Cal's Big Log II: The Revenge

Training
881

Official time was 1:02.22.7 which is slightly faster (by about 30 seconds) than the March run, so at least that’s something. I finished 346th out of 398 (a further 9 did not finish).

I’m not going to do the next race in the series, which is in July. I may instead go for another 10K on Wimbledon Common that month (I love running there, and it’ll be a new race for me. And cheaper than the Clapham race which is one of the most expensive for the distance) and I’m also considering another race in North London in August which is on hard surfaces but reputed to be very fast.

Anyway, back to school this week, and I have to work today because although I normally have Mondays off, it’s a training day. Which also means I don’t get paid, but I still have to travel for over an hour each way and pay 6 quid for the trouble. Yay.

882

Sometimes you just have an off day no mattter what. I wouldn’t read too much into it.

883

I do, because I felt good, and I ran a similar time at the previous 10K (on the same course) where I also felt pretty good. Whereas I ran some better times last year when my sciatica felt worse and I didn’t feel as strong. I’m flummoxed.

Anyway, since I don’t have to be at work until 10am today I squeezed in a workout.

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 bosu ball squat/sit up combo thingy (since my elbow’s a lot better I added the medicine ball back in)

100 step-ups (50 per leg, alternating; step + 8 risers)

Knees didn’t piss and moan as much as last time, which is surprising given I ran yesterday.

2 x 15 Overhead Bulgarian split squats.

Still nasty but not as evil as last time. Mind you, I really feel the piriformis shit going on when I do the left leg. Fuck you, piriformis, you’ll do as I say.

Box Squat (6 risers plus a 15kg plate)

Bar x 20
30kg x 12 (+2)
40kg x 10
45kg x 10 (+5 - I’d get excited but last time I did these I’d done 5 sets with the 30, so I obviously wasn’t as fatigued this time)
50kg x 5 (recent PR)

Obviously, time was an issue so I did fewer sets but I went up in weight. 50kg felt pretty easy on the first rep, not so much on the rest. The last one was iffy but hey ho, I’ve not done 50kg in a while. Nice to break the 100lb mark anyway.

Hip flexors still didn’t feel great but at least I didn’t get the back grumble I had last time.

3 x Superset:

Leg Extension 30kg x 10
Overhead Squats (5kg body bar) x 10

These weren’t as evil as when I did the jumping squats but I wanted to work my overheads a little.

Single leg curls (Cybex kneeling leg curl machine)
20kg x 12
22.5kg x 10

Hrmm. I’d forgotten I did 25kg last time so I didn’t go as heavy. Silly me. Mind you, after the 10K it’s probably better not to pound them too much. This is another movement that lets me know I have sciatica.

Brief stretch, then home to shower, change and log before heading off to work. Laters peeps.

884

i’m sorry to hear you don’t feel good about your run time, but glad to hear that aside from that you had a good run. is there some kind of device that allows you to track mileage? have no idea how such a thing would work, but i thought there was something… no idea how accurate / reliable they might be…

nice squatting and congrats on your rep PR!!

885

Nice workout! Way to conquer your muscle pain too!

886

Kind of a shit workout today. I didn’t really feel like going to the gym - I have epic arse DOMS (to go with my epic arse, no doubt) and generally feel quite tired. My body doesn’t generally like exercising for more than three days in a row and this is day number 4. However, as I’m working the next three days, I wouldn’t have got in another workout until Saturday, I expect. So gym it was.

Thing is, usually, if you don’t feel like going, once you get there and get started, you perk up. Me, not so much. I wanted to go home throughout the entire thing. Nonetheless, this is what I did:

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)
Pigeon pose (yoga arse stretch), 30 secs per leg.

No bosu ball today. Fuck you, bosu ball.

Shoulder/brachialis 'hab (2kg dumbells):

20 lateral raises
20 front raises
20 overhead presses
30 dumbell curls (uh, I zoned out and got carried away)
20 hammer curls
20 bent over raises
20 L raises

5 x Superset:

Deadlift (RDL style): 50kg x 10
Pushups x 10

Y’know, I really have an aversion to bending my knees when I bend over to pick something up. When I tie my shoelaces, it’s with straight legs. It’s almost as though there’s some sore of impingement in the front of my hip that prevents me from bringing my thigh closer to my torso. I just hate the feeling of it. Hence, RDLs.
I did make an effort not to round my back but then 50kg isn’t much (110lbs).

Superset:

Bench Press: Bar x 20, 30kg x 10, 40kg x 5 (left shoulder didn’t feel good so didn’t push)
20kg Dumbell Row x 10/10, 10/10, 10/10

Bench only: 45kg x 5. Form was kind of sucky. I haven’t benched properly in ages and it shows.

Triset:

EZ Bar skull crushers : Bar x 20, Bar +5kg x 15, Bar +10kg x 6 (epic fail!)
EZ Bar closegrip press: Bar x 20, Bar +5kg x 15, Bar +10kg x 10
Hammer curls : 4kg x 20, 6kg x 15, 8kg x 12

Doing the skull crushers and immediately doing a load of presses really does a number on the triceps.

I just wanted out of the gym at that point. I didn’t even stretch. Bad me. But I suppose at least I got in there and did something.

I have to admit my body image is at a low currently, because I can’t get into my (formerly roomy) favourite combats, I can’t do one chin, and I am basically a fat cunt. It’s my own fault because my eating discipline has gone down the crapper. It’s not that I’ve fallen off the wagon, it’s that I missed the wagon entirely and now it’s several miles away and I’m trudging through the mud. I’m sick of this shit. I’m putting myself on shakes and tuna for a week and a half so I can at least shift 7lbs or so by my birthday. It’ll be mostly water, but if I can get into my trousers again I don’t give a shit.

Right, it’s report writing time. Bleh. I will see you on the other side.

887

Cal: Sorry about the sciatic pain. I can sympathize as I seem to have picked that ailment up. It’s not fun, but it still makes me laugh when I hear myself saying things like: “DLing yesterday really pissed of fmy sciatica.” I feel so old. It’s funny. And not.

The diet–don’t despair–it’s not a lot a weight. And as you say, a week of clean eats will give you a huge jump to where you want to be…

888

500×514 29.5 KB

Hey Cal
Do you think that maybe the difference in the times might have had something to do with being in less pain while running, meaning less desire to get it over with? I’ve never run those kinds of distances before so I can’t really advise but just a thought.

Is it just me or is everyone feeling glum lately? It might just be me. :frowning:

Have a lol pic, to cheer you.

I have no idea if this is real.

889

lol @ your arse DOMs. And judging by the previous workout, its no wonder. 50k on the box squat is good stuff! Congrats on the PR.

And yeah, i’m like you, if i don’t feel like going to the gym, being there is generally me just going through the motions.

Also, I like how you always manage to work around you different aches and impingements. You’re my prime example that it can be done! So I thank you for that.

Sorry you’re feeling like a fat cunt (lol!), I totally agree on the crash diet. I know its not always best to go down that route, but sometimes its what’s needed in order to feel better. Why do you think IFing works so well for me? “Ate too much last night? Fast tomorrow!” You got it, mama. Just don’t go yo-yoing. We know that never works.

And well done on the run! 10k is hard work!! No matter the time its run in.

890

Thanks for posting, ladies. Just logging in from school (lunch break!) I got through yesterday on four scoops of whey protein, a can of tuna with olive oil and balsamic, several fish oil caps and numerous cups of tea (with skimmed milk). It’s weird because I can IF throughout the day and feel absolutely fine, but if I have some protein shakes I feel worse. I don’t get it. Anyway, I guess my body is just adjusting to the low carb. I’m pissing like a racehorse.
I may carb up a bit on Saturday so that I can run on Sunday. I’ll see how I feel.

891

Being proactive and facing the dragon is always the best decision. It might kill you in the end, but at least you die a hero.

wait. That’s not how it goes… :wink:

edit: Witcher came out finally and now I can’t play cause my PC is not strong enough. faaaaaaack.
seems like everytime a cool game comes out I need to put money on my PC before I get to play.

892

Nice work with all of the squats, etc. I feel you on the kneeling leg curls. They don’t give me sciatica, but they feel like shit so I don’t do them. Makes me feel like I’m injuring my knees or something. Yay for the box squat PR!

That is some killer tricep work too. I often superset skullcrushers with CGBP and my arms feel like they are going to explode afterwards.

Hope the DOMS in your arse are settled down and that the running and dieting go well in the near future.

893

I’m playing Witcher 2 currently. It’s lovely to look at and the story is good but it’s not at all intuitive. Took me almost half the game to figure out what I was doing.

The good thing is that there are two paths to take in Chapter 1 which lead to different branches, so Chapters 2 and 3 are very different depending on which you choose (so, you can replay it. Or at least you can replay from the end of Chapter 1).

Veg - arse DOMS have settled down but my upper back is feeling those deadlifts. I was sore yesterday! My forearms were even sore from gripping.

894

Catching up with you. I think the extra poundage and the slower run times (despite feeling well) are related. The times aren’t so very off, but it would be an interesting experiment to get down to your fighting weight and run that 10K again.

I did laugh (just because of your wonderful expressions) at the fat cunt comment and the food wagon analogy. What foods have got your number? Is it the nuts and dried fruit coming to take you away again?

895

Mostly. I can easily inhale about several thousand calories’ worth without breaking a sweat.

896

me too. but my ‘nutrition’ is so atrocious that i pat myself on the back for eating fruit and nuts because at least it isn’t potato chips and chocolate… i’ll need to dial it in one day… fortunately it is winter here… my down jacket makes me look like a lumpy goose regardless.

i wish i could find a way to get arse doms…

897

I’ve stuck to shakes and tuna for three days now. Today was a test - there were cakes in the staff room, but I resisted. Having whey protein with me helped. If I’d been trying to IF, I’d have been starving and would have wolfed them down. I seem to have finally got myself into diet mode, psychologically speaking, although that only lasts for another week (until my birthday).

I might be coming down with something, though. I’ve been sneezing a lot and my throat is quite sore, but I feel mostly alright. Usually when I’m getting a cold I feel like shit on the first day. I guess I’ll know more when I wake up tomorrow.

898

CaL: Hope your not coming down with something. Hey congrats on getting your head in the diet game. Nice work resisting those cakes.

899

Felt surprisingly OK this morning. Thursday was a low - I could barely summon the energy to breath, but I doubled up on tuna on Thursday and Friday evenings (two cans instead of one) and it’s made a difference.

Gym wasn’t great this morning, though, and that’s nothing to do with energy levels. I finished my reports for the nursery kids this morning (which is no easy task - there’s a lot of them, including two sets of identical twins who have started since Easter) which meant I didn’t get to the gym until 9am, and it was already busy. I poked my head into the free weights room and all the equipment I wanted to use was being hogged, so I thought fuck that.

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
Pigeon pose (yoga arse stretch), 30 secs per leg.
20 bosu ball squat/sit-up thing (did not use the medicine ball this time).

Shoulder/brachialis 'hab (2kg dumbells):

20 lateral raises
20 front raises
20 overhead presses
20 dumbell curls
20 hammer curls
20 bent over raises
20 L raises

Supserset:

Straight Arm Pulldown, 15kg/Push-ups: 3 x 15/15

DB Windmills, 14kg: 3 x 3 per side (harder than I was expecting. Left shoulder was a bit grumpy).

At this point I wanted to go into the (small) free weights room but it was too busy, so I thought fuck that. I’ve no patience for crowds and waiting.

There were a couple of women being really shit on the Concept II rowers so I decided to show those bitches how to fucking row. I don’t row often because I hate it, but I’m not at all bad at it.

3 x 500m: 1:57.6; 1:59.4; 2:@4.4

My legs were actually tiring in the latter stages. Yeah, these are fucking hard and I still hate them, but they’re also pretty good for me. I ought to do them more.

Superset:

Tricep Rope Pushdown@ 7.5kg x 15; 10kg x 12, 12.5kg x 10
Hammer Curls: 6kg x 15; 8kg x 12; 10kg x 10 (the last set was an effort. It was more like rest pause at the end).

I did try a few handstands but that left shoulder is still being a fucking bitch. I am seeing Nicole on Monday, I think, so I’ll get her to grind her muscular thumbs into it while I cry pathetically and then pay her 50 quid. That usually helps.

Oh, and weighed self (gym clothes, no shoes). 155lbs at 5’7.3 (171cm). I hate to think how much I weighed on Tuesday evening before starting the diet.

900

you really are an all or nothing type.

I am working on this while watching the scale dance all over the place. And NOT currently dieting.

I hope you are feeling better!