was in a bad way. If he hadn’t called the helpline he could have died. Fuck!
Anyway, he’s back home now and resting. He told me not to visit because there was a chance it was still infectious. He has friends keeping an eye on him so he’ll be OK but that makes me hrmmm a bit. Obviously, I’m concerned that he was so ill, but I’m also concerned that I didn’t even know about it. This relationship does seem to be on shaky ground.
Anyway, I went to the gym this morning. Everything was stiff and sore - not DOMS - just tight and grumbly. I’m guessing that was down to the run yesterday.
Usual glute activation warm-up
20 hypers
20 reverse hypers with V at top
20 clams (per leg)
20 single leg hip thrusters (foot on high bench) (per leg)
20 side leg raises (per leg)
20 bosu ball squat/sit up combo thingy
100 step-ups (50 per leg, alternating; step + 8 risers)
Knees were a bit grumpy doing these.
2 x 15 Overhead Bulgarian split squats (thanks Veggy).
These were fucking hard. I only had two sets (per leg) in me. I used a 4kg body bar for the overhead.
Box Squat (6 risers plus a 20kg plate)
Bar x 20
5 x 30kg x 10 (Is it wrong that I start grunting from the effort on the last couple of reps? It’s only 66lbs!)
1 x 40kg x 10 (Rep PR for the year - really had to grind the last couple)
3 x 45kg x 5
Hip flexors didn’t feel great though I tried to keep my form tight the whole time. Elbow got a bit snarky too, from holding the bar. And then my back had a bit of a grumble on the 45kg sets. My body is not a happy chappy today. Still, I was fairly satisfied with what I achieved.
3 x Superset:
Leg Extension 30kg x 10
Jumping Squats (unweighted) x 10
These were brutal. I actually thought I’d put 25kg on the leg extension machine until I noticed I’d used a 10kg plate, not a 5kg plate.
Single leg curls (Cybex kneeling leg curl machine)
2 x 25kg x 10 (+ 2 reps)
I went next door to the mats and tried a few handstands but my left shoulder was pissy again so I left it. My return to gymnastics may take longer than I’d thought. Arse.
a rep PR de spite the grumbles go Cal! 
sorry to hear about the fella being sick. Men def have a different sense of priority.
wow. Glad he is ok, but odd he didn’t bother telling you til the last possible second.
those are high step ups!
Long distance relationships can be sucky. Is there a plan for you and him to be living together or living closer together?
Pneumonia does suck though, good thing he thought to call.
It’s complicated. We lived together in my tiny flat for several years, then he had a midlife crisis, dumped me and moved out, then 8 months later we started dating again but I’d got used to having my space back so he didn’t move back in, then he got a job up north and moved away and since then the visits have been getting increasingly infrequent. Thing is, I’d like to see him a bit more, but probably not too much. I don’t want to live with anyone again, ever.
Anyway, gym. Woke up feeling a bit stiff and sore - DOMS. After yesterday’s workout I can understand why my glutes and hams are sore, but I also have DOMS in my medial delts. WTF? That can’t just be from holding a 4kg body bar over my head while I do split squats, can it? Eh…
Anyway, whilst I had the perfect excuse not to work out, I went to the gym anyway to do some upper body dicking around.
Anyway, this is what I did:
Glute 'hab:
20 hypers
20 reverse hypers with V at top
20 single leg hip thrusters (foot on high bench) (per leg)
20 clams (per leg)
15 split squats (back foot on high bench) (per leg)
Upper body/shoulder warm-up (using 2kg dumbells):
20 lateral raises
20 front raises
20 overhead presses
20 dumbell curls
20 hammer curls
20 L raises
20 bent over raises
No rest between those.
Now, given that my left shoulder is giving me shit again, I decided not to do millies today. So I did some other shit.
Waiters Walks:
2 x 20kg (Three lengths of the bigger part of the gym per arm)
TGUs
1 x 6kg, 3 per side
Out of practise with these. The part I have the issue with is lunging up to standing. On the left it’s especially hard to do this with the DB overhead. I guess I need to work on this.
DB Rows
20kg x 15
2 x 22kg x 12
Didn’t go too heavy on these and made an effort to keep form strict.
Superset:
30kg lat pulldown/15kg straight arm pulldown 15/15
I went to do a second superset but the left shoulder said no, so I stopped. It really doesn’t seem to care for overhead stuff right now.
Superset:
Skull Crushers: Bar x 20, Bar + 5kg x 15, Bar + 7.5kg x 12, Bar + 10kg x 10
Hammer Curls: 4kg x 20, 6kg x 15, 8kg x 12, 10kg x 10
I’ve no idea what the EZ bar weighs.
Superset:
Rope tricep pushdowns: 7.5kg x 20, 2 x 10kg x 10
DB Curls: 4kg x 20, 2 x 6kg x 10
And that was me done. Couldn’t risk the handstands today, much as I’d have liked to.
Pneumonia can become serious soo fast. My brother-in-law just had a horrific experience as well. Ended up in the ICU for several weeks. They even had to put him on a ventilator. Told him he would have died if he hadn’t come in that night. Very scary. Glad your guy was release to go home. I hope he recovers quickly so he can start the new job he’s been waiting for. Terrible timing. Not that we ever feel like it’s a good time to get really, really sick.
Good luck on your run this weekend! You’re doing so well!
I’m stealing some of your shoulder warmup and glute activation lists. I’ve been bad about neglecting proper warm-up.
yeah, i’ve been neglecting activation as part of my warmup, too. need to start doing this again because my activation has turned to shit. some good ideas here.
long distance relationships can be hard… hope you guys get the chance to talk soon if you think things might be a bit rocky…
Not so much rocky as stagnant. I guess we’ll see what happens.
Meanwhile, as I’m too beaten up to train again today, I’m off to see the latest Pirates of the Caribbean movie. On my own. A bit sad, that, but if I waited around for someone to go with me, I won’t get to see it. This is the problem with all my good friends being outside London.