2/16/15
5/3/1
De-load (Upper Body)
Bench Press: 115x5, 135x5, 160x5
Overhead Press / 5-Chin Ups: 75x5, 95x5, 115x5
BB Curls / Rope Pushdowns: 55 / 25 - 3x10
T-Bar Row: 135 - 3x10
This was a very enjoyable day to get in the gym and not have to worry about dealing with heavy weight or high reps. I went ahead and did overhead presses today, that way I can knock out front squats and deadlifts on the same day if needed. The rest of the week I may play around with my kettlebells.
Something I am considering is adding kb jerks after bench pressing instead of incline dumbbell pressing. Possibly have a setup like this:
Bench Press - Jerks
Front Squats - 1 Arm Snatches
Overhead Press - Clean & Jerks
Deadlift - Double Snatches
This way I am hitting each kettlebell movement twice a week. The only thing I’d have to think about is shoulder recovery from Bench Press Day to Overhead Press Day. This is not definite by any means but wanted to put this in my log so I wouldn’t forget about this idea or if anyone has any suggestions. Probably do like Wendler says, “Try it for 3-6 weeks and see how it works!”
2/18/15
5/3/1 De-load (Lower Body)
Front Squat: 95x5, 135x5, 155x5
Deadlift: 185x5, 225x5, 275x5
1 Arm KB Snatch: 50 - 1x20 (each side)
Double Jerks: 40 - 1x20
Plank: 3x30 secs
Back Extentions: 3x10
Good easy day. I spent most of my energy hauling massive tree limbs that fell from the ice storm here in the south yesterday so it was nice getting an easy session in today. Still trying to work on my Jerk form and staying relaxed during Snatches as opposed to the hard style that I’ve been using for the past year. Left my two 55# kettlebells at home so I knew I wouldn’t want to push it today. Starting to toy with the idea of going with timed sets next week for my kettlebell work. It would make me push my pace a little more instead of doing a kettlebell move superset with abs or pull-ups.
Finally came up with my 5/3/1 Training Template for the next 3 weeks. I am making this one for 3 weeks only just to see how recovery and performance goes. After some suggestions in the kettlebell training thread I will be going with timed sets for kettlebell work with the roll of the dice again. My first week will be 8 minute sets.
Day 1
Bench Press: 5/3/1
Double KB Jerks: for time
Dumbbell Row: 5x10
DB Curls -superset- Tricep Pushdowns: 3x10 (optional)
Day 2
Front Squat: 5/3/1
Front Squat: 3xFSL (first set last)
1 Arm Kettlebell Snatch: for time
Abs / Lower Back: 3-5x10
Day 3
Overhead Press: 5/3/1
Long Cycle: for time
Lat Pulldowns: 5x10
Lateral Raises -superset- Rear Delt work: 3x10 (optional)
Day 4
Deadlift: 5/3/1
Deadlift: 3xFSL (maybe)
Double Snatch or 2 Hand Swing: for time (will be swings if doing FSL on deads but want double snatch if recovery is good)
Abs / Lower Back: 3-5x10
This is the starting point of my template moving forward for the next several weeks. The arm and shoulder work will be done if I’m not too gassed from my kettlebell work on those days. For now I will probably do lat pulldowns instead of chin ups so I can keep an even balance on my pushing and pulling motions. Also I’m hoping this will help with my muscular endurance for my back to keep up with the kettlebell work since it involves a good deal of pulling type work. Going to still go with first set last with front squats to get some extra squatting volume in. My deadlift days are going to be played by ear. First set last seems like a good idea but I’ll be adding more hinge type volume over more hinge volume and not sure if I will have the energy to put forth a good timed kettlebell set. With that said that is why I am putting in the two hand swing option to give me a good secondary kettlebell movement if hands and recovery are not up to par on Fridays. I almost hate getting my template setup the week before because it gets me anxious and ready to start it NOW. Just jotting my ideas and explanation down so when I start this workout I can come back to it and see why in the world I did what I did.
I really like the looks of your template, man. I’ll be following along.
The KB-fanboys-community here seems to have perked up a bit.
[quote]ActivitiesGuy wrote:
I really like the looks of your template, man. I’ll be following along.
The KB-fanboys-community here seems to have perked up a bit.[/quote]
Thanks! I’m glad the kettlebell is starting to make some noise on this site and forum a little bit. Maybe one day they will make an actual forum for us Kettlebell Geeks. You are doing a good job spreading the word on other forums for our cause! I am trying to spread the word at the gym to my bodybuilding and powerlifting buddies. It is a little difficult just because at the time I go it is mostly the 35-55 crowd and they are either too set in their ways or they are worried they will throw their back out. My response to the part about throwing the back out is I tell them “If you can have sex without throwing your back out, then you can swing a kettlebell and probably do it longer!” The older guys find it hilarious but the guys closer to our age look at me pretty stupid!
2/20/15
Kettlebell Workout
5 Round of:
5 x Pull-Ups
5 x Long Cycle (2-55)
5 x Front Squat (2-55)
10 x 2 Hand Swing (80)
This was a fun workout to do at home. Front Squats right after long cycle was pretty fun and could really feel my abs working overtime with this movement. It was nice to be at home with this workout because I feel like I could work on my technique a lot more with Long Cycle. I started to understand why the kb sport guys rest their elbows on their hips. For me it seemed to take a lot of tension off of my upper back. Once I got comfortable with my elbow positioning, the movement felt a lot more efficient. This will be helpful with my timed sets moving forward. Once I finished the last jerk I kept the bells higher to do my front squats. After the circuit I did a few snatches for technique work as well. I started to realize that if we had to cancel the gym membership this would be the style of workouts I would do at home after timed sets of kettlebell work. I mentioned to my wife that if I bought two 70# Kettlebells I probably wouldn’t need the gym anymore. Of course she likes going to the gym for lifting and classes so my idea was shot down pretty quick. Although she didn’t shoot down my thought of double 70’s!! 
2/23/15
5/3/1
Bench Press Day (70%, 80%, 90%)
Bench Press: 190x3, 215x3, 245x6 (PR)
Double KB Jerks: 8:00 55#KB’s - 40 reps
Barbell Row: 135x10, 155x10, 175x10, 155x10, 135x10
Broke my previous rep record with 245 by 1 rep and was very pleased with this! All of my warm ups and work sets were feeling very crisp which really built my confidence going into the PR set. Then I feel like the REAL workout started after that!!! I started feeling really good with jerks. I had it in my head that I was going to really pace myself and not do too much too soon. Apparently I do not have any sense of time!! I got to rep 12 thinking I bet a couple of minutes have gone by… WRONG!! I looked down at my timer and 1 minute and 15 seconds had passed. I really slowed down from there trying to pace it and started getting tired. Had to sit the bells down a few of times to give myself a rest. 40 will be my starting point but want to get to where I don’t have to sit the bells down is my ultimate goal. Not going to beat myself up too much after day one! The rows felt really good and powerful. I was out of gas after the 3rd set and just decided to work down from there. What’s bad is I sort of lol’ed to myself after rows and looked at my phone to see the 3 sets of 10 arm work!! That was REALLY not happening today and is why I put it as optional in my log!!!
2/25/15
Front Squat Day (70%,80%,90%)
Front Squat: 185x3, 205x3, 230x6
Front Squat: 185 - 3x5
1 Arm KB Snatch: 8:00 55#KB - 97 reps
Leg Raises: 3x10 - BW
Back Extensions: 3x10 - BW
Gym was really crowded today and all of the squat racks were taken when I got there. I found a bar and an empty space and did power cleans and then front squatted until a rack came available. Luckily a space came open after several sets and could finish out my front squats in the rack. Pretty happy with 230 for 6 reps considering how off I felt not starting in the rack. Snatches were feeling really good but my grip was giving out due to sweat. I tried to concentrate on pacing myself and not do too much too soon.
We are supposed to be getting a pretty decent snow storm here in the south overnight so my Overhead Press and Long Cycle workout is up in the air right now. If we do get snowed I may just do Long Cycle at my house and save presses for another day.
I know we totally freak out here in the south when we see a snowflake!!
To echo ActivitiesGuy up there, this is a nice mix of lifting with the KB’s for conditioning. LOL! I did see a 10# pink KB this week at the store, so apparently they are IN.
Really nice to have options for home. I’m a KB newbie but I see all your fancy double KB swings, snatches and jerks. Hopefully as I get my form down with this I can expand into learning some new moves.
[quote]Powerpuff wrote:
To echo ActivitiesGuy up there, this is a nice mix of lifting with the KB’s for conditioning. LOL! I did see a 10# pink KB this week at the store, so apparently they are IN.
Really nice to have options for home. I’m a KB newbie but I see all your fancy double KB swings, snatches and jerks. Hopefully as I get my form down with this I can expand into learning some new moves. [/quote]
Thanks for checking out my log. The lifting and KB work is fun and keeps me motivated. Once you master the swing, all of the other moves seem to fall into place. Doubles work just kind of took things to a slightly different level.
2/26/15
Overhead Press Day (70%,80%,90%)
Overhead Press: 135x3, 150x3, 170x3
Long Cycle: 8:00 55#KB - 36
Pull Ups: 8,6,5,3,3
I went to the gym earlier than I normally do since work was closed yesterday due to snow (which melted by 8:00) and my son was napping. People were packed in the gym like sardines!! Physically I was fine but mentally I did not feel in the ball game. Pushing for extra reps on overhead presses was going to be too much of a grind and in the back of my mind I knew I had Long Cycle next so I did not mind stopping at 3 reps. Nothing felt right about Long Cycle. Although I did pace myself a lot better, it wasn’t until the very end I came up with a decent system for this move. I was bad about cleaning the bells, resting for a few seconds and then jerk. When I started cleaning the bells, rested for maybe a 2 count, jerk, and then rested in the rack position before my next rep I was able to keep pace and control my breathing better. I was able to crank out 12 really good reps consecutively towards the end. Wanted to do Lat Pulldowns after I got 25 pull ups but every cable station was taken. Also every dumbbell from 20-35 was taken so I couldn’t do any type of lateral raises. Granted I was pretty tired and was starting to get hungry so I wasn’t too bummed about packing up and heading home.
2/27/15
5/3/1
Power Clean Day (70%,80%,90%)
Power Clean: 150x3, 170x3, 195x3
Box Squat: 225x5, 255x5, 290x5
1 Arm KB Snatch: 8:00 55#KB - 121 reps (PR)
Plank: 3x30 secs
Back Extensions: 3x10 / BW
Switching to Power Cleans this cycle due to Deadlifts being a little hard to recover from lately. I went with the minimum reps here to keep some energy in the tank. Box Squats felt good considering I haven’t done them in a while. The box I was using put me right at parallel or maybe slightly above. I set a training max for these and will use 5’ Pro until 5 reps become a little too heavy and will switch to the normal 5/3/1 sets. Snatches felt the best they have in a long time. The 121 reps is the most I have done in 8 minutes.
3/2/15
5/3/1
Bench Press Day (65%, 75%, 85%)
Bench Press: 175x5, 205x5, 230x5
Double KB Jerks: 7:00 55#KB’s - 42 reps
Pendlay Row: 135 - 5x10
Cable Curls / Rope Pushdowns: 40/35 - 3x10
Bench Press felt weird today but nothing to stress about. 5’s week is becoming my least favorite week in 5/3/1. The 3’s week has become my favorite over the past 2 months. Jerks felt a lot better today than last week. It was nice getting more reps with less time. Improvement!! Pendlay Rows were pretty tiring especially after kettlebell work today. Did not have much energy to go above 135. Topped the workout off with a decent arm pump. Loved cable curls!
3/3/15
Front Squat Day (65%,75%,85%)
Front Squat: 165x5, 190x5, 225x5
Front Squat: 165 - 3x5
1 Arm KB Snatch: 7:00 55#KB - 92 reps
Leg Raises: 3x10 - BW
Hips were pretty tight during squats despite doing stretches and a few prying goblet squats as a warm up. The 225x5 was the best “feeling” set out of all I did today, including the 165 sets. Snatches were exhausting today but was pretty happy with the amount of reps I got. Skipped lower back work since I felt like I got more lower back doing snatches than I like to feel. Form was getting a bit sloppy towards the end. Pretty good day overall.
3/4/15
5/3/1
Overhead Press Day (65%, 75%, 85%)
Overhead Press: 120x5, 140x5, 160x5
Long Cycle: 7:00 55#KB - 38
Lat Pulldowns: 100x10, 115x10, 130x10, 145x10, 100x15
Lateral Raises: 20 - 3x10
Band Pull-Aparts (Blue): 3x10
This was my best feeling session of the week so far. Presses felt really good and Long Cycle also felt a lot better. Was pretty happy to add 2 more reps in 1 minute less time. I need to get a better feel for the Sport Long Cycle technique in how they rest their elbows on their hips and are able to kind of rest in the rack position. My technique is stuck somewhere between the sport style and hard-style. When I get tired is when hard-style takes over which it should be the other way around in my opinion. Still a work in progress!! Felt weird doing lat pulldowns instead of pull-ups but got a nice pump from the higher rep work. Stress free shoulder work to finish!
3/6/15
5/3/1
Power Clean Day (65%,75%,85%)
Power Clean: 140x5, 160x5, 185x5
Box Squat: 210x5, 245x5, 275x5
1 Arm KB Snatch: 7:00 55#KB - 110 reps
Decline Sit Ups: BW - 3x15
Mobility Work
3/7/15
5 x 50 yard sprints
5 x Single Stair Sprints
5 x Hill Sprints
1 x 400 meter
Was pretty happy with these two workouts Friday and Saturday. I was glad to finally get outside and get some sprints done since the weather has been pretty wacky for a while. My legs were surprisingly sore Sunday morning when I woke up!
3/9/15
5/3/1
Bench Press Day (75%, 85%, 95%)
Bench Press: 205x5, 230x3, 255x4 (PR)
Double KB Jerks: 5:00 55#KB’s - 36 reps
Barbell Row: 135x10, 155x10, 175x10, 155x10, 135x10
Had a nice PR on bench press today. My big goal was to get 5 reps today but was VERY happy with 4. I contemplated pushing for 1 more rep but not sure if it would’ve happened or not. Pushed the jerks pretty good since it was only a 5 minute set. Whatever energy I had left was put towards rows which I didn’t feel like was much! Skipped the arm work today which I feel like I couldn’t have put much of a decent effort into.
3/11/15
5/3/1
Front Squat Day (75%, 85%, 95%)
Front Squat: 190x5, 220x3, 245x5 (PR)
Front Squat: 190 - 5x5
2 Hand KB Swing: 5:00 55#KB - 153 reps
Leg Raise: 3x10 - BW
Really good day today. I moved my stance in a little bit for front squats and felt a lot more explosive on all sets. I maybe had 1-2 more reps left in me but didn’t push it and will save it for another day. Decided to do 2 hand swings instead of snatches because I was pretty drained from squats and honestly the kettlebell felt like it weighed 100# instead of 55#. My glutes and forearms were burning the last minute of swings. Very happy with this session!!
3/12/15
5/3/1
Overhead Press Day (75%, 85%, 95%)
Overhead Press: 140x5, 160x3, 175x3 (PR)
Long Cycle: 5:00 55#KB - 36
Pull-Ups: 8,6,6,5
Lat Pulldowns: 100x15 rest 10 secs then 10 more reps
Lateral Raises: 20 - 3x10
Band Pull-Aparts (Blue): 3x10
Could not quite lockout a 4th rep on overhead presses today but still happy with a 3 rep PR today. Today was my best feeling Long Cycle day I have had since I started the move. I cranked out 20 straight in 2 minutes and 20 secs. Sat them down for a few seconds and cranked out another 16. Very happy with this. After getting 25 pull-ups I went to the Lat Pulldown and repped out a total of 25 the best I could. It’s been a really good week so far!
3/13/15
5/3/1
Power Clean Day (75%,85%,95%)
Power Clean: 160x5, 185x3, 205x3
Box Squat: 245x5, 275x5, 305x5
1 Arm KB Snatch: 5:00 55#KB - 103 reps
Decline Sit Ups: BW - 3x15
Pretty good workout on Friday. Felt good to hit the RKC Snatch test of 100 reps in 5 minutes again on top of the other work that was done that day. This time I did not feel like I was about to die afterwards. The first time I got the 100 reps (last year) I had to lay on the floor for a minute or two but I can tell my conditioning has gotten a lot better since then. I did not go to the track on Saturday but went to the playground with my wife and son and we hung out there for a few hours playing basketball and chasing him everywhere. Also did several sets of pull-ups on the bars since we were the only ones out there.