I’ve done Epsom baths a few times and I don’t know if it’s placebo or what but I usually feel amazing the next day.
Add some kraut for even more magic
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Same dude. Except today, still sore today. haha Apparently I can’t take a full week off anymore because every bad habit I’ve knocked out over the last year has come back.
OOH, I have some good Cleveland-made roasted garlic kraut I can use tomorrow (fasting today until about noon). I will not smell pretty but I bet it’ll be real good.
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Kraut+any sort of sausage is a win in my book.
My father’s side of the family has a sauerkraut party every year… 200lbs of cabbage that we deleaf, shave and mash by hand. There’s probably 15-20 people that come and help every year in early winter. We all gather in my parents garage and work for 2-3 hours with tools my grandfather aquired or had been passed down to him, it’s pretty awesome.
One of my favorite things to do is kraut and hotdogs on a grilled bun with spicy mustard… I also buy pickled hotdogs whenever I go up north, they’re bright red and extremely salty and taste absolutely amazing once you get a little char on them.
Slow cooker kraut with either homemade potato pierogi or pork butt is another great dinner.
Not really breakfast food, but when someone mentions bratwurst I always have to ask where the sauerkraut is.
Edit:
Not sure the picture does it justice, but the color is super intense.
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This is a winning combination.
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8/27/2020 - Deadlift Day
Up and moving, had work meetings so lifted over lunch. Normal PWO routine except I had 1/2 cup (dry measure) oats with milk, unflavored whey isolate, granola, cinnamon, and sugarfree sweetener.
Deadlift
135 x 5
240 x 5
285 x 3
330 x 3
375 x 1
425 x 1
475 x 1
400 x 6
Assistance - SS w/deadlift
Ab wheel - 5 x 10
No SS
Push up - 20, 15, 15, 10, 10
Band pull apart - 5 x 20
Overall, didn’t feel great today. I can tell my nervous system isn’t up to the task so I’m getting by on mental fortitude only, rather than testicular/intestinal/mental fortitude mix. My back hurts and is really lopsided, I’m thinking about getting a chiro appointment next week. Assistance went OK, wore myself out pretty quick on push ups, so I can tell I’m not saturated with creatine yet. First week back after a full week off always sucks.
8/28/2020 - Press Day
Up and moving before 6 AM. I feel better on 6-7 hours sleep than I do on 8 and I need to get that through my thick skull. Normal PWO routine with full 300mg caffeine pre-workout supp.
Press
45 x 5
55 x 5
70 x 5
85 x 3
100 x 5
115 x 5
130 x 10
Assistance - SS w/ Press
Pull/Chin up alternating sets - 10, 8, 5, 7, 7, 8, 5
No SS
Banded tricep pressdowns - 35, 35, 30 - ouch
1-legged calf raises - bodyweight - 20, 20, 17, 13 reps/leg
2-legged calf raises - bodyweight - 30
Today felt like a decent workout, it takes 3 days of grinding to get back to cruise control 80-90% sessions. Press moved well, I kept my back tight and the bar path was good. Still working on creatine saturation because I’m exhausting a little quicker than normal and not recovering as quickly between sets. Pulls/Chins felt great, third set was odd but I recovered OK. Keep cutting my knee open on the mortar between my basement wall cement panels and need to move my platform further from the wall. My knees feel fucking golden after calf raises, that’s a new staple for me as my single leg work.
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8/31/2020 - Squat Day
Up and moving, some serious intestinal distress after eating trash Friday/Saturday and eating well yesterday. Normal PWO routine.
Squat
45 x 5
165 x 5
205 x 5
245 x 3
285 x 3
330 x 3
370 x 7 - maybe a PR? if not close
Assistance - SS w/ squat
Ab wheel - 5 x 10
Seated DB press - 30 lbs - 2 x 20
No SS
Seated DB press - 30 lbs - 1 x 15; 20 lbs - 20, 15
BB curls - 45 lbs - 3 x 15, 1 x 10
Dug a little deep on the PR set for squats today because I was tired of shitting the bed on them. Came away with a PR or close to it. Fuckin’ hell was I tired the rest of the workout though. Dogged on the assistance a bit because I was worn out. Trying to leave it all hang out on the PR set and really push the main lifts and today worked well for it.
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Midday Cardio - short on time so sprints it is.
5 x 100 meter hill sprints, only rest was the walk back down - total time - 8 minutes. Kept intensity higher than I’ve ever been able to over that course of time and my asthma isn’t bothering me at all.
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9/1/2020 - Bench Day
Up and moving. Stressed beyond belief with work and HOA drama, in addition to my cat with an autoimmune disorder acting funky last night just to pile it on. Normal PWO routine except I did stair shove-offs as my explosive work instead of jumps.
Bench
45 x 5
105 x 5
130 x 5
155 x 3
180 x 3
210 x 3
235 x 10
Assistance - SS w/bench
Chest-supported DB rows - 35 lbs - 3 x 20, 2 x 15
1-legged calf-raises off 1.5" platform - 1 x 10 reps/side
No SS
1-legged calf-raises off 1.5" platform - 3 x 10 reps/side
2-legged calf-raises on flat ground - 1 x 50
DB “plate” raise - 25 lbs - 2 x 20
DB lateral raises - 12 lbs - 3 x 15
Bench kicked ass today, I was really able to take my stress out on the bar and I came close to a PR if I didn’t set one outright. Assistance was interesting, I was worn out from the bench set so I messed around a little more than usual.
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9/3/2020 - Deadlift Day
Almost skipped the workout because I woke up feeling really shitty but went for it. Normal PWO routine.
Deadlift
135 x 5
240 x 5
285 x 5
330 x 1 conventional and 1 sumo
375 x 1 conventional and 1 sumo
425 x 1 conv
470 x 1 conv
425 x 6 conv - huge PR - previous best was 420 for 3
30 minute break for work meeting and then I’ll go back down for dips/back work.
Edit for assistance and write-up
Assistance
SS w/deadlift
Ab wheel - 6 x 10
Standalone
Dips - 5 x 10
Inverted rows - 4 x 15, 5 x 10
I didn’t feel good as mentioned above but I’ve gotten fatter than I’d like and need to just keep trudging on. By the single at 425 I felt really good and my conventional reps were smokeshows, so I kept going. Single at 470 felt heavy but moved fine. Held my breath for the whole PR set at 425 and stopped because my back started getting uneven. Probably had enough strength to grind at least 8 total out, maybe more. Dips felt great for assistance and so did inverted rows, I’ll probably keep them on deadlift day unless I totally fuck the pig with press tomorrow.
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Stress = PRs
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No idea why, but yes. Likely because I have to focus so hard on the lift to get away from the stressful thoughts that I actually do things right. Something horrible had to happen during the formation of my brain for it to work as upside backwards as it does.
Its not just you man, these boards are littered with PRs set when people are feeling shit.
For myself, I tend to underperform when I’m expecting big things because i’m “prepared”, generally the sessions i’m really proud of happen on the days when just getting in the gym is a battle.
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Agreed. As soon as I expect something from myself I lose my damn mind, but if I expect nothing it works just fine.
9/8/2020 - Press Day
I took a bit of time off to rest up and hang with my family. I also had a revelation that my mental struggles lately are because I’ve gotten extremely complacent in just about everything. As someone that was raised to be 100% balls-to-the-wall all the time, I can’t allow myself to just coast because I get depressed, anxious, and guilty. So lesson learned.
Normal PWO routine, except I swapped hang cleans in for jumps and did candy corn instead of my PWO shake.
Press
45 x 5
65 x 5
80 x 5
95 x 3
110 x 3
125 x 3
140 x 8 - maybe PR or at least close
Assistance
SS w/ Press
Chin/Pull Up - 7 x 6
Giant Set
Chin/Pull up - 5 x 6
Banded tricep pressdowns - 5 x 20
Calf Raises - 4 x 12 reps/leg, 1 x 50 with both
Great session today, press moved well and I felt like I had good fight as the reps got heavy. Assistance was good but forearms are torched from chins/pulls. Mentally, I was right where I need to be.
I know I’ve said I let myself go several times, but this time I mean it. I can’t keep going the way I have because I feel, physically and mentally, like dogshit because I haven’t taken care of myself. Wife is onboard and is doing the same thing, so let’s see what happens.
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Return of the candy corn!
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I love fall for many reasons, but candy corn is a big one. haha
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Also, wanted to throw a few pieces of mud at the wall for my next cycle to see what sticks. Wanting to back off on frequency a touch and establish a little more balance. Also, need to lose some GD weight - goal is 190-195 pounds depending on looks. Still wanting to add some more sandbag/strongman-style work and running, too.
Options:
-
Pervertor 3 Day
-
Limited Time 2 Day
-
Coffinworm 2 Day
Mostly between Pervertor and Limited Time - both gave me some of my best results ever. I looked better on Limited Time but felt better on Pervertor. That may change a bit now because I’ve switched to sumo which leaves me a lot less sore than conventional deadlifts.
Regardless of choice of program, I will be doing 1 day of sandbag work and 1 day of sprinting each week. If I do LT I would likely do cardio on the bodyweight circuit days for economy to give my body and mind 3 days a week to recover. Probably optimal for being at maintenance or in a deficit.
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This would be my vote. Less energy spent on barbell lifts gives you more for conditioning stuff.
As I was typing it up I kinda formed my own opinion that I should do LT with the circuits and cardio on the same day. Goal is to get good enough at chins that I can do 5 x 10 so I can do 5 circuits instead of 10…
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