Calvert and Milo Barbell

[LoRez]

W1D1 - Medium Load

Press: 80# x 5 x 5
17" Rack Pulls: 290# x 4 x 5 (four sets of five)
Backbend Situps: #40 x 5
H2H KB Swings: #75 x 22 (11 per hand)

Did some circle walking between sets.

Notes:

• First day of the new routine.

• This was harder than I expected. I’m sick, so that’s part of it. Left hip/low-back was hurting over the weekend, so that’s part of it. Had trouble eating over the weekend (Saturday especially; esophagus was rejecting food), so lower on calories going in. First time doing normal standing presses for a bit. First time doing multiple sets in awhile.

• In terms of things that I can control: Starting weights might be too high. I might need to find a way to switch from rack pulls to mat pulls; they’re a bit jarring even when being careful.

• Overall time taken was about the same as before, so that was good.

• It’s been awhile since I’ve had to kill time between sets. Circle walking provided a nice relief to the body, and let me get in some practice.

• Not really sure of the best exercise order. I don’t want to be exhausted before the pulls, but I also don’t want to compromise core stability for those backbend situps. That is still a somewhat more questionable movement when it comes to “safety”.

• Anyway, this was a pretty good “shut up and do the work” session. Only 4 exercises is nice and focused. Solid work.

[LoRez]

@jdm135

That’s really cool. On the subject of the bombsight, but not to get too derailed, I recommend a Malcolm Gladwell book called The Bomber Mafia. The audiobook is great, has original radio excerpts.

That sounds cool, I’ll seek it out.

I actually hadn’t seen/heard of a bombsight. What he had (it’s packed away somewhere) was an E6B flight computer, or something very close. Effectively a rotary slide rule.

@jdm135

@LoRez

I ended up learning some celestial navigation stuff. Made myself a couple astrolabes, started working through an 1800s nautical navigation book, learned about the Gunters rule

You and I are really similar. I’m the same way. To be fair I haven’t been down that exact rabbithole, but similar enough.
If I had “more free time” (LOL) I would go down even more rabbit holes than I already do.

To be fair, this was like 2 years of rabbit holes… all the little pockets of free time add up.

On the “ship radio operator” front, I picked up a morse code key and attempted to learn morse. I spent a solid month or so on it, and bits here and there afterwards, but it never really clicked (no pun intended, but it’s a nice accident). It’s still on my list of things to actually learn.

[LoRez]

@jdm135 Since I’m already far enough off topic. Here’s all the things from the celestial navigation rabbit holes (and the morse code key).

Also digital versions of Norie’s “A Complete Epitome of Practical Navigation”, a set of logarithm tables, and a couple up to date copies of the Air Almanac and Nautical Almanac.

I went to Portugal last year and visited the Maritime museum and saw some of the oldest marine navigation instruments, and visited the Geographic museum (basically their Royal Geographic Society) and saw some of the actual stone markers and maps from the original Africa and Indian expeditions. Original stuff from Magellan, Columbus, Vasco da Gama, Bartolomeu Dias. Even saw the backlit map they debuted at the World Fair where they claimed to be the first to “discover” America, mostly for bacalao fishing off the coast of Newfoundland.

[jdm135]

So freaking cool.

[LoRez]

Ok, there’s too many little bits of information I collected over the day today I need to get it written down.

A reddit r/Strongman thread on press programming mentioned 3 programs. It looks like they all are similar in terms of working reps per week: 71, 93, and 96 reps per week. That’s within the same 75-100 reps of bench within Sheiko’s #37 and #30 preparatory programs.

The Calvert routine averaged to 58 per week, and PttP is 50 a week.

Other notes: I feel a lot better now than I did earlier today. I also feel motivated to lift again already, so there’s some good psychology going on.

One more thing. I’m going to run this with straight-5s for now. When I hit the “peak” where I hit a failure on a 5 set, I’ll use 10% backoff sets for that session, and then reset after.

The velocity stuff I did in the past was cool, but really didn’t expose me to any intensity variation. The stair-step idea when hitting velocity targets was a bust. The short stint of PttP after that worked much better, possibly because of slightly more volume, but probably because of higher intensity. Maybe it was the higher intensity itself; maybe it was the varying intensity. Don’t know.

So the current plan is simpler than it looks:

1. 3x a week; two lifts, two accessories
2. volume varies session-to-session. Straight sets of 5, but the number of sets changes.
3. intensity increases session-to-session until a failure or two, then resets to 70% of the failed 5RM weight

If that doesn’t work, or I get bored, I’ll mess with ramp-up/backoff volume or fiddle with accessories or fiddle with ROM variations.

---

Oh yeah, last thing. I did the breakdown of the Sheiko templates per his 7 intensity zones.

#37
50-59%: 122
60-69%: 142
70-79%: 199
80-84%: 66
85-89%: 6
90-94%: 0
95+%: 0

#30
50-59%: 86
60-69%: 72
70-79%: 108
80-84%: 103
85-89%: 20
90-94%: 0
95+%: 0

I don’t know if that’s particularly useful, but it’s a bit more information. The kind of intensity progression I’ve got should fit that mold pretty well.

6RM is ~86%
5RM is ~89%

Essentially work up to a new 5RM and reset to ~62% 1RM, and it patterns out like that. #30 especially.

[LoRez]

I’m definitely set up for success. /s

It’s sub-freezing outside, and cold (but nowhere near sub-freezing) in the gym and I’m still sick, fatigued, sinusy. Also still having intermittent swallowing stuff, but getting calories in nevertheless. My surgeried right wrist/forearm/elbow has been acting up a bit too. Mostly I feel pain in my forearm muscles, but then it manifests as problems at the joints.

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W1D2: Lower Volume

Press: 85# x 3 x 5
17" Axle Rack Pulls: 300# x 3 x 5
Backbend Situps: #40 x 6
H2H KB Swings: #75 x 24 (12 per hand)

Notes:

• press up 5 pounds, pulls up 10
• despite the conditions, this went well

If I set this up right, I should have around 45 pounds of runway with the presses, and 90 with the pulls.

Presses are with a true 45 pound bar, unlike my other bar. I’m going to just pretend none of my past pressing mattered, because there’s no real comparison.

[LoRez]

Did some squats. 135 then 185 x 5.

I wanted to take a look at my own squat form after chatting with @jdm135 in his log. (I haven’t squatted anything more than 100 in forever.)

My camera angle apparently sucked. I could barely see anything during the set.

I guess my elbows were pretty far back rather than under the bar. They were fine with 135, but I kind of forgot with 185.

Also a bit of “If I’m going to give advice, I ought to be able to demonstrate it”. I kind of failed at that.

EDIT:
I mean I can do 225x1 so there’s that?

Squat - 225 x 1

[jdm135]

I appreciate the candor!

[LoRez]

Some things on my mind. (I’m sitting at gymnastics class and my brain is spinning.)

Squatting yesterday triggered a cascade of thoughts.

• Squatting 225 after not having trained with more than 100 in over 10 years is somewhat interesting. 100 is so submaximal, relatively.

• My knee pain issues that stopped me from training them a decade ago didn’t affect this. Also the issues are finally diagnosed and maybe even mostly resolved. (Tight gracilis) In theory I could start squatting again apparently. But why? Not rhetorical.

• I have enough “functional” leg strength for all the things I currently do. The only valid reasons to squat that I can come up with are: to use it for general systemic mass building, or to help me with my press and 18” deadlift goals. I mean there’s maybe also some ego reasons for internet-points, but not real reasons.

• I’m thinking I might just go all in on those two goals, instead of just a 3-6 week experiment. Once I accomplish those, I should be in a great place to do nearly anything else.

• There’s an argument to be made that I should be a bit more well rounded, or at least train a more normal deadlift, but my experience so far shows that a higher mat/rack pull doesn’t really translate to the floor, either direction.

• My training will look incredibly boring for the next forever. Press, 18” Rack/Mat Pulls, Abs, Swings. Every single training day. I may be ok with that.

• Right now I’m pretty sure I actually don’t need any other lifts. Some programs would add tricep and shoulder volume: dips, lateral raises, skull crushers, overhead extensions, pushdowns, close-grip bench. But I don’t think I need to. Some would rotate the press with other movements or unilateral lifts, but again I don’t think I need to.

A whole bunch of nothing.

[LoRez]

W1D3: High Volume - DL

Lost my voice last night.

Woken up from a bad sore throat. Took some ibuprofen. Also coughing up stuff.

Weighed in at 160.5. Yesterday was 160.1 and the day before 159.8. Seems like I’m actually over 160.

Took my daughter to school, and on the way back my wife asked if I wanted to get a strep test. Scheduled that for 8:30. The clinic is a half mile away.

At 8:07 I wondered how much of my workout I could get in before I left.

17” Axle Rack Pulls - 310# x 3 x 5

8:19 I decided I wouldn’t be able to get my presses in before I left.

8:20 the clinic called and cancelled. They said I need to see a doctor before I can get a strep test; scheduled me for a 10 am visit

Press: 90# x 5 x 5

I may have done 6 sets in there. Trying to coordinate work stuff (I’m hosting a meeting a 10) and trying to see if there were alternatives for appointments. I also have to cancel a 9:30 meeting because I have to drive to further to see the only available doctor.

17” Axle Rack Pulls - 310# x 3 x 5

Finished that at 9:26. Now do I have enough time/motivation to do abs and swings, or should I wait until later? Ok, maybe abs.

Backbend Situps: 40# x 7
H2H KB Swings: 75# x 28 (14 each hand)

9:33 Have to run…

10:00 Swabbed for strep. Doctor talks for a minute. Thinks I should test for Covid. Get swabbed for covid.

10:23 School called, needs me to come in to calm my furniture-throwing kid down

10:25 Strep came back negative, but doing overnight covid test.

10:27 School called and said they don’t need me.

A hell of a morning.

Actual workout notes:

• High-DL day. Two mini-DL sessions with the pressing in between.

• Tried out a cue on the pulls from a Mitch Hooper video. Internally rotate the arms to better activate the lats. I like it.

• Press is the heaviest I’ve trained with since October or so. But still light enough to try out some form stuff. Grip narrower, grip wider, squeeze differently, etc. I’m leaning toward a narrower grip.

• I probably will stop doing those weekly 10+ pulls. Last week I did a single set of 15 with 310. Today I did 30 reps with 310. Not sure it actually makes sense to then attempt 10+ with 340.

• I actually did some real work (like my job) while doing all of that.

[LoRez]

I felt the need to clean up the cluster of yesterday’s log entry.

@LoRez

W1D3: High Volume - DL

17” Axle Rack Pulls - 310# x 3 x 5
Press: 90# x 5 x 5
17” Axle Rack Pulls - 310# x 3 x 5

Backbend Situps: 40# x 7
H2H KB Swings: 75# x 28 (14 each hand)

Good news though: Strep negative, Covid negative. Still sick, but not that.

Had a fairly intense massage yesterday. Left glute medius, right piriformis or obturator, right lat especially around the ribcage, both sides pec tendons into the shoulder (but right was worse by far; bound up with biceps tendon too), also hip adductors on both sides. She thinks my left psoas needs work, but we’re holding off until next time.

Currently feel very heavy, slow, like I have syrup running through my body. But everything is moving fine, strength and speed is there; just feels that way.

[LoRez]

I was down for the count most of Saturday. Fell asleep for a nap early afternoon, “woke up” for a bit with no energy, and ended up back in bed early evening (I don’t know, is 5:30 even evening?). Didn’t get out of bed until Sunday morning. My main regret is missing bedtime with the kids.

I’m not as sick now.

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W2D1: Low Volume

Press: 95# x 3 x 5
17" Axle Rack Pulls: 320# x 3 x 5

Backbend Situps: 40# x 8
H2H KB Swings: 75# x 30 (15 each hand)

Workout Notes:

• Presses felt a bit heavy. Maybe they were heavy. Next session will be 8 sets of presses so we’ll see if adding another 5 pounds is a good idea. Stay tuned.

• My right wrist is still giving me grief on presses. I’ll think on it for a bit, but some heavy overhead supports might do some good.

Here’s a long quote from John Grimek:

By now you must realize that nothing packs so much power into the muscles as heavy supporting feats, especially in holding weights overhead. You should construct a device that enables you to get under the bar with only a slight split or dip with your arms extended and elbows locked. In this supporting feat all the muscles contract to sustain the overhead load, while every joint, tendon and ligament strains to keep the body balanced. This supporting feat is one of the best means of increasing body power. It helps a lifter to secure a strong arm and shoulder lock. The back, hips and legs all combine to hold the body in a strong, steady position. As an exercise, a heavy weight should be supported overhead for several seconds. After a brief rest more weight should be added and the exercise repeated until six to eight attempts have been completed. Begin by holding about 50 pounds more than your best jerk in this one. Increase the weight as rapidly as you safely can. And once more, be sure that your supporting rack or chains are high enough for you to get under the bar without bending your knees too much. The more you bend your knees the more difficulty you will have in supporting the weight.

Charles Smith also mentioned these and similar things in his articles about the press.

Also, lol, thanks Harvard Med:

Many adults may not think much about the elbow, because it’s not a weight-bearing joint and because it doesn’t often develop arthritis or require joint replacement.

(I don’t have any cartilage in my right elbow; i.e., arthritis)

General Notes:

• Sort of running out of plates, but it’s not clear exactly what I need. Depending how I think about it, some combination of: another pair of 45s, 25s, 10s, and/or 2.5s. The kettlebell and situps using odd amounts of plates throw me off.

• Was thinking about accessories if I did this routine longer term. As in stick with it (or close variations) to add 125+ pounds to my press and 230+ to my 18" deadlift. I probably would add in some form of curls, and some upper-back rows. “Presses 250, but can barely curl the bar”, lol.

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EDIT:
Did some rows. Those one-arm flared meadows rows things I did before. 40#, couple sets of 8. Probably progress these 5-10 or 6-12.

I watched John Meadow’s video on it and turns out I came up with almost exactly the same thing he did, except I’m rowing to the clavicle line rather than the nipple line.

[LoRez]

W2D2: High Volume - Press

Somewhat anxiously, I was thinking about today’s workout since at least Saturday, and especially after Monday’s “heavy” 95# presses.

The most serious session so far. Marathon session: 12 sets, 40 presses, 20 pulls.

Press: 100# x 4 x 5
17" Axle Rack Pull: 330# x 4 x 5 (I might have done 5 sets?)
Press: 100# x 4 x 5

Backbend Situps: 40# x 9
H2H KB Swings: 75# x 32 (16 each hand)
Upper-back Meadows Rows: 40# x 9 (each side)

Notes:

• Holy ----

• Pressed 4,000 pounds and pulled 6,600 for a total of 10,600 pounds lifted today. Then another 2,400 with the KB swings. 13k pounds.

• Going to make sure I eat to grow from this one.

• My goal was to not miss a rep, so I took long breaks between sets to get as close to full recovery. Things were already moving slow in the first set.

• Because my other bar was light by ~20 pounds (), this weight is probably close to my actual 5RM. Sad. But more room to grow.

• I read a thing from Pavel quoting Faleev about percentages:

Faleev offers a formula that will help you estimate your max from your 5 x 5: multiply that weight by 1.2. This is not exact science, but it is much better than those ridiculous charts that claim to calculate your 1 rep max (1RM) from your 10RM.

• In other words, what I can do with a 5x5 is closer to 83% versus a 5RM’s 89%. That means even with strength increases of up to ~1-2% a week, I’d probably never actually work above 90% of the starting 1RM. Which is good, since I want to mimic Sheiko loading.

• This is the first session where I wish I had some Plazma. I experimented with it when it first came out (a decade ago maybe?), and I really liked how it really seemed to keep up energy through the whole workout session. I wonder what the current equivalent is.

• I looked. It seems like Plazma was split out into what’s now the current Mag-10 and Surge. I’m going to guess that it was the HBCD especially that provided the “fuel”. Interesting that the protein was moved to post-workout instead of intra-workout. I wonder what the reasoning was.

• I think the work I did was still probably slightly easier than this crazy day from Sheiko #37. Maybe heavier, but easier.

[jdm135]

Honest question:
What do you think your bodyweight will be when you have a 225lb press?

[LoRez]

185-195

[jdm135]

Thats what i weigh. But i think plenty of people have pressed that much at that BW so its not outside the laws of physics.
Cool goal.

[LoRez]

W2D3 - Medium Volume

Ugh I suck at pressing. That’s why I have such lofty goals.

A line that’s stuck with me about pressing: “You need to develop a contempt for limit poundages”.

Press: 105# x 5 x 5 (last set only 4)
17" Axle Rack Pull - 340# x 4 x 5

Backbend Situps: 40# x 10
H2H KB Swings: 75# x 34 (17 each hand)
Upper-back Meadows Rows: 40# x 10 (each side)

Press Notes:

• Last session’s 100# was probably my 5RM. This workout’s 105# is also probably my 5RM. Heavy, grindy, especially the last rep or two of each set. I want to say “form breakdown” but my abs and back are strong enough these days to power through and reposition myself; not really breakdown. The later reps just look different than the early ones.

• 5x5 with my 5 RM requires longer breaks between sets. I took a minimum of 10 minutes. Home Gym + Home Office is a good combination.

• I generally avoid any head games while lifting, no hyping up, but needed to this time.

• Since I have 2 rest days and Monday is a Light day (3x5) I might not adjust the weight. May stay here, may go up. Will probably reset to 75# for Wednesday’s Medium day.

Pull Notes:

• Starting to feel a bit heavy. Feeling some pulling on my right ribcage and abs. (I’ve been feeling this, but still feeling it.)

Supplement Notes:

• I ordered (and received) some Surge, since it’s basically Plazma minus the protein. Lemon Drop is genuinely good. I’ve had my share of nasty supplement flavors, and this is definitely not one of them.

• After each pressing set, there were some different sensations in my upper body. I can’t quite describe them, but they were unfamiliar and uncomfortable. I’m guessing it’s just adaptation to the Surge. No Beta Alanine tingling though, more like a shivering/shaking/wobbling feeling.

Bodyweight Notes:

• I’m not solidly in the 160s yet. Weight has at least been stable though. Being sick for a week has probably played a part.

• Last session took a lot out of me. I drank over a gallon of milk, chicken and rice porridge, chuck roast, a ribeye, and some “empty calories” in energy drinks, coffee drinks, and beer, and I went from 159.3 on Wednesday to 159.8 today. Surprised at how little a dent it made. Restated, surprised at how much food was required just to recover.

[LoRez]

Maybe interesting to some. This is the plan.

I tracked tonnage once, when I was doing a squat every day thing. I didn’t think it was a particularly valuable measure. But since I have both intensity and volume running on different patterns, it might make some sense to look at, especially from a recovery standpoint.

Also progress photos. Not sure much changed.

[LoRez]

I have more weight plates now.

I figured I needed another pair or 10s and 25s now. And would need a pair of 45s in the near future.

So, I ran the numbers.

Anyway I have an extra barbell to sell…

[LoRez]

W3D1 - Low Volume

Press: 75# x 3 x 5
17" Axle Rack Pull - 350# x 3 x 5

Backbend Situps: 45# x 5 ← Notable PR
H2H KB Swings: 75# x 36 (18 each hand)
Upper-back Meadows Rows: 40# x 11 (each side)

Notes:

• I still feel beat down, tired, and just didn’t have the willpower to try 110 today. My other options were to do 105 again, or to reset/deload. I ran the numbers, and over the next 2 weeks, the total tonnage is basically the same with all the options. So I dropped to 75. Did I use math to justify laziness? Maybe.

• I’m fudging stuff, but I’m going to say my last session was 85% 1RM. More than the pavel/faleev 5x5 83% and less than a 5RM chart’s 89%. Do these numbers matter? On their own, no. But that means I now have a 100%. So that I can say today’s presses were about 60%.

• Well, here. This is what it gives me. It lets me throw a percentage column on things. This is roughly how I expect the next couple weeks to play out:

• I’m already throwing effort and food and intensity and volume at the pressing problem. This stuff is just icing to better understand/monitor what works.

• In possibly more interesting news, I hit 45 pounds with the backbend situps. 1 plate. This single set double progression stuff actually works.

• Right elbow has been tender for a few days. I think it may have been due to the form breakdown on the heavier sets; moving more toward a standing incline bench. I think the closer it gets to a bench-press position the more my elbow hurts. Was my general experience pre-surgery.

• Based on some photos, I think I looked better in September than I do now. I think because shoulders appeared wider, waist appeared slimmer. Now my upper traps overpower and my waist is thicker. I was also fiddling around with some “bodybuilding” movements back then, so maybe that too. On the other hand, I fill out a t-shirt more now. Interesting but mostly inconsequential observations.